PHASER... FLANGER... CHORUS

A FLANGER...A CHORUS what's the difference 

NOT MUCH!

The technology is basically the same...

With the Flanger... the guitar signal is delayed about 10 ms and modulated...then blended together with a regenerated copy of the first flange signal...then the dry signal is added back in.
At 10 ms the effect is so weak...that it needs the regenerated signal.

A Chorus...is delayed by 30ms and does not need the second regenerated signal.

The Flanger was the first pedal to arrive...because it was 2 years after it that the technology had advanced enough for the longer delay time.

The Flanger has a lighter but more ornate sound. I find it can add a little icing on a dirt guitar solo.
It tends not to overwhelm the signal and leaves all the meat in the distorted voice

A Chorus can be quite full and rich...almost 12 string like on chords. Great for transforming something...that is at home on a Martin...but may sound harsh on an electric guitar.
I am not a lover of it on a heavily distorted sound. A lot of players love that because it fattens up the sound. I hate it because the modulation does what some call 'motor boating'...a continuous cycle of peaks and valleys in the signal. A nice long sustained over driven note in a great solo sounds like a Harley idling at a stop light!
I must admit...lots of players in the demos do a stellar job with a distorted tone and the chorus up full.

And...we get back to the analog vs. digital thing. I do like a good quality analog  flanged signal. It can be very rich...warm and airy. The analog chorus can be like this too... the best chorus sounds have nice crisp highs
As for digital. Well I love a digital Chorus too.The top is razor sharp and bright and the lows are fat and full and never muddy.
Try one of each played together and there is no going back.!!!

(put the analog chorus in front of the digital for best results.)

Anyhow...all that said I have 2 Chorus pedals and a Flanger.

HERE'S MY PICKs

DONNER CONVOLUTION FLANGER

Yes yet another Mooer re-brand. This time it is a clone of the Electro-Harmonics Electric Mistress.
In fact it is similar...but the Mooer is actually warmer sounding. I had the EH for years and it is a tad strident.

                                                                                        Current Price $31.00 USD 
                                                                            
                                                                             

           Current Price $46.00 USD

NUX CH-3 CHORUS

Nux specialize in digital pedals....the quality is second to none. this is so clean I thought it was digital it is not. It sounds great on it's own but stacked with Donner it is awesome. Huge but not too busy.
This is not a vintage sounding pedal. It is very modern. After having both I find I keep going back to this one. It really fattens up a sound but always frames the pedals you use with it. If any one out there could use it for a week on trial...they would not give it back!


         Current Price $28.00 USD

                                                                                       

 NUX CHORUS CORE

I do not have this pedal...but I have the delay
so it is safe to say you get a lot of useful 
bells and whistles.The Tri-Chorus effect
is worth the price.

                                                       Current Price $38.00 USD

DONNER TUTI LOVE CHORUS

A Mooer re-brand again. Not much to add.
Many players have trusted their Chorus effect to the Boss CE-2 Chorus for years. If it is not broke then don't fix it. Steel it. LOL Yes...this is a Boss clone.

I recommend you choose by the color of the paint.



The Boss CE-2 is out of production
The Valetron Loft is an exact clone part for part.

Current Price $89.00 USD

            Current Price $34.00 USD

Current Price $$46.00 USD

I recommend getting both the faux Boss and a Nux Chorus Pedal...if you do...money or not you will never be looking over a Gourmet pedal and wishing.
With both you can do a lot.
Ok...if you want just one flip a coin ....for my money they are a tie.

PHASER PHIRST!!!

Back in the BAD OLD DAYS....the Phaser arrived.
It was even there by EH before the Gourmet guy MXR....Cross yourself...at the time MXR was considered expensive and sophisticated.There wasn't even that cheap Japanese crap Boss to choose from. YUP!  Japanese pedals had the status that the Chinese pedals are going thru.

NOTE:  The GUITARS MADE IN KOREA HAVE REACHED THE QUALITY OF BUILD
OF THE U.S. AND JAPANESE GUITARS. IN A VERY FEW YEARS YOUR NEXT GUITAR HERO WILL PLAY ONE. YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST.
I HAVE ONE! $450.00
and it sounds...and plays and is as good as my Les Paul.....No SHORT CUTS...solid ash with a fixed maple neck. 
This has already happened with cars made in Korea...guitars are next!

NOW WHAT WAS I TALKING ABOUT??? OH YES

PHASERS

HOW IT WORKS
Back to the delay thing again. Before there was a chip to delay the signal enough to make even the Flanger...it was found that an... all pass filter... with it's micro second delay was enough to put the overtones out of phase.  this literally was  just smearing the sound. This happens with cheap stereo speakers where the tweeter signal reaches you ears before the speaker can.This sounds like crap. BUT...if you put in an osilater to sweep from the in sync dry signal back to the out of phase signal and back...cool sh@t happens. So put in a second ...high pass filter..and you phase the phase...put in a third...etc.

OK...the choices

DONNER PEARL TREMOR PHASE

An MXR Phase 90 clone. Yes and again a Mooer re-brand. 


Current Price $31.00 USD

< Current Price $186.00 USD





               Current Price $52.00 USD. >

DELAYS- SBS

DELAYS

First a delay can be more then just a stomp box to make echos....BUT making echoes is it's primary function!

There are 2 kinds of Delay types....old style Analog....and Digital. Some players love one and hate the other. This is nuts...they both have zero to do with capturing a natural echo. They are both excellent in their own way. BUY ONE OF EACH....you will use them both!

ANALOG DELAY 

There were not any digital chips to make digital pedals of any kind when the first analog delays were made. They used what is called a bucket brigade device chip...a very crude form of recording a note or chord...then recycling it over and over fading the short recording as it is repeated...until it fades away.
It looses nearly all the top and low end of the sound it has recorded. The trick is to make this note sound pleasant. Secondly the recording can only be held on the chip for a short time so the time between each repeat has be much shorter then for a digital delay.

DIGITAL DELAY 

Digital Delay works on fairly simple format...A digital recording is made of the incoming signal in tiny amounts then each recording is played over several times with an evenly timed space between each little recording...this short recording of your guitar signal is called a 'sample.' A sample can be stored reasonably long time so slow repeats are possible with a digital delay.Analog delay is not natural delay because it eats up highs and lows and distorts what's left. With digital you create a perfectly clear recording of the guitar signal...and it repeats unchanged...that does not happen in nature either.


WHICH IS BETTER

Analog... tends to give the echo a soft and unobtrusive ambiance. Digital is so crisp and clean it helps stop the clutter that echos can create. Having one of each is ideal...each one creates the mood best suited to it's application.

HERE ARE MY CHOICES

MIGHTY SOUND

M-5 DELAY

This is a mini pedal. It is straight forward...no bells or whistles. In a review title 'THE FIVE BEST DELAYS'  it was right there on the list with some other big time ...big money delay pedal choices. It is quite frankly the kind of pedal that some one like the Gourmet boys at Xotic might sell along with their  highly praised Compressor.

It should be a $150.00 USD pedal made in California....but it is not.

When I first saw it I thought it was yet another Mooer re-brand. It took a lot of research to find out it is a new line of pedals designed stateside but made by Cherry Music ...not a bad looking website...but very little info on each product and no videos at all.

The controls are classic for an analog delay.
Echo ...Time...and Feedback
Simple...how loud the echo is to your dry signal...how many repeats and how long the time is before the next repeat arrives.

It takes seconds to learn how to use it. The sound is warm but clear. My ears tell me it has a dynamite buffer built into the delay circuit...because it is is full... but tight sounding.

It is a little gem. Any price less the $65.00 USD is a Steal. It is the very best value for money for a pedal of any kind Hell...even the cosmetics are great!!!

 Current Price $23.00 USD

HEY THERE BUNKY.....get the F. OFF THIS BLOG RIGHT NOW AND GO TO

 ALI EXPRESS AND GET ONE!!!!

NO DELAY ON BUYING A DELAY...

NUX 

TIME CORE

DIGITAL DELAY

Nux basically specialize in digital pedals. The quality is excellent. At least as good as the bulk of mainstream and Gourmet pedals under $200.00
So keep an eye on any pedal that might benefit from being digital. If Nux make one check it out. This thing sounds great on Bass guitars as well. They make 3 other delay pedals each having more and more bells and whistles.

Even this pedal has a few. Most notable is a Phrase Looper.
This is a bullet proof basic pedal. It is a keeper.
They do a re-brand for Donner. I have the Donner...but now the Nux is cheaper then the Donner.
The spec shows are up there with some of the best.

                            Current Price $44.00 USD

TC ELECTRONIC FLASHBACK DELAY

The best digital delay on the planet is the  STRYMON TIMELINE a large pedal with 200 presets and an infinity of functions. It is $450.00 USD.

The price says it all.

At the bottom of the 'Serious Delay Pedal' category is the TC ELECTRONIC FLASHBACK...there are several versions even a mini with just one sound (You can download dozens of different sounds to replace it...but it still just has one sound)

There are delay pedals that are marginally better then the Flashback...but why bother...in short if out of 10...the TIMELINE is a 10...and the FLASHBACK is a 9. Why bother with a 9.4 or a 9.7 ???

For only a tiny improvement you can spend a lot more money then  the $110.00 USD that the FLASHBACK goes for and still not have the best. The flashback is used by hundreds of pro's that find the sound quality superb...and prefer its incredible simplicity to operate.

(me too)  lol
The rack mount version that the Flashback was derived from has been the mainstay of Pink Floyd  since 1976. 

But why buy?

....well as for myself...with 45 pedals...this timing thing was just too alluring. I find I use it a lot more then I ever used the NUX.

It sounds great...the selection of sounds is better then the NUX and it is dead simple to use

.

TONE CITY T4 TAPE MACHINE

Tone city was founded by J. WONG.......who is the guy behind the better Mooer clones. He thought with his skills to design a true clone, the freedom of a bigger budget ....then add to that a that a handmade Chinese product at a low enough price that we could not resist..

Well...maybe...lol

But after giving a few a listen I found the..... a clone of the B & F of Finland's... Mad Professor Deep Blue Delay which is analog modeling of a tape delay pedal is a winner. It trys to sounds like a early 60's EchoPlex tape delay...the early tube version. I owned one...it is merely an impression of one.
But it sounds great...and that's enough.

The Sound City T4 .Tape Machine
...is a very excellent sounding pedal.

 At $89.00 USD...compared to the Deep Blue..$338.00 USD. Tone City have a winner.

Now ...this is where it get's interesting.

BOGUS CLONE

There is a clone...maybe even a counterfeit look alike from China...Mogoo I suspect.
Sometimes Mogoo get the sound
right...especially with their OD's but this time. NO!

In fact some players have bought the Chinese clone used and paid 2 or 3 times the $37.00 USD price thinking that they have an original.... for they probably do not know these clones exist... Now many have gone on line warning others to NOT BUY A DEEP BLUE DELAY that the Mad Professor product is crap.



So you have been warned!!!!

THE ORIGINAL

REVERB- SBS

REVERB

REVERB.....WHAT IS IT?

So as ever I will keep it simple.
JUST THE NEED TO KNOW STUFF!

We all know what an echo is. A sound sails through the air hits a very hard surface and bounces back and with a distinct pause arrives at our ears. Well reverb is virtually the same think. The difference is that the delay coming back to our ears is so quick we can not perceive the separation. Add to that it is not one  echo but hundreds or even thousands of them. Each of these micro echoes bounce off the surfaces surrounding you and goes back to your ears a micro second or two apart. Depending on what they bounced off of they will each have a different sound and get back to your ears a split second apart.. The ones bouncing off of the concrete floor will be brighter then the ones bouncing off of a wooden door etc Some things in the room like curtains and furniture will suck up the sound...and the first echos will bounce over to an adjacent wall and bounce back again...and then again bouncing a second time and so on.

A program on a digital chip called an antilogarithm creates the sound.The larger and more complex the program the better the sound. The greater the memory of the chip the more room you have for the complexities that create a very rich and detailed sound.

There are 3 basic types of  reverb sounds...the sound inside buildings (rooms, halls etc.)...the sounds made by mechanical devices..springs and plates...and artificial fantasy rooms...sounds that could not happen in nature.

SPRINGS

In the 50's they found if you put the signal coming through a series of suspended springs it was delayed enough to create and perhaps bounced around enough to create a simple reverb like sound..a much simpler sound ...but effective. It was crude and sounds a little trashy...but on a guitar it was effective.

Acutronics Spring Reverb

                                              the industry standard for quality guitar amps. eg. Fender

PLATES

In the 60's they tried the same idea running thru a giant metal plate. Now the signal could head off in 2 directions...from north to south and east to west. This gave a much richer and cleaner sound. It was surprisingly pleasant and sounded great on vocals and guitars. It tended to be a little weak in the low end but this only helped as it got rid of frequencies that can muddy up the the sound of a whole band.

ARTIFICIAL ROOMS

Once again the concept is simple...take the high end content from a cathedral and the mids from a bath shower space..and bingo..you have a space that can not exist in nature. The sounds made this way are endless.

TIME TO CHOOSE ONE!!!

DONNER VERB SQUARE

Donner have been around for a few years now.

They DO NOT make pedals. They buy re-branded stock from

Mooer, Joyo and NUX.

Those that make there own brands even when they use a standard

mmmm casings consistently drill out holes

in the casings for plugs, switches and knobs. If they re-brand 

this is the giveaway.

I have NEVER found 2 companies alike,

So what baffles me is that Mooer does not have an equivalent pedal with

XX choices of reverb.

This is a well thought out and useful unit. All the voices are geared to work well superficially for guitar and there is not one gimmick ( or should I say Soundscape) patch on the selection knob






TOMSLINE

OCEANVERB

Yes yet another Mooer rebrand. You get one of each type of reverb...a ROOM...a SPRING...and a fantasy reverb...SHIMMER. the Shimmer was borrowed from the Stymon Bluesky reverb..a nice but pricey Gourmet pedal. It is a nice airy huge sound with an artificial overtone ringing an a couple of octaves higher then the note you play. Unfortunately Mooer choose to use a fifth instead of the octave so in some circumstances the note could be ringing out of tune.    Morons!!!
The spring is OK..if you are into Country or Rockabilly...but for many styles of music...why would I want to go digital and not have the sound of a beautiful room etc.
So...fortunately the Room is quite decent. It is neutral enough for any tune I will play. Since most players leave the reverb on all the time...it fits the bill quite nicely.

This pedal is a rebranded Mooer Shimverb...they also make the SkyVerb...they do not offer it as a rebrand. I expect that most players that try the Shimverb at a store will not notice the "fifth' problem. They will most likely will choose it over the SkyVerb.  Too bad because the SkyVerb has a very usable Plate.
I will get more into Plates with my final choice.

The 3 sounds in SkyVerb are Studio...Church and Plate.
The ShimVerb/Ocean Verb are Room...Spring and Shimmer.

...the overall actual tone of either pedal is quite good both are usable.


    Current Price $40.00  USD                                                     Current Price $49.00 USD

Current Price $53.00 USD

CALINE 
SNAKE BITE 

I did not buy this reverb. In hindsight I would have at the time I got the Tom'sline. At that time I was looking for the very cheapest pro pedal and the Mooer re-brand stuff in general is exactly that. The Caline  has a lot of control over the sound.You only get a single Room and it costs more . The basic room you do get is in the same league as pedals over $100.00 and you get sufficient sonic hands on control to tailor that to any style or set up you have.
On controls that increase any high frequencies there is however some noticeable hiss
The video will give you a good idea of the sound quality and the flexibility it gives you to shape it.

The overall sound is very good...another reviewer nailed it when he said... "It sounds expensive."

So it has got to be the best value for money in a reverb for less then $100.00.
In fact after a good  listen to the big contenders for under $200.00....they all have  several basic patches to choose from but their sonic quality may equal but they do not surpass the Caline.

In short...unless you are ready to move into reverbs that set a higher standard in pure sound...and they start at $200.00 this is your best bet.
.

  $56.00 USD on AliExpress

$115.00 USD

NINEVOLT
BATH TIME REVERB

A little over our $100.00 ceiling but worth much more. Ninevolt are a Japanese company
that makes a small line of basic but quality parts and pedals that are predictable but cheap. 
It is easy to use. One knob to mix the the wet and dry signal another to decide how long the reverb will ring on. Then the other a switch to choose between hall spring and room.

CATALINBREAD
TALISMAN

I recently bought this pedal and I am 100% satisfied. It checks all the boxes and sounds...I hate to use this overused word AWSOME!!!           It is also expensive.!!!

OK what the F. is it all about.

First..a reverb tends to be an 'always on' pedal.
In a live situation the you need a sound that can work on every tune.......I do not want to change the patch..with the small exception of a tune at a rather slow tempo then a longer decay is nice.
It has to sound very clean and clear and never muddy.

Well...first I only need one sound....the really great reverbs have many...and you will pay for that.
The safest reverb sound is a great plate as it ticks all the boxes.

Now what is the  greatest plate ever made and can I get it as a pedal?

The Catalinbread Talisman Reverb....digital modelling of an EMT140TS plate Reverb

Current Price $ 209.00 USD

Bottom line...it sounds great. It is easy to program to perfection and

most of all everything going through it has an improved sound. The detail especially in my best pedals is maintained. If you have for example 6 pedals and you get one...instantly it is like having 7 new pedals the second you turn it on.

You set it up for your average mid tempo...occasionally on a slow tempo song you lean over and grab the 'Time' knob for a longer decay.

One last thing...what the EMT 140 does you can do on the Talisman....

so if you want to hear the best demo of these sounds listen to....

 Pink Floyd's

 'Dark Side of the Moon'  

the EMT was all they had...and they got anything and everything it could do out of it.

JUST WHEN YOU THINK ITS A PERFECT PEDAL....I FIND A NASTY SIDE EFFECT

NOT WITH THE PEDAL BUT HOW I USE SO MANY NOISE GATES.

I AM USING ONE ON EACH OF MY 4 LOOPS AND ONE RIGHT ON THE GUITAR

IF I USE A HARD GATE WHICH CHOPS OFF THE LAST NOTE PLAYED

THE PRE-DELAY ACTS AS A SLAPBACK ECHO AND MAKES A NASTY CLICK .

TO CREATE A LARGE ROOM ONE USES A PRE-DELAY.

...SIMPLE REALLY ....YOUR EARS TELL YOU THAT YOU ARE IN A BIG ROOM BECAUSE THERE IS LITTLE DELAY BEFORE THE REVERB BOUNCES OFF OF THE WALLS AND COMES BACK TO YOUR EARS. IN A SMALL ROOM THE REVBERB COMES BACK INSTANTLY....SO I HAVE HAD TO SETTLE ON USING A SMALL ROOM SOUND ON ALL BUT CLEAN SOUNDS...ON THOSE I CAN PUT A LONG DECAY ON THE NOISE GATE

OVERDRIVE- A PEDAL THAT CLONES AN AMP PERFECTLY PT. 2 ..... THE BEST OVERDRIVE EVER ?

THIS THING BLEW MY MIND!

Is it the most exciting pedal I ever heard. No...many pedals are designed to be larger then life like my Apocalypse Fuzz and a JMC 800 effort made by JHS The AT...an Angry Charlie on steroids.

 This pedal is all about putting a myth into a reality. The roots of much of today's approach to rock music were laid down on the record of the mid 60's. The sound of British rock in the 60's and early 70's  was the Marshall Plexi Stack.

CATALINBREAD'S DIRTY LITTLE SECRET

What's the big deal about another Plexi pedal everyone has one. Catalinbread set out to capture the ultimate dead accurate Plexi sound and they have nailed it in every way. Not only is the sound dead accurate down to the cabinet thump. The pedal responses to your guitars volume knob...More important ...it responds to
 your touch...every nuance of your playing effects the sound.

It comes set to the super lead Plexi..(thick upper mids more distorted...Strat friendly )but you can open the pedal and switch it to the super bass (heavy low mids ...cleaner...and is magical with a fuzz..especially an old style Germanium Fuzz
The 'super bass' is NOT a few tweaks to sell the pedal...It is quite effectively a different amp
or can I say...a different pedal. (Just listen to Hendrix do the The Wind Cries Mary...this thing has it nailed!) Catalinbread could have very easily made 2 pedals and sold them separate. Not happy to stop there they have a second presence switch in the pedal to match with your amp ...to more accurately turn your amp into an extension of the sound.
In short it takes a Fender and turns it into Marshall.

BONUS...It has the very,very best (on-line)  manual I have ever read in my life.
It tells you how...why....and what guitar and amp works best with
which settings. It gets into the history of the 2 original amp designs...that is not only entertaining...but is done in such a way as to help you choose which of the 2 voicings will be best...for your tastes ...the guitar and other pedals you have. It even deals with your amplifier.
They are so honest with what pedals were used with the original amps...that they end up promoting pedals that you may wish to get....and they do not make. 

                                            I RATE THIS PEDAL A 10 out of 10....better still make that an 11.

                       CHECK OUT ALL THE VIDS!!!!

    2 pedals in one box
  <<<<




                





            Catalinbread promote using this pedal as a 
                             'FOUNDATION PEDAL'   >>>

       Current Price $170.00 USD 

OVERDRIVE- A PEDAL THAT CLONES AN AMP PERFECTLY PT. 1

WHY THIS RARELY HAPPENS...

It takes a lot of research...a lot of trial and error...and lot of money. But that is not the main reason.

For example with a Marshall Plexi..you bring in a perfect example. Maybe even 2 or 3 stacks, a vintage Strat and a Les Paul...you bring in a good guitarist. Three years...yes years...you have a pretty scary clone!

BUT VERY FEW BUY IT!!!

WHY?

Well...I even owned a real Plexi for years...over which time I had a Strat...LP and a Flying V.

BUT LIKE EVERYONE ELSE I JUDGED THE PEDAL AGAINST A RECORDING OF SOME GREAT MUSICIAN.

Skip any studio stuff and you are still judging the tone you hear... Perhaps there was a Rangemaster Treble Booster and a Sola Sound Tone Bender placed between the guitar and amp. Or if you hear a Marshall JCM 800...the odds are it was being overdriven by a Boss SD-1 Distortion pedal.

So a successful OD builder takes this in mind. That is why so many can exist in the market place. at the same time...and this accounts for the endless variations and compromises that make up the pedal
Yes that perfect amp could be a clone of perhaps Jimmy Page of Zep. including his treble booster and Fuzz sound designed into the pedal.

The Pedals That Clones An Amp Perfectly

A FENDER DELUXE

There are 2 pedals that clone a 57 Fender Deluxe...The Tech21 Blonde
...and the Joyo American which  is a clone of the Tech21. Watch the 2 vids.
.
Either pedal is good. The Tech21 is mildly tighter sounding....
... the Joyo is slightly more open but as you will see just as impressive.
.
...the YouTube vid...' Joyo American Sound Amp Simulation Pedal'....with Shane compares the pedal with the actual amp....If you have a Marshall...what a treat...get this and have 2 amps.

THE JOYO AMERICAN

Current Price $30.00 USD

TECH21 BLONDE

Current Price $134.00 USD

Tech21 vs Joyo American

I have owned 2 Twin Reverbs ...I always loved the clean sound.

as for dirt...it did not have any LOL

WHY WOULD AN OBSCENELY EXPENSIVE PEDAL BE ON THIS SITE ???

STATE OF THE ART ???

Here at SBS we are all about great quality pedals that are totally pro and under $100.00 USD!!!

This is totally what we are about!!!  THIS WILL NEVER CHANGE!!!

Think about it!!!

EVERYONE WANTS THE BEST

SOME PEDALS ARE DESIGNED WITH A "FIXED" SOUND...NO EXTENSIVE EQ OR FILTERS TO CHANGE IT...BUT IF DONE RIGHT IT CAN BE A CHEAP WAY TO GET AT LEAST ONE PERFECT SOUND

...BELLS AND WHISTLES DO NOT MAKE A POOR SOUNDING PEDAL BETTER.

...PEDALS THAT START WITH A GREAT SOUND AND ADD THE BELLS AND WHISTLES ARE A LUXURY...WORTH A SPLURGE...BUT THERE IS NO NEED TO HAVE NOTHING BUT THOSE KIND OF PEDALS.

A PEDAL THAT IS EXCEPTIONAL..

IF I FIND A GOURMET PEDAL THAT IS SO STUNNING IT IS TO DIE FOR... 

I WILL REVIEW IT AND PUT UP A VID FOR YOU TO COMPARE IT TO THE SDS PEDAL. 

SOME GOURMET PEDALS ARE NOT SONICALLY BETTER THEN AN SDS PEDAL
THEY JUST GIVE YOU MORE 'STUFF' FOR EXAMPLE ...I HEARD A CHORUS THAT
SIMPLY PUT 2 CHORUSES IN THE SAME BOX...IT SOUNDED GREAT...BUT NOT BETTER THEN USING 2 SDS TYPE PEDALS...AND FOR THE PRICE YOU COULD HAVE 4 SDS PEDALS.

ON THE OTHER HAND I HEARD A PLEXI TYPE PEDAL THAT COULD FOOL YOU
IF THE PLEXI AMP WAS THERE TO COMPARE IT. NOW!
THAT WILL BE REVIEWED SHORTLY.

IN SHORT..'.MORE'...IS NOT BETTER...AND THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF 'MORE'TYPE PEDALS OUT THERE. 
SO IF OVER TIME..YOU NEVER SEE..FOR EXAMPLE A GOURMET CHORUS...IT IS BECAUSE IN MY ESTIMATION...IT IS A WASTE OF MONEY...IF YOU HEARD NEXT TO
SDS PEDAL...PUT ON A SETTING THAT MOST OF US WOULD USE...IT WOULD NOT SOUND ONE BIT BETTER....NOW IT MIGHT HAVE A SWITCH AND 2 KNOBS THAT MAKE IT SOUND LIKE A GARBAGE CAN ROLLING DOWN THE STAIRS..

AND THAT'S WHY IT IS $225.00

ONE LAST THING;

IF I FIND ANYTHING THAT IS CRAP OR BULL...I AM GOING TO SAY SO...
NOTHING IS SACRED...THIS IS A ROCK & ROLL BLOG SO OUR ARROGANCE HAS
NO LIMITS!

TREBLE BOOSTERS....WHY YOU NEED ONE BUT DID NOT KNOW IT!!!

TREBLE BOOSTER

I DO NOT HAVE A TREBLE PROBLEM 

No not me. I have a buffer...a clean booster and 3 EQ pedals. So I do not need one!

WRONG!!!  ..... because treble boosters are all about sizzling soaring sustain!!!

During the 60's musicians were starting to crank their amps looking for more sustain.
They found that when soloing at high volumes you could get feedback from the speakers that with a bit of effort could be controlled to make some very exciting effects.The problem was it was difficult to always do on command and difficult to control. But if you bought a treble booster that all changed.

Just listen to Brian May of Queen. Not only does he get amazing sustain and a 'lift off' on any note he wants...he can do it on command. He writes parts into the tunes that depend on it happening or those parts tank!! His secret weapon is the Treble booster.

A LITTLE HISTORY

DALLAS RANGEMASTER

This was the first company to build a treble booster. Early models were a box that sat on top of your amp...not a pedal. These were relatively simple circuits based on a Mullard JC-44 germanium transistor with only 4 other parts.

Although referred to as a treble booster...unlike other treble boosters that are boosting even the harmonics in the low end (as it sees them as treble)..it works on only the notes actually in the high end.The higher you go the more boost it gives you. It leaves your low end alone and intact. It works best on an amp or before a pedal that is distorting. In other words it works best when you stack it.

Another very important thing is that in the 60's the Marshall Plexi was voiced with very heavy low mids. This made the sound incredibly fat but the guitar could get swamped by the same frequencies coming from other band members. Although the Rangemaster and others like it are called treble boosters they would boost the upper mids as much as the highs so guitar riffs and leads jumped right out and were so much fuller.

They were soon discovered by guitarists like Brian May of Queen, Toni Iommi of Black Sabbath...Rory Gallagher and Marc Bolan. Eric Clapton used one with his Bluesbreaker amp.

Oh my...and all they want  is $13,000.00 USD
for this mouldie goldie oldie
.

HORNBY SKEWES

Not long after the Rangemaster came along Horby Skewes brought out theirs. It was however when they intoduced a second generation model based on the silicon transistor that they took off.
Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple...put them on the map. He used his from 60 to 74

.

VOX

Jumped in with several models. In 1966 it was the V806 that got it right. Roger Mcguinn of the Byrds had one built right into his Ricky 12 string. Tom Petty was never without his.
This was a more conventional all treble no mids booster.

Used these suckers get $500.00 USD. They were actually made as a Vox AC30 amp accessory.
They became so popular for those buyers they simply put the Top Boost feature in the amp itself and stop making the 806.

11/11/2017
The only one on the planet making the Real Deal is Ananashead FX.
The Byrd Song. It will come in a very nice mini pedal. 
I approached owner builder Pedro Garcia 
to make me a custom made one but in a sensible mini pedal.
Pedro's attention to authentic parts. build  quality & detail is second to none!!!

Another bonus is it simulates a very, very passable Brian May of Queen sound with a Strat or other single coil without having Brian's unique home made guitar and vintage AC30. Just plug it into a medium gain Plexi type OD. For this alone it is a steal!!!!

.

COLORSOUND BOOST

This little orange stomp box was David Gilmours favorite. Who hasn't heard the Pink Floyd guitar sound??? It offered a boost for bass as well...but it was it's sweet high end that sold it. It is back in production at $375.00 USD. (if a reasonable China knock off were made it could go for $30.00.The company who made it could produce it cheaper then any pedal in their line of  $30.00 pedals.)

ELECTRO-HARMONIX SCREAMING BIRD
& SCREAMING TREE

DEATH OF THE TREBLE BOOSTER

By the 70's overdrives and better made Fuzz boxes took over and the treble booster fizzled away.
But now musicians are more demanding...many are searching for a nice clean soaring sustain. A sustain free of compressors...and the treble booster will do that.


BSM

BSM have revived every treble booster and every model that I think ever existed. They have 17...and will customize one for you if these are not good enough for you. I do not think they will stop here I am sure they working on pedal 18 as you read this little epistle of mine.
BUT if you do not have  $300.00 in your pocket move on.
Gourmet...hand made or not...many of these pedals have a very,very modest circuit....So...I find them just a bit excessively priced.   In fact the word GOUGE comes to mind!

ELECTRO- HARMONIX SCREAMING BIRD

Because resurgence of the treble booster EH has got back in. The Screaming Bird name has been revived with the new Nano line pedals. THIS PEDAL IS SO NEW THAT I COULD ONLY FIND ONE VID...& not in English.

Current Price $41.00 USD

MARITIME AUDIO BULLFROG BOOST

This is a simple straight up Rangemaster clone with the original circuit in tack..
There is a single Mullard OC-44 germanium transistor...that gives it ...'It's Rangemaster Sound!  A few other companies out there doing the same thing but most add superfluous bits and pieces until most of them are really overdrive pedals. The Bullfrog has a toggle switch that gives you the original boost and adds one in the mids and one in the lows. The low boost sounds like a low mid boost to me. So you get the original tone and 2 others that are quite useful.

Other companies throw in a lot stuff you don't need...but with prices in the $200.00 plus area...the extras are a given to justify the price.
What does it do?
It adds a presence to the sound without sounding overly bright or harsh...It tightens the sound and gets rid of mush. It adds some sustain. If you plug in a geranium fuzz, especially if it is a Tone Master clone...it perform miracles ...it removes the harshness and make the harmonics richer sounding.

 THE VERDICT

At $95.00 USD..... this is not priced in the 'silly zone'. All the parts are high end...so you do get your money's worth that way.

It really comes off as an alternative to a Tube Screamer but it is warmer...has more grit.

It falls into that transparent OD category
and like the Tube Screamer it likes to be stacked.
Put in  front of your amp...or put it in front of a Marshall type medium gain OD and listen to the magic!

I can not help but like it. It has just enough

noticeable distortion to give it a real

punch. Like the original it has a bit of mojo.

Maritime Audio are merging with Butcher
Pedals. There is very little info on this. At
present all the former product have the Butcher
name on it except the Bullfrog Boost.
This could just be an old inventory thing
as the the Bullfrog Boost is listed with others
as part of the Butcher line up

Update: Further BULLFROG BOOST
Pedals will be made with the BUTCHER
LOGO...there are just a few
of the old stock Maritime ones left.

there is one less today because they have shipped me mine...and I love it!




Note the demo shows the old case...all new one are in a mini case

SUMMARY

Well I have listen to a lot of treble boosters in researching this toy. They seem to really make a BIG difference.

Right now only those into keeping up with the leading trends buy treble boosters. Some of  Gourmet boys offer them...and as you might expect they are accurate repro  models and many have superfluous bells and whistles.. The prices are up there. They are such simple things. One transistor and a few bits and bobs...so I feel a hundred bucks is the limit.

There are only 2 at the SBS price and the Bullfrog Boost just squeaks in and the EH.. just ain't gonna do it.


That said...the Rangemaster is a classic and the design is very simple so if the actual parts are not substituted it is hard to screw up. If the Chinese decide to do one the odds are great it will be good. But as it stands now as far as a cheap pedal is concerned there are only 2...and only one I can recommend.The Bullfrog.

If you are into Over Drives....(What a stupid Question)....then you have to check these out. The overdrive you already own might blow away a Gourmet jobbie you are dying to have...and a lot cheaper just by stacking this on it. Using a treble booster to push an overdrive is a great way to create your own personal original sound.

FINAL NOTE....to me personally getting a decent Rangemaster clone is a no brainer. When will my tastes and out side interests change so much that as a tool in my musical tool box I will not need it.
Things like serious overdrives are like power tools...one day the one I have will emotionally wear out and I will want...bigger...better etc. But a treble booster is like a screwdriver...and there always loose screws in my sound that need a bit of tightening.

One of my favorite sounds is putting my Hunger Bender germanium  fuzz Tone Bender part for part clone into the Bullfrog treble booster... which is a part for part Rangemaster clone and then into the Dirty Little Secret perfect Plexi pedal. I get Jimmy Pages sound on the first 3 albums. Dead Cool!!!

Getting a Vox 806 sound is a totally different pedal The Vox does not boost the upper mids just the high end. It is worth owning for it's own sake. I have a custom made Ananashead pedal right now.
F-ing great!! it will soon be in production so get back here in a month or so.

STOMP BOX STEALS vs. REVERB.COM

According to the 'Alexa Blog' an online journal of what's hot in online business..
....REVERB.com is 'hot poop'... LOL

But what was great for us...the only other site that they also mentioned by name is STOMP BOX STEALS.

SO KIDS KEEP COMING BACK>>>THE WORLD THINKS WERE ONTO SOMETHING!!!

WHY THE MAKERS OF ANALOG PEDALS ARE IN A SWEAT!!!

A LOW TECH LOOK AT ANALOG PEDAL MAKING


First a quick look at digital. Put enough on/off digital messages together and you can have what works as a single transistor...in fact it is so easy with enough memory you can have hundreds. Its cheap...it's clean and the possibilities are quite endless.

The down side is it not only sounds as sterile as an algorism. LOL but..worse yet. If you make a pedal this way...your competitor can literally clone you...and both pedals will sound 100% identical.

Now an analog transistor is a real thing...it takes 3 to make a basic fuzz...in fact a basic fuzz only needs 7 parts. lol
Well you can hold one of these transistors between your fingers and read the info on it. So by digital standards an analog transistor is an extra large super jumbo size thing. LOL

There are 3 basic types...germanium...silicon and FET used for pedals. There are about 25 other types but they have a limited use for pedals.  Each kind represents a succession of better technology...but when I say better...I am talking about clarity and mechanical performance. When misused in making them distort. Well that is another matter. They are in general considered basically obsolete. In so much as the consumer market who think  digital electronic making is supreme.
In fact half of the "cool' ones are only alive in small obscure countries who either have some old stock gathering dust or they banged out a few to keep grandad's radio going a few more generations
          .                                        especially in the old Soviet Bloc.as well as parts of Asia.



The reason they sound good is that put an audio signal thru anything and out the other side comes distortion. In this case distortion means it goes in one way and comes another. The original idea was to distort the signal as little as possible. Often the best that came out was a pleasing distortion.
My ears love the distortion of a germanium transistor. Technically since it was the first kind of a transistor...it is scientifically crap  But It makes some stellar guitar distortion. LOL

OK...we have 3 types of transistor...several values...or strengths...and a dozen company's making a few different models...perhaps one made in 1955 was upgraded to the new improved 1960 model.

So my point is. The practical choices are limited...the ways you can wire them together are limited.

So...one day...the new improved model will cease to be new. A clone will be as good and what pedal you choose will be on your board until it actually wears out...maybe years and years.

ONE DAY>>>THE MANUFACTURERS..... WILL.... BE IN A SWEAT

BUT JUST LOOK AT THAT THING !!!   I THINK IT IS A EDWYN COLLINS BUM FUZZ
CIRCUIT!!!
MY GOD...LOOK AT IT!!!   WHY THERE ARE 9 PARTS IN  IT!!!
NO! NO! LOOK LOOK ....JUMPIN JACK RABBITS   THERE ARE 10!!!!!


OH POOP.... I GOT IT WRONG
THAT'S A RARE
SOLA SOUND MKII

OH DAMN! I THOUGHT IT WAS AN OLD ONE
ITS ONE OF THOSE CHEAP $580.00 NEW ONES!!!

THE BEST PLAYERS HAVE THESE PEDALS

THE BEST PLAYERS HAVE THE BEST PEDALS?

No the best players have the pedals they think are best. They got to your attention because they are successful...they are successful because they did things...THERE OWN WAY!!!

So should you copy them?     NO!

Everyone has the potential to make the big time. Others will admire you only because you play and sound like YOU.

If you sound like... and are as good as your fav guitarist...who cares...you become about as exciting as a perfect copy of a  Les Paul that was made in China!!!

So why don't you???
...... Peer presure is your biggest hurdle
NO ONE THOUGHT OF THE LES PAUL AS A COOL GUITAR UNTIL ERIC CLAPTON PLAYED ONE ON THE "BEANO" LP!!!

In fact Gibson had discontinued it when he got his. So if you find a pedal that 'no one' thinks is cool...

Stop there! You get it?? YES??

There is one thing as a guy that is 70 and is still trying with my original material that has got me thru.

ONLY A NOBODY IS FREE OF RIDICULE !!!!

and

NEVER LET OBJECTIVE REALITY INTERFERE WITH YOUR SENSE OF SELF IMPORTANCE !!

-the musicians you admire could not make it if they thought their ideas and music were not important. So...get with the program. Your ideas and music are important...without guys like you that said F. U.  I am doing it my way.

THERE WOULD BE NO NEW MUSIC....
without guys like you
THE ONLY MUSIC TO BE HEARD WOULD BE THE BEATLES 

SO DO THE WORLD A FAVOUR...make your own choices for gear...start writing 'your' music.

OR...for gods sake sell your guitar and buy some video games.