GTRS

Folks, this here is the MOOER GTRS 800. According to the manufacturer, it's a super guitar equipped with onboard emulators & effects. This means, you can now travel with just your guitar & phone to performance venues without the reliance on anything else.  

Yes, you are not the only one who noticed the Suhr-esque vibes in the outline of this instrument. Voicing emulators in a guitar is not a new idea, LINE 6 did that with arguably minimal impact to the guitar world. People still prefer playing real guitars instead of in-built emulators. The intelligent thing to do is conceiving a product in the shadows of a familiar design so it helps propel numbers in terms of sales. The following is a clip showcasing the features of the GTRS800, no official demo yet.

Pic: GTRStech

Selling: Mooer 008 (SOLD)

One more for the goodbye list. A simple pedal to emulate an American high gain amp voicing. An effective one at that. There will be more to come.

• Mooer 008 (Cali-MK3), amp emulation pedal
• 9/10 condition, box included
• Self-collect: CCK mrt station
• Query/ confirmation: subversion.sg@gmail.com
• No reservations/ trades
• Price: $70 (final)

Item SOLD 👍 (29-2-20)

Capture tone @ DGMC

If you are looking forward to own one, it's now available at Davis GMC (limited quantity, please note). Last featured here FYI: CLICK

PIC: DGMC

The capturing game

This is the talk of the moment, a potentially game-changing device that eliminates the need to own multiple guitars (do we really want this to happen?). Mooer's Tone Capture GTR allows you to sample some sound bytes from one instrument & use another to trigger its application. Sample a Strat & use a Les Paul to trigger the Strat sound to confuse everyone. Is this technology new? Remember, the Kemper does likewise for amps. Here's a clip from the manufacturer to show you that it's a quality replication with no lagging responses:

Note that the clip didn't show the acoustic guitar sounding like the Strat/ Les Paul 😎

GE go!

Had been reading good stuff about Mooer's GE300 here from the recent NAMM coverage. I'm not too enthusiastic when it comes to a multi-effects unit because it ends up being fiddly. Most of the time, if there are any synth modules in there, the latency issue just kills the joy of playing (& the stupidity of paying for such a unit kicks in). But we have to give it to Mooer for living the times, such issues have come to pass. If you think this one is aimed at a certain LINE 6 implement of a similar nature then you do get the hint. Home recording dweebs will appreciate the IR modules included here so this is a really neat release by Mooer. 

EHX vs Mooer

This isn't a performance battle but an intellectual one. EHX had successfully brought Mooer to task for copyright infringement. It seems that Mooer's Mooergan & Tender Octaver contain blatant copies of EHX's C9 & Micro POG DNA in their circuitry. Whatever the case is, outright copying is rotten & you have a very slim chance in saving your skin when dragged to the courts. It's not worth the trouble. It disreputes your brand name as well.

Simulation radar

Another interesting release from the Chinese front- Mooer's Radar.

This is (to me) an awesome release because it helps turn one's effects line up into a self-sufficient workstation especially for people whose lives depend on recording. The line-out/ headphone feature means you need not invest in an amp to get things going. In action:

Small timers

Following the Mooer D-15 entry, a reader wrote in asking me if there is a comparable unit that I'd recommend since he's interested in a lug-friendly amp head & that the D-15's availability is unconfirmed (in the mean time). 

Mooer's D-15 (A) is a digital unit & its strength lies in the clarity heard from the demo clip supplemented in that blog post. There isn't any quite like it in the stores here in the mean time but in terms of dimensions, Peavey's Piranha 6505 (B) is a worthy contender, so is Vox's MV series (C). The idea of a small, portable amp head isn't new. In fact, I used to own a Crate Power Block (D) which was a no nonsense solidstate unit (discontinued in 2010/ 2011). 

Tank tone

This dashboard looking thing is an amp head- Mooer D15. Since it's Despite running on being a digital format, no additional power amp is required since it's a full functioning amp. In short, you can lug it in your bag to the next gig- yes, it's that small (as seen in the video). The term 'digital' doesn't sit too well with amp purists in general but if you fancy some good tones (maybe a good dose of metal), this is worth checking out. We have a Mooer dealer here but it's no telling if it's gonna make it to the store at all. If you sell amps, you'd understand how darn difficult it is to just sell a head without an accompanying speaker cab. I've chosen this clip to highlight its tonal capability, OK maybe for you metal dweebs out there, it'd be a pleasant surprise:

Mini explosion

If you are wondering why Mooer made a pedal without an on/off switch then this little ditty isn't a pedal- it's a power amp. That's right, in a mini pedal format. 30W of power in this mini enclosure 👍 With a name like that, good luck in getting this past customs.

Mooer: Mini preamps

For those of us who are put off by multiple amp line-ups, Mooer has these mini preamps going for 2017. These are definitely not amp replacements but would address those ears tired of pedal tones (ironically, these reside in pedal territory) & require you to embrace a good serving of emulation. Priced at USD99 each (MSRP), these might be a good alternative for many of us in terms of mobility & tone. Hear:

Drum at your feet

Another drum-machine unit joins the pedal format. To be released: Winter NAMM 2017.

Mooergan it

If you think EHX is the only party in the mean time to offer the world guitar-friendly pedals which emulate cool organ/synth sounds, then check this Mooer out. It's sheepishly called the Mooergan but it does a fine job in the organ tone emulation. The following clip here puts the pedal in action but I hear some gated signals along the way. Reserving further comments till I personally hear it in action:

Wah... so small

Smaller wah, that's right. The one you see here is Mooer's Wahter.

That's how big/ small it is in context.

Actually, folks, those flaps there are foldable so the real Wahter size is really small, it'll sit comfortably on your palm without issues. This is a practical consideration should you need a utility level wah for inclusion's sake. It's optic based so purists out there will tell you it's not gonna be as warm-sounding as a pot-based version.

Mooer: Spark distortion

I've finally gotten down to try Mooer's Spark distortion, currently available at SV Guitars. It's the only one in its series shipped here, the rest were produced enough for promo use only, they will be available in due time.

As you can see, the Spark D sports cute dimensions. The immediate concern is its inability to hold itself down in use should the player yank his/her cable. The economics of its design is such that the controls were made minute & relegated to the top end, facing the audience so to speak. The player has to be very familiar with them because most of the time it's tweaking without looking. If you are the pedal board geek, this one saves space & its squarish design means it takes up equal space length & width-wise. If you dream of an economy pedal board, one which you can slip into your guitar bag, it would be quite possible. Please note that the Spark D is strictly adapter powered.

I think it's rather obligatory to relate the pedal's distortion intensity to that of the industry standard, BOSS' DS-1. The Spark D is a hard hitting distortion unit, it even offers a boost function for you to take it one-up if the need arises. In this aspect, if you wish for the Spark D to emulate a DS-1 in terms of voicing, you have to keep the gain at bay. Personally, I like this pedal for its ability to saturate the gain as the dial reaches its upper settings. With the BOOST function engaged, the Spark D manifests a sweet zing intensity-wise but it won't bring you into metal territory. 

The TONE control has an arguably wide sweep with an 8 o'clock setting giving off a fat, lower end boost. Turn it up & it adds nicely to the treble end. I must say that the LEVEL control adds a tad of top end to the overall voicing so one needs to recalibrate one's tone if things get a little excessive. 

The Spark D played well with both single coil & humbucking pickups. It has a strong inherent response so it won't lose its definition if you switch between pickups. If you are into all things smooth sounding, the Spark D can be a little annoying due to its rich top end but I see this as a plus. It makes you reach for your guitar's tone knob to balance things up so you end up working with a palette of pedal-guitar tones instead of just meddling with what the pedal has to offer. The Spark series of pedals face stiff price competition from Modtone & Hotone especially when the latter brands offer quality-for-price tones. We are spoilt for choice but it's definitely a good thing for us buyers.

Rating: 80%

Mooer: Spark distortion

Availability: SV Guitars

Price: $135

Mooer: Noise Killer

This is only my second gear-related purchase this year. Things are a little slow but that's how it will be for some time to come because I have reached a certain level of saturation somewhat. No hurry, I will do selected pickings this year. The pedal you see above is Mooer's Noise Killer.

It's the fourth noise reduction unit that came into my residence. As you can see here, the pedal's nothing too extensive in terms of dimensions. Control is a mere threshold knob & the flick switch is an option between soft & hard modes. The job of any noise reduction unit is to eliminate signals that fall below a specified level so the range here extends from -70db to +10db. At maximum setting (+10db), it mutes your guitar signals entirely (I was using a humbucking guitar the last time I employed this pedal. If you don't realize it by now, this would make a great kill-switch function. But how much threshold should you specify for your personal use? It depends on the following considerations (among others):

• the number of pedals with gain contribution coming into the NK's input
• the type of pickups you are using (low/high output)
• your picking intensity
• how much volume is coming from your guitar

The implication here is that one has to repeatedly specify the threshold setting depending on one's setup. The hard/ soft modes allow for decay consideration. This pedal runs on plug-in power, the reason it's able to be manifested in such trimmed dimensions. Considering its effective delivery as a noise reduction unit with minimal settings & a light-weight being to boot, the Mooer NK is a worthy consideration. Be warned that at certain threshold selection, it might affect your tone so you just have to hear it in action before parting with cash.

Mooer: Noise killer
List: SGD120
Availability: SV Guitars

How little can it be?

It seems that everyone is pushing the boundaries of being small, Mooer included. What you see here are effects pedals approximately half the dimensions of your credit card. So if you are thinking of portability, the prospects of having your preferred line of effects pedals fitted onto an A4 size pedal board is a definite possibility. There is this consideration of small-equals-compromise which is very real; a dedicated processing unit is required if the manufacturer wishes to consider refinements in their electronics & going small isn't going well if this is priority. However, there are many ways to accomplish goodness, if the good people of HOTONE pedals could prove everyone wrong, MOOER might have a case here. We shall reserve judgment till these Spark series pedals get here, yes?