I know there is plenty to roast with this one. It’s messy, complicated and a massively unnecessary and expensive experiment. Still, it’s for me to fall down a wombat hole with (wombats make much bigger holes than rabbits). 

This is me going back to running analog drives and modulation with digital delays and reverbs. I started this way with my first pedalboard over 20 years ago when I used to gig originals in Canberra Australia. Then I got tempted by modelling with a Line 6 POD XT into the FX return of a Peavey Classic 30. Until I got sick of that and built a full on rack with two pedal drawers, a 100w Sherlock Fathead and rack spaces of rack Wah, sequis motherload, TC G-Sharp, furman power conditioner with 2 4x12 cabs but all in mono (should have bought a second power amp and run it stereo). Had to buy a trailer to haul it up and down the east coast of Australia when we went on tour 2006-2009. Sold it all expect for the expression pedals and the Zvex Fuzz Factory and my prized guitars. Lots of regrets selling the Fathead amp.

Then that got expensive so I went for a Fractal Ultra (one of the first ones) and gigged that from Sydney to Melbourne. So much lighter and way more flexible. Still felt I was missing something even running stereo Atomic FRFR tube combos for my stage volume.

So sold all that as my band broke up and I started a family.  I kept my core guitars and the fuzz factory and went back to just having a Blackstar HT-5 and a guitar. Then That Pedal show started and I got the bug again. So from 2015 I’ve been slowly buying the odd pedal then a board and a power supply. I still don’t gig, but I have had the odd jam session with a mate of mine. I simply enjoy making different sounds with my guitars. I think pedals are the way to go for that. 

I’ve designed this board to have spots for Wah; fuzz; compression/EQ/boost; distortion; overdrive; phaser; insert patch point for amp effects loop or even taking the miked up stereo signal from the speakers or a speaker sim or modeller back to the board converting from XLR to instrument level; stereo pitch; then sending that to a parallel mixer for the 18v analog stereo bbd chorus; stereo delay; stereo reverb; then series after the parallel of an analog stereo optical and harmonic tremolo/panner (able to blend between optical and harmonic). From there it runs stereo to the looper and then through the Canvas Rehearsal and on to the Pinstripe Pedals DISO+ Deluxe to be split to have both stereo balanced XLR for front of house/wet sends for the DAW and stereo unbalanced outs for stage FRFR or run into effects loops of amps or maybe even in the front of a clean amp (if I am not running an amp preamp in the patch bay). I have a few off board options for this such as the awesome Two Notes Revolt analogue amp sim, or for quick hookup but with latency, I can use the Sonicake Pocket master. I also use the analogue cab sim line out from the Blackstar HT-5 at home. That works great for silent. I also have an Integral Mic installed in the Blackstar and my other amp, a Fender Super Sonic 60 combo. I plan to try sending the mic sound through the board and out to some monitors, or via headphones. 

So lots of options. It is messy I know. I’m not a perfectionist with this stuff. I used GigRig Power and Evidence Audio Screw in Solderless cables and the amazing Tourgear patch cables for the stereo inserts. It has wireless midi underneath as well as a lot of wired midi. Clock is coming from the MusicomLab EFX LE 2. Still to test clock from a DAW, but I have tried that with the phaser and it worked. 

It can send XLR dry from the drives and amp sound to a mixing board from the Cusack Pedal Cracker,where it splits back into the board for wet effects. Then the DISO+ sends the stereo wet signal to board as well. 

I have yet to program it with patches, but I have labelled as much as possible with the midi cc on the pedals. It is going to be more like a sound lab for audio and midi experiments. Years of exploring here. Initial sounds are amazing! Parallel chorus, delays and reverbs sound huge in my headphones.  I’m looking forward to seeing what music I can make with it. 

Roast away ;)

Long tone journey to get here…