Lunch Report February 4 and NGD

[sam]

Going to follow Dave P’s example of combining a Lunch Report with a NGD!

LUNCH

Tuna melt, cheez-its, and diet coke. I LOVE Cheez-Its! Cheetos are another favorite but something about those square cheesy bits.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

G&L Topic – Black Ice ASAT Deluxe II

Was not looking for one of these but found a “MINTY” one at the right price. Haven’t removed the neck to check date yet, but serial number would think 2012-2013. I am more a fan of single coil MFD’s and Saddle Lock bridge versus Tone Pros bridge and humbuckers but gotta say this is a great guitar! Compared to my ASAT Deluxe Hog body and loaded with hotter Dimarzio’s this swamp ash baby has more of a classic rock sound and feels much lighter. This comes in at lightweight 7.6 lbs and the neck fits right in my hand. The Classic C neck and 12” radius tend to be favorites of mine. The coil splitter does its job, but these pups are geared to humbucker tones. When I first played it I felt a need to run through Black Sabbath Paranoid or fuzz driven Norman Greenbaum’s Spirits in the Sky and this guitar delivered nicely. The black finish on these is truly unique and better looking in person than pictures can show off. Jos has a great overview of his Black Ice here,

http://www.yowhatsshakin.com/yowhatssha ... xe_II.html

Here's mine!



-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Music Topic – music item “everyone had to have”

I can remember when the rage was “You have to have this or that new gadget, maybe one of these - a Tim, Z-VEX, Digitech Whammy pedal, Marshall Origin, Bogner amp, Katana amp, Blackstar small amp, Strap Locks, Floyd Rose, D-Tuna Drop D, pointy guitar, locking nuts, Kemper profiling amp, super strats, BOSS SD-1, Eminence Cannabis Rex and SO MANY others. The only gotta have items I still own is an 80’s ASAT , RAT, a Blackstar hiding in a closet, and a Pedaltrain pedal board. I did own a bright pink HM Strat from back in the day, but ya know how those are all the rage.

What do ya still have that was all the rage?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Non-Music Topic – Super Bowl LIX

Are you a football fan and a Super Bowl fan? I’m not the biggest NFL fan but do watch the playoffs and Super Bowl. Of the two teams I gotta go with the Chiefs. Friends and business colleagues in the KC area, so will support them. Never been a big Eagles fan as well.

Have grown a little tired of the Taylor Swift side show surrounding the Chiefs though. Who do ya think will win?

[Tooslowhand]

Lunch today was corned beef and swiss on rye, with seaweed crackers. Congrats. I really wanted one of those Black Ice ASATs when they were released, but never pulled the trigger. Beautiful guitar. I too love Cheez-Its; the reduced fat ones. But I go back and forth between them and original Goldfish. Will probably have to stop both at some point before my fasting glucose starts rising . I'm really sick of the Chiefs and hope they lose, but not an Eagles fan either. Suspect the Chiefs will win, and not close. I was a Chiefs fan when they had Len Dawson, Ed Podolak, Willie Lanier, et.al.; but that was nearly 60 years ago.

[sam]

Oh boy Len Dawson, I remember those days and was a fan of his too. Goldfish are another ongoing handful round our house as well. I held off as well when the Black Ice series was released, was not sure about the finish. Of course years pass and after seeing one I liked it but they never showed up. Lo and behold, this came up and our favorite enabler, Jos, and his web site convinced me the Deluxe couldn’t be passed up. Thanks for the kudos.

[Dave_P]

Hey Sam, great lunch report and congrats on the ASAT Deluxe, love the finish!

lunch today was salad with some sliced steak

Had to have music item that I still have is a Crybaby Wah from the 90's, don't really use it much. I remember wanting the Russian big muff so bad when it came out, mostly because it came in a wooden box and the olive drab industrial look of it really appealed to me. Never did save up enough to buy one back then.

No idea on the Super Bowl, not a sports person, enjoy the game!

-Dave

[sam]

Hey Dave, thank you sir! How’s yer SC-1 treating you? That one’s a beauty.

A crybaby was definitely on my list in the 90’s as well. Wound up getting a Foxx wah-volume at a pawn shop that sorta worked. A friend fixed it and it worked for a while but now is in a drawer waiting to go to re-hab or burial. Big Muff was the same lust from afar for years. Finally got Keeley Fuzz Bender last summer to get the Fuzz!

[tomanche]

Lunch (today) is a quick veggie jambalaya.

Nice score Sam! Bet that black would look great under stage lighting.

Must haves: I haven't succumbed too much to this... I did get a Tim a long time ago when I was tipped to it by a recording engineer on the old Collings forum. It's been on my pedalboard ever since. I rarely look at other gear pages/forums anymore. Too much groupthink. I do pay attention to the ToneQuest Report, and that publication has incited gear lust that I have consummated for a few items: Pro Junior amp, BK Butler Tube Driver, Ron Ellis humbucker pickups.

[mutts]

Congratulations, Sam. I have always wanted to see one of the Black Ice guitars in person. There was a prototype Deluxe on the web for awhile that I was tempted by. Nice score! I like my Deluxe but still mull swapping out the JB.

Lunch was Cheerios and peanut butter toast.

I don't buy lots of gear so have missed many "must have" items. Like Dave, I also have a Cry Baby from the late 80s or early 90s. I never used it much. It's been in mothballs for decades. I also have a 90s Boss Delay. I didn't love delay back then but it gets fairly regular use now

I usually watch the Super Bowl. I'm very tired of all things KC. For that reason (and a couple others) I might actually skip the whole thing this year. I generally like football but I have no compulsion to watch this game. I used to follow rap more than I do now, I'm not very familiar with Kendrick Lamar so that's not much of a draw for me either.

[sam]

tomanche - you have a couple of things I read in the music rags and web pages they were great to have but never could get. So, how do ya like the Tim and how is it different? The Pro Jr looks like a lot of fun and could fit the bill for pick up and go single coil fun. Enough head room? I recall lots of fantastic reviews about the BK Butler, but another I couldn’t buy. So much gear and so little cash.

Mutts - Like you I’d never seen the Black Ice in person but had to take a flyer on this when I found out the weight, condition and price all lined up. All that gear, maybe we are not so impressionable anymore. I’ve been on the same delay train as you, didn’t find it until later on, or maybe just didn’t appreciate how to use it properly. Don't know Kendrick Lamar but apparently he’s accomplished a lot. As far as the game maybe the commercials will be entertaining!

[tomanche]

Sam, the best description of the Tim is that it gives your guitar's tone—just more of it. You can keep increasing the gain, and by rolling off bass and treble, the overall tone is kept. Compared to the Timmy, the Tim has the Boost button (more "more") and an effects loop (e.g., for a graphic EQ). The Timmy is enough without those functions, and with MXR building them, now easy and affordable to get.

The Pro Jr is cool. Certainly grab and go. With 15 watts, there's plenty of home and performance volume before it starts to break up. Bruce Zinky designed it in tandem with the Vibro King (which I'd like to have, despite it being too powerful and big for home use). The Pro Jr is the small amp that Marshall never made. You can play it lower and clean, or turn it up and grind on it. I actually never get to turn it up loud enough to really grind, unless I use an attenuator.

BK Butler is still building them. Check his website for pricing and ordering. It's more gain than I typically use, and it's not as smooth as my Electroplex Rocket amp overdrive. But it has its uses. (And big name users: David Gilmour still has three in his current rig; Eric Johnson, Billy Gibbons.) I subbed a 12AT7 tube for the 12AX7 to reduce the gain on tap, for me. It pairs fantastically with my P90 Les Paul thru an old clean Ampeg Reverberocket.

[sam]

The MXR looks like a passable option, will keep my eyes open. Have a Fulldrive that could get me close but the pedal bug is always around. You’re only giving me AAS ( Amp Aquisition Syndrome) with yer Pro Jr description.

[john o]

Hi Sam, congrats on the ASAT black ice gtr, looks "gibsonic" to me, bet it has great tones! Jeff Beck had a Tele that Seymour Duncan gibsonified and he used on one of his early records, maybe Truth. Yours looks a little like that one, only cooler.

I wolfed down a piece of pizza during my 10 min lunch today and some water.

I don't have any gear that anyone other than me would consider a must have, but i do have my original Maestro MP-1 Phaser from the '70's, a big metal clunky housing, "balls" and "speed" wheel controls, a fabulous 6 stage phaser. Have never heard a better one, despite several i have gone through. here's a pic... https://reverb.com/marketplace?query=maestro%20phaser .

I've been an Eagles fan since the late '80's when i started watching them regularly, in the early Cunningham years. We have some unfinished business with the Chiefs this Sunday. Looks like a pretty fun pre-party in N'awlins this week. Wish I was there, love that place. Go birds!

[tomanche]

Sam, I bought my Pro Jr used on eBay, which has a steady stream of them from the various versions over the years. (I still have an active alert on them from eBay.) Patience will save you some $$ over new, if you prefer.

[sam]

Hey john,

Thanks and the “gibsonic” aspect always had me hesitant but you are correct it has great tones.

Haven’t heard Maestro MP-1 phaser for ages but know why you still have it. Enjoy!

Lot of Eagles fans out there, hoping for a barn burner

tomanche- now that’s just adding another reason to look for these amps.

[john o]

...and a barn burner it was!

gotta say i didn't expect that. we eagles fans are used to the torture that comes down to the last minute of the game, especially when Mahomes is on the other side, the come back kid who somehow almost always finds a way to win, just ask Josh Allen.

well, not this time. go birds!