Tee-hee - - - cameo.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Pot Maintainence: Before & After
The Victim: used Electro-Harmonix Graphic Fuzz
The Culprit: hair, dust, dirt, and grease stuck in slider pots
The Solution: WD40/rubbing alcohol + cotton swabs and toothpicks
bye
The Culprit: hair, dust, dirt, and grease stuck in slider pots
The Solution: WD40/rubbing alcohol + cotton swabs and toothpicks
bye
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Fuzz: The Sound That Revolutionized the World
A very interesting documentary on the popularity of fuzz pedals, DIY noise culture, and the resurgence of the boutique pedal market including an intimate view into Death By Audio Factory/Showspace, and interviews with ZVEX, analogman, and Robert Keeley.
stream here:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x79gto_fuzz-01_music
DIY resources
I have been spending a lot of time on the web searching through DIY resources lately (there is no lack of them) so I'll list some of the better links I've found down below. Extreme linkage to follow:
Components stores (just say no to radio shack)
futurelec: http://www.futurlec.com/index.shtml (best prices on resistors, 2-3 wk shipping)
smallbear: http://www.smallbearelec.com/StoreFront.bok (2nd best prices, bigger audio selection)
diystompboxes: http://www.diystompboxes.com/zencart/ (best deal on switches)
Full Kits/instructions/schematics/etc
General Guitar Gadgets: http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/ (free instructions if you already have the parts, also sells full kits and/or ready to solder PCBs)
BYOC: http://www.buildyourownclone.com/ (ask allen)
diyStompboxes forums: http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/ (awesome forum + parts store)
experimentalists anonymous: http://www.experimentalistsanonymous.com/diy/index.php?dir=Schematics (schematics for every pedal known to man, and forums)
tonepad: http://www.tonepad.com/ (free layouts, they sell ready to solder PCBs too)
4ms pedals: http://4mspedals.com/ (advanced expensive shit. free layouts + kits for sale. each pedal has like 20+ knobs)
Commercial Modding
BossAREA: http://www.bossarea.com/forum/forum.asp?FORUM_ID=10 (best BOSS mod reference, and great BOSS history site with every BOSS pedal every made)
analogman: http://www.buyanalogman.com/ (he will fix your pedals)
keeley: http://www.robertkeeley.com/home.php (that compressor dude, but he does a ton of other mods too like the ds-1 mod)
Death by Audio: http://www.deathbyaudio.net/ (not mods but the sickest noise makers you will find)
I'm waiting for parts, but once I get everything I'll be embarking on a few adventures of my own:
1) Adding a feedback loop to my DD-3 delay (each repeat adds more of the looped effect, flanger/chorus/whatever pedal/etc)
2) Shin-ei companion fuzz fy-2 clone, the harshest noisiest fuzz ever created...see jesus and mary chain psychocandy.
3) DBA total sonic annihilation clone: saving myself 200 bucks on what seems like a great beginner project.
Components stores (just say no to radio shack)
futurelec: http://www.futurlec.com/index.shtml (best prices on resistors, 2-3 wk shipping)
smallbear: http://www.smallbearelec.com/StoreFront.bok (2nd best prices, bigger audio selection)
diystompboxes: http://www.diystompboxes.com/zencart/ (best deal on switches)
Full Kits/instructions/schematics/etc
General Guitar Gadgets: http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/ (free instructions if you already have the parts, also sells full kits and/or ready to solder PCBs)
BYOC: http://www.buildyourownclone.com/ (ask allen)
diyStompboxes forums: http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/ (awesome forum + parts store)
experimentalists anonymous: http://www.experimentalistsanonymous.com/diy/index.php?dir=Schematics (schematics for every pedal known to man, and forums)
tonepad: http://www.tonepad.com/ (free layouts, they sell ready to solder PCBs too)
4ms pedals: http://4mspedals.com/ (advanced expensive shit. free layouts + kits for sale. each pedal has like 20+ knobs)
Commercial Modding
BossAREA: http://www.bossarea.com/forum/forum.asp?FORUM_ID=10 (best BOSS mod reference, and great BOSS history site with every BOSS pedal every made)
analogman: http://www.buyanalogman.com/ (he will fix your pedals)
keeley: http://www.robertkeeley.com/home.php (that compressor dude, but he does a ton of other mods too like the ds-1 mod)
Death by Audio: http://www.deathbyaudio.net/ (not mods but the sickest noise makers you will find)
I'm waiting for parts, but once I get everything I'll be embarking on a few adventures of my own:
1) Adding a feedback loop to my DD-3 delay (each repeat adds more of the looped effect, flanger/chorus/whatever pedal/etc)
2) Shin-ei companion fuzz fy-2 clone, the harshest noisiest fuzz ever created...see jesus and mary chain psychocandy.
3) DBA total sonic annihilation clone: saving myself 200 bucks on what seems like a great beginner project.
-guess
Friday, December 25, 2009
Danelectro Fab Tone: thick, thick, thick...
8/10
This was one of my first pedals, so this review will be fun.
In fact, I think when I got this thing I still had my old Zoom effects processor. That was my very first pedal, but a lot of us started like that. Christmas, 1999, and I was jazzed beyond belief by this thing. Say what you will about multieffects processors, but they're somewhere between a sampler pack and a gateway drug.
Danelectro's Fab Tone is a powerful pedal, capable of creating apocalyptic levels of fuzz. In my pedal chain, it's the distortion I kick on when I want sudden crushing intensity. For reference, my other distortions are a Boss DS-1, a Digitech Bad Monkey, and a Boss MT-2. Fab Tone + Bad Monkey = bass-heavy thickness that may or may not have been responsible for two blown speakers this year alone. This is a pedal for people who want obscene amounts of power at their command.
The logical flipside, is that this is not a pedal for subtle players or players with small pedalboards (4 pedals or fewer). It's not a good standalone distortion, you're going to want to find yourself a good primary distortion (DS-1, Tube Screamer, you know the usual suspects) and use the Fab Tone for dynamics or tonal variety. This thing's amazing when you layer it on another distortion, its tonal transformative qualities must be experienced to be believed.
The controls are simple and accurate. Volume, two tone controls, and a "fab" knob controls the distortion effect. The tone controls cover a wide range, you can achieve anything from a super-thick, speaker-rattling low-end crush to a cutting, trebly, earsplitting shredder fuzz. With controls this good, you also end up with a pedal that can either dramatically drop or raise your signal level. The Fab Tone is not only a pedal for tone nerds but for dynamics nerds as well.
For its apocalyptic nature, control setup, and indestructible casing (believe me, I've abused mine), I'm giving the Danelectro Fab Tone 8 PBRs out of 10. It's not a perfect score because, as good as this pedal is, it's not a standalone pedal. A perfect pedal, for me, is a box that could stand alone.
You'll hear about such a pedal when I talk about my Rocktron Short Timer, but we'll get to that.
This was one of my first pedals, so this review will be fun.
In fact, I think when I got this thing I still had my old Zoom effects processor. That was my very first pedal, but a lot of us started like that. Christmas, 1999, and I was jazzed beyond belief by this thing. Say what you will about multieffects processors, but they're somewhere between a sampler pack and a gateway drug.
Danelectro's Fab Tone is a powerful pedal, capable of creating apocalyptic levels of fuzz. In my pedal chain, it's the distortion I kick on when I want sudden crushing intensity. For reference, my other distortions are a Boss DS-1, a Digitech Bad Monkey, and a Boss MT-2. Fab Tone + Bad Monkey = bass-heavy thickness that may or may not have been responsible for two blown speakers this year alone. This is a pedal for people who want obscene amounts of power at their command.
The logical flipside, is that this is not a pedal for subtle players or players with small pedalboards (4 pedals or fewer). It's not a good standalone distortion, you're going to want to find yourself a good primary distortion (DS-1, Tube Screamer, you know the usual suspects) and use the Fab Tone for dynamics or tonal variety. This thing's amazing when you layer it on another distortion, its tonal transformative qualities must be experienced to be believed.
The controls are simple and accurate. Volume, two tone controls, and a "fab" knob controls the distortion effect. The tone controls cover a wide range, you can achieve anything from a super-thick, speaker-rattling low-end crush to a cutting, trebly, earsplitting shredder fuzz. With controls this good, you also end up with a pedal that can either dramatically drop or raise your signal level. The Fab Tone is not only a pedal for tone nerds but for dynamics nerds as well.
For its apocalyptic nature, control setup, and indestructible casing (believe me, I've abused mine), I'm giving the Danelectro Fab Tone 8 PBRs out of 10. It's not a perfect score because, as good as this pedal is, it's not a standalone pedal. A perfect pedal, for me, is a box that could stand alone.
You'll hear about such a pedal when I talk about my Rocktron Short Timer, but we'll get to that.
c.hill
Friday, December 18, 2009
Rocktron Tsunami: fix it, please.
2/10
As amazing as my Rocktron Short Timer delay is, I had high hopes for the Tsunami chorus. I tested it out with an ash body Tele and a Fender tube... I want to say a Hot Rod, but you know the amp. Fender through Fender, clean tone, a sound I know very well. I wanted to be able to zero in on everything this pedal does.
If you've read its descriptions, it's implied that it's a chorus + delay. A short delay function exists for what Rocktron calls "ambience," and the prospect of a chorus with a built-in, selectable delay is almost too good to be true.
Ok, it is too good to be true.
It's an attractive pedal, so first impressions tend to be good. Rocktron makes slick and stylish oversized pedals. I mean, these things are designed with a boutique look that's going to make gearheads look twice. The Tsunami is an eye-catching electric purple with two buttons and three LEDs, a visually striking pedal that screams potential.
I plugged it in and hit the "effect on" button and nothing happened. The delay was turned all the way down and it turns out that the left button doesn't add delay to the chorus, it's a selector! So I maxxed the delay, setting both relevant knobs to 10 (what delay only has two controls?), and was greeted with a slapback so light I could barely hear it. I mean, a reverb tank set to 1 gives me more ambience than this! Allen and I experimented with the controls a little, but the only way we could actually tell this effect was active was if Allen turned the knobs while I was playing. The speed shift also shifts the pitch, resulting in a light tonal warbling, but it's nothing to write Mono about.
I expected more from the makers of the Short Timer and the Austin Gold.
The chorus effect isn't any better. It's as heavy-handed as the delay function is weak, but what do you expect from a chorus controlled by (get this) only two knobs? It sounds like the plastic choruses that were a dime a dozen in the '90s, when all the 16-year-olds got Strats and solid state Princetons and learned "Come as You Are."
See, the biggest design flaw of this pedal is its raison d'etre! They had a great idea, a pedal marrying delay and chorus, but Rocktron's poor execution ruins both effects. They crammed two pedals into one and both effects suffered. Each effect is controlled by completely separate controls and there is absolutely no blend option!
This thing reminds me of DOD's bad years. No wonder I can no longer find it on Rocktron's site, or Musician's Friend.
It pains me to burn a company that's been so good to me, but I'm giving the Rocktron Tsunami 2 PBRs (of a possible 10).
As amazing as my Rocktron Short Timer delay is, I had high hopes for the Tsunami chorus. I tested it out with an ash body Tele and a Fender tube... I want to say a Hot Rod, but you know the amp. Fender through Fender, clean tone, a sound I know very well. I wanted to be able to zero in on everything this pedal does.
If you've read its descriptions, it's implied that it's a chorus + delay. A short delay function exists for what Rocktron calls "ambience," and the prospect of a chorus with a built-in, selectable delay is almost too good to be true.
Ok, it is too good to be true.
It's an attractive pedal, so first impressions tend to be good. Rocktron makes slick and stylish oversized pedals. I mean, these things are designed with a boutique look that's going to make gearheads look twice. The Tsunami is an eye-catching electric purple with two buttons and three LEDs, a visually striking pedal that screams potential.
I plugged it in and hit the "effect on" button and nothing happened. The delay was turned all the way down and it turns out that the left button doesn't add delay to the chorus, it's a selector! So I maxxed the delay, setting both relevant knobs to 10 (what delay only has two controls?), and was greeted with a slapback so light I could barely hear it. I mean, a reverb tank set to 1 gives me more ambience than this! Allen and I experimented with the controls a little, but the only way we could actually tell this effect was active was if Allen turned the knobs while I was playing. The speed shift also shifts the pitch, resulting in a light tonal warbling, but it's nothing to write Mono about.
I expected more from the makers of the Short Timer and the Austin Gold.
The chorus effect isn't any better. It's as heavy-handed as the delay function is weak, but what do you expect from a chorus controlled by (get this) only two knobs? It sounds like the plastic choruses that were a dime a dozen in the '90s, when all the 16-year-olds got Strats and solid state Princetons and learned "Come as You Are."
See, the biggest design flaw of this pedal is its raison d'etre! They had a great idea, a pedal marrying delay and chorus, but Rocktron's poor execution ruins both effects. They crammed two pedals into one and both effects suffered. Each effect is controlled by completely separate controls and there is absolutely no blend option!
This thing reminds me of DOD's bad years. No wonder I can no longer find it on Rocktron's site, or Musician's Friend.
It pains me to burn a company that's been so good to me, but I'm giving the Rocktron Tsunami 2 PBRs (of a possible 10).
c.hill
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