Messages

Your graphics are always amazing.  Great looking pedals!

Awesome graphics.  I like the bullet hole with the LED poking through.

Several years ago I had them drill out an effects loop pedal.  Their site said to provide measurements from the edges, but I called them and they said it was OK to give measurements from center lines.  Their drilling was perfect.  I sent them a Word file, but I uploaded it here as a PDF.  Template attached.

Don't bend 'm, first snip 'm of to the length you need, then slightly bend out the two outer legs, so they can slide in the socket (you do use sockets, don't you?). When all three legs are aligned with the socket, gently push down into the socket. No need to bend anything to a precise angle, always a snug fit, hasn't failed me once!

Paul

But they look so much cooler when they are bent like the picture.   

Duh!  That's brilliant!

I have been meaning to get around to buying one of those, now I don't have to.  Thanks.

Once you get the washer in the right slot, use a tiny strip of masking tape to hold it in place so it doesn't move during installation.

Holy crap!  That could induce seizures!  How did you do it?

It took longer for me to get to this than I expected.  Yesterday I decided to try out the in-series suggestion.  I plugged in a bunch of values from 1k to 22k and decided that 18k worked best for me.  It really tames the slam switch, probably way too much for some of you.  But at the lower values, you can get control of it and still retain some of the insanity.

I like that you used a breadboard under your breadboard.   

That's great!  I love trippy designs like that.

rullywowr, thanks for the detailed answer.  I was hoping that someone with your knowledge and experience would chime in.  I have had some strange concert experiences over the years.  I once saw John Mellencamp at a corporate event.  It was in a huge hangar-like space and my seat was several hundred feet from the stage.  However, I was right in front of the board so I figured it would at least sound good even if the band looked like tiny little specks in the distance.  Well it sounded like crap.  I looked back at the console and everyone there was wearing headphones & never took them off, so they had no idea what it sounded like in the room.  Or maybe they figured the space was unmanageable & gave up.

derevaun, +1 on tinnitus.  Because of my tinnitus I had my hearing checked last year and it is still in the "normal" range.  But there is a constant tone at a particular pitch which obscures other sounds at that pitch.  Anyone who doesn't yet have it should do whatever they can to prevent it.

And hammerheadmusicman, I will look into some good earplugs.  My quick google search makes me think that ACS are only available in the UK.  I'll try to find them or an equivalent here in the US.

What prompted me to write this was that I went to see John Mayer in NH last weekend.  His opening act was Phillip Phillips (he must be good, all the teenage girls were screaming).  I put the earplugs in as soon as Phillip Phillips started playing, it was really painful.  The bass drum thing was getting to me, too.  Of course I never heard of the guy, so I didn't want to damage my hearing over him.  Fortunately John Mayer's levels were better - both on treble & bass - so I didn't need earplugs.  Oddly, there was one song in the middle of his set where the volume went up above the pain threshold (earplugs in!), then it went back down for the rest of the night (earplugs out!).

I never experienced the bass drum thing until I saw the Rascals "Once Upon a Dream" show a couple of months ago.  The show all around was great, very entertaining, but I thought the sound was second rate.  It was at the Opera House in Boston, so I expected a great house mix.  The band played well, but the Hammond (really the Leslie) was poorly miced and sounded really thin; the guitar was indistinct, lost in the mix.  The vocals were where they should be, though.  But the thumping of the bass drum was a huge distraction, way out of balance with the rest of the instruments.  Maybe it's because all of my friends are old like me, but none of us felt that this was a good effect.

I need some music professionals (I am merely a hack / hobbyist who never got beyond the high school dance level of performing) to help me understand what goes on at a large venue regarding the house mix.  Specifically, the last 2 concerts I went to put out PAINFUL levels of sound.

The first problem is that the highs are so loud and shrill that it could make your ears bleed.  I suppose that the rock musicians of my vintage are probably deaf from spending years in front of Marshall and other stacks night after night, so they need the volume to be able to tell that their amps are on.  But younger performers who have only used smaller amps mixed through in-ear monitors shouldn't need that level of volume – I would think that the in-ear system insulates them from outside noise, so they may not be aware how loud the house mix is.  Fortunately I have been packing earplugs for the last few years when I started running into this intermittently – even at smaller venues.  But obviously earplugs negatively affect my enjoyment of the performer.

The other problem – which is new to me – is that the bass drum is so amplified that it pounds your chest hard enough to crack ribs.  The audible byproduct of this is that it is hard to hear the bass player, especially if he is locked into the bass drum.

Maybe I'm an old fart, but I find this unpleasant to the point that I am considering never going to concerts in large venues anymore.  I have not found anyone who thinks these sound levels add to the experience – only some people who aren't as annoyed by this as me.

Is this really a trend, or have I just had a few bad experiences?  Or is my age just making me too sensitive to this (you can say yes, I know I'm old...).

If this really is a trend, what's the point?

I would only want one of these if it had flashing LEDs.  Otherwise, what's the point?

Nice work all around!