SHIN-EI TRIFECTA! SCREAMING SISTER 8CTAVE BOOST || VIBE BRO || B1G 1 GAIN BOOSTER

Hello Gearheads! Today I have an incredibly cool trio of pedals from the amazing Austin, TX based Shin-Ei Products, makers of the venerable Vibe Bro (one of the closest recreations of the original Uni-Vibe). Shin-Ei, led by Bob Feldman, are setting out to not only bring back the company's namesake from the grasp of history and time, but also to recreate some of the coolest and killer sounding effects that made the original Japanese company what it was. The pedals sound amazing, look amazing and feel amazing. The amount of attention to detail is off the charts with everything Bob and crew are coming out with. Down to period correct labels, every aspect of the original design is there... and more.

While I am focusing on Shin-Ei's newest release, the Screaming Sister 8ctave Boost, I am also going to showcase the Vibe Bro and B1G 1 Gain Booster. All the pedals work so well together, it's truly evident that major craftsmanship is at play here. These are, first and foremost, handmade, hand-wired and artfully created tools for making music.

The Screaming Sister 8ctave Boost is a tribute to the vintage octave boost pedal used by many iconic guitarists including Doyle Bramhall II, Johnny Lang and Kenny Wayne Shepherd. While it's slightly different than the standard Octavia style octave fuzz, those types of tones are absolutely available. The ability to mix in the clean signal with the octave fuzz is key for a vintage fuzzed out tone, heard often by players mentioned above. Simply put, the Screaming Sister sounds KILLER... like, really good. It's got a very vintage leaning, with a germanium transistor type tone that sits in between soulful and sinister. It's the kind of pedal you step on for a solo and heads turn... there's a reason these tones are sought after. While the tone is always the most important aspect for any kind of gear, this pedal also looks amazing. It's enclosure is a nicely weighted cold rolled steel that's powder coated and will stand the rigors of any road you choose to travel. Shin-Ei are also using a new silent "Demont" footswitch that is not only the highest caliber but also is really cool for quiet moments where you don't want an audible click when turning on the pedal. A nice touch that really adds to the feel and vibe of the pedal.

The Vibe Bro of course is the flagship pedal and first offering from the newly rebranded Shin-Ei. The King of Uni-Vibe pedals in my opinion, from the incredible enclosure to the tone and feel of the pedal. I've owned a lot of Uni-Vibe clones (more than a bunch, to be honest) and over the years I've always kept a hefty search open for the best sounding and feeling Uni-Vibe available. The Vibe Bro is just one of those pieces of gear that once you get into it, you realize that it's all there. It's quite literally the closest sounding version of the photocell modulating chorus made famous by Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmour and Robin Trower. Jimi was obsessed with the tone of being underwater and undulating chorusing... so am I. It only makes perfect sense that the apple of my "vibe-eye" should come from a company setting out to recreate the original in the name and tone. The Vibe Bro is truly a vibe connoisseur's Best In Show, in my opinion. Just try to not feel something wonderful while the waves flow over you as you play... I dare you! 

Lastly, I decided to showcase Shin-Ei's B1G 1 Gain Booster as I had a chance to get to know it a few months ago during a "Quick-Look" Demo on the pedal. A fantastic clean boost and EQ sweetener designed by electronics guru Lee Jackson, the B1G 1 is a serious piece of kit. Take a look at that Gearheads post here: Shin-Ei B1G 1 Quick-Look Demo. It's one of those incredible pedals that's decidedly simple yet so effective, and sounds so good!

Well, that's enough talking shop for now... Onto to the music!

Check out the video demo below and as always, please LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBE for more of the best gear reviews and content around!
- M.

CHASETONE '68 Red Velvet Fuzz || ‘Sweet, Creamy, Singing, Multi-Layered 60’s Fuzz Tone!’

Hello Gearheads! Today I'd like to share my demo of the very cool CHASETONE '68 Red Velvet Fuzz. A hybrid fuzz capable of scratching the Dallas Arbiter itch and then some! At it's heart are a pair of BC183C Silicon Transistors that yield a wide variety of tones.

Kyle Chase set out to recreate the tones and feel of his favorite 1968 BC183 Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face and go beyond the circuit board to push the boundaries of what his pedal could do. What you get is essentially an extremely versatile Silicon Fuzz that sounds great at an extremely affordable price point. I was able to coax very convincing Germanium tones out of the '68 Red Velvet Fuzz and did not find the need to run any additional pedals after it. It's warm and full, yet still absolutely has a cutting brightness assuring that you'll never get lost in the mix.

With a nice feature set, you're able to control quite a bit of the tone of the pedal. Between the MIDS, FEEL & BASS controls, you can tailor the fuzz to pretty much any guitar or amplifier. I also found the "Clean-Up" of the pedal to be quite good, as good as many Germanium Fuzzes I've owned.

I first came across Kyle Chase's work via his Secret Preamp, an extremely useful piece of equipment, essentially a perfected Maestro EP3 Echoplex's Preamp section. I was blown away by how great it made my rig sound and I'm happy to say that I'm equally impressed by the '68 Red Velvet Fuzz. It's a dynamic, easy to use and great sounding fuzz at a price point that doesn't reflect the tones coming out of the speaker... a win for any tone hunting Gearhead!

Check out the video demo below and as always, please LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBE for more of the best gear reviews and content around!
- M.

"Quick-Look" Demo ::: Shin-Ei BIG 1 Booster

Happy Friday Gearheads! Today I'd like to introduce my first video demo in my "Quick-Look" series - focusing on a less produced and more immediate take on a particular piece of gear. Today, I'm happy to share the Shin-Ei BIG 1 Booster - an incredible high headroom, studio quality pre-amp and boost. From a company that has re-birthed the venerable name of Shin-Ei and created quite possibly the best sounding and feeling Uni-Vibe (Vibe Bro) replication on the market, it's no surprise the BIG 1 Booster is a winner.

I had the pleasure of checking one out for a few sessions I was doing here in town and shot some quick impressions before sending it back. While the BIG 1 is intended to be used at the end of an effects chain, I found it very useful in front of my pedalboard as a tone sweetener and boost for gain pedals. Essentially, the BIG 1 can be used in different locations and formats. It's extremely high headroom bandwidth offers up a bevy of tonal options. I particularly loved how the BIG 1 added punch, clarity and girth without losing any of the original tone. You can really hear the natural tone of the instrument and effects when using the BIG 1.

You can find out more about the BIG 1 from Shin-Ei here: https://www.shin-ei.com/#big1

Enjoy the "Quick-Look" Demo below and remember to SUBSCRIBE to Tinkercity Music for more videos and explorations into the best gear around.

Berkos FX Third Stone II Fuzz NEW Demo!

Hello Gearheads! I'm pleased to bring you my newest video demo on the venerable and personal favorite: Berkos FX Third Stone II Fuzz!

For any of you who might know me or have followed my journey through the vast abyss of Fuzz pedals I've tried, owned, and experienced, the Third Stone II has stayed strong and true. It sits really well in a mix, sounds huge when you need it to, and works with every musical context I throw at it.

I wrote a Gearheads blog post on the Third Stone II back in April which can be seen HERE, and am happy to add a full new video demo that shows how I specifically use the fuzz. The Third Stone II was used on all the guitar parts in the demo: Different settings on the pedal itself and on each guitar's volume knob, to attain different gain variations.

There are a TON of tones in this pedal and even though it's sonic structure is a strong one, there's quite a bit of uniqueness to each layer in the track --- the ultimate compliment in my opinion!

For more information and how to order the Third Stone II check out: http://www.berkosfx.com/

Without further ado, enjoy the demo below!

Please like, comment and subscribe to the Tinkercity YouTube channel below for more videos of killer gear!

Until next time! Happy Tone Hunting!

- M.

DAN DRIVE ::: AUSTIN BLENDER ::: OCTAVE FUZZ, BOOST & BEYOND!

Hello Gearheads! I'm happy to bring you a new experience at Tinkercity Music... Video Demos! I will still be writing reviews and content here in the Gearheads Blog (which you're reading right now!) but will be adding some great video explorations on how I use these tools in a studio environment. Each demo contains an original composition and a unique perspective on the tonal usage of each piece. Feel free to comment below or drop me a line --- I'd love to hear from you all whether it be questions, advice or inquires on future demos.

To kick off this new year and beautiful 2018, I'd like to introduce the Dan Drive Austin Blender, a very cool Octave Fuzz, Boost and unique tone machine. Based in Germany, Daniel Querner is building some cool pedals that focus on vintage-minded tones while retaining a step towards modern guitarist's needs.

The Austin Blender is Dan's answer to the incredibly cool, yet no longer made, Prescription Electronics C.O.B. pedal. It's a unique octave fuzz pedal that has a clean blend (hence the name, Clean-Octave-Blend, or C.O.B.) to create familiar and unorthodox octave fuzz tones. While the Blender is most certainly derived from that rare and now extremely expensive RX C.O.B., the Blender offers a redesigned gain structure to help with the interaction between other pedals like fuzz and overdrive. The Austin Blender shines at boosting other gain pedals, but also sounds incredible on it's own to create some fantastically huge ring mod boost tones, as well as the classic Octavia madness.

I found some great pushed boost tones with an almost flange voicing on the tail end of each note with humbuckers into my Two Rock Classic Reverb Signature set right on the edge of breakup. Using single coils I was able to find the familiar nostalgia of the Hendrix inspired psychedelic Octavia of yesteryear. I combined the Austin Blender with a Vemuram Jan Ray to get a massive lead tone, thick and singing enough to cut through any mix in the best of ways. I found the relationship between the gain and clean-blend controls to be incredibly useful to manipulate the "right" sound for each part in a session. Specifically, you can really fine-tune the clarity of the tone you're working with via those two controls. I was most surprised with the less crazy rhythm tones I was getting with the gain dialed back. They were rich and full with something special on the edge of each note (whether it be a slight flange or ring mod) that would really bring out the magic in layering in the studio. All in all, the Austin Blender is a formidable addition to the Octaver market, helping fill a growing hole created by an ever elusive and out of production pedal.

Thanks for checking out my experiences with the Dan Drive Austin Blender. You can find more information about the Blender and the other great pedals they're making here: https://www.dandrive-pedal.com/

Stay tuned for much more content and cool gear demos & reviews soon!

Check out my video demo of the Austin Blender below!

Builder Profile ::: Danocaster Guitars ::: Vintage Heaven

Hello Gearheads! Today I'd like to talk a bit about one of my favorite guitar builders: Danocaster! Dan Strain, the owner, builder and practically all-in-one magician who makes these beautiful creations is building some, if not the most vintage, period correct instruments on the market today. These instruments look, feel, play and sound vintage --- and that is not an easy feat. They are, without a doubt, some of the most inspiring guitars to play and I am lucky to call my "number one," a Danocaster.

Firmly rooted in the world of 1950's-1960's (sometimes 1970's) instruments from the sunny Corona, CA guitar scene, Danocasters just burst with mojo and vibe. Strain builds what he dubs "Double Cut", "Single Cut", "Offset", and does include a bass guitar here and there. Needless to say, everything that comes out of their shop is a one-of-a-kind instrument. While Strain will build you a guitar based on your needs and wants, he's more apt to suggest an era or particular sound you're after, then he can do his magic. Typically, a Danocaster will be period and era correct down to the type of wood, finish, fretboard material, pickguard etc... it's all about making a vintage replica that can stand up next to an original in tone, feel and presence. Danocasters do exactly that. They are the embodiment of true artistry with the art of vintage replicas.

Strain has since moved slightly away from only building relic'd and era correct instruments per his customers requests, I for one asked that my "Double Cut" be as untouched as possible. I wanted to do all the relic'ing myself over years of playing. My guitar was what he considered a "closet piece" or rather, a lovingly cared for but not touched much, 1959 Double Cut. Maybe it was your Grandfather's guitar he never played much but kept in it's case for years in the back closet or under the bed. This is the true magic of Strain and Danocaster --- the details. These details equate to major mojo and vibe with a guitar. I've been playing mine for years now, as it's my main instrument on the stage and in the studio, and it has indeed started to show signs of wear. This is a wonderful experience to see my hard work reflected in the thinning finish and scratched wood. It's the tale of a journey, I walk with my tools that help me do the best of things in my life.

When I ordered my Danocaster Double Cut, I simply mentioned the tones I was after and the look of the guitar itself. I wanted vintage Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Michael Landau and Philip Sayce tones from the guitar. Essentially, a perfect amalgamation of classic single coil tones. I also wanted a two-toned sunburst as I've always loved the way two colors merge together to make almost a third whole color. I did have a major requirement to have a dark rosewood fingerboard, important to my tactile needs as well as the tone. Maple boards are wonderful and often spanky and present, but I was set on rosewood. Well, keeping with the tradition of era correct, my Double Cut could have been made in "history" in late 1959 when rosewood boards started to show up on the 1960's instruments, albeit in 3 toned bursts... so my guitar is sort of a transitional "it could have happened" piece. All of this of course is fun and simply adds to the fact that the guitar itself is a monster tone machine. 

Strain has been seriously busy these days, well rather these years! Generally, ordering direct from Danocaster will come with a bit of a wait, 8 + months at the moment. Anything worth it's salt is often met with a waitlist these days in the boutique gear world. However, Danocaster has ONE dealer, Clif at LA Vintage Gear. LAVG are based locally in Burbank, CA and ship worldwide. They are retailing some of the best and coolest gear on the market right now. The store is the only spot where you can not only buy a Danocaster straight off the shelf, but try them out... and they carry a ton of them at a time. It's a great place to spend some time checking out really good and groundbreaking gear.

In a world where working musicians would die to have a vintage instrument of this caliber at their disposal but cannot mortgage their house or sell their car to fund such an endeavor, finding a builder like Danocaster is a wonderful moment. These instruments not only stand up next to the originals they're cut from but often times outshine them in every way. I seriously look forward to my next "life-time" instrument from Danocaster and cannot wait to put my hard work into and onto it, yielding many years of great music made.

Mod Alert! ::: Xact Tone Solutions' Ibanez Echomachine ::: A Horse Of A Different Color

Hello Gearheads far and wide! I'm excited to share with you an incredibly cool modification available for one of my ALL time favorite pedals --- the Ibanez EM Echomachine! As many of you know, the EM5 holds a very warm place in my heart as it's one of my all time favorite delay pedals. It's a fantastic emulation of a tape style delay that is perfectly voiced and never seems to "get in the way" of your playing. I tend to leave my EM5 on all the time, creating a subtle bed as to which the guitar's voice can lay upon. If you'd like to read more about the circuit and it's supreme coolness, please take a look at Hidden Gems /// Ibanez EM5 Echomachine Delay.

The fine folks over at Xact Tone Solutions have come up with a modification and rehousing of the EM5 circuit that takes the already incredible sounding delay pedal and knocks it out of the park. The original Echomachine suffers a plastic fate, being enclosed in a cheap almost toy-like enclosure, and almost always, the on/off latching-style foot switch never works quite right. Many of us who love the EM5 just deal with the issue, as it's worth the tone. Well, now there's a much better option available. From the top notch rehousing work, down to the very cool graphics (that look just like the original pedal) on the face of the rehoused full metal and extremely sturdy enclosure. Sturdy new true bypass foot switches are added, making sure the EM5 can sound the best in your chain regardless of the rig being used. Greg Walton, partner/mastermind at XTS, also remarked that they fixed a slight volume drop that can happen when the original circuit is actuated. These are are all very worthy modifications that merit sending in your EM5 as is, but the buck doesn't stop there. 

Cool graphics and new digs aren't the only features of the new XTS EM5. They have found a very musical modulation circuit and added it to the Echomachine. It's available via a new modulation knob on the face of the pedal and can create a beautiful warm chorusing modulation that gets mixed in to the delay repeats. It's similar to the type of warm analog modulation one might expect from an EHX Deluxe Memory Man or similar analog/tape replicators. Simply put, it's one knob that gets subtle movement all the way to sea-sick, over-the-top warble. Set moderately, it offers a beautiful element that sits within your delay repeats and makes the already incredible sounding Echomachine even more vibey and deep.

XTS have also included a HOLD/Repeat feature on their pedal. This allows you to create a huge swash of sound via infinite repeats by just tapping the new switch. This is a super cool addition and allows for all sorts of new creative ideas and soundscapes. It essentially "holds" the delayed note of the guitar and puts it through this infinite cycle of repeats. If you play lightly and sparsely, it all sits in this wide ambient bed of beauty. Dig in or use louder or dirtier tones and it starts to "run away" from you and you get huge washes of sound. It's a very cool feature and while it isn't needed for the utility type delay, it's a very fine tool for creativity induced moments. This feature is available as either a momentary or latching style switch, and is specified when you send your pedal in to be modified. 

Imagine a world where everything you love and hold dear about your tools can be fitter, happier, more productive (sorry I had to include a Radiohead reference). Now realize that world is right within your grasp! The folks at XTS are constantly pushing the envelope of how to make what we guitarists use and need better in every way. It's almost like innovation via nostalgia. Taking into account the needs of working players and making that gear so much more usable and reliable --- and most importantly, sound so much better!

Whether you have an old EM5 Echomachine laying around, or you use it often, I highly recommend sending your pedal to the magicians at XTS. They've taken an already incredible hidden gem and somehow made it shine even brighter.

Tone Tools ::: The Volume Pedal & Why It's So Important

Hello! Today I'd like to speak to you about one of my most important pieces of gear and why I keep one present in all my rigs: The Volume Pedal! A Tonal Tool in every right and circumstance, the volume pedal can often be overlooked for a simple reason --- it only controls volume right?! The common tendency is to think that a volume pedal is just another volume knob, which you've already got sitting right there on your guitar.... why in the H-E-Double-Hockey-Sticks would you need something you've already got!? Well, there's more than one way to skin a cat, and the same goes for volume pedals. Adding a volume pedal to your pedalboard systems can open up a new universe of tonal choices and layers that previously were not easily found. I'll get into all of that and why it's such a great tool. And of course there are better options for which Volume Pedal you might choose, in addition to how to run them, so I'll get into that as well! 

Master Volume

Starting off past all of the above hyperbole, it is of my opinion, and many other great "Gear Gurus," that running a volume pedal first in line right after your guitar is a total waste of a great tool, and is actually just like having two volume knobs. Maybe you like having the ability to choose your volume with your foot? Maybe you like having a giant on/off button to silence the whole enchilada. I say avoid that all together, and use the volume pedal as a master volume. By putting the volume pedal after all your gain pedals (overdrive, boost, fuzz & distortion) but before your time based effects (delay, tremolo, reverb), you will essentially have a master volume on your pedalboard. This allows you to obtain any type of tone whether sparkly clean, slightly on the edge of break-up, all the way to total annihilation. The key however is you get to achieve this tone at ANY stage volume you like. This allows you to set the amplifier loud enough to "get above" the rest of the band, and just tune in that volume pedal for every musical moment. It's natural sounding and you get the benefit of the full richness of the tone without any issues with unbalanced guitar tones. It's a sound guy or gal's dream because you will be satisfied with your HUGE solo tones but they're at a level that's actually respectful for the stage and situation you're playing with. This technique has been used for ages in the live world but most often was found in studios, where session musicians had to match the levels and get the balance of tone, volume and presence in the sweet spot - and quickly.

Volume Pedal, Meet Volume Pot

Another very useful technique is to really get the marriage of the volume pot on your guitar and the volume pedal on the floor happening. This is where all the shades of color can come into play. Specifically with any tone, whether it be from an amplifier that's very dynamic and can go from clean to edge of breakup with just the signal being pumped into it, or by simulating that experience with a clean amplifier and using pedals --- you can get so much out of just rolling back your guitar's volume pot and using the volume pedal to compensate the balance of stage volume. This is just another one of the reasons the volume pedal is so important to my tone and work. It really helps me balance the entirety of what I'm doing. Couple that with the volume pot on the guitar and being able to get all those shades going, not losing any presence in the mix or being too loud, it's undeniably useful. To read more about the use of your volume pot on the guitar, learn the basics, and also tricks to get the most out of that tool, take a look here: TONE TOOLS ::: Clean "Roll-Off" ::: My First Effect

Choosing Wisely

In a market that's flooded with so many options and companies making great gear in 2017, you might be wondering where to start. Not all volume pedals are created equally and not all sound or function as good as they could. Much like any piece of equipment, it's important to find the tool that works the best for you. I can however help point you in the direction of some of the best sounding ones, on recommendation from my friend and tone-man David Phillips at LA Sound Design.

One of the easiest and affordable choices being the Ernie Ball Jr. 25k volume pedal. They're available at every modern retailer online or in-store. They fit well on a pedalboard and have a nice "throw", being the action from heel to toe on the pedal itself. The only caveat to the Ernie Ball would be the string it employs to create the tension on the pedal itself. The string can break over time due to use and it simply getting older. They do last a very long time, but many guitarists including myself have had to have them repaired. Factor in having them widely available, sounding and feeling great, they're a good option.

My favorite and considerably the best option is the Boss FV300L. It is however unfortunately discontinued but can be found fairly easily on the used market. There are no strings in the housing, only metal. In fact the whole pedal is made out of nice molded metal. It's much larger than the Ernie Ball Jr. however, so you'll need to be sure you have the space on your pedalboard for it. Other than the robust features of this discontinued gem, I find that there's a bit more transparency in the tone of the pedal. Specifically in the middle and top end. It's not that it's brighter, there's just more of a natural tone to it. For that reason, I have them on all of my boards. If you have the space they're definitely worth hunting for. Note that the newer Boss FV500L is not the same circuitry and does not sound anywhere as good. 

Hey Dude, Don't Volume Pedals Suck Tone?!

Yes they do, thank you for bringing that up! Volume pedals do suck tone, sometimes in the worst of ways, making the sound dull and lifeless. This terrible vampiric tonal nightmare can easily be avoided however by the use of a buffer. It's important, actually required, that if you put a volume pedal on your pedalboard, to have a buffer circuit before it. It can be a high quality buffer interface like the PI-01 or the BB-01 Boost/Buffer from LA Sound Design or it could be any pedal that has a buffer that's always on. Just be sure to have that pedal be before the volume pedal, and you won't loose any high end content, and your sound will ward off those tone suckers. If you'd like to skip buying a high quality buffer circuit for your rig, a simple Boss pedal would do the trick. The Boss pedal tuners are a good choice. Essentially, the buffer or buffered pedal helps "drive the signal" through the impedance loading and takes that darkened tone and brings it back to life. It's an important piece of the puzzle that must be utilized for the best results. The converse however is that if you have an extremely bright rig, you might like the the dulling effect, so as always don't just take my word for it... do what's right for your ears. For most rigs however, that would not be the case. 

All in all, adding a volume pedal to your tool box can offer up a whole new world of interactivity and dynamics to your sound. It's easily one the most important pieces in my rigs. I rely on that control in both the studio environment and on stage. Being able to match the actual volume and offer a balanced presence in a mix is a very attractive trait as a working musician to have. When playing for the song is the most important task at hand, having tools like this at your disposal are invaluable.