Birds of a Feather - Updating the EQD Plumes Clone!

When I built my first clone of the EQD Plumes pedal, I indicated that there was one difference between my version and the original. My first build used a simple 3PDT switch which meant it was either on or off, unlike the original pedal which could be used as an instantaneous boost or distortion if one kept their foot on the pedal switch. I figured it would be possible to add this functionality to the pedal, so I went in search of the right daughter board. Fortunately PedalPCB has an specific bypass module, the Intelligent Relay Bypass, that will in combination with a momentary switch make the pedal work just like the original!

Stuff Happens - Vacation Partially Postponed...

Unfortunately due to illness the vacation part of vacation has been canceled. Steggo will still be on a business trip later this month. So get those orders in before the 22nd!

Cloning the Ubiquitous EQD Plumes

The Earthquaker Devices Plumes is an almost ubiquitous overdrive pedal with three different tone settings - LED distortion, boost, and silicon distortion. It is a neat little pedal, and its low price (around $100 new) makes it a great point of entry for newer guitarists. It has a good enough voice that you'd want to keep it around on the pedal board which doubtless contributes to its enduring popularity. For this build I'm using the PedalPCB Greengage Overdrive board. Once again PedalPCB laid out a nice board with plenty of room for all of the components.

Cloning Lovetone's Big Cheese - Another Great Pedal with an Odd Name

Fuzz pedals were one of the first effects pedals released and come in an absolutely dizzying array of different takes on the classic tone. One of the more famous boutique fuzz pedals out there is the Lovetone Big Cheese, which in my humble opinion is a far better name than the Brown Source, but still keeps the theme of odd pedal names. When AionFX released their clones of four famous Lovetone pedals, I picked up their Monolith project which is an "exact adaptation of the Big Cheese except for the addition of an optional boost stage... for additional volume." I'd had some issues trying to create a decaled enclosure, so I finally threw in the towel and had one UV printed. The enclosure finally arrived, and I've managed to get this pedal boxed. If you can find an original Big Cheese, it will set you back at least $1500, though there are some apparently commercial clones available for ~$175 (though I'm not sure how accurate they are).

Steggo on Vacation - June 13-30

The industrious dinos at Steggo Studios are going to be taking some time off starting next week and through the end of June (in fact, it looks like Steggo has already made a new friend). There will be no pedal sales from June 13-30 either here or on the Reverb store (which will be in vacation mode) - so if you see something you like on either store, get your order in by Sunday June 12! Otherwise, we'll see you in July!

A Far More Sophisticated Distortion+ Variant - Cloning the Cornish SS-3

With the Dimetrodon Distortion version of the MXR Distortion+ circuit just about ready to be sprung onto an unexpecting world, I wanted to explore other variations of the circuit to see if there was a "Dimetrodon Distortion 2" waiting in the wings. Given I can make several varieties of the original circuit in the Dimetrodon Distortion design, I had to go further afield to find something that was substantially different - and which couldn't simply be built on the existing board. Once again, AionFX comes to the rescue with their Soma project. The Soma clones the Cornish SS-3, which is based on the venerable MXR Distortion+ with the addition of high and low tone controls, a Cornish buffer, and many other Pete Cornish tweaks along the way. 

A Third Thagomizer!?!!??? Another Vintage Power Boost Build

I have a real weakness for vintage pedals. Over and above that, vintage pedals built from vintage components probably reach the level of my kryptonite (along with chocolate, or a good steak... good seafood... I'm doomed...)! I've made a few forays into that territory with my Big Muff Pi builds (most notably my recent Violet Ram's Head build) and my builds of the Colorsound Power Boost (also known as "The Thagomizer I"). The army green enclosure version uses Iskra resistors (as well as tropical fish capacitors and vintage axial capacitors) while the orange enclosure version uses Phier resistors (and the same mix of other components). I'd sourced these parts as sets from a wonderful chap in Italy, but the problem with vintage parts is there is a finite number of remaining NOS in the world. So if the supply of Iskra and Phier sets dried up, I wanted to have another option for building vintage Thagomizers - so I decided to go shopping and assemble my own set of parts.

A Most Tranquil Pedal, With a Most Tranquil Steggo!

Dumble Amplifiers are some of the most revered and most expensive boutique amplifiers on the market, and many pedals have attempted to capture their unique sound over the years with varying degrees of success. The Hermida Zendrive, first released in 2004, was the first overdrive pedal to attempt to capture the legendary Dumble sound. In 2013 production of the pedal was taken over by Lovepedal, but it remains a fairly boutique pedal. Current production pedals using film capacitors and through hole components run $240 with used versions running anywhere from $200 to $700+ depending on whether they're an original Hermida or the more recent Lovepedal branded copies. I had a fun idea for an enclosure for this one, so I decided to pick a couple up and see how it came out.

A Cornish Fuzz Clone - With a Fun Dinosaur!

I was talking to a couple of the great employees at my favorite local guitar shop, Five Star Guitars, and they mentioned a pedal they wanted to try out, but as it was a Cornish pedal, the NG-2, it was rare and expensive. Ever the enterprising DIY builder, I managed to track down a clone of it to see if I could replicate it on a mere mortal's budget. Clones of this particular pedal aren't extremely common, but PedalPCB offers the Nugget Fuzz which is a clone of the original Cornish pedal. Unlike AionFX Cornish clones which come with the Cornish buffer by default, the PedalPCB board in stock configuration is true bypass. They do, however, offer the C-buffer which can be purchased separately to add the active buffer to the pedal. As is more common these days, I figured I'd build a couple of them - one to keep and one to share. I also decided to try one with true bypass and one with the C-bypass to see how much of a difference it makes which is an approach I've used on my P-2 clones which I have versions both with and without the Cornish bypass.