Suggestions for new Mad Bean stuff.

[midwayfair]

Why? Plenty of other pedals get cloned and offered as pcb's. What makes the Decimator so protected?

Most pedal circuits aren't patented, and can't be, but the Decimator is.

Seriously?  If its not possible to patent circuits, how could they do it with the Decimator? Especially since I came across two PCB vendors who were selling boards for it?

It's perfectly possible to patent circuits. It's just VERY difficult.

[Justus]

G-string Schematic attached.  Didn't realize the new layout didn't identify a few parts (look here for the answers).

[kothoma]

Why? Plenty of other pedals get cloned and offered as pcb's. What makes the Decimator so protected?

Most pedal circuits aren't patented, and can't be, but the Decimator is.

Seriously?  If its not possible to patent circuits, how could they do it with the Decimator? Especially since I came across two PCB vendors who were selling boards for it?

I didn't say that. Just that most can't be patented, and that's because they are in essence copies of copies, with minor changes, irrelevant for the patent office. Well, if Maxon had applied for a patent for TS-type diode soft clipping in 1974...

The Decimator uses a novel method of adaptive release times and ISP owns a patent for that (afaik).

[Muadzin]

Okay, so the Decimator cannot be offered for sale as a PCB. Still, there were noise gates long before the Decimator came around that could be offered for sale. Like the MXR, or the Boss. I'd be perfectly willing to settle for one of those.

[raulduke]

Okay, so the Decimator cannot be offered for sale as a PCB. Still, there were noise gates long before the Decimator came around that could be offered for sale. Like the MXR, or the Boss. I'd be perfectly willing to settle for one of those.

Why not settle down and do your own layout then?   

I imagine the reason Madbean hasn't done a noisegate PCB is because they don't interest him all that much.

[kothoma]

http://www.tonepad.com/project.asp?id=18 (MXR Noise Gate $14.00)

[Mark0614]

Brian works in mysterious ways, this year he updated the Retrograde board but didn't allow a choice of transformers from Small Bear (Mouser #42TM022 1500CT/600CT or Mouser #42TU011 1.5K CT/500 Ohms CT.) The differences between the two transformers is core size and wire resistance as shown in the attachments. It is my guess the larger core size would make the 42TU011 a better option. Mounting the board on the lugs of the pots would have been very desirable too, though the weight of the transformer might have been a reliability issue?
Hopefully transformer options can be done in the next run of boards?

I hope this doesn't sound too critical, Brian does design a great board which is why he gets my business, but I suspect he is very time poor and this isn't his day job.

All food for thought.

Mark

[raulduke]

I hope this doesn't sound too critical, Brian does design a great board which is why he gets my business, but I suspect he is very time poor and this isn't his day job.

All food for thought.

Mark

I believe it is his day job (someone correct me if I am wrong).

I also don't want to sound too critical, but if Brian/Madbean took everyone's requirements for PCB's they want, components they want to use etc. into consideration and acted on all requests then there would probably be NO projects released, let alone the ones we do get.

I also know that Brian (and the other guys who are partners here) spend a lot of their development time verifying designs and getting things right before they release anything.

I'm usually a pretty laid back guy, but these 'I want this PCB so why can't Brian design one' or 'I want to use this component so why didn't Brian think of using it' comments kind of get my back up to be honest.

This forum is one of the few places on the internet that I know of that is always positive, and hardly ever resorts to people moaning or griping, and I like it that way.

My honest advice (and I mean this in the nicest way) is that you have a specific request, or would like to use a component in your builds, why not learn to use Eagle/Diptrace etc. and do your own layouts? It is honestly one of my favourite parts of the whole DIY pedal process. It is also really fun! OSH park is so cheap you can get a prototype of your own design for hardly any outlay.

Maybe I'm just being over sensitive... who knows 

[Muadzin]

Okay, so the Decimator cannot be offered for sale as a PCB. Still, there were noise gates long before the Decimator came around that could be offered for sale. Like the MXR, or the Boss. I'd be perfectly willing to settle for one of those.

Why not settle down and do your own layout then?   

I wish I could. I really did. I really respect all you guys who can, who come up with great and interesting designs, but I don't have the skills, nor the time to design any myself. I can barely debug my own builds.

I imagine the reason Madbean hasn't done a noisegate PCB is because they don't interest him all that much.

Perhaps, still, its a business he's running and since this thread has more or less become dominated by noise gate discussion I'd say there is some market for them. Again, with all those gazillions of dirtbox kits and PCB's being released by everyone you'd think there would A: be a market for them and B: somebody willing to fill that niche to make a buck. After all, where is the business sense in releasing yet another overdrive when the market is overrun with them when there is a whole new market waiting to be exploited out there? Besides, most dirtboxes all sound the same to me anyway.

http://www.tonepad.com/project.asp?id=18 (MXR Noise Gate $14.00)

I have ordered one of those in the past. Unfortunately it would seem that the Tonepad PCB seems to be a hit and miss and needs tinkering to get working. At least with Brian you know that when he releases something it will work.

I hope this doesn't sound too critical, Brian does design a great board which is why he gets my business, but I suspect he is very time poor and this isn't his day job.

All food for thought.

Mark

I believe it is his day job (someone correct me if I am wrong).

I also don't want to sound too critical, but if Brian/Madbean took everyone's requirements for PCB's they want, components they want to use etc. into consideration and acted on all requests then there would probably be NO projects released, let alone the ones we do get.

I also know that Brian (and the other guys who are partners here) spend a lot of their development time verifying designs and getting things right before they release anything.

I'm usually a pretty laid back guy, but these 'I want this PCB so why can't Brian design one' or 'I want to use this component so why didn't Brian think of using it' comments kind of get my back up to be honest.

This forum is one of the few places on the internet that I know of that is always positive, and hardly ever resorts to people moaning or griping, and I like it that way.

My honest advice (and I mean this in the nicest way) is that you have a specific request, or would like to use a component in your builds, why not learn to use Eagle/Diptrace etc. and do your own layouts? It is honestly one of my favourite parts of the whole DIY pedal process. It is also really fun! OSH park is so cheap you can get a prototype of your own design for hardly any outlay.

Maybe if you're an American that is. If not, then Oshpark ain't that cheap at all. American overseas shipping is brutal.

Maybe I'm just being over sensitive... who knows 

Methinks there is nothing wrong with a thread where people can make suggestions towards Brian for future releases. I'd say that is potential customer feedback for himand that is good for any business. That way Brian can make guesses as to what new kind of project might be both interesting and profitable for him to persue. Being dismissive of that, that seems almost as wrong as people demanding that Brian makes something for them.

[Justus]

Maybe I'm just being over sensitive... who knows 

I'd say somewhat yes, somewhat no.  And I say "somewhat no" because I understand why you're thinking what you are.  It's exactly the same reason why I try my hardest to stifle my child-like enthusiasm for the Etcher's Paradise release.  I want to ask every day "is it done yet?!?" like a kid asking his parents if they're at the theme park yet...  but that can come across as seemingly entitled, which none of us are, so I squelch it so I don't sound ungrateful.  If I do make any posts asking about a timeline it's only out of excitement.  I think that's what a lot of the suggestions are - not intended to be complaints, but they can be taken in a manner much more critical than what they're intended, and they're intended to be helpful and suggestive, providing feedback and efforts to improve.  Problem is, anytime you suggest an improvement you're also implying that the version in front of you has a flaw.  So it's a catch-22 situation.

[kothoma]

American overseas shipping is brutal.

Huh? Free shipping is brutal? See here: http://www.madbeanpedals.com/forum/index.php?topic=9587.0

[raulduke]

Yeah maybe I saw red here. Apologies if I have offended anyone.

I agree there is nothing wrong with a bit of customer feedback/suggestions.

I think there is a way of suggesting stuff that doesn't come across as semi-entitled/gripey though, but I don't want to start an argument 

Also, Muadzin, OSH park is free for international shipping dude.

Depending on exchange rates (I'm in the UK) it can work out even cheaper for us EU guys than our US pals.

I know it is daunting to take those first steps with doing your own layouts, but it will honestly open up a new world of pleasure from the hobby for you (IMO of course).

Doing layouts is almost as addictive as building the pedals up!

I say dive in and try something simple (eg. a one knob fuzz or LPB) and you will end up hooked; I guarantee it!

Anyway, onwards and upwards

[madbean]

1 - This is my day job. I have 2.5 day jobs now (MBP, FFX and 424) plus daddy day care in the afternoons. Just FYI.
2 - I did not know about the alternate transformer in the Octavia. I just used the one I've always built mine with. The reason that the pots are not PCB mounted is because of the transformer height. It might fit if 9mm PCB mounted are used instead of 16mm, but it just isn't something I checked into.

Don't forget there is also a "request" section of the forum, which I do check now and again. Granted, most everything I am going to do is planned out for the next six months but sometimes there are suggestions that come up that I never consider which gets me pumped up

[Mark0614]

Hi Brian, thanks for your reply.

I'll try to explain my comments to all a little further. My posts are not complaints but positive criticism. I didn't think it was reasonable to assume Brian gave every pedal the same attention, I don't think it is an effective usage of time to do so. The pedals which typically fall into this area are the classics, the Fuzz Face, the Orange Squeezer, the Phase 45, the Phase 90, and of course the Octavia to name but a few. The logic is why re-invent the wheel when all the mods are already out there, and people pretty much like the pedals as is.

I have been looking at the Octavia and looking at all the ways to get the best performance from it. As previously mentioned a fellow Mad Bean Forum member tried the transformer upgrade (I have yet to try it), and said it made a huge improvement to the pedal. I did look at a lot of photo's of Octavia's and repro's of this pedal and the transformer did seem larger than the 42TM series txer. So it did seem probable that the 42TU transformer would work better.

I've seen mods to the Octavia on GGG site and I don't think they are all that effective, I've found turning the gain down on the Octavia is a better option to turning the Octavia fully up and reducing the guitars volume. I have used the Octavia without the octave effect and it does work well when all controls are dimed, so I'm inclined to think turning down the tone and volume controls is a way of having your cake and eating it.

Typically with this effect, using the front pickup always helps, the tone control helps too, but only to a point, I found the 0.1uF cap in my Strat reduced the signal too much and a smaller cap (possibly a 0.01uF, haven't tried this yet) will enhance the octave up effect and still sound good. I'm going to use a DPDT switch to switch the shunt cap in with the octave effect.

Regards

Mark

[pickdropper]

Yeah maybe I saw red here. Apologies if I have offended anyone.

I agree there is nothing wrong with a bit of customer feedback/suggestions.

I think there is a way of suggesting stuff that doesn't come across as semi-entitled/gripey though, but I don't want to start an argument 

Yeah, I agree.  I think the suggestion box is a good thing.  I also agree that there are positive and negative ways to approach things.  You see it in regards to suggested projects, announced projects that aren't ready yet, contests that have been announced but haven't happened on time, etc...

Life gets busy for all of us.  I'll stick up for Brian here because I've gotten to know him as a friend and business partner over the past year and because I know he has a lot of irons in the fire.  If it's been announced, he's working on it.  Odds are, he wants it to be ready as much as you do.  Have patience, if the project is good, it'll get there; if it doesn't work out, there's probably a reason it didn't.  Same thing with proposed projects.  If it seems like a cool project, somebody will probably pick it  up.  If there are reasons people want to avoid it, then you may have to find a different project or learn how to do layouts yourself.

Some requests I see remind me of a buddy who is a talented Linux programmer.  He has spent plenty of time writing programs that he wanted for himself and often releases them to the public as a contribution to the community.  People contact him with ideas and expect that he will just do the work they requested.  His response has always been that he writes programs the he wants for himself and often shares them.  But if somebody wants something he isn't inclined to write for himself, they can either A) pay him to write it or B) learn how to code themselves.  He didn't mean it to be a jerk but he has a family and time commitments and keeping up with requests could easily be a full-time job.  It's also less fun if it's not something he is inherently interested in.

Anyway, that's a bit of an aside. 

For what it's worth, the requests in this thread haven't seemed too unreasonable, raulduke's post just got me thinking.