Winston Psmith

It's not really a "Cool New Effect", but . . . This thing is intriguing, if you're using a variety of MIDI-controlled gear live. It wants to be a sort of Swiss Army Knife of Controllers, with three different types of MIDI I/O, an EXP Control In jack, and a Utility Out jack that seems to function as an external control footswitch. (Think Tap Tempo, Hold effects, that sort of thing.) I like the idea, but I think anyone who really needs something like this would also need more of, well, everything, MIDI I/O's, more switches, and more Utility Out jacks, so in the end, you'd wind up with something much like the big red pedalboard the guy holds up early in the demo video. If you already have a pedalboard-style MFX, you can probably duplicate many of the Futurist's MIDI control functions, and some of its other control functions, from your existing pedalboard. FWIW, if you're not using much, or any, MIDI gear, this video will probably be of little interest to you, but it is an indication of where things are going.

Funny coincidence, I was just working on one of my Synth racks last night. Guitar is my main Instrument, so my focus is mainly on the sound engines, and I've had very good luck finding used hardware Synths. One of my personal favorites is my WaveStation SR, which cost me $150 at a local GC. I also have a TX81Z, a Proteus 2000, and a D-110, all of which are in good working order. (I also have a number of KB Synths, but we're talking Modules here, so . . .) I tend to drive everything with a Roland GR-series Guitar Synth, usually my GR-30 or GR-33. I also have a GR-20 and a GR-1, but I love driving other Synths with the Arpeggiators in the GR-30 and GR-33. I'm not going to try to start an argument over which or what is better, hardware vs software, digital vs analog, cats vs dogs, or what-have-you, although I'll admit to a certain fondness for affordable, or cheap, hardware. In terms of what I wanted, and a what I could afford, I'm very happy with what I've got, and it works for me, which is the real issue.

I remember playing one, briefly, way back when? There was also a less expensive Epiphone model, and a "Studio" model, without the sound hole, much like some of the current Godin Nylon String Electrics. I've only seen the Studio model depicted online, never encountered one IRL. The main thing I recall about the original SST is that it was surprisingly heavy, much more like a solidbody than a semi-hollow, and the soundhole seemed to be cosmetic, if not altogether superfluous?

Ah, there's that "Old Lang Sign" we've been hearing about for so long . . .

I wanted to be sure I'd really made it out of 2022 before responding. After all, one never knows, do one? I've said this elsewhere, but I feel like I've been following Yellowbeard's treasure map - "Stagger, stagger, crawl . . ." - without any certainty that there's really any treasure waiting to be found at the end? We've had no major setbacks this year, but not much to show for it, either. I've had a lot of work since Thanksgiving, but nearly all of it went into car or home repairs, like the kitchen faucet that turned into a fountain. The soundtrack of our lives, of late, resembles Devo's original motto: "The Sound Of Things Falling Apart." Novparolo got to perform for a couple of our favorite annual events, which also meant we got to see a bunch of EM friends we hadn't seen in quite a while. (The last in-person Electronica Fest was November 2019.) Somehow, we've also managed to keep recording and producing Music throughout this whole weird time. My current album project, Unstable Elements, is nearly done, then I have two more partially complete album projects to get back to. I've started going through all the User Memory banks in my Synths and MFX, moving Patch Banks around, deleting failed experiments, that sort of thing. No idea how long it'll take? I'm also hoping to pick up a new, or different Instrument this year, maybe the Violin? I got an interesting piece of advice from a Musician friend who's played the Violin for decades, which was to get one with a PU (of course), run it through a Distortion pedal and a Delay, and just saw away at it, until I start finding where the notes live on the fingerboard. I'm not sure how enjoyable that would be for anyone listening, but I like the idea. Beyond that, I can't honestly say that I'm looking forward to 2023. I don't really believe in the whole "New Year, New You" idea, but even so . . . Early this morning, the sky was streaked with warm, pink clouds, the last stragglers from last night's rain. Right now, the sun is lighting up the ornaments on my little Charlie Brown tree, while my wife and dogs sleep in. The air is warm, if a little damp, but it's drying out nicely. There is nowhere I have to be, and nothing I have to do, at least for today, but even in Winter, the garden needs tending, and there is always Music, so I'll find something. Happy New Year, all!

I bought a couple of old things that were "new to me", an Epiphone Mandobird IV, and a gently used Boss GT-6 MFX, in a heavy-duty Boss GT bag, with the original PS. I'd wanted a Mandobird for a while, but prices had gotten ridiculous, so when I saw one at my FLUMS for a more than fair price, I grabbed it. After a bit of adjustment, I like the feel of it, and people aren't always quite sure what they're seeing when I bring it out, which is part of the fun. The GT-6 was more of a back-up unit - I already have a GT-3, and a GT-10, but I'd been curious about the GT-6, which looked to have borrowed much of its design aesthetic, if not its sound engine, from the Roland GP-100. Of course, I couldn't resist running the Mandobird through the GT-6, and I've already worked up some patches just for the 'Bird. FWIW, the GT-5 & GT-3 were also supposed to have inherited parts of their sound engines from the GP-100 and the GX-700, but without the limitation of FX Algorithms. IMHO, the GP-100 went much deeper with the Modeling parameters, and some other functions, but the fixed Algorithms were deal-breaker for me.

"For Acoustic Guitars . . ." I've used a short, student-quality Bow, and you're almost better off to designate a Guitar just for bowing, in part because of the rosin, but also because a Guitar with a narrow neck radius is going to be somewhat better suited for bowing technique. I'd also recommend a solid plank with PU covers, so there's less chance of rosin getting into the guts of the Guitar.

@KuruPrionz- Much agreed on the overwhelming number of variables. I've said it before, but even the wall outlet you're plugged into can have an influence on your sound: ask anyone who's ever played a small club, where they're plugged into the same circuit as the ice machine, or the ventilation system. Still, you and I aren't fronting product demo videos. Foolish as it may seem, I expect a certain degree of professionalism if someone is going to present themselves as skilled and knowledgeable enough to demonstrate new gear. That means a Pro or Semi-Pro setup, maybe even a fully-equipped Music Studio, so that they can do a serious evaluation of the gear in question, before presenting it in a video. Otherwise, it's little more than a glorified unboxing video: "Hey, look what I got!" Back on topic . . . have we looked at this monster yet? The earliest models sold out in no time, and they're going for absurd prices in Ebay and Reverb. SUNN ((O)) Life Pedal

@Caevan O’Shite- I agree, a lot of pedals, particularly Dirt boxes, will sound like crap through a FRFR rig, or a JC, but that's kind of the point. I want to hear what the pedal does, in and of itself, before it hits a warm Amp, or a live room. I also think that we can better appreciate the subtleties of pedals like Delays, Reverbs and Pitch Shifters through a clean, even hi-fi Amp tone. Same thing with a 12-string Electric, a Hollow-Body, or an Acoustic/Electric. A nice overdriven Amp tone will warm up or liven up almost anything that's put into it, with the exception perhaps of Ring Mods and other Crapulators; lipstick on a pig, if you will. With too many demo videos, I'm hearing the Amp tone coloring everything else. In that regard, the most misrepresented pedal I own is the Walrus Messner OD. In every demo video I've seen, or heard, the demonstrator is using some variation on that same "nearly clean" Amp tone, and in every case, the Messner seems to deliver a nice, warm Low-Gain OD tone. However, plugged into an Amp on a true "clean" setting, like a JC-120 or a Polytone, the Messner reveals itself as more of a Boost pedal, where you really have to crank the settings to use it as a stand-alone Overdrive effect. I could see some players using it as an "Always-On" pedal,, but I can't really see anyone using it in place of a stock Tube Screamer or Boss OD?

I really think for a fair comparison, at least when demoing Guitars and Effects, I'd like to hear them start out through a FRFR system, then something like a clean JC-120 or a Polytone, and then move on to an overdriven or cranked Amp. If someone wanted to give an even fuller picture, they might run it into a DAW, or straight to a Mixing Board, so we could hear all or most of the potential uses, and tones. Amps, and Amp Modelers, should be demoed with a variety of Guitars, within reason - SC's, HB's & P90's, Solid, Hollow & Semi-Hollow, some different maybe a 12-string or ERG in the mix - and again, I'd want to hear a true clean tone, a mild Overdrive tone, and a fully cranked tone. Of course, not everyone has access to all of that gear, or all of those options, but then, we're not all fronting Product Demonstration videos, either.

Kim Simmonds' Waiting In The Bamboo Grove was an early inspiration for me, so back in the Summer of 1970, I went to see Savoy Brown at The Fillmore East, with Fleetwood Mac and Fairport Convention opening for them! Still glad I went!

A silver Klon recently sold for around $3,000 at my FLUMS, and I have no idea of the current prices of Dumble gear - at somewhere around $300US, the Unobtanium is a steal. I will offer my usual objection, which is that the "nearly clean" tone in the demo still had some hair on it. Just once, I'd like to see a demo video with a true clean, almost hi-fi tone, just to start with.

Many thanks, everyone! That Baker adapter @timwatsuggested might also help with some other old, oddball gear I have lying around. I'll definitely check those out. Otherwise, I think I'll go with AnalogMan's 12-volt adapter for my OD-2.

My bandmate recently gave me a MIT Boss OD-2 Turbo Overdrive - nice pedal, classic Boss OD sound, but it needs a 12-volt ACA adapter, if I want to run it independently. I'm looking for recommendations for a 12-volt adapter that won't fry out my pedal, or set fire to my house. I see a lot of cheap-ass adapters on Amazon and other sites, but nothing that I have any confidence in. In one listing, the manufacturer's name and country of origin were greyed out on the product photo?!? The ACA-series pedals will run off of a 9-volt battery, or in a daisy-chain with other 9-volt pedals, but as a stand-alone pedal, they've gotta have their 12 volts. I have 12-volt Outs on my Voodoo Lab 4X4 PS, but no 12-volt adapters. Thoughts, suggestions, humorous asides gladly welcomed . . . Thanks, all!

My first, almost reflexive thought is Violin as well, but if we're talking genies granting wishes, I'd love to go completely nuts and master the Sitar.

Much the same . . . My EM sound is largely built around a Guitar with a Hex PU, driving a Roland Guitar Synth, so I have two different Guitars with different Hex PU Systems, and four different model Roland Guitar Synths. (Each model has features that make it useful.) My Rock sound, for lack of a better description, is built around a Gibson SG, so I have 2 SG Specials, that I've retro-fitted with Schaller parts. I have a 30-watt Laney Tube Amp as my main Amp, and a SS Peavey as a back-up. I have tried to gather different types of Synthesis, Wavetable, FM, Analog Subtractive, Phase Distortion, Semi-Modular, and I think the "tool" analogy is a good one. They're not exactly interchangeable; each has its own features and functions. SFX, OTOH, are another story . . . it seems like there's always a spot for another Delay, or Ring Mod, or Distortion pedal.

@Scott Fraser- Coming from your that is high praise indeed! Thank you!

I almost envy the players who get everything they want from a minimalist, mainstream rig, with two, or three, or even zero pedals . . . almost.

Much agreed - it might also be a boon to someone looking to free up even one pedal's worth of space to have a double-duty Boost/Drive box.

@IMMusicRulz- Thank you for my morning dose of Metal! Much appreciated!

I can almost see it as a novelty Instrument, but I have to agree with the general run of criticisms. One Scale Length does not fit all, to start with. I really have to wonder about the intonation on some of those Bass strings? The resonance & sustain on that thing would be monstrous, as you accidentally triggered open strings and harmonics. OTOH, it would be a great Feedback Machine. Maybe play it with a Bow from a Bass Viol, or sit it in your lap and drive individual strings with an E-Bow? The only way to approach that fretboard as a whole is as a Tapping Instrument, unless you're consigning entire sections to Drone Strings, or Sitar-like Open Sympathetic Tunings, which are still just enharmonic Drones. If someone gave me one, of course I'd try to figure out how to play it, but I'm not sure how grateful I'd be . . .

Definite "retro" vibe to that design! I could easily imagine it as a semi-hollow Surf/Psycho-Billy Guitar.

Have to agree on the ambiguity of that particular phrasing, but it does seem to suggest the possibility of using it as a two-stage Boost/OD device, by wiring it into two different, possibly successive I/O's on a Loop Switcher? Several thoughts on that - One is that adding the Loop Switcher itself essentially offsets any savings on pedalboard space you get by using one Heavy Water in place of two other pedals; there's also the cost of the Loop Switcher to consider, relative to the cost of another Boost/OD pedal. Another is that using a Loop Switcher, much like using a Patchbay, essentially doubles the number of cables you need to wire your pedalboard. That's more $$$ for cables, and more potential for signal loading.

The DRY knob puts me in mind of the SparkleDrive, another take on the TS, but the Adaptive Circuitry? Boss had a short-lived Distortion pedal, the DA-2 Adaptive Distortion, using their MDP/Multi-Dimension Processing, which all of their "X"-series pedals use. The description of the Adaptive Circuitry within the Halcyon sounds very similar? It would be interesting to compare the Halcyon with the Boss OD-1X.

Lots of pedals in the $300+/- range, in that roundup . . . You're looking at Modular Synth $$$ to assemble a Guitar pedalboard, at that rate.