Conference napalm::guitar

    
    OK, here goes:
    
    1. Fuzz
    
    What most people used to call fuzzboxes are now called distortions
    and overdrives.  Most manufacturers use the term "distortion" for
    the more metallic sounding boxes and "overdrive" for more tube
    sounding.  There are even boxes with tubes in them these days! There
    are literally hundreds of these boxes on the market. Some manufacturers
    offer half a dozen different models!!  Good luck...
    
    2. Delay
    
    Noone uses tape loops anymore, they either use analog or digital
    delays.  Analog is cheap ($100 or less) but somewhat noisy and not as
    crisp sounding. Digital is more expensive ($150 and up), but most units
    have quite high fidelity, much better than the old Echoplexes. 

    3. Flange/Chorus
    
    These are delay based effects.  Delay units with *modulation* controls
    can also do these effects, or you can buy dedicated boxes.  Flanging is
    the whooshing noise that is heard all over Jimi Hendrix' "Axis: Bold As
    Love", also "Itchycoo Park" by the Small Faces, "Listen to the Muisc"
    by the Doobie Brothers, etc.  Chorus is similar but produces more of a
    chiming, watery sound.  It's all over records these days, I don't think
    I can describe it any better than that! 
    
    4. Compressor 
    
    This is an automatic gain control that allows you to keep your volume
    more constant, i.e. it boosts gain as the note dies out.  Used to
    increase sustain on electric guitars and also useful for getting
    a hot signal to tape when recording.
    
    The other effects on the market are typically equalizers which are just
    tone controls, noise gates/filters which are used to reduce the hiss
    generated by all your other effects 8^)  8^)  8^) and combinations of
    two or more effects in one box (a hot trend right now).  Brands that
    are most respected here in the US are Boss, Ibanez and DOD, more or
    less in that order. 

    There are plenty of notes in here about each of these effect devices
    and plenty of opinionated noters who will tell which one you should
    buy 8^)  8^)  8^)  8^)

    I would assume that most people wouldn't try to beckon a heavy
    metal sound from an acoustic/electric guitar. The effects that
    I use with acoustic guitar would include delay, reverb, chorus, 
    flange, *mild* compression, aural exciter, pitch-shift/harmonizer, 
    phase shifters (most of these are old and clunky but neat for that
    swooshing sound). Of course any effect should be used in moderation,
    especially with an acoustic guitar. 
    
    The effects I would not use with an acoustic would be distortion/
    overdrive, wah-wah (remember them), envelope followers, and heavy 
    compression.
    
    In my mind you should avoid "over processing" the sound of an acoustic
    guitar or else it loses that natural warmth. 
    
    Layering processors (effects that let you layer several effects
    one on top of another simultaneously) are great, but may be overkill
    for a simple setup with an acoustic guitar. I would recommend an
    Alesis MidiverbII for your needs. They sell for around $250 and
    provide 99 differant effects ranging from light digital reverb to
    cavernous reverb, reverse reverb effects, gated reverb, delay ranging
    from 70ms to 500ms, chorus, flange, and 10 special effects. Granted
    you can only use one effect at a time, but two much processing can
    spoil the acoustic sound, besides, most layering processors sell
    for about double the price of a MidiverbII. Check one out next time
    you are in the stores. While you are at it, check out sounds 45 and
    49 (bloom), which are a special blend of reverb and reverse effects
    (it will make you think you are playing your guitar in the catacombs.
    I also like sound 91 (multi-tapped panning delay), which can really
    only be appreciated in stereo. This sound is perfect for rock-a-billy
    type stuff.  
    
    Good luck, and have fun shopping. I recommend you go into the stores
    during an off hour (avoid weekends, and early evenings when the
    stores are really crowded). Another thing is to ask a salesman to
    set you up with a headphone rig so that you can play around with the
    various effects without worrying about hearing yourself and others
    customers.
    
    Mark Jacques
    

    Yeah, definitely go to the music store on your lunch hour if possible.
    
    I happen to have a Fostex 4track cass deck, and I recommend them
    highly, although they may have been discontinued.  There's no need
    to spend much money on something that makes cassette demos - you'll
    come out with basically the same sound no matter which one you get,
    after a little practice.  And the less convenience involved, the
    more proficient you can get at experimenting, coming up with the
    sound you want.
    
    If you are proficient at electronics, you can build most of these
    boxes with great results at an average of 1/4th the cost of an effects
    box.  For instance, a distortion box costs a total of about $9.50
    to build, yet they're about $80 to $90 in stores.  

    RE:  note 1283.3
    
    Where do I get schematics for these devices?
    
    
    
    		<Gordon>
    

    
    	I would think that the one effect you'd want to go for, in layering
    sounds on a 4 track with an acoustic, would be the "digital delay".
    Some of these have modulation effects, which will give the sweeping,
    phase shift or "flanging" effect along with -or besides- the delay.
    
    	Joe Jas
    

    I'd agree with Joe on recommending the digital delay.  They are
    pretty flexable and can give you all the time delay effects (but
    not at the same time).
                                            
    Since I generally don't use a lot of effects, I think the one that
    helped me most when using my 4-track was getting a little stomp box
    compressor.  I had trouble playing consistantly enough to keep a good
    strong level without saturating the tape at times. Using the compressor
    allows me a little more margin for error with my volume.  I found it
    especially useful when trying to record acoustic guitar, because if
    you're mikeing it and you move a little bit, the volume level changes.
    I have a hard time playing without moving at all.  Keep in mind that
    extreme settings on many compression effects will produce huge amounts
    of noise (hissssss).  You probably won't notice a tangible difference
    in the sound though.  Compression is very subtle. 
    
    Greg

	I would strongly recommend the Digitech Multi-Play digital delay.
	I bought mine for $145 - it has slapback echo, long echo, flanging
	and chorus and is *deathly* quiet.  The regeneration control allows
	you to fake a reverb effect when turned up with slap-back.  Its speed
	and width controls allow you to generate real wierd pitch shifts (if
	you like that kind of stuff!).  Oh, it has stereo outputs and an
	infinite repeat feature also.

	I play my Fender acoustic-electric thru the delay and use a Teac
	TASCAM Porta-1 for recording.  It has DBX instead of Dolby - much
	quieter.  I wouldn't trade my Porta-1 for all the tea in China!
	I mix down my compositions onto a vanilla Nakamichi using DolbyB.
	The end result is quite satisfying.

	/ravi

    Has HX-Pro started appearing on instrument recording equipment yet?
    
    Mike

  Is there a programable foot controlled midi device on the market that is 
capable of routing a signal (guitar) to two destinations (Boogie, Twin) and 
that is capable of sending program change data to midi devices?  Is the Midi
Patch Bayette capable of doing this?  
  What I read from the explanation of the Bayette from the Kitty Hawk file is 
that it is a midi controlled device not a midi originating device.  Is this 
true, or am I wrong?  Any help would be appreciated.


						Tom Boilard

		AMP1					AMP2
	   CH1 & 2, PWR SLAVE			   CH3 & 4, CLASS A
	/-----------------------\		/-----------------------\
	|	      PRE OUT o |>----\   /----<| o LINE OUT		|
	|	      PWR IN  o |<-\  |   |     |			|
	| o INPUT		|  |  |   |	| o INPUT		|
	\-----------------------/  ^  V   V	\-----------------------/
	  ^			   |  |   |	  ^
	  |			   |  o ! o SW1	  |
	  |			   \----o	  |
	  |					  |
	  \-------------------------- o ! o-------/
					o SW2
					|
					|
					^
				/---------------\
				|  INSTRUMENT   |
				\---------------/


	Similar switching question. Is there an off the shelf box that can
	handle it?

		SW1 and SW2 share a throw - both move left or right at
	the same time. Throwing switch to the left sends input signal
	to AMP1 and loops AMP1 PRE OUT back to PWR IN. Throwing switch
	right sends input signal into AMP2 and routes AMP2 LINE OUT to
	AMP1 PWR IN.

	This would preferably be a stomp box.

	Thanks
	Charlie B

    re: .9
    
    The Roland GP-16 will do that (not the GP-8 however).
    
    May be more bang and buck then you want to spend however.
    
    	db

    Your right.  The Kitty Hawk Patch Bayette does not send patch 
    changing data.  You'd need a controller for that.  However, it does
    have a MIDI IN and MIDI THRU jack so you just daisy-chain your MIDI
    devices together.
    
    The Kitty Hawk Patch Bayette II (I have on on order) is esentially
    a MIDI controller A/B box that also has six function switches.
    
    Here's what the Glossy sez about the Bayette II: 
                                                     
    (Courtesy of John Reaume and DEC for use of the FAX network)
    
    KHPB-2  MIDI Patch Bayette II			$695.95
    
    The Patch Bayette II is a rack mountable, single space programmable
    switching unit which responds to MIDI Patch Change command.  Itfeature
    six function switches which can control and devices requiring momentary
    or ON/OFF type foot switches.  An A/B Selector switch allows the
    signal to be sent to either of two outputs.  Up to 128 combinations
    of the six function switch settings and four A/B switch settings
    can be programmed and selected via MIDI.
    
    So in a nutshell it's a MIDI A/B box with six outs to change channels
    on amps, Chandler Tube Drivers, etc...etc...
      
    I'm buying it because I wanted a way to A/B my guitar between my
    rack and my new Kitty M3 head, and at the same time switch channels
    of the M3.  Also, with the MIDI thru, I can pipe the patch change
    info to my MP1 and DSP128.
                              
    Did I say that right John ??
    
    jc

    BTW - I'm bummed that the picture I have is only of a Bayette I
    and not the II that I ordered.  The Bayette I has only a rear panel
    input.  I'll be plugging my guitar into it...Ack !  Thru the back
    of my rack  :(
    
    jc 

    I'm looking for a Cry Baby-type Wha-wha pedal.  New or used...I *need* 
    one!!!
    
    Any information to the purchase of a new or used one would be greatly
    appreciated!!!
    
    Thanx,
    Buck

    
    
    
    	Buck, one of my local heros is playing with onme now and the sound
    is absolutely incredible... I'll find out what the brand and price is
    at lunch and post it hear... you need to hear this pedal.. it's killer!

   Daddy's in Manchester had one the last time I was there.  Matter of fact
   they had two - an new one and a beat up used one.

   'Luck,

    -- Sam

    
    Wah wahs are also available from all the mail order types.  I believe I
    paid around $50-$60 for a new one.
    
    -pat
    

    I've been thinking of getting a new Wah too.  Anyone got any
    recommendations for good makes/models?  
    
    Is there really much difference in how they sound/work?
    
    I have an ancient Vox wah and it's pretty noisy and doesn't seem to
    have a lot of range in the filter sweep.  (maybe it just needs a new
    battery)
    
    Greg

    Yeah, my old VOX is like that too.  I hate trying to figure out it it
    switched or not...
    
    I thought of something awhile back that would be cool, if you had a wah
    that had a foot pressure switch, so that when you stick your foot on
    it, it enabled the wah function and when you took your foot off, it
    would bypass it.  Seems like someone should build something like that.
    
    Greg

    
    I read that Johnny Marr has a on/off indicator light on his wah
    so you can see what's what.

    As far as the reply about differnet makes, yes, they do sound
    different.  Cry Babies are currently made by Jim Dunlop.  They also have
    a bass version and one with a built-in fuzz (all RIGHT!).  Purists say
    they are not quite as good as the VOX originals, but they can be had
    anywhere and are closest to the classic wah sound of Jimi, etc.
    
    Morley wahs sound *much* different to my ears, but are built like
    bricks and use no pots so they never grunge out and run on AC so no
    more battery hassles.  DOD has an inexpensive wah that also can be used
    as a volume pedal, never heard it.  Boss used to make a wah with
    optical technology (like Morley), but I haven't seen one for awhile;
    there was a matching volume pedal.
    
    							Brian

    
    
    
    	Buck (and others) the pedal I had in mind was a DOD FX-17 (I
    think).  It's a wah volume pedal, that sounds incredibly good to me. It
    retails for 89.95, but my hunch is that one would wind up costing 50-60
    bucks...  I can't get over how cool this wah wah sounds as compared to
    the cry-baby pedals.
    
    
    Steve

    Yo Steve...
    
    Just called my local music store...they have the DOD FX-17 in stock for 
    $99.99 "ON SALE..."  I told them I thought it was retail at $89.99 and
    he said they had it listed for $125.00...What;s the scoop...who's
    getting ripped off here?

    
    	Ahem.  My Dunlop Wah came with a an AC adapter input.  My peavey
    	adapters work fine with it.  Also, when I have used a battery,
    	it seemed to last forever.

    Some mail order prices for the DOD FX-17 (they have it listed at
    $129.95 now):
    
    PMI (of New Jersey (201) 863-2200) - $77.95
    Sam Ash ((800) 4-SAM ASH) - $74.95
    Musician's Friend ((800) 777-5173) - $89.88
    
    Mike

    The current catalog from American Musical Supply (800-458-4076) lists
    the FX-17 for $77.95 and The Brass and Woodwind (800-348-5003) lists it
    for 75.50
    
    J. So has an FX-17, but I don't really remember what it sounds like. 
    He doesn't use it very much.  We should get together and compare it to
    my Vox.
    
    Greg

    
    
    	Buck, my friendly music dealer (Al Young, Capitol City Music,
    207-622-6522) has one, I just double checked, with a 89.95 price tag on
    it.  He must discount deeper than those slick big city music places
    that you go to...   Give him a call, I'm sure he'd ba happy to ship it
    to you (and if he won't I will).
    
    regards,
    Steve

	Had mine out for a little ride last night. I paid $99 for mine
	about 2 years ago at Daddy's. It's small and quiet and has a wide
	tonal range. I haven't kicked it too many times so I can't speak
	for ruggedness. There is an AC adapter for it but batteries seem
	to be good for quite a while (> 40hrs).

    I've been looking for a wah pedal myself for some time (it takes time
    when you're too cheap to pay retail). here's a couple of opinions:
    
    The DOD wah/volume pedal - sounds decent, but I have one big gripe
    against it. You engage the wah action by bending over and flicking a
    toggle switch on the side. If you play barefoot and have really
    flexible toes you might be able to master doing this with your feet. I
    couldn't.
    
    The Cry-Baby plus distortion - I got some info from Jim Dunlop on
    these. Like Brian said, they also come with distortion. Not only that,
    you can get vanilla distortion or "Jimi Hendrix" distortion (one or the
    other). The pedals with distortion go for almost $200 retail (they can
    also take an AC adaptor as an option, as can the non-distortion
    pedals). I haven't heard any of these, but I had a Cry-Baby many years
    ago, and I thought it sounded fine. I didn't mind stomping on it to
    engage the wah action, but then I was always more mechanical than
    electrically oriented. My one gripe against the pedals with distortion
    (oh yeah, second gripe counting the price) is that again, you select
    whether the distortion is engaged with a switch on the side.
    
    The bottom line is, I still haven't found the ideal wah-wah pedal. I
    know what it would be - a rack-mounted unit with line power and a
    remote foot pedal including a separate switch. But I'll settle for a
    used Cry-Baby, as soon as I can find one for under $40 (it's possible,
    I've seen them before as low as $20).
    
    - Ram

    
    
    I really favor the old Cry Baby, but I'd have to side-by-side it with
    the new Dunlop one to be able to tell a difference.
    
    I always used my Cry Baby more as a step-on-the-cat pedal, and not
    really for a wah-wah sound.  If you remember Carlos Santana playing
    "Them Changes" you get the idea.   The tone all the way down, a big 1/2
    inch or so, was a screaming treble sound.  Backed all the way off was
    cool, too.
    
    Kevin
    
    

    re: .-1
    
    	>    I always used my Cry Baby more as a step-on-the-cat pedal, and not
    
    Same here.  I found that if and when you kicked it on, to keep it back
    (I'm not saying this well), switch end up? where it cut all the high
    end off, you got a peculiar effect that just loved to feed back.  I
    couldn't find much other use for it, except for the erstwhile sweep
    while you were chugging along on chords, or to play cheesy disco.
    
    As a side note, not sure if it's been discussed - but does anyone
    know what the ART SGE MachII's are going for currently?
    
    
    Thanks, regards, good dinners, all that-
    
    					/craig
    

    Last I heard the SGE Mach IIs were going for around $600 or so.
    
    American Musical Supply lists it for $579.00 and Musicians Friend lists
    it for $599.88 if that helps.
    
    Greg

    	Can someone recommend a pedal to boost a clean sound(slightly
    overdriven?) Something besides a graphic eq or a compressor or volume
    pedal....
    
    							Rick
    

    
    On the subjects of wahs....Michael Schenker credits a lot of his
    tone to engaging the wah and pushing the pedal part way down, and
    leaving it there, as a sort of treble-enhancer.
    
    Of course, the vintage Flying V's, the Marshall stack, and his playing
    ability probably have a lot to do with his sound, too.
    
    Brian

	The switch in the side is for going from volume mode to wah mode.

	Pedal on/off is done by rocking the pedal all the way back and
	pressing HARD. This works to bypass the pedal regardless of what
	mode it's in.

	

    RE:  wahs ....
    
    I recently grabbed a Cry Baby from American Musical Supply for $56. 
    After trying to make the dynamic filter of the GP-8 *try* and do wah
    stuff, I had to !  But, for SRV, Trower, and Hendrix tones, I love it.
    Plus, I use batteries instead of an AC adapter, because I only use it
    live, and I just pop in a cheap Everready each night - $1.99 for 2
    nights, and I can use the used battereies for my tuner and stuff. 
    Works for me ...
    
    Scary

>                 <<< Note 1283.38 by SMURF::BENNETT >>>
>                        -< More FX17 (Re: Ram) >-
>
>
>	The switch in the side is for going from volume mode to wah mode.
>
>	Pedal on/off is done by rocking the pedal all the way back and
>	pressing HARD. This works to bypass the pedal regardless of what
>	mode it's in.

    Yes, now that you mention it, I do recall that. My problem was I wanted
    to be able to use the pedal in volume mode for normal playing, then
    kick in wah mode when needed. It doesn't work this way.
    
    - Ram
	

    

    re: .20
    
    Chapman, of Stick fame, used to market a device called the Patch Of
    Shades that used a pressure sensitive pad. I believe it worked in a
    manner similar to what you have proposed.
    
    Danny W.

     boss's newer edition of the dynamic/envelope filter has an exp pedal
    input for a 5volt control signal.....makes a nice wah-wah-with
    adjustable range, Q , and depth...on Michael Schenker- he presses
    his crybaby down about 1/2 way boosting the midrange-check out 
    strangers in the night or 0bsession which btwwas recorded thru a
    pignose amp exclusively!!!!!yow!!!
    -Bill
     

What's this American Musical Supply everyone's talking about?  Are they the 
new price buster in mail order?  How do I contact them?

Thanks,
Mike

    Thanks to this note (and thanks Dan) I picked up a Cry-Baby wah last
    night. This one is not made by Jim Dunlop, and not by VOX, but by
    Thomas (a division of *Whirpool* - that's ok, so is my dishwasher!).
    Hey Brian, any history on this unit? It looks just like the one I had
    about 20 years ago. I don't remember who built that.
    
    In any case, I checked out the bypass, and it is passive, so I plan to
    modify this with a switch that will cut out the battery. That way I
    can leave it hooked up all the time, but only turn the power on for
    songs that I actually know I'm going to use it in (currently only about
    2), and save the battery. This one doesn't have the AC adapter input
    (I'm sure I could add one easily enough), but I really can't imagine
    trailing a wall-bug cord across the floor to the pedal anyway. Maybe
    I'll invest in a battery charger.
    
    - Ram

    	Wasn't Thomas Organ,distributer for Vox? I remember reading
    somewhere that they entered an agreement with Vox and just used
    there name on equipment they sold and Vox thought they were going 
    to import there stuff to sell in America....
    
    							Rick
     

    
    Thomas, which was an organ manufacturer, was the US distributor of VOX
    for awhile (actually they ran it into the ground).  A lot of old VOX
    gear (especialy solid state stuff) here in the US will have their name
    stamped on a panel somewhere.
    
    						Brian  

geez, i can't believe this! the only reason i opened this notes file
was to leave a "wanted: 1 wah pedal" note.

so buckaroody, what did you end up getting? i'm going pedal hunting
this weekend.

    I picked up a used Cry-baby.  I figured, aw, what the heck...if it's
    good enuff for Tracii, it;s good enuff for me!

    
    
      I didn't want to start a new topic just for this one question,
    so here goes. 
      I just bought a floor model Peavey PGP-20 from Sam Ash for $99.00
    It's a "stereo instrument preamp". You know..distortion, eq, 2 fx
    loops, and midi.
      Does anyone out there have one?. I need a xerox of the manual.
    OR I just need to know how to get the thing on a midi channel besides
    ONE!!!. All my sequences use channel one for my main kbd control
    channel and this PGP-20 is pi**ing me off.
      But it sounds great through a PA......
    
    
    
    RichC
    

    
    
    
       Has anyone tried that new Boss, (or DOD, or maybe Digitech) pedal 
    that shifts harmonies into different octaves?  The price is high at
    $179., but the idea sounds good.
    
       Rick.
    
    
       

    It's by Digitech, called the "Whammy".  I haven't tried one as my local
    dealer doesn't have them.  
    
    It sounds like a specialized piece of the IPS-33 which allows you to do
    pitch bends with it.  Digitech has a IPS-33B demo tape that shows a guy
    doing pedal steel type licks using a regular guitar with a foot
    controller to the IPS-33 to control the pitch change.  You get the
    original signal plus the one with the intelligent pitch change. 
    Sounded kind of interesting, but I think it's got a pretty limited
    utility.  Sounds like they are trying to target that nitch market with
    it.
    
    Greg
       

    Boss has a PS-1 pitch shift/delay stomp box in the price range you
    mentioned.  In addition to doing a reasonable digital delay, it has
    modes to pitch shift up one octave, down one octave, or by a variable
    amount up to � 1 octave.  In the pitch bend mode, the processed signal 
    has quite a lot of noise in it (sounds like steel drums), but mixed 
    down quiet, it can sound reasonably good.  I guess it's like a really
    cheap harmonizer... they spend the other $3K to get the noise out!  If 
    you detune very slightly so that the pitch shift is almost negligable, 
    it does a rather interesting flange effect with a rate equal to the 
    frequency difference between the dry and processed signal.    
    
    All in all, I'm not real pleased with the box... just too much noise to
    make the pitch shifting tolerable for prolonged periods of listening.