Leaderboard

Well slight problem I have is that the amps are spread across two countries. So I'll have to improvise a little. First up the pedal board. After getting a Zoom G3X, I actually found myself falling back on a handful of sounds. Mainly overdrive, chorus, reverb and delay. The signal chain starts with the Xotic Q wah, then straight into a Nux Chorus for trichorus. Then the signal goes into an Amptweaker Tight Rock Pro which is one of the best distortion pedals I have ever played. The TR has a side chain and effects loop intended mainly for running clean and dirty signal chains. So the Effectrode PC2A valve compressor and Empress Para EQ (for added sparkle) are on the clean side. In the effects loop are a Joyo JF14 American Sound and a Digitech Freq Out for low volume feedback. The Joyo is wonderful, I crank the mids for a thick, fat and searing lead sound in conjunction with the Tight Rock - it's basically Alan Murphy in a box. After the Tight Rock, the signal goes into a Mooer Ocean Sound for delay and reverb and then into the two Ibanez combos. One note about the Effectrode PC2A, it's fabulous sounding (good enough for Mr Gilmour it seems too) but it needs a 12v 1500mA supply. So not much good for gigging really unless it stays with the amp and then there's no point in having it in pedal format...sigh. The two Ibanez TSA5 combos are fine sounding amps, reliable, clean sounding and plenty loud enough for playing in an apartment. I discovered them at a Basschat bash, one of the other members bought a TSA15 along and I was impressed by how good it sounded but I didn't need 15w. In storage however I have an ex-Lindisfarne Burman Pro501 1x12 50w combo which is great for cleans. I got it back about 10 years or so ago, thanks to a contact on BC who knew Ray Laidlaw, the band's drummer. The overdrive needs careful tweaking or else it can sound woofy. Luckily Simon Cowe [who sadly passed in 2015] left his settings on in white grease pencil. A cat either owned by Ray or Simon left it's marks as well. lol You can see it here in an old shot at my place in NZ. This is a 1984 Fender Concert II. I've always loved the sweet sound of Fenders. A Super Champ was on the bucket list but couldn't afford it and I mistakenly thought the Concert II would be the next best thing. As it turns out the Princeton Reverb II was the one to go for. Ah well, it's hard enough to find these things in the UK as it is, let alone at a reasonable price, so should still count myself lucky. I haven't actually played it yet even though it was bought about three years ago because I had already left the country. It'll probably need a service before it gets shipped out here to make sure the caps are fresh. And a couple of years ago I snagged a near mint Fender Princeton Reverb II because I had planned to sell the Concert II. It came with all the paperwork, spares and cover but no footswitch. However I ended up purchasing one from an Australian seller a few months later for a somewhat embarrassingly generous amount on my part. Extra stuff: Burman GX3 preamp - haven't actually tried this with the Pro501 yet but want to see how they both sound with one driving the other. I've tried recording with it but it tends to pick up the sound of the PC power supply and fans too easily. Lexicon MPXG2 - an oldie but a goodie. A real swiss army knife of an effects unit. Lush reverbs, infinitely configurable (almost) and connectable. Currently in storage. (Not my photo BTW because I don't have any good ones on my hard drive).

If they’re causing you nausea, then yes. Ooh, is that my coat? It’s ok, I’ll get it myself.

I suppose the key thing is that it's optional. The biggest pitfall would be to create something which has so many options, it's impossible to find the "classic" sound(s) that you expect, e.g., a Les Paul to produce. As long as the core tone is all present and correct, you have a simple, usable option, without being forced to explore the additional bells and whistles...but if they can't get that right, then they're really in trouble!