[RWP] Adrenalinn guitar pedal's sounds

Mon Sep 16 17:32:29 EDT 2013

squier's have gotten really good again.  I've got the classic vibe custom 
telecaster and it's a very very good guitar in all aspects.
Putting seymour duncan vintage 54's on it soon because that is my preference 
not because the stock pickups are bad.

I'll try out the squier HH next time i'm in the guitar shop.

regards
Colin
--------------------------------------------------
From: "Indigo" <33indigo at charter.net>
Sent: Monday, September 16, 2013 3:16 PM
To: "Reapers Without Peepers" <rwp at reaaccess.com>
Subject: Re: [RWP] Adrenalinn guitar pedal's sounds

> I read that Gibson is sneaking partial printed circuit boards into their 
> guitars.
> Strats and Squires are still hand-wired circuits, though parts like the 
> China 5 way switch looks like something you'd find on a printed circuit 
> board.
> Sometimes it's just luck.
> I just got the Squire HH, with two Fender-made humbuckers, and a 3 
> position switch.
> Man does it sound like a big fat Les Paul Gibson, and not much like a 
> Strat, but what a winner for $99.95.
> Made in Indonesia, with a perfect neck, perfect intonation, low lying 
> action, nothing I need to do with setup to make it better.
> I believe the body cavity is even painted with conductive shielding paint, 
> because there's a grounding wire screwed into the wood at the bottom of 
> the cavity.
> It's dead quiet, no hum at all, even before I got the Zoom G2.1U grounded.
> I'll replace the stock tuners sometime, probably get better saddles, 
> probably a steel trem block instead of the potMetal one, but those are 
> just niceties, not essentials.
> Some people report crooked necks, setup all wrong, crooked screws.
> The first Peavey Power Slide I got; Handcrafted in China, had no springs 
> on the pickup, so if you tilted the guitar the pickup fell toward the 
> strings, then when you tilted the guitar  the other way the pickup fell to 
> the bottom of the body cavity.
> Whoever strung it up had sharp kinks in the middle of most of the strings.
> I could have found springs for the pickup somewhere, but I called Peavey 
> and they said to send it back, not to fix it.
> The next one was totally perfect, no flaws I can find.
> I guess the factory terminated the worker who made the first one and 
> recycled him.
> Indi
>
>
>
>
> On 9/16/2013 3:34 PM, Colin McDonald wrote:
>> yep, that's how they're making them and have been for quite some time.
>> if you read any amp forum, especially fender amp forums, one of the
>> first recommended mods is to install a proper input jack on the
>> amp...one that has lots of metal in it, and that you can hard wire to
>> the PCB instead of the stock plastic version that has pcb lugs soldered
>> directly to the board.
>> Input or output jack nuts are constantly coming loose with regular use,
>> and so once that nut has loosened off a bit, all the strain from your
>> patch cable is put onto the solder lugs of the jack, and thus onto the
>> pcb itself. This either snaps off lugs, breaks solder joints, or, cracks
>> traces on the board...stupid design, but a buck cheaper for the
>> manufacturer.
>> that's why I always run my cable through the handle on the amp for
>> strain relief.
>> I've got an older dunlop crybaby wah which is supposed to be high
>> quality construction.  I opened up to fix, and both jacks are plastic
>> housed and have spring pins for the ground contact on the sleve of the
>> quarter inch plug...what happens with spring contacts?  they either
>> bend, or loose their spring over time and fail to make contact.  guess
>> why the pedal isn't working right now? lol  and the worst part is, the
>> way they designed the pedal, you have to use these specific jacks
>> because of their housing and how the shell of the pedal is built.
>> the common quarter inch phone jack is a very old design and the industry
>> and consumers I guess, are still willing to put up with the inherent
>> problems associated with those kinds of connections.
>> not only are you depending on a compression spring contact, but it moves
>> and twists all the time.  neutric, speak on, even xlr is far better.
>> and don't even get me started on gold plating lol.
>>
>> regards
>> Colin
>> --------------------------------------------------
>> From: "Indigo" <33indigo at charter.net>
>> Sent: Monday, September 16, 2013 12:45 PM
>> To: "Reapers Without Peepers" <rwp at reaaccess.com>
>> Subject: Re: [RWP] Adrenalinn guitar pedal's sounds
>>
>>> You know, something bothers me about what you say about inputs and
>>> outputs having plastic threads.
>>> For a jack to work you need at least two conduction points, 1 for the
>>> sleeve of the plug and another 1 for its tip.
>>> Please don't say that China is making all plastic jacks, with only a
>>> tinfoil thick metal liner inside the plastic shell?
>>> Oh Lord, what next; are they going to make our gear entirely from rice
>>> flour noodles?
>>> The China pickguard I just bought has a 5 way toggle switch that feels
>>> about the same from the topside as the classic Fender switch, but
>>> underneath the pickguard you find the switch is only a little
>>> rectangle made of fiberboard, with tiny solder lugs and switch contact
>>> points riveted to the fiberboard.
>>> I was replacing the neck pickup, and placed the tip of the soldering
>>> gun against the corner lug, with light pressure, and suddenly the lug
>>> and a chunk of the fiberboard split off.
>>> So great to watch how it all is getting flimsier and flimsier; isn't it?
>>> Luckily I have a classic-era  Fender 5 way switch to replace it with,
>>> an all metal thing with big sturdy solder lugs and switch contacts
>>> inside it.
>>> By the way, if you're an experimenter, you can make an auditory
>>> conductivity meter from a small battery holder, preferably a single
>>> triple A battery, wired in series with any old single headphone
>>> salvaged from a pair of stereo headphones that quit working on one side.
>>> You end up with 2 wires.
>>> If there is conduction between any 2 lugs you touch with those 2
>>> wires; you hear a nice loud click in the headphone.
>>> You can use a battery that's too weak to run any gear, and it'll have
>>> plenty of voltage to make the headphone click for months and months.
>>> Indi
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On 9/16/2013 12:00 PM, Colin McDonald wrote:
>>>> you got lucky, many pedals and multi-effects units these days have
>>>> plastic shell input/output jacks.  Which means that though they may 
>>>> have
>>>> a metal nut on the outside, it's holding a plastic housing around the
>>>> jack.
>>>> IE, no ground path through the retention nut.
>>>> You often have to go inside and solder or secure a lug to the metal
>>>> plate that generally resides on the bottom of these units to give them
>>>> weight.
>>>> Even the hallowed boss pedals use a big old plate on the bottom of the
>>>> pedal to give it some weight and make people think it's a higher 
>>>> quality
>>>> unit because it's heavier...it's also done to help keep the pedal from
>>>> sliding around all over the place.
>>>> you also got lucky because putting an additional wire from a unit to 
>>>> the
>>>> other equipment in your signal path can often create ground loops which
>>>> causes a bigger problem than before.
>>>> don't forget, your patch cables do all the grounding for you at least 
>>>> on
>>>> the audio signal path side.
>>>> wall warts have no ground to speak of beyond the obvious one at the
>>>> ground side of the 2 prong plug into the wall.
>>>> What you were actually experiencing was a high level of AC floating on
>>>> the DC coming from the wallwart to your pedal.  wallwarts are seldom
>>>> properly rectified, so they have allot of AC bleeding through which
>>>> causes the hum you hear.
>>>> that is why allot of pro audio gear uses AC to the equipment, and takes
>>>> care of the rectification and filtering inside the unit itself.
>>>> what you've essentially done is allowed for some rectification on the 
>>>> dc
>>>> and you are bleeding the ac off into a large ground source, IE the
>>>> rack...the rack probably has something in it that has excellent
>>>> rectification and a good solid ground source to bleed additional AC out
>>>> of the circuit.
>>>> anyway, regardless, sounds like it worked.
>>>> anyone who runs 9VDC equipment in the studio should have a proper power
>>>> supply to help minimize hum and so on.
>>>>
>>>> regards
>>>> Colin
>>>> --------------------------------------------------
>>>> From: "Indigo" <33indigo at charter.net>
>>>> Sent: Monday, September 16, 2013 4:11 AM
>>>> To: "Reapers Without Peepers" <rwp at reaaccess.com>
>>>> Subject: Re: [RWP] Adrenalinn guitar pedal's sounds
>>>>
>>>>> I'm not too skilled on either, but I'd rather play midi files from a
>>>>> keyboard than from a guitar.
>>>>> I only want midi pads to make guitar tracks more lush; and do what
>>>>> only synths can do in the background.
>>>>> Yesterday I put a ground wire on my Zoom G2.1U, did a neat job with a
>>>>> solder lug under the nut on the pedal jack in back' with a wire going
>>>>> up to the steel and aluminum rack; where all the gear resides, which
>>>>> seems to have soaked up all the stray RF fields in this room; so hum
>>>>> is no longer a problem.
>>>>> The little 9 volt wall wart transformer for the Zoom pedal was not
>>>>> internally well grounded, so that I would hear hum and buzz when on
>>>>> very high gain overdrive settings, but could touch the metal cover of
>>>>> the cable's plug; or touch the metal foot switches on the Zoom and all
>>>>> the hum and buzz would go away.
>>>>> Amazing what a good ground our body provides!
>>>>> I can only imagine how many different RF frequencies are buzzing
>>>>> through my body right now, and I don't even feel them.
>>>>> So, now that it's properly grounded; the Zoom is good enough as a
>>>>> multi-effects unit and preamp for the guitar, then I got the plug
>>>>> version of Roger Linn's Adrenalinn to run in Reaper.
>>>>> Adrenalinn does pretty things to guitar notes and chords, like delays
>>>>> that go through 32 step arpeggios that are way more sophisticated than
>>>>> the usual keyboard arpeggios.
>>>>> You aren't intended to play fast lines; instead you just play slowly
>>>>> and provide room  for Adrenalinn to do its arpeggios and filter
>>>>> modulations.
>>>>> Meanwhile, if I can get a software pitch-to-midi plug to bring in lush
>>>>> midi pads, behind the guitar; the tracks will be filled with plenty of
>>>>> beautiful sounds.
>>>>> If I want a quick passage on a midi synth, I'd be inclined to just
>>>>> reach for a keyboard and play it there; so tracking from the guitar
>>>>> doesn't need to be fast, and doesn't even need to be polyphonic; but
>>>>> does need to be accurate to trigger midi pads in the right key.
>>>>> Several of the software pitch-to-midi plugs I've collected have the
>>>>> option to restrict the midi output to a fixed scale, so it's
>>>>> theoretically impossible to get notes that glitch out of key.
>>>>> I've just got to find time to test out the various pitch-to-midi 
>>>>> plugs.
>>>>> IntelliScore has been around for ages, used to transcribe a polyphonic
>>>>> audio track for printing out the score, but also outputs midi.
>>>>> I have a couple more similar composing and scoring plugs, all  allow
>>>>> you to limit the scale of the midi they output.
>>>>> Waves Tune, Antares Autotune; all track audio notes much better if
>>>>> told in advance what the intended scale is.
>>>>> The pitch to midi plugs don't need a special pickup in the guitar, and
>>>>> cost about $59 USD to $89 USD, nothing compared to the Roland GR55.
>>>>>
>>>>> On 9/16/2013 12:35 AM, TheOreoMonster wrote:
>>>>>> I haven't played the GT100 but the GT10 still sounded very digital to
>>>>>> my ears. Nothing wrong with that as i don't mind it for modulation
>>>>>> and delays personally, but the distortions left me still feeling
>>>>>> cold. THe new BOSS DA2 TE2 and MO2 may be up indie's alley though.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Collin is the other guitarist in your band blind?  The thing that
>>>>>> concerned me about the GR55 was no computer control software just a
>>>>>> libraian editor, the control software for the VG 88 seemed
>>>>>> accessible enough as i installed it to take aloof at it, but i did
>>>>>> this without connecting a VG88. Things that worry me about them was
>>>>>> doing the initial set up where you calibrated it for each string.
>>>>>> Didn't know if that would be accessible. Also installing the GK3
>>>>>> pickup. even without the permanent install, how easy was it to get it
>>>>>> to pick up all strings evenly? I read some horror stories where even
>>>>>> experienced techs won't install the things anymore cuz they could
>>>>>> never the the two highest strings to track properly.The plus of the
>>>>>> GR55 over the VG88 is the GR55 is cheaper and already in foot pedal
>>>>>> format. The VG88 however has two signal paths for the guitar modeling
>>>>>> , where as the GR55 focus more on the synth sounds and only has one
>>>>>> path for the guitar modeling.
>>>>>> On Sep 13, 2013, at 8:46 AM, Indigo <33indigo at charter.net> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I agree about the sounds of Roland gear, plenty fat.
>>>>>>> I'm not just looking for the usual electric guitar sound, though.
>>>>>>> I'm more interested in unusual stringed instrument sounds; between
>>>>>>> straight electric guitar and midi synth sounds.
>>>>>>> Synths can supposedly make any sound, but there is so much going on
>>>>>>> inside a tightly stretched steel string you can get so many really
>>>>>>> beautiful sounds from within there.
>>>>>>> For the usual shredding sounds;I already have Guitar Rig and all
>>>>>>> those modeling plugs.
>>>>>>> I own the amazing synth Alchemy, where you can take electric guitar
>>>>>>> samples and stick them in Alchemy's folders, so that Alchemy creates
>>>>>>> fantasy stringed instruments from them, but you know; instead of
>>>>>>> just triggering stringed instrument sounds by pressing keys;  it's
>>>>>>> way more satisfying to directly pick, pluck, dampen, hammer, actual
>>>>>>> strings to get an infinity of interesting sounds from them.
>>>>>>> One thing I've been meaning to do is to feed electric guitar through
>>>>>>> Native Instruments Absynth 5, which has an audio input.
>>>>>>> You can apply any of Absynth 5's arpeggiators, filters, whatever to
>>>>>>> the guitar.
>>>>>>> Sometimes I just dread encountering yet another VST where I can't
>>>>>>> get hold of  not just parameters, but graphical screen icons that
>>>>>>> let you navigate to features.
>>>>>>> Since I got the $99 Novation Nocturn and AutoMap; I get  all
>>>>>>> automatable parameters from VST plugs, so all I need to do is to
>>>>>>> rotate 8 knobs or push 8 buttons on the Nocturn box, and sounds
>>>>>>> certainly change, but that's only part of real access to a plug.
>>>>>>> To get at menus, lists, preset browsers, switches that turn
>>>>>>> arpeggiation on and off, and other such things, it still requires
>>>>>>> people like Steve Spamer to dig into the plug's interface and
>>>>>>> provide scripts.
>>>>>>> Or, I just content myself with partial access, twist Nocturn's knobs
>>>>>>> and enjoy the sounds; and don't worry about what I can't get at.
>>>>>>> Indi
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On 9/12/2013 1:25 PM, Monkey Pusher wrote:
>>>>>>>> To my ears the boss stuff always sounded too digital. Honestly more
>>>>>>>> nterested in the roland stuff since it has alternate tuning
>>>>>>>> functionality. Also think the Roland GR55 may be closer to what u
>>>>>>>> want
>>>>>>>> with the Adrenalinn
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> On 9/11/13, Indigo <33indigo at charter.net> wrote:
>>>>>>>>> I just listened to a YouTube on navigating around the Roland
>>>>>>>>> GT100, and
>>>>>>>>> it did seem that it should be accessible.
>>>>>>>>> It has no menus, but has page keys, and you just move things from 
>>>>>>>>> 1
>>>>>>>>> screen to the other.
>>>>>>>>> I didn't memorize the navigation, so can't explain it in detail,
>>>>>>>>> but the
>>>>>>>>> reviewer thought it is super easy.
>>>>>>>>> It's loaded with features, including USB to computer, plus an
>>>>>>>>> auxiliary
>>>>>>>>>    out and in so you can add sounds from an external source.
>>>>>>>>> What it doesn't seem to have is the sounds of the AdrenaLinn 
>>>>>>>>> pedal,
>>>>>>>>> which I love.
>>>>>>>>> Indi
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> On 9/11/2013 7:22 PM, TheOreoMonster wrote:
>>>>>>>>>> Hey Collin, Can you contact me off list/would you be up for a
>>>>>>>>>> Skype chat?
>>>>>>>>>> been very interested in the Roland  GR55/VG88 stuff and the Boss
>>>>>>>>>> stuff
>>>>>>>>>> mentioned but they didn't seem accessible on the surface  Would
>>>>>>>>>> love to
>>>>>>>>>> know  more about what you know about the stuff
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Thanks,
>>>>>>>>>> On Sep 11, 2013, at 1:31 PM, "Colin McDonald"
>>>>>>>>>> <blulemon at telus.net> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> go a few hundred bucks more and pick up the roland gr-55 guitar
>>>>>>>>>>> synth.
>>>>>>>>>>> it does allot more and is fairly accessible.
>>>>>>>>>>> or, for around the same price as the roger linn, go with the
>>>>>>>>>>> roland/boss
>>>>>>>>>>> gt100 which has all the harmonizer stuff in it along with a
>>>>>>>>>>> tonne of amp
>>>>>>>>>>> and cab and even mike models to choose from.  again, very
>>>>>>>>>>> accessible to
>>>>>>>>>>> use.
>>>>>>>>>>> the gr-55 is an excellent studio tool for guitarists.  with many
>>>>>>>>>>> amp
>>>>>>>>>>> models, cab models, mike models, mike placement options, along
>>>>>>>>>>> with all
>>>>>>>>>>> the best roland synth models on board.  Yes, you do have to put
>>>>>>>>>>> the gk-3
>>>>>>>>>>> pickup on your guitar, but that is a no brainer excersize...it's
>>>>>>>>>>> seriously powerful.
>>>>>>>>>>> but, if your budget is around that 400 dollar range, the gt10,
>>>>>>>>>>> or gt100
>>>>>>>>>>> will fit the bill nicely with everything the roger linn has
>>>>>>>>>>> and far
>>>>>>>>>>> more.
>>>>>>>>>>> perhaps not quite the same level of drum options though, so if
>>>>>>>>>>> that's
>>>>>>>>>>> what you are after, then it might not be quite what you need.
>>>>>>>>>>> the boss
>>>>>>>>>>> stuff is for guitarists more than anything.  but there is
>>>>>>>>>>> capability of
>>>>>>>>>>> loading drums tracks on to the thing.
>>>>>>>>>>> regards
>>>>>>>>>>> Colin
>>>>>>>>>>> --------------------------------------------------
>>>>>>>>>>> From: "Indigo" <33indigo at charter.net>
>>>>>>>>>>> Sent: Wednesday, September 11, 2013 11:05 AM
>>>>>>>>>>> To: "Reapers Without Peepers" <rwp at reaaccess.com>
>>>>>>>>>>> Subject: [RWP] Adrenalinn guitar pedal's sounds
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> Actually, Roger Linn intended this thing for electric guitar,
>>>>>>>>>>>> bass, midi
>>>>>>>>>>>> synth, and I'd run vocals through it, why not?
>>>>>>>>>>>> Here's an Adrenalinn 3 demo from JamShop, Sweden, then below
>>>>>>>>>>>> that is
>>>>>>>>>>>> somebody having fun with modulation effects, and below that
>>>>>>>>>>>> is my
>>>>>>>>>>>> favorite, Lots of sound examples--hits and demos--of AdrenaLinn
>>>>>>>>>>>> III.
>>>>>>>>>>>> You get many of those arpeggios in the presets.
>>>>>>>>>>>> This thing is as much synthesizer as guitar processor, and I
>>>>>>>>>>>> doubt
>>>>>>>>>>>> anyone could ever run to the end of all it can do.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3hlgUIVxdY
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSy66E-VyOE
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfBDmw2H2Hw
>>>>>>>>>>>>
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