LR Monday, July 18, 2011: Say wah?

[yowhatsshakin]

Hi gang,

For those that don't know me: I'm a Dutch former nuclear physicist currently working as a software developer for PopCap Games. Yeah, some of you might have read about us in the business section last week ... But foremost I am a closet rocker who loves to play Collings, PRS, and G&L guitars. And collect them too.

Breakfast
We have visitors over from the Netherlands and today we are going to hit downtown. So I'll be out in an hour or so and cannot tell you what lunch will be. But I know breakfast! Yoghurt with these raspberries from our backyard:

Summer has been luke warm (literally) here in Seattle. So my wife and I didn't really pay attention to what was happening out there. But when Jommie (which is the nickname for my wife) checked it out yesterday we had a huge bowl full of berries. Yummies!!

Before our visitors arrived I picked up this gadget last Friday:

This is an absolutely gorgeously sounding Wah pedal. The people at BBE did another marvelous job on creating a rock-steady, very musical piece of equipment. My reasons to select this particular wah are many, not all objective. First, I am seriously turned of by Dunlop and their myriad of special and artist versions of their 'original' wah. So although the perfect wah for me might be in their arsenal, I just wouldn't know how to pick it beyond test driving them all. You can use reviews, which I did, but they only go so far. Secondly, I know of the existence of the BBE wah mainly because of my love for G&L guitars and this board which keeps you abreast of all the latest developments also on the BBE side.

After trials and tribulations, the candidates were pared down to the Fulltone Clyde Deluxe Wah, the Carl Martin 2 Wah, Morley's Bad Horsey, and this one. If money was no objection at all, it would have been the Clyde. I was really impressed by its tone. Although, and this hold true too for the Carl Martin, too many controls turn me off to some extend. I have a Carl Martin Quattro [sic] as well as a TremO'Vibe, which I both love, so for those reason I was tempted to go with the 2 Wah. However, their wah is somewhat noisy compared to the others. The Horsey dropped off for esthetic reasons. Yup that happens too. But sonically I also fell for the BBE which was not too different from the Clyde. I will not deny there might have been a certain bias, but having experience with their other stuff, I was pretty sure I would not be disappointed anyway. Wonderful wah tones and their 'Harmony' control works beautifully. Although in the end, it still ended up in the middle detent! Both the Clyde and BBE wahs use hand-wiring and meticulous attention to the (recreation of) components used in the device and you can certainly hear and feel it. But in the end, at least for me, it was the price quality ratio that was the decisive factor.

So here's the
Music question of the day
What are you using in making the decision to buy a particular piece of equipment? Money? Word of mouth? Reviews? Artist endorsement? Whatever is available at your local store? And is there one particular piece of equipment that took you a long time to decide on? And how did it pan out in the end?

Since this question touches upon BBE/G&L in particular as well as music in general, it'll have to do for today.

Talk to you later.

- Jos

[zapcosongs]

Hey Jos. Nice start!

The biggest factor for me in selecting gear is whether I can get it through the front door without risking divorce. Actually, I read a lot of reviews and listen to what folks whom I respect have to say about the stuff I'm interested in. I really don't have time to go to stores and plug a lot of different things in, tweak amps, pedals, etc. My needs are pretty basic anyway.

One thing I'm looking at now is taking me a long time to investigate and pull the trigger on: a bass amplifier. I have two great Leo-era basses, and don't play bass, so that makes this a tricky decision. I'm seriously considering a used Hartke 15 inch Kickback and continue to watch online auctions. Was going to hit the bid button on one last night, but the wife wants me to dispose of one of my guitar amps first to make some room (the basement has gotten kind of crowded over time). Not entirely unreasonable and I'm in no real hurry. My Peavey Bandit 75 can probably take a little more thumping in the meantime...

Enjoy the berries. I'd mash some up and throw 'em in a cold glass of iced tea or lemonade! - ed

[sirmyghin]

I am with Ed on the wife aggro factor. That is the prime gear acquisition damper. I laughed when you excluded the bad horsey because of how it looks though, you are definitely a fickle one in that department, I mean it is a pedal, it gets stepped on. Given the relative clarity I hear in morley wahs (I use a BH2 also) they just seem more vocal. You can't beat the switching either. I can't say I have ever said no to a pedal as I didn't like how it looked (I don't even think of the aesthetics). Green guitars on the other hand....

I am currently wrapping up a 7 month custom shop build, few weeks now and it will all be mine, so stay tuned for how it pans out. I just save money until I get the gear I want. If I can I buy from a shop, and that shop is going to be the one with the service the impresses me, more often than price point (although if their price is absurdly different I will pass on them). I am still building my pedal board, one bargain at a time. I am searching for an adapter for my X-amp due to an ebay mishap, he somehow lost the adapter between auction and shipping, he refunded me the cost of a new one however. Looking forward to reamping recordings and such.

Ed is right on again with raspberry lemonade though.

[Kit]

I've never been big on pedals. I own a few, including 3 BBE pedals from being LR, but currently I only play with one pedal in the chain in band practice. I have occasionally thought about a wah. It is so far down the priority list that it is likely I'll never own one.

I'm in the same situation as the other guys as far as spousal approval is concerned. My wife is fairly tolerant of my indulgence in musical gear, but I don't want to push the limit too much. Recently I spent a couple of hundred dollars on a couple of microphones and xlr cables and my wife is OK with it. Right now I am eyeing an amp in my local Craigslist but have not decided if it is a good enough price.

Ed, I have an L-2000 and for playing through I picked up a used Ampeg B115 amp for $175. It sounds quite good and I have used it some. The drummer who used to play in our hobby band played an electronic drumset and he has borrowed it to play through before and it sounded very nice. The only problem with bass amps is that they are no fun to move around. I use a handcart to move mine instead of running the risk of throwing out my back.

Kit

[darwinohm]

Jos, great to see you back as LR.

Looks like a good pedal. I have two BBE pedals and they are built like tanks. I always use the Sonic Stomp on my bass setup.We have done several outdoor gigs this summer and I find that using two bass amps does the job very well.

My deciding factor in buying guitars is overall quality/price or value. G&L is a no brainer, especially used. I always do research to select and then start the price shopping. The cheapest place is not always the place to buy but customer service is important. After the whole selection process is over I then formulate the most important part, "the reason" and that gets presented to Ginny. If i don't have a good one I have to really get creative. It becomes more difficult as time goes on. The last one was a hard sell and it came down to sheer beauty. It is a very methodical process.

On a side note our lead player is really turned on to the ASAT Special and I think that he will be buying one soon. Have a great day everyone! -- Darwin

[zapcosongs]

Thanks for the idea, Kit.
The good thing about being a basement-only player is that I don't have to move squat - or squat to move anything.

Darwin - an ASAT Special was my gateway drug to G&L. "Special" is right! - ed

[sirmyghin]

On a side note our lead player is really turned on to the ASAT Special and I think that he will be buying one soon. Have a great day everyone! -- Darwin

The clarity of the bridge pickup is amazing for rock melody voices and such, it slips through like a scalpel without being harsh, and doesn't get fizzy/farty like the neck under high gain. Can't say I blame him (the neck has its place too, but I don't like that 'fuzz' ness that things get when they start to fizz a bit.

[CGT]

It's a combination of quality, price and opportunity. I'm really not that intent on one piece of equipment or another, so when something that sound right comes along at the right price and is well made, I pick it up.

[CGT]

P.S. @yowhatsshakin Kudos for not titling your post wah's up?

[KenC]

Gear Choice: It's a trade-off between having that certain vibe and what my wife will tolerate. I almost always end up buying used, and just this side of "vintage". That tends toward Leo-era G&Ls with their fair share of dings and dents. I was vetoed this weekend on a mid-80s S-500 (which I had no immediate need for - it was just nicely broken in and in need of some love). Apparently we need a new couch or something. I don't know...I sat on our vintage couch yesterday and it seemed to work fine...anyway, it's newer than the S-500 by a year or two...

Wah Pedal: I don't use them often, but I was listening a lot to Nick Cave's Grinderman project last winter and decided I needed to find the perfect wah pedal. After a couple of "almosts", I stumbled onto a Moogerfooger Low Pass Filter with an expression pedal. It covers any sound I could want, and then some. I found it used for a great price - I probably wouldn't have pulled the trigger on a new one.

Ken C

[blargfromouterspace]

Hi Jos. Nice raspberries.

I have a Dunlop Cry-Baby Classic. I chose it by trying out a four or five of the wahs in Dunlop's ludicrous lineup and it sounded best to me. At the time I got it the Buddy Guy/Slash etc wahs had just come out and were selling for $350 I love the look of the Buddy Guy wah and would have one but I don't use wah enough to justify owning two of them.

After price I look at construction above when I'm buying something. There's no point having something that sounds good but doesn't work or if parts are going to fall off/break. If it passes the build standards it goes to sound testing and ease of use. I don't like complicated pedals with too many controls. I was recently looking for an echo and looked at the Strymon stuff. There's no doubt that it's well made, very well thought out and sound great but I don't want to have to memorize the instructions to use it. Same with amps, more than two channels will just confuse me (Sirmy - you are my opposite and you know it, I'm not in any way 'dissing' your stuff, I just lack the brain power to use it ).

Word of mouth is so totally variable (some people reallly, really like their Affinity series Squiers, for example) that no big gear decisions should be made on it. Youtube video demos, especially those by burgerman666 and proguitarshop, are good for pedals, but not so good for amps and guitars which react and feel so different to one another. I'd never buy an amp or guitar based on one of those videos, but have bought a couple of pedals - most recently a Lovepedal Babyface Tremolo - and have been happy with my purchases.

BTW - does anybody know what it says on the BBE wah? Or even which language it is?

[sirmyghin]

No harm down Blarg, I was going to come in and tease you, burning a few minutes waiting for a theory lesson to start up right now. I love my El Capistan, was using it as a tape style looper for self jamming the other day, it is not the best for that though, a dedicated looper is on my to get list now. I bet the guitar I have coming in has more knobs than your amp, and my amp more than your whole rig. I should start a monopoly on pots and knobs, I could make millions!

[zapcosongs]

I hear there's money in pots. - ed

[sam]

Hey Jos,

Nice Wah ya got there. I have an old FOXX Wah / Volume that I keep just because I have had it so long. It's a bit subtle, I want something with more definition and the BBE may be the way. The Bad Horsie has been under consideration as well. Since I have six BBE pedals (why not stick with what works? Eight other pedals are available for the pedal board as well. So, I like pedals even if I don't always use them they are fun to play with.
What are you using in making the decision to buy a particular piece of equipment?
Cost, youtube, GLDP, Harmony Central and sometimes guitar rag reviews.

And is there one particular piece of equipment that took you a long time to decide on? And how did it pan out in the end?
My ASAT Jr took a long time to decide on because I could not get my hands on one to play and see how it sounds/feels. When I found one on line at a Guitar Center near you north of Seattle at a great price I took the plunge. Right now can't remember city. How did it turn out? This thing is FANTASTIC! My wife even dug it when it arrived while I was out of town.

Great start to the week.

[willross]

Raspberries? I love'um! a couple types (huckleberry, blackberry, bramble, etc.) grow all over the place in Minnesota. They keep ok in the freezer too. When I'm in Northern New Jersey, blueberries are growing all over the place! I really like those...

Ah, the wah. Like KenC, I went the Moogerfooger with two expression pedals. I ended up selling it(kept the expression pedals) and got an old Dunlop. Done. BBE-wise, I have a Crusher, Tremor & Bench Press. The first two are sleeping in their boxes. I just started messing w/ the compressor. On a side note: I'd like to get accurate specs on the Bench Press. The website and the OM are drastically different...


Cheers,

Will

[Kit]

BTW - does anybody know what it says on the BBE wah? Or even which language it is?

The character is what is inside the circle and it is either Chinese or Japanese. In either language it essentially means base or home. The name Japan is two characters, the second is this character. The first character means sun; so Japan means home of the sun, since the country considered itself as far east as possible in the world.

Kit

[yowhatsshakin]

Thank you guys for chiming on a midsummers day. This time of year, I wouldn't necessarily expect large participation. So, much appreciated!

Enjoy the berries. I'd mash some up and throw 'em in a cold glass of iced tea or lemonade! - ed

Just did that this evening. With a splash of Cruzan Aged White Rum for good measure As far as money in pots is concerned, Fulltone seems to be building their own if I read their site correctly. And as does Fulltone, BBE seems to produce their own inductor, but I'm not sure about the pots.

I laughed when you excluded the bad horsey because of how it looks though, you are definitely a fickle one in that department, I mean it is a pedal, it gets stepped on.

Sirmy, I know I was sure I would step on somebodies toe(switch). Or, as is the case of a Horsey, the absence of thereof Keep us up to date with your project; I'm curious how it turns out. Is this the, as far as switching option are concerned, decked out guitar you showed before?

I'm in the same situation as the other guys as far as spousal approval is concerned.

This seems to be a recurring theme in about every response. And for me it is no different. You learn to live with it. And jaystring's book on G.A.S. is great therapy!

The cheapest place is not always the place to buy but customer service is important.

Wise words Darwin! It is many times why I rather like to buy at a mom-'n-pop store but they become so hard to find. Ten years ago when I was buying my rack gear, there was this one guy at the local GC who was great. He knew my name, would always help me out, and lo and behold was knowledgeable! When he moved on, I was only dealing with dufi (which is my incorrect plural for 'dufus') and had to find me a different store. It is so hit and miss with GC because personnel wise there is so much turnover. Oh well ...

P.S. @yowhatsshakin Kudos for not titling your post wah's up?

Didn't even occur to me there was an alternative

After a couple of "almosts", I stumbled onto a Moogerfooger Low Pass Filter with an expression pedal.

Like KenC, I went the Moogerfooger with two expression pedals. I ended up selling it ...

Ken, that must be an interesting piece of equipment. You should tell more about it when you have the chance. And interesting that Will initially also went that way. Why did you drop it, Will?

- Jos

[yowhatsshakin]

My ASAT Jr took a long time to decide on because I could not get my hands on one to play and see how it sounds/feels. When I found one on line at a Guitar Center near you north of Seattle at a great price I took the plunge. Right now can't remember city.

Sam, was it Bellevue? Shoreline? Tukwila (although that is south)? Very glad the Jr. turned out great. But as the owner of '#82', I wouldn't have expected anything different! And I'm fully with you as far as brand loyalty is concerned as I indicated with my initial leaning towards the Carl Martin 2 Wah. But you always have to stay critical. I was rearranging my pedals yesterday with this as the final result:

The Quattro has a effects loop between the Overdrives section and the Chorus section. So I thought to put the TremO in that part too with the Soul Vibe. Bad choice! Very noisy the more chorus I dialed in! Later I read it has something to do with their input buffers or something. Anyway, it had to go at the end, which is still fine. Initially I even had the TremO in the effects loop of my Express 5:25 and it was placed on top of the amp head, but switching with your hand has its limitations Now I have to find me a decent pedalboard ...

- Jos

[suave eddie]

My ASAT Jr took a long time to decide on because I could not get my hands on one to play and see how it sounds/feels. When I found one on line at a Guitar Center near you north of Seattle at a great price I took the plunge. Right now can't remember city.

Probably the Lynnwood store--I've been to that one but never seen a G&L-- although I see they have one in Kirkland also.

[sam]

It was the Kirkland store, thanks for jogging the memory eddie.

[willross]

The Moog set-up was nice: The Low Pass & two Yamaha expression pedals. I kept the pedals because they are amazing and can be locked together. Also, the resale value is around nill... I sold it due to lack of use. Don't get me wrong, it is a great pedal. Great. I just didn't have the hundreds of hours to dial-in all it has to offer. The old, modded Dunlop just does the "wah" trick...


Cheers,

Will

[yowhatsshakin]

The old, modded Dunlop just does the "wah" trick...

Sometimes, or maybe even many times, there is something to be said for simplicity. Do one thing extremely well and you will have a loyal throng of fans and followers, although some will call you a one trick pony. Spread yourself thin and even the things you do well can become tarnished.

- Jos