Alligator Arms

Tell me this is not the best thing ever! I went to a Black Crowes concert last night at the Nokia theater in Los Angeles... and this little box was sitting on top of an amp, right behind Rich Robinson. And even if Brian Setzer is not your thing (he achieves the same sound this little box provides), this is a must-have Christmas request from Santa (but he has to have deep pockets... not alligator arms... when it comes to buying it), since they run around $1080.00.

Clip for the Day

Stranglers....

Drunk Gorilla's

I am fairly new to this... having previously owned an all-in-one pedalboard that came with built-in wah/ volume control, and more sounds than a drunk gorilla at the zoo. The correct way to line up your pedals on your new, hand assembled professional pedalboard should be as follows... Line in > Tuner (a Boss tuner is apparently what most people choose) > Filters or Wah (since it works off the signal attack from your playing) > Compressor (put as early as possible due to increased noise level) > Overdrive (which is placed before modulation, therefore not fed modulated sounds) > Modulation ... (like Flangers, Phasers, Chorus and Trem) > Volume (last... since it then will not alter the signal level.. will keep the tone, and allow the delay to finish the job after the volume has been minimized.... finally, reverbs and delays are hard to tame and octave overdrives can produce spikes... so taking all these details... and the noisy gorilla... into account, pedalboard layout should be well planned and properly laid out. If you don't take the time, you risk stifling your board.

Pop Song for the Day...

Youtube.

BJFe Stack #4

PGC>BBOD or DRD>HB is another stack mentioned by Bjorn (or BJFe pedals... and DRD stands for Dyna Red Distortion). I'll let him comment from the interview (link in previous post) ... "PGC (Pale Green Compressor) is used to keep approximate level and mainly restrict the peaks lightly and thus add more gas to the engine, while HB (Honey Bee) is used to put a limit so that the harder the system is hit, the more it distorts.. but it can clean up by a mere touch of striking force. HB is also used as an inverse boost, setting a limit to protrudeness of main overdrive distortion. This can set the sound from soft to protruding leads and thus place the guitar back and forth in the sound landscape. HB is also used by itself to give distortion at will, but softer than the clean sound used". I would listen to Bjorn... he probably knows more about pedal effects electronics than most in the business.

BJFe Stack #3

Directly from Bjorn....'BBOD > DRD > BPB
Using the Master Volume amp analogy - we can set the BBOD to a setting similar to preamp over drive (saturated drive at low level)
and the DRD at lower distortion but raised level so it has more punch and dynamics like a high headroom power amp....
and then use the BPB at the end to simply raise the level of either or both drive pedals......giving us the BBOD by itself , the DRD by itself and the combination of the two and then a straight level boost of any of these or the straight clean signal from the BPB' (I have a RRB... Red Rooster Booster in last position for now... updated photo soon).

BJFe Stacking #2

Here she is in bad photoshop for all to see (visually) ... what Mr BJFe (Bjorn Juhl) describes as one of his personal favourites... PGC>LGW>DRD. As he says...'PGC is mostly used for clean sounds and DRD provides moderate distortion that can be worked from the volume control while engaging LGW into DRD gives this very easily played "hero" sound. It is great fun, as it has very high gain but is still well defined enough that any chord sustains for the longest time. This sound combination is quite different from just turning up the distortion of DRD. Depending on the which amp is used... add Sea Blue EQ or HB (Honey Bee).... some salt, paprika and maybe a little other seasoning.

I Know You Wanted It....

Following the advice given by Bjorn himself, in the interview here, with Six String Soul, I am going to Photoshop (not meant to be picture perfect) the stacking setups of his pedals that he recommends. He says that "stacking" is a craze to some gearheads, and that the above combination (described in the interview as: PGC>MGMV>EGDM>LGW) is known as his "Green Sound". He says the PGC (Pale Green Compressor) is used to give a hint of sustain and keep control of peaks, so exact distortion levels can be set accurately. MGMV or MInt Green MIni Vibe (I quote) is used to give just a flickering of vibrato at the tail of phrases. LGW (Little Green Wonder) is there for just a tad of breakup as controlled by PGC. EGDM is finally set to give moderate distortion of it's own but in conjunction with the other pedals it adds just a protruding upper midrange to the LGW sound... just enough to make it standout. The 'Green Sound' allows several levels of distortion with or without compression as well as straight sound. I thought it would be nice to decode the descriptions for one and all (newbies) and lay them out visually as Bjorn describes it... so you can actually see what he puts together visually. Next up.. visual of: PGC>LGW>DRD. (Just for giggles and ....)

Bed Spins

So... are BJFe pedals worth all the hype and all the money? I just saw one of his compressor pedals that sold on EBay in September 2009, it came from the Doobie Brothers. Yes... I probably missed my chance to get a nice compressor pedal. Granted, the Doobie's can most likely afford the $$$, and they are going to buy a pedal for tone, not as pedalboard candy. I see lots of posts referring to money being better spent for rent, than on a BJFe pedal. Truth be told... BJFe's are some great pedals. They are also hand made and hand tuned (if you can find one) by Mr BJ himself. He is a fanatic and very talented. He is obviously driven (as is gearmanndude) to make a world contribution to tone. BJFe pedals are well constructed, and yes... also very attractive. They have a certain look about them... the boxes are very compact, and attractive. They currently sell used on EBay in the $400 to $500 range. That's 5 Fridays at the bar buying rounds of drinks for your friends... even for those making less than others, it is all about priorities. That's ok... and BJFe pedals don't lead to bed spins either... or chucking up in an alley somewhere... in addition, buy a set for your pedalboard, and maybe your guitar still cost you more.

Home Cookin' Good

I just purchased a BJFE Candy Apple Fuzz. It sounds truly home grown, home cookin' great. That said, I went out and also purchased a Harman Germanium Fuzz pedal too. I read a great review here... Karl (the author) points out that though he is crazy about the BJFe pedal line, he still opted to keep his Hartman Germanium Pedal(Steve Stevens is a lover of Hartman pedals too), and sell the BJFe. To quote Karl " I’m told that pedalboards are about tone, and that I should be keeping the pedals that sound the best. I’m seriously wondering right now if I shouldn’t just be picking the coolest-looking, rarest, and most handmade-looking-magic-mojo pedals. Would my rig be less toneful? Maybe. Would it be cooler? Absolutely". The BJFe is a boutique pedal, and so are Way Huge .. another great pedal (I like the originals from the 90's)... There is no doubt BJFe makes amazing pedals... they cost more than some other pedals... and yes, great eye appeal and that neat handwriting on the front by his wife and the great paint jobs is the first thing you see. I just spent $400+ on my BJFe Candy Apple Fuzz... and $187 on my Hartman Germanium Fuzz. I would say you could certainly put them in a boxing ring together and they can duke it out (like Gearmanndude does with his pedal collection). The BJFe sounds amazingly warm and original and might benefit from some stacking too (Bjorn recommends stacking). Many well-known artists stack BJFe's on their pedalboards and use them to come up with tones that define their playing. I will keep both ... and sell something else I own, not musically useful. Check them out for yourself though...Hartman Germanium.. and BJFe... and you decide. I still also love the smaller size of BJFe pedals too, as many other guitar pedals are bigger on your board... whilst Mr Bjorn's pedals are short and compact... and as I said, very well made. You can get them at CustomSounds (in Finland) who love to ship to the US.

Not Tone Sucking Vampire

Here she is... the Hilton Low Profile VP (Volume Pedal).
It can go on your pedalboard... or not. Usually the cons to a VP on your pedalboard is the space they can take up... at least this one takes up less, and is top of the line. You do not want a passive VP (without a buffer)... since it apparently sucks tone like a vampire. With an active VP this doesn't occur. (When a passive VP sucks the tone, it does it mainly on the high end). But hey... one guy says on-line that he has been playing without ANY VP for 15 years. I guess it all depends how good he is whether I should listen to that. A VP is a useful application... and place it last on your pedalboard. It's main plus is that you can adjust the volume with the VP to achieve good saturation with your pedals at lower volumes... I am still having trouble making room for one right now on my overcrowded little pedalboard... which is more crowded than the last lifeboat off the Titanic.

Newly Minted Pedal Geek

I just ordered
a Divided By 13 Dyna-Ranger Pedal.... go here on youtube to check out how this little number sounds (courtesy Wild West Guitars). Go here also for more info on Divided By's site. Apparently used by none other than Mr Clapton. What I especially liked (as a newly minted pedal geek) is the original glass Mullard OC44 transistor in this puppy. It is also used by David Gilmore, Tony Iommi and Brian May. Going from position 1 to 5, it goes all the way from traditional treble booster to lower Sabbath tones (this straight from their site). It is the perfect sounding boost/ drive pedal... and I am a convert from hearing what they can do.
If you really want to go crazy... you can add extra resistors to your order (SKT275, CV7003, Metal OC44's) since there is a socket for the transistor, allowing you to swap them around... wow.

Vox Clyde McCoy Wah

When you go to heaven and put together that legendary pedalboard... yes... the one you have always dreamed of, it will certainly include one of these... a 1967 Vox Clyde McCoy Wah .. made in Italy, with the script writing on the back.. Hendrix and countless other famous musicians have used them.

HIERARCHY OF NEEDS

I have just purchased another pedal on Ebay... as you can all see, on the Hierarchy of Needs Diagram, this is perfectly allowable. Pedals are more important than Food or Safety... hence the latest purchase of a Baby Blue Overdrive made by BJFe (with the little drawings by Mrs BJFe). It appears that Gearmanndude has not evaluated one yet from what I can tell, so have to send you here...In Bjorn's own words 'Baby Blue Overdrive, that is a pedal that would rather give overdriven sounds to a clean amplifier than further push an amp. Many blues, fusion, and country players like this one and it gives the necessary complexity of distortion at control of the fingertips to a clean amp. Its range of distortion also allows heavy sounds'. Meanwhile, my Wah-Wah Pedal and assorted connecting cables and Voodoo power box will have to wait.

Rocket Science

My attitude is... most stuff IS rocket science. If you approach everything professionally, with the attitude that
it's rocket science, it not only becomes easy, it becomes cool. Take a professional pedal board and matching case...
I just went down the hill in Hollywood, to A&S Flight Cases... and picked myself up my first pedalboard and case. If you are going to assemble a nice little collection of high-end (or low) pedals, why not protect the tools of your trade? And just like
gearmanndude says... get a nice Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2 to power it all up.

Way Huge....

Way Huge™ pedal (from the past) on the way... more info soon....

GEARMANNDUDE...

Whether you think Gearmanndude is Jack Black or not (some of his ... or maybe MOST of his famous youtube videos seem to have his voice-overs, in any case this guy has some seriously great humor... you can watch 'em all for some great entertainment, and learn a lot about guitars and pedals too) I just bought his 'custom painted' version of the 'Lutherdrive Overdrive'... based on the vintage TS-808 Tubescreamer cicuit. The Luther circuit is modified to have a tighter bottom end (in the demo's I've seen...it DOES), and it DOES have better clarity too... and all the artwork to boot....anyway... check 'em out.... more on it when I get it.

Lovepedal 'Toxic'

I have a Lovepedal 'Toxic' on the way... it's secondhand, with the chips to prove it...it has been described as 'way unique'.. and even with just one knob, is 'not a one-trick pony'. One reviewer said 'turned all the way up the toxic wants to rip my head off with massive, raging distortion/fuzz'. I'll have more to say when she arrives....

Little Green Wonder

Here is my latest addition to my growing pedal collection...made by BJF pedals. They are made by Bjorn Juhl... apparently his pedal genius started with his father ... who told him "What you need you can make yourself". This led to Bjorn using his mother's radio to build his first amplifier. His naming of the pedals is based on 'Adjective + Color + Device Function'... hence other pedals like 'Baby Blue Overdrive' and 'Dyna Red Distortion'. The 'Baby Blue Overdrive' gives overdriven sounds to a clean amplifier... for blues, fusion and country players. My 'Little Green Wonder' is for people who don't like TS Type Pedals (Tube Screamers... like the Ibanez Tube screamer which is an overdrive effect pedal with light distortion similar to the sound created by an overdriven tube amp... and sort of bluesy). Bjorn describes the Little Green Wonder as having high headroom overdrive and a stackable TS of sorts... and it's very much up to overdriving distorting amplifiers, but can also be used on it's own as a smoothing pedal for fuzzes or bright amplifiers (he says... ). Anyway, go to the link to read more about his 'Honey Bee OD' and 'Blue Berry Base Overdrive' too. Also his 'Dyna Red Distortion', 'Emerald Green Distortion Machine'.... 'Candy Apple Fuzz'...'Pink Purple Fuzz'... 'Pale Green Compressor'...'Red Rooster Booster'...'Baby Pink Booster'....hmmmmm...and all the drawings on the inside are made by Eva Juhl.... (Mrs. Bjorn)....my sister-in-law is Swedish, so I totally get all this.

Neat Pedal- Love Pedals

I found this Little Darling pictured on line... if she sounds as good as she looks, I bet she's worth the price. (I know this isn't a swear word... just the technical term for my dog). Go to Love Pedals to see what they currently have...

ZENKUDO

I was checking my bank account today, and found that I might (currently) be a little short on cash to afford the $55,000.00 to get a nice Dumble Amplifier head... but 'No Worries'... there is always ZENKUDO...Toshihiko Tanabe manufactures these pedals in Japan as a hobby, and you can order them directly from him. The Dumkudo (overdrive) is better suited to what I play (Telecaster with a singlecoil pickup)... so I am readying my $330 in a pile so I can get my 'Dumble' in a box. There are 3 modes.. LED RED = Marshall mode, LED BLUE = DUMKUDO MODE, and LED GREEN = DUMBLE MODE. And hey... I just saved $54,700, so I am going out for dinner tonight. Seriously though... check them out.

Dumble?

What is a Dumble Amp? I have heard a lot about these amps over the past couple years. He is rumored to build amps that cannot be discribed in
mortal words... I never really followed up on what Dumble was all about... until today. He has been building his amps for
many years. If you go to this link here... you can read a lot of rumors. Stories include odd clauses in your build contract (when you order the amp) that specify that if you call Mr Dumble before he is done building your amp, he keeps the amp. There is also another story that you must make your own shipping arrangements, and then send someone to Mr Dumble's door with a specially built box to pick your amp up (when it is ready). Prices are spoken of in urban-legend-type-tones... and supposedly range from $2500 (if you don't mind waiting... probably a long time)... to $5000 (for faster service... maybe, I am guessing, still in your lifetime)... to $15,000 (rumored... but possibly untrue). Wikipedia says his amps are now worth roughly the price of a condo in Florida, and there are still only a few hundred out there (to date). Since the 1980's he has been sealing his circuitry in some sort of 'goop' to prevent people trying to copy his secrets. Someone joked online that you have a better chance of making friends with John Mayer (who owns most of the Dumble amps out there supposedly)... and having him randomly give you
a Dumble... that of actually getting Dumble to build you one... As you know (if you read my posts) I am a follower and player of Louis Electric Amps, and own an early KR12, and a Buster Amp. I find my Louis Amps all I could ever want... but who knows... maybe one day I'll also have a Dumble (as long as I can resist calling him of course, before it is ready).... I guess I should also start saving. Someone on-line says that your best bet (remaining in reality here folks) is to get yourself a Kelley amp if you can find one, if you love the sound of a Dumble (and probably John Mayer).... also apparently try Two Rock Amps... they managed to get the 'goop' off a Dumble and find out what goes into them... apparently John Mayer agrees... he sent them his credit card. Buy a Two Rock 'Jet' Amp here. For further Dumble research... you can go here. Also, if you really want a Dumble, but lack 55K lying around your house.... maybe buy a Zendrive... for more info on these great pedals known as "Dumble In A Box" go here.

The Strength of A Gorilla

Higher gauge strings (ie. "thickerer" strings) can rock your world. I have .09/.11/.15/.30/.42/.52 on my Tele right now. I was having fun with The Black Keys "Thickfreakness", and noticed that thicker strings, and bare fingered playing... led to some really enjoyable tone. It seemed to feel much better having more string to play. Higher gauge strings supposedly result in slower attack and increased sustain... but that would depend on how strong your hands are, and how you play, but I guess it is all relative. If I use the same force on lighter strings (still playing Thickfreakness) they vibrate too much. Some claim that heavy strings have a clearer and more lively tone than lighter strings too... they also sustain longer, and have more effect on your pickups (same as moving your pickup closer to a light string). Some say they have stronger harmonics, more compressed attack, and a higher output, which I would agree with. Other ways to get compressed sound is through the use of a pedal... but the a pedal will not give you that great thick-string feel when you go play (if that is what you crave). You can also put a higher output pickup in your guitar... if that is what it is all about... or move the one you've got closer to the strings (as mentioned).
Heavier strings are more uncomfortable to play for some, but that would depend on how you like to play. If you have the strength of a gorilla, it's only going to feel better with thicker strings. If, on the other hand (no pun here) you begin to get signs of carpal tunnel syndrome.. you're not the gorilla you thought you were... so back off on the string gauges.
As we all know, Stevie Ray Vaughan loved heavy strings, and is rumored to have put Crazy Glue on his finger tips, to make it more comfortable to play those big cables.... anyway... give it a shot (but don't forget to have someone file your nut slots to fit those new strings!). Go here for more on this topic.

Build-it-yourself...

Why not build your own pickup? Alright... maybe you got a lot of things to do... like make a living, and don't want to save the $80 for someone else to do it for you...but if you want to learn how it goes together, and rejoice when it actually works... go here.