Re: pedals!! (was: splitters)

[Mike.Biffle@wj.com (Mike Biffle)]

Miko wrote:
>>I also use a GCX Expander audio loop switcher to switch a Boss GX-700 
>(input 
>>to fx loop); Pearce G2r amp; Fulltone Fulldrive 2; Prescription 
>Electronics 
>>Experience; Z-Vex Fuzz Factory; and Big Muff as well as channel switch 
>the 
>>Pearce amp with it. If a Switchblade falls out of the sky, I'll use it 
>in an 
>>instant!!! 8-> One day we'll all have them and never have this discussion
>>again!

Thomas wrote...
Wow , Mike !!  Somehow I was under the impression you are an acoustic 
guitarist.....Boy was I wrong , you got the greatest set of 
pedals.......I`ve
been able to locate ONE PE Experience here in norway , and the "wildest" 
setting
(with all the knobs in) was broken.......have you had any problems with 
that??  
Z-VEX , is that the company with the "crackle okay" pedal??? That sounds 
like a 
great idea , have you tried it??

MB: That IS the crackle ok pedal! 8-> I've been goofing with it and it's 
one of 
those pedals with a Jeckyll-Hyde personality. Each night is different. 
Some 
nights it's "Wow!!! and other nights, "Uhhh... is it me, or is that pedal 
trying
to annoy me."

I'll have to say that my Experience pedal was also *sort* of like that, 
but not 
nearly so extreme. It was very useful immediately in it's normal fuzz 
mode. Sort
of like a great fuzz face with a *lot* of bottom end. Now I get fairly 
consistent results from it in all modes except Swell. There's only a wah 
and TC 
Sustainor (compressor) between it and the guitar, so the variables are 
pretty 
consistent. Be that as it may, that Swell mode has a mind of it's own. 
That's 
part of the fun of it.

The octave mode is ok, but I've got a couple other places where I can get 
octaves going (among other things.) It's that Swell function, which seems 
to 
baffle most and pretend it's useless. It's pretty good for really sick amp 
sounds though as well as good sputtering insect stuff. 

In anwer to your broken Swell button question: 

In swell mode, if it's just beginning a note and seems to overly squelch 
of kill
it, you can turn down the far right knob to get some sort of threshold 
attenution. Then you can turn down knob #3 (distortion), If all else 
fails, turn
off your compressor and turn down the guitar volume. That usually gives 
some 
measure of, dare I say it?... Control. Hahahaha. Remember... The swell 
mode is 
just for fun. You'll never make a living off it! Listen to the pedal in 
plain 
old fuzz mode. I think it's one of the best. If your must have octave 
fuzz, by 
all means audition that mode also. I'd also check out the Fulltone 
Ultimate 
Octave and the Way Huge Piercing Moose as well.

Thomas wrote...
I was wondering about all this splitterstuff.........Does the output-level 
of
the guitar make a different on the noiselevel , seeing as the signal has 
lots of
stuff to travel through??? Im wondering since my strat has some wiring 
problems 
and has very low output (wich I really dont want to fix , coz it sounds 
great! 
;-) )

MB: If you're not running your Strat into any preamp, you probably are 
coming 
into your dsp's or splitter a little or a lot low depending on your Strat. 

It's nice to have a preamp which allows you to tweak the input level so 
you're 
at the correct level to push it some without creating a ton of noise. It's 
also 
nice to have adjustable output so you can match that with your dsp's. I 
use EMG 
pickups, so I usually don't have low level problems... they're pretty hot, 
and 
buffered.

My Pearce G2r has great input attenuation but no output attenuation, which 
I 
have to correct downstream to get it balanced properly. The GX-700 has a 
fair 
range of input attenuation also. And the loop send has it's level control 
as 
well. You don't want someone at the mixer at a gig or recording session 
saying, 
"Your levels are waayyyy too low..." and ending up with a bad signal to 
noise 
ratio for your sound.

All the best...
-Miko