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OD Pedal advice for a "65 Twin reissue


p90jr

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so, to cap this off...

We had a practice Monday before last, which I recommended by just a run-through like the show... a timer set to out time slot, no starting over, songs segue into one another, etc. What I found was that the levels I'd set in my living room with the Twin on 2 weren't right when the Twin was on 3... and the Nobels OD didn't like being stacked with the Vertex Steel String, and for some reason the Xotic EP Boost - which I had intended to use as a pickup booster since I can't find my Seymour Duncan Pickup Booster Pedal - was too much boost, even when turned all the way down. I did a lot of adjustments on the fly and planned to work on all of that over the week before the show Sunday.
I went back to putting the NUX Steel String next to the Vertex (and discovered that the NUX adds more overdrive, has less headroom, but it was okay) on the board to act as the pickup booster. The EP Booster was replaced with the humble Mosky Golden Horse (a Klon Klone that I find is heavier on the overdrive and distortion than an actual Klon, but sounds nice). A few times when I had the house to myself I cranked the Twin and marked setting on the pedals (my preferred method is masking tape on top of the knobs, and I make a straight line on that to tell me it's where I want it... so if I look down and see all straight lines I'm good to start).

Sunday we pulled into the fest... a major operation, we're directed to our parking lot and a van is sent to ferry us and whatever gear we're lugging to the stage we're playing, We joke that someday we'll rate a black SUV like the ones we pass awaiting the major star headliners later in the day... but no gear is lugged along in those, since their trucks and crews and tour buses have been set up behind those stages for hours already. We're the first act of the day on our stage, which is cool because we get to be the guinea pigs for the sound crew as far as extensive line checks and actual soundcheck with songs.A twin is wheeled over to my spot on the stage, then I hear someone say "Oh, it says a Twin over here, too... but we have one Twin and one Super Reverb." I say "I'LL TAKE THE SUPER OVER HERE!!!" The Twin on the other side of the stage is for one song in which a guy who switches between bass and acoustic guitar (while another switches between keyboards and bass) plays Bass VI. I figure the Super will be better for me at 45 watts and lower headroom... when I get my line check, with the Super on volume 4, I get asked to turn it down... it goes down to 3. I can't imagine where I would've been with the Twin... 1.5? Things go pretty smooth except for one thing I'd forgotten over the years since the last time I had to play an outdoor daytime thing: You can't see tuner readouts or lights on pedals with the sun right overhead, even if the stage is covered... a clipboard I keep in my bag for writing setlists or whatever in an emergency gets wedged in front of the tuner so I can see that... but the only way I know I've forgotten to turn some pedals off or missed clicking them off is that the level is higher or there's overdrive or backwards delay where there shouldn't be... I make a joke about it and apologize to the FOH soundguy for being a pain... he waves me off and gives me the thumbs up. I'll have to think of something for that in the future... I've seen bands at festivals with umbrellas leaning over their pedalboards. I have an afternoon outdoor gig this Saturday with a smaller board... my wife has had tons of stuff delivered so I'm going to scope the cardboard boxes that I can put on their sides and slide the board into... I'll bring my box cutter along for on the fly adjustments.



 

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1 hour ago, p90jr said:

A twin is wheeled over to my spot on the stage, then I hear someone say "Oh, it says a Twin over here, too... but we have one Twin and one Super Reverb." I say "I'LL TAKE THE SUPER OVER HERE!!!"


That was serendipitous! For me, it would have been even better yet had it been a Pro Reverb 2x12- I just prefer 12's. 

  
 

1 hour ago, p90jr said:

You can't see tuner readouts or lights on pedals with the sun right overhead, even if the stage is covered... a clipboard I keep in my bag for writing setlists or whatever in an emergency gets wedged in front of the tuner so I can see that...


Been there, done that. I've improvised a sun-blocking shell from a small cardboard box for that, and it was still very difficult to make out the tuner.

Much more recently, I got a Peterson StroboStomp HD- HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommended!! I wish I'd had it all my life! Beside everything else that's top-notch about it, the display-screen is huge as tuner-pedals go, and very, VERY bright and vivid! Presets can be color-coded, as well.

PFywfMa.jpg

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@p90jr Cool review for little problems that come up during the minutes before a gig like having to use a different amp than you planned on, having to turn it down for the sound man, not being able to see your tuner, masking tape on the pedal knob settings, etc., LoL!  My guess is you were able to get all the bugs worked out before the 1st song began!  You might throw a clip-on tuner in your bag like my TC Electronic in case you can't see the floor tuner pedal.  Nice big bright screen for a clip-on and you can turn around and/or block the sun easily.  Anyway, glad it all worked out! 😎

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Take care, Larryz
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34 minutes ago, Larryz said:

@p90jr Cool review for little problems that come up during the minutes before a gig like having to use a different amp than you planned on, having to turn it down for the sound man, not being able to see your tuner, masking tape on the pedal knob settings, etc., LoL!  My guess is you were able to get all the bugs worked out before the 1st song began!  You might throw a clip-on tuner in your bag like my TC Electronic in case you can see the floor tuner pedal.  Nice big bright screen for a clip-on and you can turn around and/or block the sun easily.  Anyway, glad it all worked out! 😎

Yep, the Boss TU-10 is another tuner that is designed to switch to different lighting conditions. In low light, the tuning screen is backlit and easy to see. In bright light, the screen is light gray and the tuning markers are black, like an old school calculator. Either way, you can see it. 

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It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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Have definitely run into the issue where bright sunlight washed out all the displays on electronic gear, even under a tent. My bandmate also had an issue where her iPad overheated right before an outdoor set, displaying a cartoon thermometer, which neither of us found amusing at the time.

 

 

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I just had my MacBookPro go into thermal shutdown at the Womadelaide Festival in Australia last month, about 2/3rds of the way through our set, after sitting in direct sun for maybe half an hour. So, no signal passes through the interface, meaning no effects, no playback, no response to keyboard commands, nada. Not my favorite gig day.

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Scott Fraser
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I've never liked playing outdoors. It's hot and humid 365 here. When we do we find a shady spot, protect everything from direct heat, wear the proper attire and are considering a couple fans. The advantage of playing when we want to is we can play after 6pm, when temperature drops into the 70s and sun is setting. It's not quite as busy because some places are closed, but some stores are open till 8 and restaurants till 9. It will get busier next month.

Edit: I didn't like playing outdoors in the heat and humidity when we had the band. Evenings, I have no problem. 

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Jenny S.
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We get random rainstorms up here. Summer is the only time for playing outside. 

I trust solid state guitar amps, quality cords and guitars with Switchcraft jacks to perform as long as they don't get wet. 

I keep it simple and analog and I've only had a couple of gear problems that were unavoidable. 

 

Most memorable was the time we were booked to play the Festival of the River, just before Buffy Saint Marie who was the headliner. 

We got set up on a huge stage under canopy up about 20 feet above us, did our sound check and waited in our "green room" (a trailer but pretty nice).

Suddenly, huge dark clouds blew in and there was a torrential downpour of Biblical proportions. We rushed over to the stage and unplugged everything, there was an inch of water on the stage and the stage crew was shouting at us to get off the stage. We didn't have much gear, carried it off, put it in our vehicles and went home. The rest of the show was cancelled, I think they even cancelled the following day. 

 

I let my amp dry out for a week and then it worked fine. 

 

Nature bats last.

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It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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5 hours ago, surfergirl said:

I've never liked playing outdoors. It's hot and humid 365 here. When we do we find a shady spot, protect everything from direct heat, wear the proper attire and are considering a couple fans. The advantage of playing when we want to is we can play after 6pm, when temperature drops into the 70s and sun is setting. It's not quite as busy because some places are closed, but some stores are open till 8 and restaurants till 9. It will get busier next month.

Edit: I didn't like playing outdoors in the heat and humidity when we had the band. Evenings, I have no problem. 

Thanks for the heads up on the 365-day weather SurferGirl!  I can't take daily hot and humid weather and sunshine, for extended periods as I spent a year in the jungles of Vietnam and have had skin cancer. I stepped outside the airport terminal in Hawaii back in the early 70's on the way over and back from Vietnam (for re-fueling) and it didn't take me long to return to the air-conditioned terminal.  This is when I was still used to being outside in tropical weather.  If I do cross the pond to visit Hawaii, I'm staying inside the AC air-conditioned ship or hotel until 6pm!!! Then I'll go out and find some entertainment. Sunset on the ocean is my favorite time of the day anyway!  😎👍

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Take care, Larryz
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  • 1 month later...
On 5/4/2023 at 11:06 PM, Caevan O’Shite said:


That was serendipitous! For me, it would have been even better yet had it been a Pro Reverb 2x12- I just prefer 12's. 

  
 


Been there, done that. I've improvised a sun-blocking shell from a small cardboard box for that, and it was still very difficult to make out the tuner.

Much more recently, I got a Peterson StroboStomp HD- HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommended!! I wish I'd had it all my life! Beside everything else that's top-notch about it, the display-screen is huge as tuner-pedals go, and very, VERY bright and vivid! Presets can be color-coded, as well.

PFywfMa.jpg


I have one of these on one of my other smaller boards... 

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On 5/5/2023 at 11:04 AM, Larryz said:

@p90jr Cool review for little problems that come up during the minutes before a gig like having to use a different amp than you planned on, having to turn it down for the sound man, not being able to see your tuner, masking tape on the pedal knob settings, etc., LoL!  My guess is you were able to get all the bugs worked out before the 1st song began!  You might throw a clip-on tuner in your bag like my TC Electronic in case you can't see the floor tuner pedal.  Nice big bright screen for a clip-on and you can turn around and/or block the sun easily.  Anyway, glad it all worked out! 😎


I keep a Peterson Strobo Clip in my guitar stand case (one of those things that opens up and holds 6 guitars) because I use it for the "Sweetened 12String" setting for my electric 12, and it's handy for tuning guitars offstage before the set, or even checking and adjusting intonation... I did tune the guitars with that and propped up something to block the sun from my Boss TU2 or whichever one it is (I've had it forever) to do some tuning tweaking during the set... 

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