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Re: re OVERDRIVES
At 11:59 AM -0800 12/25/08, Rick Walker wrote:
>Jeez, Mech, I had no idea that you had all this knowledge of radical
>fuzzes.
Uhm well, frankly, me neither. ;)
I merely started getting into obscure pedals a couple of years ago
(hey, they're cheaper by the dozen), and I guess I've figured out a
thing or two since then. <*shrug*>
>Your post was fantastic, I just wish I could hear these pedals you talk
>about
>in person.
Thanks! Just remember, YouTube is your friend. Many of the smaller
boutique manufacturers have started putting videos online, so you can
find some good stuff by going directly to their site. Also, there's
a retailer named Pro Guitar Shop (
http://www.proguitarshop.com/index.php?CategoryID=304 or search for
proguitarshop on YouTube) that does some very good video demos of the
stuff they sell. In addition, Effekt Pedaler -- a European dealer
out of Copenhagen -- occasionally posts some interesting demos (
http://www.youtube.com/user/effektpedaler ). And you might also try
looking at http://FuzzHugger.com/ or the pedal effects section of
Analogue Haven ( http://www.analoguehaven.com/what/ and scroll down)
if you're looking to feed your GAS.
>Of all the pedals you talk about (and assuming that one already owned
>two digital modelling pedals and a half dozen cheap stomp box, non-botique
>distorions (pro co rat, big muff, boss ds-1, et. al.) and a zvex fuzz
>factory,
>which one of these pedals would you buy for maximum weirdness if you were
>going to a desert island and had to buy only one (and how much does it
>cost)?
Well, I had to make that choice once already (when I moved out of the
country last year, and only had a limited amount of luggage space).
I could only really throw in one "radical" fuzz, so I chose my
Hachihachi Shiki Kebadate Hizumaseki Super Oscillo Fuzz (Type 88)
from Lastgasp Art Laboratories (hereafter referred to as the LAL 88,
or simply the "88"). You can find the manufacturers rundown at
http://lalweb.com/88/88-e.html and they usually run about the same as
a Fuzz Factory (got mine from shawn at analogue haven, where they're
going for about $265).
Not sure if I'd make that choice again, though, for a single fuzz.
While my 88 is by far my most versatile effect, it can also be my
least controllable. It's sensitive to what instrument is plugged
into it, as well as where in the signal chain it sits.
On the up side, it's a real wildcard, and never ever fails to
amuse/amaze. You just have to be very methodical with your setup.
You've got six switches that can be used together in any combination,
as well as a continuous Adjust knob whose function varies according
to which switches are selected. Add to this that it behaves
completely differently depending upon the type of the
guitar/instrument pickup and whether it's placed right after the
guitar or someplace else in a buffered signal chain, and you can see
that it's really easy to get lost. But sometimes that's half the fun
(just remember to take good notes).
Other options (Devi pedals in particular) might be either something
with a Feedback Loop, or one of the Manglers with joystick control.
For the former, take a look at the Spectacular Aenima (
http://www.deviever.com/fx/spectacularaenima/index.html ). This is
the Aenima fuzz that Daryl mentioned a few posts back, combined with
an extra distortion circuit (the 33) and a Feedback Loop with Photo
Eye. So not only do you get a radical fuzz, but you can insert other
pedals into the loop for more and different effects. By feeding a
pedal back into itself, you can get some really bizarre results
ranging from runaway echo effects (for delay) to screaming
oscillation (some fuzzboxes). You can also turn on the photo eye and
use that to control the level of signal sent into the Feedback Loop.
For more detail, take a look at this:
http://www.deviever.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=1135
As to the latter suggestion (joystick control), I'd consider the Bit
Mangler ( http://www.deviever.com/fx/bitmangler/ ). I've got a Bit
(one of the first made, as a matter of fact, since Devi merely
described a new design and I ordered one sight unseen). It's a
fantastically searing modern fuzz, almost approaching "synth" or
"video game" tones. With the Bit Mangler, the Bit is paired with the
VFM (Vintage Fuzz Master) which is a more traditional high-gain
octave fuzz. A joystick is then used to blend between the two
circuits. You can get a lot of interesting tones by merely
manipulating the joystick to different positions. Take a look at the
videos and you'll see what I mean.
At Analogue Haven, the Spectacular Aenima is $195, and the Bit Mangler is
$295.
Finally, I'm rather intrigued by this:
http://www.wmdevices.com/geiger.php -- the WMD Geiger Counter.
Everybody keeps saying that this is set to be the Industrial
musician's new love, and if you're into digital distortion, it's
pretty apparent why. It features conventional preamp distortion,
with both bit-depth *and* sample-rate reduction (giving you effects
similar to the Alesis Bitrman, TSP Downgrade, and Frostwave
Alienator). Then it also features a set of digital wave tables that
you run (rasterize?) the signal through.
Here's what the home page has to say about the Wave Table function:
"The wave table stage takes your signal and destroys it with math.
This produces some incredible sounds. The wave tables are organized
so that a more extreme version is typically found one up from the
current one. There are 252 wave tables in all, each with different
harmonic content."
The marketing sounds pretty cool, and the sound samples don't
disappoint, either. It just depends on how you feel about digital
types of distortion. If that's your bag, this could definitely be
worth considering. $299 at Analogue Haven.
>Also, would you refresh our collective memory (okay, my memory) and
>tell us
>1) what country you live in (I assumed it was the US, incorrectly) and
Well, we were living in the US, but picked up and left for Japan not
long after my performance at Y2k7, so I've been out here for almost a
year now. Pretty cool, except for the occasional bout of culture
shock.
>2) what URL we can go to to hear some of the music you've made with all
>of these cool stuff.
Hah! Thanks for the nudge, Rick. You know I'm an anal-retentive
tweek-a-holic, so I never actually *finish* anything, dammit. ;)
My wife has even become so irritated at the fact I wasn't providing
any fresh content, that I think she put my Live Looping web page (
http://www.dustbunnies.info/ ) on ice for the moment. I hope to
remedy that soon, but for the moment, I think my Loopfest performance
MP3's are still up at http://www.y2kloopfest.com/y2k7/mp3.html (11:00
Saturday night) and the videos are on YouTube at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODgLXT56b7M and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcffXnqv_Lw
Unfortunately, no psychotic fuzzbox effects there. Mostly just my
fretless 11-string (electric oud) with VG-99 and Looperlative.
>Thanks for your informative post, as always!
Thanks for the complement! I just enjoy chatting about this stuff;
it makes me happy. :)
--m.
--
_____
"when you think your dreams are shattered, it's time to dream new dreams"