NPD: VFE Bumblebee

[Winston Psmith]

I have to give @Caevan O’Shite credit for pointing me towards this one, as it's one of his favorites . . .

 

It's a very deliberate Slow Gear (Attack Delay) clone, with an added Optical Compressor for sustain, in one pedal; I got it for the Slow Gear effect, which is very nice, once you've dialed it in. Think Volume Pedal swells on every note.

 

The Compressor definitely gives you that Chicken Pickin' sound, and at higher Level settings, it gets LOUD. If you've ever had a Compressor squash your sound, this one will let you push back. OTOH, if you just wanted a straight-forward Compressor, this probably isn't it.

 

The top is pretty crowded, three main control knobs, a mini-toggle switch right at Noon, and two smaller rotary knobs at about 9 and 3 o'clock. The three main control knobs seem like typical Compressor pedal controls; Level, Sustain, and Attack. The Attack control is the tricky one, as it controls the Swell rate, in combination with the S-F-M (Slow-Fast-Medium) toggle switch. The S-F-M switch seems to select among a range of Swell Times, which you then tweak with the Attack control. I'm liking the Medium setting, with the Attack knob at around 3 o'clock.

 

The small rotary on the left is a Mix control, with just the Slow Gear effect at CCW, and just the Compressor at full CW. It seems like moving the Mix knob anywhere past fully CCW detracts from the Slow Gear effect.

 

The small Trigger knob on the right functions much as a Threshold/Sensitivity control for the Slow Gear effect. It takes a bit of tweaking to find the Goldilocks setting, where each note fades in nicely, then drops back out of the way in time for the next note to step forward.

 

Side note for gear geeks - The Slow Gear is a Threshold Gate device; it functions much like a spring-loaded garden gate. It takes a certain amount of force ( think: signal strength) to open the gate. Withdraw the force, or the signal, and the gate closes again. OTOH, a line of people passing through the gate in close succession would prevent the gate from closing again until the last person has passed through. The same applies to a Slow Gear device; once you've opened the gate, a rapid succession of notes will hold the gate open, so the Slow Gear effect can't re-trigger. An Attack-Decay Envelope Generator, like EHX' Attack/Decay, or Malekko's Sneak Attack is a very different kind of circuit, and even more tricky to dial in.

[Scott Fraser]

I thought they were discontinued, (and Caevan bought the last new one.) You found a used one?

[Winston Psmith]

50 minutes ago, Scott Fraser said:

I thought they were discontinued, (and Caevan bought the last new one.) You found a used one?

Nice clean used one at my FLUMS.

 

Saw it in their Reverb listings a few days ago. I figured most people would just think it was a glorified Compressor and ignore it until I could get it.

[Scott Fraser]

Score!

 

[Caevan O’Shite]

Congratulations on scoring that and enjoy!

 

  

11 hours ago, Winston Psmith said:

It's a very deliberate Slow Gear (Attack Delay) clone...

Forgive me, @Winston Psmith, my friend; the VFE Bumble does envelope-triggered swells responding to playing dynamics in a way similar to that of the SG-1 Slow Gear, but it's not exactly a "clone" in the way that most people use that term in these matters. Mr. Rutter spent years working on it, refining iterations of the BumbleBee; it's what got him into making pedals in the first place. He said that he came up with his own design for the BumbleBee. Later he added the optical-compressor circuit to keep the tails of notes from getting cut-off.

 

Quote

HOW THE BUMBLEBEE CAME TO BE
The very first pedal I built was a clone of the Boss SG-1 Slow Gear. It barely worked. After countless hours of finding my mistakes and modifying the circuit to swell longer, I was hooked. I went on a pedal building and modifying rampage, which eventually led to designing my own circuits - and the Bumblebee was one of the very first VFE designs.

The Bumblebee is a result of a long-evolution of design, always pushing the envelope to see how slow I could get a guitar or bass to swell. This quest led to the addition of the compressor to the front end of the circuit, which allows for long swells to ring out without dying off too quickly

It's the overall very best envelope/touch-controlled swell effect that I've ever tried, closest rivals being digital swell effects onboard a Johnson J-Station desktop modeler, and a DigiTech GNX4 modeler/multi-effects. Close behind would be the Guyatone SV2 Slow Volume. Last in the dust is the overrated Boss SG-1 Slow Gear, which I always found inept.

The VFE BumbleBee is a real keeper for me, and one of the keys to my own personal 'signature' sound and style. It's so intuitive for me that I could almost leave it as an "always on" pedal- and I've done that before by accident! The only better way to more detailed swells is a good volume-pedal, but that's a different playing experience and approach, and a different sound.

 

  

11 hours ago, Winston Psmith said:

The small rotary on the left is a Mix control, with just the Slow Gear effect at CCW, and just the Compressor at full CW. It seems like moving the Mix knob anywhere past fully CCW detracts from the Slow Gear effect.

I'll add that when the Mix control is fully CCW, the Swell effect is maximized in the blend, but the Optical Compressor will still prevent the tails of notes from being chopped-off prematurely by the closing gate.

 

 

11 hours ago, Scott Fraser said:

I thought they were discontinued, (and Caevan bought the last new one.) You found a used one?

They were;  I got one of the last run of 'em, though there were a few times after that when very limited batches were available.

One can currently get detailed plans and excellent instructions to build their own BumbleBee pedal from scratch, officially sanctioned by VFE via Madbean Pedals:  VFE BumbleBee plans at Madbean Pedals  (Not to be confused with the Madbean BumbleBee, aka BumbleBee 2020, which "is a re-creation of the Baldwin Burns Buzzaround™; a rare and somewhat legendary fuzz monster"... )

Mine was a limited edition 'custom graphic' version, featuring a large photo-realisitic bumblebee on the case. I believe that Winston's new buzz is exactly the same, other than a yellow paintjob and simple but cute black graphics, including a charming little cartoon bee.

@Scott Fraser- I did buy the very last V1 version of the VFE Fiery Red Horse, when Mr. Rutter was trotting out the V2 FRH.

[Winston Psmith]

16 hours ago, Caevan O’Shite said:

Congratulations on scoring that and enjoy!

Forgive me, @Winston Psmith, my friend; the VFE Bumble does envelope-triggered swells responding to playing dynamics in a way similar to that of the SG-1 Slow Gear, but it's not exactly a "clone" in the way that most people use that term in these matters. Mr. Rutter spent years working on it, refining iterations of the BumbleBee; it's what got him into making pedals in the first place. He said that he came up with his own design for the BumbleBee. Later he added the optical-compressor circuit to keep the tails of notes from getting cut-off.

 

 

 

 

Indeed, it's not just a re-housed Slow Gear circuit, that's true.

While the Attack and Trigger (Sensitivity) controls largely mimic those on the original Slow Gear, with the addition of the Compressor, and the S-F-M switch, there are definitely more options. It's still the closest thing to the Slow Gear outside of a few inexpensive import models. (I've seen good reviews of Mooer's Slow Engine

 

Funny thing, almost since the introduction of the Waza Craft series, I've seen different Guitar mags or Music sites predicting that THIS YEAR, Boss would finally release a Waza Craft version of the Slow Gear, but so far, nothing doing? IDK if it's a matter of lacking the components to reproduce anything resembling the original circuit, or what? (FWIW, it's basically a modified Noise Gate circuit.) Considering that originals are going for $550-700, I think Boss could sell enough of them at $200-250 to make it worth reissuing?

 

 

[Caevan O’Shite]

1 minute ago, Winston Psmith said:

(FWIW, it's basically a modified Noise Gate circuit.)

Indeed! In fact, years ago, I used a Boss NS-50 'half-rack' stereo noise-suppressor unit as a swell-effect. And worked far better than the Boss SG-1 Slow Gear! It was also a very, very good noise suppressor, too...
 

 

4 minutes ago, Winston Psmith said:

Funny thing, almost since the introduction of the Waza Craft series, I've seen different Guitar mags or Music sites predicting that THIS YEAR, Boss would finally release a Waza Craft version of the Slow Gear, but so far, nothing doing? IDK if it's a matter of lacking the components to reproduce anything resembling the original circuit, or what? (FWIW, it's basically a modified Noise Gate circuit.) Considering that originals are going for $550-700, I think Boss could sell enough of them at $200-250 to make it worth reissuing?

I'm sure that you're right. Though I, personally, wouldn't pay five bucks for one, unless I solely intended to flip it for a steep profit- which I wouldn't have the heart to do to someone.

[Caevan O’Shite]

@Winston Psmith- Wuzza buzz, cuz? How's the BumbleBee- swell?

[Winston Psmith]

13 hours ago, Caevan O’Shite said:

@Winston Psmith- Wuzza buzz, cuz? How's the BumbleBee- swell?

 

Very nice Swell effect, still exploring the interaction with the Compressor. With the Mix anywhere much past 8 o'clock, the Swell effect tends to come in AFTER the initial Compressed signal, depending on the overall settings.

 

I can see why you would like the Fast re-triggering mode, especially with a finger-style technique. What I've really appreciated is how well the 'Bee behaves with my V-Picks! Very responsive to picking dynamics, which is the whole point of the V-Picks. I'm still deciding where the ideal setting is for my playing style, but it's in there, no question.

 

I'm going to try the 'Bee in the Novparolo pedalboard sometime in the next few days, in between home and home gardening projects. Still trying to get back out to work sometime this week, but the issues with my wife's car are ongoing, and aggravating. Don't ask; thank you.

 

I'm also trying to send off the tracks for my current album project sometime in the next week or so. Idle hands, you know?

 

 

[Caevan O’Shite]

  

12 minutes ago, Winston Psmith said:

Very nice Swell effect, still exploring the interaction with the Compressor. With the Mix anywhere much past 8 o'clock, the Swell effect tends to come in AFTER the initial Compressed signal, depending on the overall settings.

I can see why you would like the Fast re-triggering mode, especially with a finger-style technique.

I'm sure that there are all kinds of dynamic envelope fluidities that can be coaxed out of that happy bumbling pollinator, subtle and not so subtle; I've just been so very enamored of the touch-controlled rapid swells that I have never gone beyond that! This pedal was like a love letter to my fingers, along with the Foxrox Octron and Maniac Music Sustainiac Model C.   

  
 

18 minutes ago, Winston Psmith said:

What I've really appreciated is how well the 'Bee behaves with my V-Picks! Very responsive to picking dynamics, which is the whole point of the V-Picks. I'm still deciding where the ideal setting is for my playing style, but it's in there, no question.

I just might have to give those V-Picks a look! Though, for many years, with even the best and most interesting picks, I lose interest and go back to playing without 'em in minutes... like three or so...
 

 

21 minutes ago, Winston Psmith said:

I'm going to try the 'Bee in the Novparolo pedalboard sometime in the next few days, in between home and home gardening projects. Still trying to get back out to work sometime this week, but the issues with my wife's car are ongoing, and aggravating. Don't ask; thank you.

 

I'm also trying to send off the tracks for my current album project sometime in the next week or so. Idle hands, you know?

I wish you swell outstanding luck and success on all fronts!