FREE Velcro Loops

I have a set of Velcro Loops here. Industrial grade. It is just a half a metre long. It is useless for me but doesn't mean it may not be useful for all. I am not selling. It's for free. Anyone who are thinking of making their own custom pedal board or have a pedal train, this might come in handy. =) It is 2 inches in width.

Please contact me at 84050766. And please refrain from sending advertisements to this number. I give my contact number so that communication would be easier. I don't care whether there is any ghost at anywhere. And I also don't need any tution of any sort. 

Update: IT'S ALREADY TAKEN! THANKS FOR THE OVERWHELMING RESPONSES.

Temporary blog skin change

Oh well, I like my previous blog skin very much. However, many of my friends complained that there are a few problems with it.

• Links are broken sometimes.
• They can't comment through their cellphone/iPhone.
• They can't 'follow' the blog.
• The 'archives' keep moving when they are reading the blog in a BB or Nokia. (I didn't know BB got such problems).

One of them said that he doesn't like Beatles. Well, screw him. At least, I like it. xD

I will change it back after some changes are made. =)

Combo

I am sure everybody is familiar with Jemini Distortion.

I remember seeing a guy trying the Jemini at SV. I won't comment on the tone since I did not try it personally.  It has cool LED lighting though. When you switch on the overdrive (left), there will be green LED around the knobs. For the distortion, it is red. 

If you are looking for a 'combo' pedal like this, this is not the only one. Wampler Brent Mason Hot Wired is also a 'combo'.

Do take note of the price difference though. Both are available at SV.

Gibson at SV (Peninsula)?

If any of you have Facebook and have liked SV Guitar Page there, you would know this. There are a few Gibsons in SV. However, I think it is just a few pieces.

This red colour is so sexy. It reminds me of UNO Red Tiger.

It seems that Swee Lee ISN'T the only one who has Studio '60 Tribute.,

I don't remember that there is a relic finish for this model.

Cleaning the board

Pedal case easily collects dust and dirt and we can't be taking off all the pedals and clean it all the time. So the collection of dust can be horrifying.

My friends use brushes to brush the dirt, dust, etc.. off the board. It does the job but it also damages the carpet on it and may eventually tear (especially if you are using some monstrous strength to do the job). My way of cleaning is totally harmless to the carpet. This is what I use.

I don't know what you call this but it is used to remove hair, fur and dust on clothes. You can use the same on the pedal board. And it does its job pretty well.

This is my partially-cleaned pedal board. I am just cleaning it before I actually pass it to the buyer. The below is the fully-cleaned pedal board.

As for the corners, I use a soft-bristled brush and scoop them out. This method is nothing genius. In fact, it may be lame. Well, as long as it doesn't spoil things, it is still a good method. I take less than half the time of what my friends took to clean their pedal boards.

Mini Speedbox

I tried the Modtone Mini Distortion the other day when I went down to grab a few stuffs. My main purpose is to compare it with Speedbox.

To be frank, this mini distortion sounds almost like Speedbox. In fact, I think Distortion is the only one which is very similar to Speedbox, compare to all the other Mini and their pedals. However, if that is really the case, why would anyone want to get Speedbox already? There must be a difference, which I later found out. Speedbox has a large 'tone' range than its Mini and the same goes for its gain. Speedbox has more sustain than Mini Distortion as well.

The Squier Scenario

People said I am very anal when it comes to guitars, regardless of mine or others. I can't stand it when people fail to handle guitar with care. I just hate douchebags like that.

The below is a picture of my Squier.

As you can see, there are no strings on it. I cut them off. Here is the scenario.

I lent
 my Squier to someone. When it returns to me, I didn't make a thorough check but keep it away. It was only until 3-4 days ago when I felt that the action is too high. After a quick check, it confirmed my doubts; the neck has wrapped. 

I use gauge-9 for my Squier and 10 for my Fernandes. It seems that the one of the strings might have snapped and the person, without even asking me, bought a string of a larger gauge and changed them. I suspect it to be a 10 or even 11 (he uses 11). THIS could have cause the excessive neck relief. He seems to think that it is harmless. I think he is just plain ignorant. All I can do now is to cut off all the strings. 

If you are lending a guitar and the string snaps while playing it, please do call the owner of the guitar and ask him what gauge and brand he uses for the strings. Everytime you change a gauge, you need to readjust  the anchor screws and the truss rod according. 

Other problems after borrowing the Squier:

• Volume knob was loose at first, but now all the knobs are loose.
• The cable jack is loose

Lessons Learnt:

Never lend your guitar unless it is someone you can trust your instrument to.

I can hear it crying. It needs to visit the S.G.H (SV Guitar Hospital). 

Inlays Stickers

There are more choices of inlays stickers for you to choose now. I hope you like puzzles!

Metallic version

Or if you want to have your name on the 12th fret,

Personally, I think it's too expensive for a single sticker. It is expensive because it is customised.

Please contact Music Ensemble.

This is not new, but I think it's very nice.

SOLD: Pedal Case. (18" x 12")

Selling my pedal case.

• 3 months old
• Perfect condition except for minor scratches as shown below.

Price: $40


(SOLD AT 6.27PM, 21/6/2011)

Speedy~~

Well, those flames belongs to Modtone Speedbox.

General
Speedbox is not a high output distortion. In the Modtone family, such would be Extreme Metal. Like many other distortions, Speedbox comes with 3 knobs.
'Gain': the intensity of the distortion.
'Tone': controls how bright or dark the pedal will sound but it also affects the intensity of distortion.
'Level': controls the volume of the pedal.
Speedbox is rather bright sounding. Those who want a brighter DS-1 and do not wish to get a modded DS-1, perhaps you can consider Speedbox. It is also a true bypass while Boss pedals aren't.

Sound
When you turn down your tone knob and with your gain at 12 o'clock, you will get a very vintage sounding distortion, similar to that of a vintage tube amp. If you increase the gain, the sustains improve. But as you increase your gain, your tone should increase as well, or vice versa. Otherwise, you will end up getting some muddy tone.
As your tone knob increase, the distortion will get more coarse and brighter as well. When both Tone and Gain are maxed, that is when you will have a rather edgy distortion. At the same time, you get a lot of feedback as well.

NOTE: How it sounds also depends on your amp's setting and what guitar you are using.

Overall:
★★★★★


-True bypass
-Easy to use
-Brighter distortion compare to DS-1
-Relatively good sustain 


I seriously can't think of anything bad about it yet. Well, maybe the colour. It's green (and I hate green)