Select-ed debut

There is a fair amount of hype going on here with regards to the Archer Select but it's something acceptable in terms of application. If you are interested, it's available now at Davis GMC. List: $399. Price is steep owing to its boutique pedigree & the fact that it features a selectable clipping mode, something new to the JRAD line. 

Pic: JRAD

Selective archery

The latest in the Archer range - Select. Select here refers to the selectable clipping modes. All those drive & distortion, it's about clipping. I'm somehow glad I'm ahead of this because my Snake-stortion pedal is about clipping as well (Snake-stortion: CLICK). But the Archer fanboys will say this one is about the Klon voicings, which is in an entirely different tone Nirvana so... there.

Pic: JR Audio

Selling: J Rockett The Dude (Ver. 1)

Another pedal on the departure list. Slight scratch at the base plate, be informed. It was the last piece on show & I took it as it was, flaw & all.

• J. Rockett The Dude pedal (box included)
• 8/10 condition (slight scratch at base plate)
• No reservations/ trades
• Strictly self-collect at CCK mrt station
• Queries/ confirmation: subversion.sg@gmail.com
• Price: $160 (final, non-nego)

Touchy

Was rather pressed for time today. Secured the Touch, to be heard in action soon.

Reduce waste

When I bought the JRAD Archer pedal, it came with the box on the left. This year, I bought another JRAD pedal, the Rockaway Archer, which came with the box on the right. From the pic here, you can see that the bigger box is unnecessary. We understand that manufacturers tend to present their products in a certain packaging on grounds of attraction & novelty at times. On most occasions, excessive packaging is not objective & wasteful. I have been supporting manufacturers with an environmental awareness. D'Addario is a very good example. I have personally witnessed their development from a nobody in this aspect, to one of the fore-runners of considerate & objective packaging. This change & innovation supplemented product quality as well. So this is an appeal from me & on behalf of all gear-inclined people out there, to product manufacturers- please review your commercial practices under environmental considerations. We should spare a thought for others & the world we live in. We keep on taking without saying thanks & it's going to hurt others in many ways. 

Rockin' away

Fighting fever & flu. But this is an essential pedal moment. 👌

Rockett away

Anticipating the availability of this pedal- the J. Rockett Rockaway Archer. It's a collaboration with Steve Stevens & a furtherance of the Archer goodness. I have no idea if there is a sizable Klon following here but if you appreciate overdrive per se, the Archer (Klon's clone) should give you a breather in terms of organic tones as well as a booster-esque function for your solos. The one-up feature here is an EQ inclusion as depicted above. But it comes as a price: USD249 (MSRP)...

The case of a handsome zombie

There was a hint of doom when all I heard over at the amp was a serving of fuzz. That shouldn't happen because the Dude is definitely not a fuzz unit. So the diagnosis took place beginning with the cables. The joints could take a toll after repeated use but that was not the case. A quick twist over at the guitar end revealed no crackling; the guitar's input jack is still in good health. The amplifier was then suspect. Some channel switchings revealed no faults either. 

The mind boggled for a while until I recalled the last thing I did to the pedal itself before I started playing- battery installation. It was a fresh battery in there so what could really be the fault? Sherlock Holmes once said if you eliminated all possible suspects, whoever's left to be dealt with is the culprit no matter how remote or improbable it could be. A quick battery replacement confirmed the theory immediately; the battery was criminal all along. So there we have it, a dead battery in a fresh setting. Never overlook a suspect even if it's deceivingly pleasant. Case closed.

Dude, you are good (2)

I've tested the Dude with both humbucking & single coil guitars so here're some opinion:

1) Single coil: The Dude has plenty of clean boost to further twang things out (if that's your thing). The EQ section means you can add fatness to proceedings so it's not just about hearing the top end. Once the ratio is increased (drive control), you get good amp-type drive going, enough to shred, mind you. That's how saturated things get & all this without any dirt from the amp, just from the Dude.

2) Humbucker: The Dude is equally at home with humbucking guitars. With both EQ controls at noon position, we don't hear any mucked up bottom end, it's in fact a good way to use this pedal; keep the EQs at the halfway mark, add & subtract the frequencies to your liking. OK, here's what the Dude can do; max out both drive (Ratio) & level so you get this illusion of playing super-charged pickups but actually you aren't. 

I shouldn't be driving (forgive the pun) this into your head too much but the Dude is a wonderful drive pedal as it is. I've removed all Dumble-type opinions for you to embrace the Dude's abilities, not its similarities (to a certain renowned amp). 

Dude, you are good.

The J Rockett Dude pedal has a Dumble reputation in its DNA. Everyone tries the pedal with a Dumble expectation. Whatever that means, I have no obligations to agree to the tonal manifestations or some other sonic similarities. As far as I'm concerned, the Dude has enough drive to be used as a stand alone pedal & it's one of the smoothest sounding drive out there, much to the liking of fusion dudes, presumably. It's also devoid of the treble end harshness often heard in budget drive units, once you understand what those controls have to offer. Some other disclosure to come. 

JRADs @ DGMC

These 2016 JRAD pedals (Tour series) are now available at Davis GMC. Had a blast trying them earlier today. Thanks Janet & company for the heads up & opportunity to try.

PIC: Davis GMC

Rockett wonders

I had a good encounter with J. Rockett pedals in 2015. This year, we have some new ones to check out, four of them are seen here (they are the boost/ drive types, the fuzzes & other modulation models are omitted). Particularly enticing is that Lenny model with the unmistakable hat print (you know who, yes?). Looking forward to the GTO as well despite it being an under drive; I think I can live with a saturated clean tone, then again, with so much saturation, it would cease being a clean interpretation per se. Hoping this quartet will make it here.