Effects Bay

The following is a guest post by Kevin Ian Common. If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

Hello Everyone!

This is a quick column and experiment. I wanted to try to add video so you can real-time applications of what I write about.

We’ll take the idea of droning/pedal tones and alternate fingerings of chords to the next level–actual use! Because while reading playing chord charts is fun, actually using them in your songwriting is where the fun and inspiration begins.

I took a very simple chord progression:

C#m, A, C#m, B

From here, I took the main dyads of each chord and use them against an open B and E string.

C#m – C# E

A – A C#

B – B D#

The chords operate in the key of E major, so adding a droning E and B string adds much character, especially when you have a non-chord tone in each chord strummed.

After playing the basic positions of the chords… I take it to the next level:

Low to High: E A D G B E

C#m – X X 11 9 0 0          A – X X 7 6 0 0          B – X X 9 8 0 0

After playing around here… I add the octave of the third of each chord in the high E string:

C#m – X X 11 9 0 12          A – X X 7 6 0 9          B – X X 9 8 0 11

What you will notice is the richness in high-end and the lush sounds you can get BEFORE you add any effects!

I take it a whole other level by adding the low E string. This is a bit tricky, but with some practice, you will find the end result to be rewarding!

I added some delay to the proceedings later. You can even add a little overdrive or full-on distortion. Adding effects give such progressions and droning notes a different kind of character… some work… some don’t.

Go ahead and play these progressions. If these finger positions are new to you, take your time. The benefits are priceless.

Here is the link to a modest demo video of what I did to those three chords:

I hope you have found this column interesting and educational!

Kevin Ian Common recently used a power drill for sound contrast and paid for it in blood. He plays guitar and sings in The Common Men, a Post-Punk trio from Northern California. They are on Facebook and Twitter, but you can find them @ www.myspace.com/thecommonmen for all updated information and sound files.

Popularity: 5%

The following is a guest post by Kevin Ian Common. If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

Hello Everyone!

Life has been pretty busy as of late, and I have also been trying to find a way to use video in these columns, as it will be easier for everyone to understand my chord charts if I put them to practical use. Until then, here is a short and sweet column about ending songs… or “cadence.”

A cadence is defined as a harmonic sequence (at least two chords) that closes a musical phrase, section, or piece of music. Songs that end without a fade out have some kind of cadence. I’m going to define the most used or identifiable forms of cadences and give you simple chord examples (no charts, just chord names).

I will also simplify these as best I can, so you can utilize them right away. Mind you, some music theory is required to understand some of these progressions, but logical reasoning and your ear can help you out too… it just takes a little longer

Authentic Cadence:

Most pieces of music end in an Authentic Cadence. It is defined as IV V I, or, in the key of C:

F G C

In the key of Cm:

Fm G7 Cm

Half Cadence:

Most songs that have different sections use these without even knowing it. They are considered “open” or “imperfect” because they don’t really end the song, they lead to something else. In the key of C, they end in V (G):

C Dm G, C G, or D G

In the key of C, a D is a Secondary Dominant. You can Google this term, but it basically means the borrowing of other tones from other keys to make the main key stronger. You use D to make G stronger so when it resolves to C, it’s even stronger still!

In the key of Cm:

Cm Ddim G, Cm G

To make a Half Cadence make more sense, let’s take a basic progression:

Am F C G for the verses. Let’s say your chorus is: C F G C. The G in the first progression acts as a Half Cadence when it leads to C.

Plagal Cadence:

This is a now-disputed type of cadence, but I will still include it here. It is also known as the “Amen Cadence.” It is defined as IV I. In the key of C:

C F C

In the key of Cm:

Cm Fm Cm

Deceptive Cadence:

This cadence is defined as V (G in the key of C) resolving to any other chord, most likely IV, vi, or ii. It is known as deceptive because it deceives the listener when it ends. In the key of C (it is most effective when writing in major keys):

C F G Am, C F G Dm, C F G F

Picardy Third:

This is the most basic kind of manipulation at the end of a song. Whatever key your song is in, change the last chord, whether from major to minor, or minor to major. In the key of C:

C F G Cm

In the key of Cm:

Cm Fm G7 C

Thanks again! My life has slowed down a bit for the next few weeks, so I hope to have another one to you soon!

- Kevin Ian Common

The following is a guest post by Kevin Ian Common. If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

Greetings! In this second installment, I’ll talk about drones and interesting ways to use them in constructing guitar parts. I will also include some tips, tricks, and quick fixes when it comes to improving your tone.

The concept of using drones–also known as pedal tones–involves using one note and building chords around it. This is a common method of composition, particularly in Art Music (what is generally referred to as Classical Music) and songwriters who use pianos. The possibility of ten fingers on a keyboard offer a great amount of lush chords with complex harmonies. Guitarists who exercise a little savvy can achieve the same thing.

The easiest way to build a pedal tone would involve an open string.

We’ll take the lowest string, E. I’ll give you some basic chord charts, then I’ll examine further to show you how the chords work off each other.

From low to high: E A D G B E

Em (ver 1): 0 7 5 X X X     (ver 2): 0 10 9 X X X

These are two versions of Em. Version 1 has The root (E) and 3rd (G). Version 2 has the full harmony with the 5th (B)

Em7: 0 14 12 X X X

The minor 7th (D) makes this chord a minor 7th. There is no 3rd, but you can leave the G string open if you wish. I think it sounds great as-is.

F#m7: 0 9 7 X X X

The minor 7th (E) makes this F#m7.

Am: 0 12 10 X X X

This is a full Am chord with the 5th (E) in the lowest register.

C: 0 15 14 X X X

This is a full C chord with the 3rd (E) in the lowest register.

Dsus2: 0 5 4 X X X

This is D major with the suspended 2nd (E) in the lowest register. You COULD make the argument that it is an Em7add9–root (E) minor 7th (D) 9th (F#), but for the sake of this installment, we’ll take the D name.

Now, take these shapes and perhaps play them in this order:

Em (ver 1) – Dsus2 – F#m7 – Em (ver 2) – C – Em7 – Am – Em (ver 2)

Notice how interesting that sounds? You get a low E droning the entire progression, but you still have a sense of movement in terms of harmony.

To build upon it (those of you with multiple guitars, a bassist, or multi-track capabilities), try this:

1) Take the original progression:

Em (ver 1) – Dsus2 – F#m7 – Em (ver 2) – C – Em7 – Am – Em (ver 2)

2) Now, have a bass play the following notes (changing in the same order as the above progression):

E – D – F# – G – C – B – A – G

The bass follows the progression of the notes you play on the A string. You’ll get interesting harmonies when the notes stray from the droning E.

3) Have a second guitar play these open position chords (once again in the same order as the original progression):

Em – D – F#m – G – C – C/B ( X 2 0 0 1 0) – Am – G

Or, to spice things up, you could do this instead

Emadd9 – Dsus4 – D – G – Cadd9 – Bm – Am – Am7

By keep certain chords static over other moving harmonies, you create a sense of independence between instruments, making it even more interesting.

Moving on, I wanted to talk a little bit about tone. The quest for tone is about as on-going as life itself and also a huge headache as it is totally subjective. Everyone has their own idea of what “ideal tone” is all about. This is merely a set of observations I’ve made in my time in live and local music scenes. Whether or not you decide to try or keep these tips is ultimately up to you. But, like I’ve said before, this column is meant to encourage experimentation. Have fun with it

Most of these tips are either free or inexpensive.

1) Use your neck pickup.

Obviously this one is impossible if you ONLY have a bridge pickup, but take a break and flip it to the neck pickup. Notice how full and well-rounded your tone sounds already? If anything, use combined pickups if you MUST use the bridge pickup (most strats have 5 way switching which offer great tonal possibilities, and even two-pickup models have a both-pickup position).

2) Scoop your mids if you just, but use restraint.

Ever been to a local show where a metal band is playing? How about listening to them do a sound check and remembering the wonderful crunch of their tone? What happens next? Generally what happens is… once the drums kick-in, you lose the guitars. Even Kirk Hammet has preached the glories of the mids Use just a little, and you will go a long way.

3) Roll off the gain.

Rolling off a little gain yields two very important things: 1) A distortion that reacts better to your picking technique, style, dynamics, etc and 2) Gives you way more definition. Great riffs are one thing… being able to hear each note clearly without a wall of gain behind it makes it far more enjoyable.

Granted, there are elements of shoegaze, hard rock, metal and noise that benefit from tons of gain. I kick on extra gain–sometimes I run ALL THREE of my distortions at once!–at times, but more often than not, I use little to mild distortion as my one-size-fits-all starter tone.

4) Use heavier strings.

Most guitarists I know use 9’s. Try 10’s, or even 9.5’s. You will notice a difference, especially in your clean tones. Heavier strings = heavier tone. I used to use 8’s until I tried out a guitar that was strung with 11’s. It sounded massive, and I never looked back. All of my guitars are set-up and strung with 11’s.

Thanks for taking the time to read!

I’m hoping to make this a regular column, so if anyone has suggestions for future columns, please feel free to comment me or contact me. I have some ideas, but who knows what ideas you may have for me!

- Kevin Ian Common

The following is a guest post by Kevin Ian Common. If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

Growing up a guitar player was tough in the early years. I picked up a guitar a few years later than many of my friends, so when I tried out for bands, most of my friends in bands already had guitarists. This prompted me to think differently about playing guitar and how to play the guitar.

While most of these techniques are tried, true, and probably printed in many magazines before me, chances are you might have a small flash of inspiration. Maybe I will mention something you’ve never thought about. It’s also come to my attention–being in various bands in various cities for the past 10 years–that many bands have guitarists who simply strum power chords or basic open-position chords. Even the simplest variation can make a two-guitar texture sound full, or even a single guitar part sound distinctive.

Hopefully I will be able to continue this series which will include techniques, tricks, tips, and even ideas concerning effects pedals.

Let’s get on with it, shall we?

We’ll start with chords. Chords are the building blocks of any great song. Let’s take a simple progression:

A     D     E     A

You already have the building blocks of a great song. A typical guitarist would simply strum open position chords and call it a day. Let’s look at some alternative ways to play these three chords.

The following charts will be from left to right: E A D G B E

A:

X 0 2 2 2 5     X 0 7 6 5 0     X 0 11 9 10 0     X 0 7 9 10 0     X X X 9 10 9

D:

X 0 0 2 3 5     X 0 0 7 7 5      X X 0 11 10 X     X 0 7 7 10 X     X X 7 7 7 10

E:

0 2 2 4 5 X     X X 6 4 5 0     X X 9 9 12 X      0 7 9 9 0 0     X X X 9 9 7

If you have two guitarists, try having one play the open chord positions and have another play one of these alternatives. You notice that the sound is fuller because different positions/octaves now have a voice in the overall texture. Also, if you are a single guitarist, 9 times out of 10 you have a bassist in the band, why not play an alternate voicing of chords and let the bass form the foundation? Even if the bassist is walking, you will create interesting harmonic movement while keeping everything simple.

Also, try these:

Another easy way to thicken a double-guitar texture is adding a capo to the proceedings. With a capo at the 2nd fret, A D E becomes G C D. At the 7th fret, A D E becomes D G A.

Try playing A D E octaves while letting the high B and E strings ring.

Have one guitarist isolate the third of each chord (A D E is C# F# G#) and play them in octaves. This is a popular technique in modern rock music, but that is because it’s very effective at achieving fuller sounds.

Better yet, for more linear harmonic motion, have a guitarist play E F# E over A D E ( the 5th of A, 3rd of D, Root of E) or C# D B over A D E (the 3rd of A, root of D, 5th of E) for even more interesting results.

Have one guitar distorted and one clean. Japanese rock band Luna Sea used this technique to great effect. You can find various videos on YouTube.

I hope you have found this interesting!

- Kevin Ian Common

The Common Men
www.myspace.com/thecommonmen

Popularity: 19%

The following is a guest post by Matt Cheezem (@CheeseBlocks). If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

Before we begin, it’s worth noting that this process, if not done properly can be extremely dangerous, and yes, even deadly. If the proper precautions are taken, you’ll be fine… but if you decide to give it a shot, you are doing so at your own risk. Kids, ask your parents. Parents, please, for the love of god, say no.

With the disclaimers out of the way…

What you’ll need:

-Laserjet printer (this will ONLY work with a laserjet, not an inkjet)
-Press’n'peel blue paper (available at www.pedalpartsplus.com) or high gloss     magazine paper
-Iron
-Aluminum Enclosure
-Muriatic Acid
-Hydrogen Peroxide
-Acetone (fingernail polish remover will work, as it’s basically just acetone)
-scouring pad
-plastic tub/glass pan
-cotton swabs
-safety goggles

Step 1:  Finding your Graphic:

You’ll want something that only has black and white to it. Shading won’t work with this process, so line drawings are best. For our purposes, I’ll be using the graphic from my new Phoenix Fuzz pedal. Don’t be afraid to use something with some detail, as press’n'peel is designed for circuit board etching, and can handle the details! Keep in mind when printing that you’ll want to use a negative image, and a mirror image. This is particularly important if you want to use text. Basically, anything that is NOT black when you’re done with your transfer WILL etch.  Here’s a picture of the graphic I’ll be using, printed on the press’n'peel.  (Take special note of the paisley ironing board. This is not necessary, but is highly recommended.)

Step 2:  Preparing the enclosure

This is a fairly simply process. All you need to do is rough it up a little bit with the scouring pad. Don’t go crazy with it, you mainly want to remove any residue on it, and give it a little bit of a textured surface to give the toner something to grab onto.  When you’re done with that, give it a good rinse and dry.  By the way, you’ll notice the rusty stain in my sink. This is from the muriatic acid from previous etching ventures. Best to use a utility sink if you have one!

Step 3: Making the transfer

Lay your press’n'peel on the enclosure with the glossy side facing up. Ideally, you’ll have some blue around the entire outline of the design. Give yourself some extra black around the image too.

I like to place a piece of paper between the iron and the press’n'peel to prevent friction when you move the iron. The last thing you want is the transfer sliding around once it gets hot. If it does slip and your transfer gets messed up, you can wip the toner clean with some acetone, and start again. The transfer is the most difficult part of the process, and it may take several tries.

Set your iron to the hottest temperature before the steam settings, and with light pressure, iron it to the enclosure. It’s best to keep the iron still for 30 second or so to allow it to bond to the metal, after that, you should be able to move the iron around without messing it up.

Check periodically. You should see spots of the black ink get darker through the transfer. When all of the toner has that uniform dark color to it, you should be ready for the next step!

Step 4: Cooling and removing the transfer

This may sound obvious… but at this point, the enclosure will be HOT. I’ve found it’s best to not let it cool naturally, but to carefully (using oven mits, a towel, tongs, whatever works) and immerse it in cold water. The sudden cooling will help the paper separate from the toner, leaving your image transferred to the enclosure.

Next, CAREFULLY peel the paper away from the enclosure. If you see the image start to separate, stop and go to another corner. You will probably have a few spots where it doesn’t transfer perfectly, we’ll fix that in the next step.

Step 5: Repairing the transfer

If you have a few spots where the transfer missed… you can repair them with a sharpie. I like to do a layer, let it dry, then do a second layer. The marker will resist the acid, but not as well as the toner. Eventually the acid will eat through the marker if you’re not careful, so keep a close watch on those spots when etching

Step 6: Time to etch!

Begin by preparing a mixture of Acid and Hydrogen peroxide. You’ll want to do this in a WELL ventilated area. Open a window or 12 if you can… turn on an exhaust fan in the kitchen, etc. Depending on the material you’re etching, the byproducts can be anything from hydrogen gas (explosive) to chlorine gas (toxic). Also, muriatic will burn you, damage clothing or surfaces, and if splashed into your eyes, can blind you. Safety goggles are definitely recommended.

I like to use equal parts acid and peroxide. For a really deep etch, you can use pure acid, for a light etch, increase the peroxide accordingly. Keep in mind that the deeper you etch, the less detailed it will be.

Place your enclosure in the plastic or glass container. Don’t use metal here, for obvious reasons.  You can use a plastic cup or one of those disposable food containers for the acid/peroxide mixture.

Carefully “paint” the mixture onto the transfer with a cotton swab. Keep in mind that any area NOT covered in toner will start to react. If it’s bubbling, it’s etching!
After a couple of minutes, the bubbling will stop.  At this point I generally wipe the enclosure clean (carefully, so as not to mess up the design. It will be a little soft now) and go one or two more rounds, depending on how deep you want to etch. Again, pay special attention to the areas you fixed with the marker. If those areas begin to etch, you can rinse the enclosure off, dry it, and remark those spots.

When you’re satisfied with the etching, rinse and dry the enclosure.

Step 7: Removing the transfer

The toner from the transfer should wipe clean relatively easily with acetone. If it’s being stubborn, you can use the scouring pad soaked in acetone.

Step 8: Finishing touches!

Hopefully you’re left with an etch you can be proud of! At this point you can either leave it as is, touch it up with some polish or fine grit sandpaper (I like to use 1000 wet sanding paper to smooth out the texture across the whole design)

You can use paint or ink to give your design shading or texture, or let it tarnish for an aged look.

Please be responsible in disposing of the remaining acid! Many communities have drop sites for disposing of hazardous materials. You can also use baking soda to neutralize it, again, in a WELL ventilated area.
IF you’ve got any questions, feel free to send me an email at If you give this a try, send me a pic of your results!

About the author:
Matt Cheezem is the owner of CheeseBlocks Effects, who are makers of fine stomp boxes including the CheeseBlocks sCream Cheese overdrive! CheeseBlocks also does pedal mods and custom pedal designs. Please visit them at their website or follow them on Twitter (@CheeseBlocks)

Remember, if you like reading about pedals and seeing videos reviews from others, please subscribe to the RSS feed and get notified via email when there are new postings!

Popularity: 14%

The following is a guest post by Christian Moraga (@cubisteffects). If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

DIY electronics for guitar effect pedals has become increasingly popular of late. Guitarists and musicians worldwide are downing instruments and picking up tools to build and modify their own pedals, searching for that unique tone. There are sites like Build Your Own Clone, General Guitar Gadgets and Tonepad that sell printed circuit boards (PCBs) and kits to create your own version of popular effect pedal designs. There are also websites like DIYstompboxes, Ampage, GEOFEX and AMZFX that provide a wealth of knowledge from a committed online community. However, all of this information is useless if you do not have the basic tools and techniques to enter the DIY realm. The Mod.It.Yourself (M.I.Y) blog series aims to give you those skills (plus a handful of ideas) so you too can begin deconstructing electronics to create your own personalised sound.

Part 1 of the M.I.Y series is starting from the beginning – Tools and Techniques. Without these fundamentals, you will no doubt be left with damaged parts, boards and burnt finger tips. So safety first! Be sure to work in a well-ventilated, well lit work area with a clear work space to avoid burning anything as a soldering iron can reach 900 degrees (480°C). Soldering produces fumes so ventilation is a must and safety glasses/goggles are also recommended as stray metal is known to fly around an electronics work space.

To build/modify any electronics you will need to have tools for soldering. Soldering is the melting of metal to join two components to form a conductive connection (solder joint), so you will need solder and a soldering iron to create this connection. Soldering irons come in many forms but a 40W iron is best to provide adequate heat transfer and solder flow. Solder comes in different compositions, with different types of metal. Leaded solder flows best but has toxic fumes so try and use lead free solder. There are other tools required for building/modifying guitar pedals; long-nose pliers, side cutters (or snips), multimeter and wire strippers (as pictured). These tools will help in populating boards, cutting away component legs, checking proper connections and stripping insulated wire.

Now that we have the tools, let’s get to soldering technique.

To form a solder joint, place the component through the PCB hole and follow these four easy steps to ensure a solid joint is made:

(1) It is important to place the iron where the component passes through the board. Heat this spot for a second.

(2) Apply the solder to this spot.  Keep applying solder until a dome forms up the component leg (two seconds).

(3) Remove strand of solder while maintaining iron on spot. This allows the solder to flow through the PCB hole (one second).

(4) Finally, remove iron from spot. Cut off the remaining component leg and you should now have a shiny, solid solder joint.

But mistakes do happen, and a technique as important as soldering is desoldering, the process of removing solder from a joint. This skill is a must in electronics for removing components from a board, correcting a bad (or cold) solder joint etc. A desoldering pump and desoldering wick or braid (as pictured) are just as valuable as a soldering iron and are must haves in your toolbox. This video from Make Magazine runs through a few desoldering methods, as well as a brief soldering demonstration and is well worth watching.

So go off to your local electronics store, pick up these tools and an electronics kit and practice your soldering/desoldering technique. In Part 2 of the M.I.Y series, we will look at common modifications to overdrive/distortion pedals and how to hot-rod that old pedal on your shelf into a mean gain machine. Until then…

C.

About the author.
Christian Moraga is the owner of CubistEffects.com located in Sydney, Australia. Christian repairs and mods most brands of pedals like BOSS, Ibanez, EHX , Arion, MXR, Danelectro, Marshall, Dunlop, VooDoo Labs, Digitech, DOD etc and specialise in Big Muffs and ProCo Rats. He also makes custom switching and loopers for your pedalboard needs. A/B, True Bypass, Tap Tempo etc.

A note from EffectsBay.com
I found Christian while doing some research on the Line 6 DL4, where Christian had some great mods available!

Remember, if you like reading about pedals and seeing videos reviews from others, please subscribe to the RSS feed and get notified via email when there are new postings!

Popularity: 12%

The following is a guest post review of the Boss DD-20 Giga Delay by George DesRoches. If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

Boss has been at basically the forefront of digital delay technology since their release of the DD-2 in 1983. The DD-20 Giga Delay is a twin pedal that takes everything available in all of Boss’s delay pedals, adds a couple of new features, and puts it all in an easy to use, easy to adjust and edit twin pedal format. It has 11 delay settings, several knobs to alter your tone, memory/delay recall, 4 methods of tempo setting, and up to 23 seconds in delay time! Really, this pedal is PERFECT for anyone who wants multiple types of delay at a moments notice, be it for solos, adding depth to your tone, or giving a massive finish during a break or at the end of the song.

The DD-20 has, as said above, 11 settings. Of course, it has the basic Digital delay, which is labeled “Standard”. It also has an analog delay, which is modeled after the DM-2 compact delay, and produces a pleasant warm delay, which is GREAT for light solos and guitar melodies. A tape delay is also included, modeled after the RE-201, where you can edit the number of tape heads to get the sound you want. A dual delay, which, as it sounds, is two delays in one, a short delay and a long delay (both are adjustable). Usually short delay is a slab back, with long delay being a longer, more spaced out delay, making this setting GREAT for thickening up solos. The smooth delay is said to “spread the delay out spatially, producing a more natural reverbation effect” (according to the manual). Really, it’s nothing more than a reverb heavy delay, which is great for solos and cleans arpeggios. The pan delay, which needs two outputs to work, alternates the delay from one output to another (or, more commonly from left to right). The modulate delay adds a subtle wavering to the delay signal. Personally, i love the modulate delay for clean guitar best, especially arpeggios, because when you play especially high up arpeggios the delay sounds like a choir in my opinion (though any pickup on my strat).

Four noteworthy effects on here are the reverse delay, twist delay, warp delay, and sound on sound capabilities. The reverse delay creates a swell effect and reverses the guitar signal (the first instances that come to mind when I think reverse delay/guitar is the outro of Master Of Puppets by Metallica, and the intro to Loving The Alien by Velvet Revolver). The reverse delay has two modes: with the dry signal, and without the dry signal, which can be changed by turning the effect level knob all the way to the right or left (besides that, this knob is essentially deactivated in this mode). The twist delay, as well as the warp delay, are unique to this pedal (at least as of when i got the pedal a few months ago). The twist delay is basically the standard delay with a twist (pun intended): when you hold down the left pedal in this mode, it causes the delay to oscillate and raise in pitch, creating an insane swirling effect which is PERFECT for ending a song/part of a song. Warp delay, like twist delay, is activated by holding down the left pedal. Normally, it’s a standard delay, but when the left pedal is depressed it increases the feedback and effect levels greatly, creating an otherworldly delay which is perfect for breakdowns, insane guitar “solos” that, or creating an ambient feel/sound. Both twist and warp delay revert back to their original settings when the left pedal is released.

The last mode on this pedal, and probably the most notable, is the Sound On Sound capability. Sound On Sound is basically a fancy way of saying “Looper”. That’s right: this pedal not only has every delay sound you could ever want, but it has a LOOPER AS WELL! You can record up to 23 seconds worth of phrasing, and layer over and over again.

To enhance your BOSS delay experience, boss has included several handy and nifty features to the DD-20. For starters, you can adjust the tone, feedback level, effect level, and time of the delay. The pedal has 4 ways to change the delay time, including THREE methods of tap tempo: you can dial the delay time/tempo in with the delay knob (you can turn it, or press down and turn to adjust the time much faster), you can tap the tempo by pressing the “TAP” button under the screen, you can tap in the tempo by holding down the right pedal for two seconds, then tapping your foot to the desired tempo, or you can tap the tempo via BOSS F5-FU by plugging it in via the “CTL PEDAL” jack. You can adjust the timing of the delay (quarter note delay, quavers, dotted eighth notes, even whole notes and half notes).

Boss also allows you to save up to four custom delay settings. These can be saved by selecting the number you want to save the delay as, setting the delay to the desired settings, and pressing the “WRITE” button, conveniently located beneath the LEDs that show what memory slot is active. The saved delay can be selected by pressing the right pedal and cycling through the saved delays (when not in tap delay mode, of course. Tap delay can be deactivated the same way it’s activated, by holding down the right pedal for 2 seconds). With the 4 saved delays AND manual mode, you can go on stage with 5 completely different delays (or 4 delays and a looper).

The DD-20 can be powered by either a BOSS PSA power adapter (sold separately. I use a 1 Spot daisy chain for all my pedals, which works fine, but BOSS recommends their adapters) or by 6 AA batteries. The effect can be turned on and off with the left pedal. It has two inputs and outputs for full stereo capabilities, a headphones jack, and a CTL jack for an F5-FU/F5-FL for tap tempo or channel switching. Overall, this pedal is amazing! It’s completely worth every cent, and is probably the best delay available on the market (at least, the best delay I’ve found).

About the author:
George DesRoches

My gear: Fender HSS Stratocaster (soon to be HSH within the next week or so), Dunlop Dimebag Darrel Cry Baby From Hell, BOSS MD-2 MegaDistortion, DS-1 Distortion, TR-2 Tremelo, CH-1 SUPERChorus, and DD-20 Giga Delay, with a Raven RG200 amp and a Line 6 Spider III 15 watt when needed.

Check out my band, T.R.B., at
http://www.myspace.com/teearebee
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/The-Random-Band/110510314252?ref=ts
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=67927983941&ref=tsm
http://twitter.com/therandomband

You can follow George on Twitter (@TeeAreBee)

The Boss DD-20 Giga Delay can be purchased for $219.00 at Musician’s Friend.

Popularity: 14%

The following is a guest post review of the Raven RG200 2×12 Combo Amp by George DesRoches. If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

The Raven RG200 amp is a well priced bargain amp that I believe is only available at Guitar Center. It is large, loud, and amazingly clear. With it’s 200 watt power, it is without a doubt the most powerful amplifier you can get in its price range. Like all Raven amps, it is covered in a soft black material and has a black metal grate in front of its dual speakers. This 2×12 solid state amp is amazingly priced (and to make it better is almost always on sale, reduced all the way down to the price of the RG100 at time). With it’s punchy and amazingly clean tones, this amp is perfect for people who get their tone from pedals (like I do).

The RG200 has two channels: a lead channel (distortion) and a rhythm channel (clean). Both sides you have the three band EQ knobs, and a Level knob, and the Lead channel has an added gain knob. The rhythm channel, especially with a slight reverb (which is included, and will be described later) is perfect for clean tones from any pickup, though it sounds particularly good when a bridge humbucker is used. Even with the added reverb, though, there is little coloring of the tone with the amp, so you get as direct a song as possible, making this amp PERFECT for musicians who prefer to make their tone with an array of pedals. I myself prefer the use of stompbox effects over amp sounds because you literally can control every aspect of your tone by stepping one of several boxes.

The lead channel is unfortunately not as great as the rhythm channel. It’s distortion is, for lack of a better way to put it, crappy. That’s the drawback to all of the Raven amp models: the distortion kinda really sucks. There’s probably somebody who likes it, but the distortion is too weak to do any metal or hard rock, yet too hard to do anything seriously bluesy. To be honest, you get a more natural sounding overdrive when you turn up the amp all the way on the rhythm channel (which you can, which makes that channel even COOLER). As stated above, you have the three band EQ (Treble, Mid, and Bass), a Channel level, and a Gain, though the only knob that really makes a difference is the level knob, because the distortion isn’t one you can really tweak.

Besides the two main channels, you have both an internal effects loop and ports for an external effects loop. The amp comes with 16 effects/dual effects: Spring, Room, and Hall Reverb, a Flanger, a Rotary effect, an octave generator (low octave, not high octave), an “autowah” effect (a modulation effect that makes it sound like a wah pedal is opening and closing at a steady and unchangeable rate), a “Rotoverb” effect (rotary/reverb), a Tremolo, a Phaser, a Delay, a Chorus, and a Slapback, as well as 3 crossover effects: Tremelo reverb, delay reverb, and chorus reverb. You can activate the internal digital effects loop by either pressing the DSP button on the front panel or by using an external dual latching foot switch (a BOSS FS-6 seems to work best). The first switch changes the channel (which can also be changes by a button between the channel knobs on the front panel), and the second turns on/off the internal effects. There is also a level knob to alter the level of the selected effect (chosen with an adjacent knob), but there is no what to control rate, depth, or any other parameter. As a note, I’m almost positive that while there is anything connected to the amp through the external effects loop in the back, the internal effects cannot be used.

The amp has, as said before, ports for an external effects loop and a footswitch (all of which using basic 1/4″ cables). It also has a 1/4″ input for headphones (which doubles as a “record out” port). To put it plainly this amp is a bargain amp: massive volume and cleans for mediocre distortion and effects (though to be honest the standard reverbs are pretty good sounding. I have the spring reverb on at all times to make my sound more spacious). It really is a loud amp, though, so I honestly recommend that, unless you want massive volume and an amp that needs pedals to play with, you’d be better off getting something like the Peavy Vyper 60 Watt amp or something around the same price. It’s a good amp, and it sounds great with pedals, but just because it’s 200 watts doesn’t mean it’s a great deal. To put it plainly, you get what you pay for, and the volume and moderate cleans don’t compensate for the lead channel and effects.

About the author:
George DesRoches

My gear: Fender HSS Stratocaster, Dunlop Dimebag Darrel Cry Baby From Hell, BOSS MD-2 MegaDistortion, DS-1 Distortion, TR-2 Tremelo, CH-1 SUPERChorus, and DD-20 Giga Delay, with a Raven RG200 amp and a Line 6 Spider III 15 watt when needed.

Check out my band, T.R.B., at http://www.myspace.com/teearebee

You can follow George on Twitter (@TeeAreBee)

The Raven RG200 Combo Amp can be purchased for $349.99 at Musician’s Friend

Popularity: 7%

The following is a guest post review of the BOSS MD-2 Mega Distortion Pedal by George DesRoches. If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

The BOSS MD-2 Mega Distortion really lives up to its name. This metal foot pedal, once activated, unleashes one of the fattest distortions you can get in a stompbox, which is perfect for anything from grunge to numetal to hair metal to shred. This pedal is extremely versatile, being able to encompass uncountable levels of distortion due to it’s dual distortion circuit, from a medium overdrive to an in-your-face hellstorm of punchy power.

The MD-2 has 3 knobs (from left to right: level, distortion, and gain boost) and one concentric knob for EQ; a basic tone knob in the center, which controls the overall tone of the distortion, and on the bottom a “bottom” knob that controls bass frequencies, which make it extremely useful for really low tunings, 7 string guitars, and basses. It also has an input and output jack to hook up to your guitar, amp, or other pedals, and can be powered by either a 9 volt battery or an AC adapter (if you have many pedals, I recommend a daisy chain, like the 1 Spot one I use).

As I said before, this distortion can range from a medium overdrive to an extremely fat, extremely powerful distortion, making any amp sound like a beefy tube amp. With the concentric knob and the gain boost, you have complete control over exactly how you want to sound. Personally, I like a punchy EVH-style distortion: I keep the level and bass knobs at about 12 o’clock, and the Tone, Distortion, and Gain Boost knobs at around 1-2 o’clock. This gets me a punchy sound almost identical to that of Eddie Van Halen, which is PERFECT for my band’s style. Me and my band T.R.B. are an alternative metal band from Rhode Island, and the Mega Distortion, as well as several other BOSS pedals, have become key to our sound.

The one real issue is that, with lots of distortion comes lots of noise, sometimes unwanted. I dont really have that much of an issue, but for people who want more distortion, I’d recommend getting a noise suppressor (NS-2 works perfectly) to rid of that low-lying white noise that can appear. That only really shows up if you’re using crappy cables or your pickups aren’t good, so if you’ve got a good setup you should be all set.

Really, if you want a powerful distortion, this is the pedal for you. It’s a raw, punchy, and fat distortion perfect for nearly any genre, and with it’s versatility it makes it a perfect choice for any metal, hard rock, or grunge guitarist. I must admit, it’s one of the greatest mid-priced pedals I’ve tried, and it might very well be the best $89 dollars I’ve ever spent on anything in my rig.

My Rig (so you know how I get my sound): Fender HSS strat with stock pickups, Dunlop Cry Baby From Hell (Dimebag Darrel model), MD-2 Mega Distortion, DS-1 Distortion, TR-2 Tremelo, CH-1 Super Chorus, DD-20 Giga Delay, all into a Raven RG200 200 watt amp.

About the author:
George DesRoches

My gear: Fender HSS Stratocaster, Dunlop Dimebag Darrel Cry Baby From Hell, BOSS MD-2 MegaDistortion, DS-1 Distortion, TR-2 Tremelo, CH-1 SUPERChorus, and DD-20 Giga Delay, with a Raven RG200 amp and a Line 6 Spider III 15 watt when needed.

Check out my band, T.R.B., at http://www.myspace.com/teearebee

You can follow George on Twitter (@TeeAreBee)

The BOSS MD-2 Mega Distortion Pedal can be purchased for $79.00 at Musician’s Friend or look up eBay deals at Pedal Nerd.

MD-2 Mega Distortion Pedal

Popularity: 7%