Ugly Truth: TC Electronic Sentry

TC Electric is at it again with the new Sentry Noise Gate. Known for their quality effect, TC Electronic has put together a line of effect that are praised by many for their quality and flexibility. This pedal appears to be no different. The force is strong with this one due to the Toneprint technology. Not only doe it appear to be a smart noise gating pedal, but it's features are unlocked by its editable setting via linking to your computer or smart-device. Just like TC Electronic's other formidable offerings, this pedal is has been well though out. It looks like a pretty favorable picture, or is it?

It's A Yawn

Let's take a look at TC Electronic's new offerings lately: clip-on tuner, acoustic pre-amp and noise gate. Not exactly exciting stuff. But let's not forget that this is what TC Electronic is good at. Yes, the Polytune clip-on and BodyRez aren't flashy, but those are tools that are indispensable. Honestly, these are what TC Electronic are best at. The Mojo Mojo and Dark Matter are not as highly praise as their other offerings. Their Hall Of Fame reverb and Flashback delay are highly desired effect. Their Toneprint technology is a exciting feature that lets you apply famous artist's actual settings.

What It Does Is Nothing

Sure, it is a noise gate. It does what it does. It takes the noise that you don't want out of the signal. When you engage it, all your problems should go away, but what ends up happening with most of these pedal is that your tone ends up going away with it. When you watch the promotional video (because that is a thing now) you hear all about how it won't effect your tone at all. Does it work like that? Maybe.

Conclusion

Let's get down to business, this pedal comes from an impressive pedigree. Priced at around the cost of a comparable unit and promising performance that is unparalleled, This pedal is posed to take the noise gate pedal market in a fell swoop. This comes at a great time. I've recently added compression to my pedal rig and it can get a little noisy. This pedal would be my pick for a noise gate.

8 Ways To Make Your Life More Musical

If you meant to click on this post then you like music, or maybe you want to like music more. If you don't like music then I don't know whats wrong with you (also, why are you reading this?). Never the less, I'm going to give you 10 ways to make your life more musical. Let's start:

1. Listen To Music

Simple, right? Sure we listen to the radio when we are in the car. We hear music in movies and TV shows. Music is all around us, but sometimes we take it for granted. Sometimes music is down graded to "pretty noise". In a fast paced lifestyle we often don't take to time to listen to music while doing nothing else. Actively listening to a piece of music will take your full attention.

2. See A Concert

Similar to listening to music, seeing a concert takes your full attention. Life doesn't always let us attend the concerts of our choosing. Maybe they are out of town or sold out. Perhaps our favorite artists are no longer living. What ever the case, the internet is our friend. Invest in some nice headphones and plug them in to your favorite computer/device. Crank it up a little too load and immerse yourself in the show.

3 Learn An Instrument

Many people are intimidated by learning an instrument. Don't be turned off by the learning curve. Playing an instrument can be a great way to wind-down and chill-out. With just a few chords you can play most popular radio tunes. Guitar, Piano, Drums, or anything else that you'd like to learn will help your life become more musical. Even if your skill doesn't ever get you past "novice" you still get to proudly display your awesome instrument with pride.

4. Take A Music Class

Music classes are offered at any college or even a online class. These classes are great to learn about the origins of music, how music is written, or just how to sound like you know what you are talking about when you discus music with your friends. If you aren't a musician, you can still talk like one.

5. Learn To Read Music.

Whether you play or not. you can learn what all those little symbols mean and feel superior to all that people who just act like they do. If you do play an instrument, reading music is very helpful. Being able to convey ideas about music in written form can be very help. Just like English, Music is a langue. Reading and writing music will help you be more musical in a technical since at least.

6. Learn To Sing

Whether you like to sing or not, learn the proper techniques to sing. There are times in life when you need to sing. Someone wants to sing Christmas carols, Sunday morning church, boaring road trips... Why not prepare a little bit and be the best singer in the group.

7, Join A Forum

There are communities on the internet for nearly everything. If you like a certain genre of music, I'm sure there are others like yourself. Meet these people in a online, text-based medium. Discuss the superiority of the type of music that you like.

8. Subscribe To A Music Blog

Yep. The last thing on the list is a shameless plug your your to subscribe to this blog. Although it is a great way to stay up with whats going on with music stuffs. If you like this post then hit the subscribe button and get a notification when there's new posts.

Ugly Truth: Boss CS-3

In an attempt to be a well rounded guitarist, I picked up a compressor. Many respected player have this tool in there effect chains. I've ran comps before, but I've never liked what they did. I've used Visual Sound, Boss, Joyo, and more. I've never really liked what they did. Most the time my sound got completely covered up. If I ran more gain on the pedal they became noisy and If I turned up the amp then the levels with the effect off were too mismatched. As far as I can tell these things are a "darned if you do, darned if you don't" kinda deal. They level out your highs and lows and make you single notes sound fuller. On the other side, they squash your signal and can effect your tone in a unfavorable way.

It's The Standard

If someone runs a compressor, chances are they at least tried a boss comp. I picked one up to get my bearings on what comps can do. Single notes are great but the pedal falls flat with using chords. Too much input into this and you can hear your signal get squashed. Even running this pedal first in your chain with hot pickups can cause some unwanted effects to you level. If you adjust the level on the pedal you can minimize this effect but it will still be present. Not to mention that your level is probably going to be one of those things that you'll want to balance out without having to worry about hearing a pedal chomp down on your tone.

It's Not Very Subtle

I did a review of the Joyo PipeBomb Compressor. It was a good comp, but the effect was very subtle. I found myself cranking it up just to notice the effect. That's not the case with this effect. Setting the levels very conservatively will still yield very noticeable compression. I don't like a lot of compression, but I do like the benefits from using one. The problem is that you can't switch the effect on and off without adjusting other setting greatly. If it could just jump in when playing single notes to make a fuller sound then that would be great. The effect can weaken big chords. The CS-3 is a pretty big offender.

In Short

Compression can be a great thing. It may be something you have to experiment with before you really settle on whether or not you like/need it. Some find the Boss CS-3 to be a great tool. These people may be able to better tame this pedal better than I, or need a big squeeze for their sound. There is a trade off when using compression. You might get better sustain, but you will lose some touch sensitivity. When using a wide range of dynamics, you might not want to use anything more than very subtle comp. As for the Boss CS-3 I can't find a place for it. Boss has done a great job of revamping some of there more iconic pedals (DD-500, RV-6, TU-3). Maybe they could put a little work into the CS-3.

Ugly Truth: YouTube Gear Reviews

I'll be the first one to admit. I love watching You Tube reviews of gear. Sometimes I don't even know I want gear until I see/hear it online. In the age of information, we have more information than we can ever consume in a lifetime. So When looking up guitar gear, we have our choice of avenue of consuming information. The Tried and true written reviews on retail websites and forums leave us a little wanting for more. You Tube offers a wide verity of reviews and reviewer. Some are great quality and some... aren't, but there are many to choose from and I've even picked a few that are my favorites.

It's Very Difficult To Compare Gear

Some of the very first videos of gear that I ever watch were shootouts between stock and modded pedals. I was a big pedal modder and really wanted to hear the results before committing to the mod. That's how I found gearmanndude. I still like to watch his videos, because he is entertaining and he sounds just like Jack Black. Even in side by side shootouts it was very difficult to distinguish differences in pedals. Some mods are subtle, but some change the pedal drastically. Even when complete changing the clipping stage, pedal sounded almost alike. Replicating the test at home had very different results.

Some Try To Make Money Off You

Some of the best known reviewer on You Tube want to make money off you. Most of them try to sell directly to you. Reverb.com, Anderton's, and any builder are really just trying to put product in front of your face. Others make revenue off of views. If you noticed that some channels run ads before there videos and other don't, that's because the ads make money for You Tube and to a lesser extent, the channel. I'm not against ads. (just look around my site) It helps those people keep doing what it is they are doing and create a better product. Just remember, these people aren't just so board that they make videos for you.

The Audio Quality 

Many people have comment on the compression of You Tube videos. There really isn't any way around it. HD video and audio would eat bandwidth and probably destroy You Tube's free format. When you watch these videos, you notice that the reviewers often use very high quality recording gear. Shnobel often uses a large condenser and SM57 type mic to record his nice amps. These are studio quality micing options. Chances are you aren't doing that on your live rig. So, when you are struggling to hear the difference between the $50 pedals and a $250 pedal on You Tube, just remember There is no replacement for live sound.

Conclusion

I know that You Tube videos are not going to be the best way for my to experience a pedal. There will never be a replacement for hands-on playing. The feel and response are something that do not translate into ones and zeros. Having said that, I still enjoy watching Chappers and the Captain mock about while playing interesting pieces of "kit". And so, if you are enjoy watching the videos, then continue to do so. If you put much weight into watch you hear, then maybe I've said enough to make you think twice.

Ugly Truth: Music Gear Is Expensive

Before I get into talking about whatever this post is about, Id like to take a second and say that Brian Wampler of Wampler Effects commented on my post about his new overdrive pedal. You get see that here.

Take a second and thing about your most recent music-related purchase. Regardless how much you spent, it probably wasn't the first or last purchase you'll make. I own several guitars at varying prices. With that I have amps, and effects. I also have accessories that complement these things (cables, pedalboards, capo, stands, cases). Over the many years I've played music, I've amassed quite a bit of expensive gear. I try not to spend boat load of money (mostly because I don't have it) by budgeting and saving. I also buy most of my gear used. This is tricky, and you must be able to tell a diamond in the rough from a turd.

The key to not spend too much money of music gear is to be happy with what you have. I know that acquiring new things is fun. I love to get a new piece of gear and analyze it to death. How is this drive different than this other drive? What can I do with two delays that I can't do with one? Yes, you might be able to do more with more, but why not challenge yourself to do more with less (or maybe with what you already have). Most of the guitar players that we idolize had nothing between them and their amps but a guitar lead. We over complicate sometimes to compensate.

I for one will be reworking my sound from the ground up. The very foundation of our sound comes from our chops. So much time and effort go into "shaping our tone", but could our skills be what really need developing. I'll admit, buying a pedal is easier than devoting the time and effort it better our abilities. Am I going to start playing without effects? HA! no. What will do is take that money that I usually invest in gear and converting it into time to invest into where the real tone comes from: my hands!

New Gear Alert: Wampler Tumnus (Klone?)

This morning I woke up to this in my Twitter feed:

Yes, this is a micro pedal from Wampler. It is only the second one, that I know of, from this company. Two things stand out from this picture: 1) the presence of a Treble knob and 2) the half hooven animal/half man image. Anyone who has been following trends in effects would say that it's a Klon copy. It is also described as a "transparent overdrive" by Wampler. So in all likely hood, this pedal will serve the same purpose as a Klon and Klon-type pedals.

Why do we need a new Klone? Well, we don't. Now we have another pedal doing the same thing as other klones, but it's twice the price as everyone's favorite Klone. The thing that this pedal offers is the compact size. I've actually been toying with the idea of a mirco-sized pedal board that's easy to transport. This would be ideal for that application. It would also be the most expensive piece on the board. I'm excited to see how this compares to the rest of the Klones out there. It looks like we will find out a lot more on October 1. That is when Wampler says this will drop!

Ugly Truth: JHS Muffuletta

As a Muff fan, I was excited when I heard that there was a pedal that replicated nearly every popular version of the Muff Fuzz circuit. If you haven't heard, JHS has produced a pedal that takes the Muff circuit and multiplies it by 6. Clones of each one of these pedal have been around since the beginning of cloning pedals. From what I understand, these pedal are all similar but have their own individual characteristics. Hardcore fan of the Muff style fuzz have their favorite variant, but now thanks to JHS, you don't have to choose. Should Fuzz players rejoice? We'll see.




This Pedal Has Been Around For A While

The "select a fuzz" pedal is not new. In fact, it may not even be the best one out there. Big Tone Music Brewery might have the most versatile fuzz on the market. BTMB is the sister company to everyone's favorite pedal cloners, Build Your Own Clone. BTMB have produced the Royal Beaver, and it is a beast of a thing. Is it directly comparable to the Muffuletta? not really. But it it is a boutique fuzz that has a wide range of tones. I hope it come with an instruction manual, because it has all the knobs. JHS has taken a different approach for their "all in one". A simple 4-knob interface can deliver nearly endless variation of tone.

It's Pricey

The JHS Muffuletta goes for north of $200 right now. It's a great idea and a boutique pedal, so of course it's going to be expensive. It's also going to be hand built and hopefully rock-solid. A lot has been said about the "cost-of-parts" verses the "cost-of-production" so I'll stay out of it. If you want something bad enough, then you'll shell out the dough. If not, then wait and try to catch it on Ebay, or Craigslist, but there is nothing saying that this pedal won't gain value if/when they stop production.

It's a JHS Pedal

I've written a piece about what I think about JHS here, so if you are interested, then read it. I honestly don't care who makes the pedal as long of it's a good piece of gear. I might care if is ISIS or something, but other than that...

Conclusion

Is it a great pedal? From what I've heard, it is something special. But is it right for you? you have to ask yourself. Is it important to me that I accurately replicate the sound of a fuzz from a certain era? Can you tell me the difference between a Russian Muff and a NYC reissue? If not then what JHS has done is put out a box where you can A/B all the colorful Fuzzes that you always hear being tossed about. Likely, you will find an ideal setting and leave it there. Do your self a favor, find some friends with Muffs or maybe a Youtube Channel and Make up your mind now.

Ugly Truth: Making Money With Music

So as a musician coming up through the ranks, I have played far and wide for much less than anything that is considered monetary compensation. I understood the value of playing with different people and in different places. Each time there was a lesson to learn. Different people play different ways and have different experiences. Experiences that I could learn from and use to further my playing. Mind you that this is a time before YouTube. Watching a musician is now as simple as typing in a keyword into a webs search. Still I think there is an intangible that is gained when playing with many different groups of people. No matter how you approach it, this is a wealth of knowledge to be had by applying your skills and talents in as many different applications as possible. Having said that, there are those rare and precious opportunities to gain more than knowledge from all this work. That's right, money. There are people who get paid to play. Lets look at some examples.

Music Labels:
There are many ways to get paid for the music that we love. No matter what type of music we play. Some become so proficient at their craft that others invest in the music that they make. Yes, I'm talking about music labels. artists are paid by people who want to market a certain brand of music. Basically, a music label is a company, or part of a company, that try to make money form talented artist and in return they pay the artist. The music is viewed as a product to market and sell. Of course There are many that criticize the music industry for how they handle artist's natural creative process. Also, there are some like myself that feel as though music as an art suffers because the artist that more financial backing gets more exposure and thus more wins more popularity. I won't go as far as to say that the larger music labels dictate what music is you listen to, but when was the last time you listened to an album that was completely independently produced? There has been a trend where established bands/artists take their own funds and independently record an album. This really doesn't count, due to the fact that without the help of a large label rocketing the artists/bands to their current status. How does one get on with one of this labels? Be a extremely talented artist? Yes, but there are so many talented artists. You must truly standout and make yourself noticed.

Pictured: Getting noticed.

The Working Musician:

Many artist we know today got there start this way. This is the conventional way most musicians think of monetizing their talents. Playing at bars and venues can net small profits (even smaller if share between band members). Many bands don't see dime one before become established in the local scene. This option may require you learning some covers. Some places may favor certain genres, so you may have to be steeped in dozens of songs spanning diverse genres. Being one of these musicians for a time I learned that your best friend can be your merch table. Having a CD, stickers, a shirt or buttons can boost revenue. Many find this lifestyle hard to maintain. More than anything, the revenue made from doing this is just enough to keep the habit going. There have been innovations in the way people enjoy and lesson to music. The ipod had nearly single-handedly redefined how people buy music. YouTube provides many people with a way to listen to their favorite artist/song without making a transaction. Artists and musicians have taken notice and have been creating and posting content online. Some use it as a way to get noticed (see above) and other have used it too make money. Digital media is sold online at staggering rates. Many artist post videos on YouTube to create interest in their music.

pomplamoose. No I don't know how it pronounced.

Church:

Many musicians are employed by churches. This option is not appealing to everyone because there are many different views, even in the Christian church, about music. Not all church pay musicians. Many rely of volunteer, but larger churches that can afford to heir professional musicians do. These jobs often require commitment, flexibility and strong interpersonal skills. Many of these jobs depend of public opinion to grade your performance, so being likability can come in hand. Not to mention that getting this job may require a group of people voting for approval, so charm is almost as important as musical talent.

Education:

Perhaps the easiest means of monetizing musical talent/knowledge, teaching students music happens naturally. Just being a musicians creates interest in the instrument. My mother always had a piano in the house, so of course I wanted to learn to play. I didn't stick with the keyboard, but I think it created the interest that led me to my instruments of choice. Giving music lessons can be a fun way to help a new generation to play music and perhaps teach yourself a few new things. Many music stores offer lessons and need instructors. Many people teach out of their homes or studios. This presents many of the same challenges as running your own business.

There are several ways to make money with what you love. Music is a huge industry that is even changing. There is no guarantee that you will make millions, but with if you are dedicated to your craft then there are several ways create revenue from all the hard work of learning your musical instrument.

Electro Harmonix Key9 Update

It has finally happened. Was now have teaser trailers for effect pedals. Just like when a major motion picture is upon us, we have gotten a glimpse of what the KEY9 pedal from Electro Harmonix can do. But is this the case of the "unwanted sequel"? I'm rather impressed by the authenticity of the voice this little box can achieve. Having said that, There are some let downs.

 So besides sounding amazing on "Somebody I Used To Know", this unit has a solid list of sounds that it really hits the mark. But if I'm being honest, the Rhoads sound was a little disappointing, but that be a strong case of "I already had a sound in my head and it doesn't live up to that exact specification even if that expectation might not be actually possible". That Rhoads that I mention is heavily influenced by the band that led me to fall in love with sound in the first place, Mutemath. If you don't know them, do yourself a favor and check out what they have to offer. If you are a fan of spacey-electro-rock that dips into a little bit of everything else, then they might be your thing. The band employs amount of Rhoads and that sound has haunted me ever since.

 Something That I like/don't like is the organ. Does it sound like an organ? Sure. But, do you think that the fans of this series of pedals wont already have a B/C9? Probably not. Even so, this pedal doesn't change on the fly very well. If you have one voice dialed in thing you have to wait for a break to flip you controls to another sound. Those wanting Organ and piano will have multiple pedals, so the organ setting is basically taking up space that we could have had another set of keys...

Should you get this pedal? Sure, it does some great thing that might come in handy for you. Do you often wish to make your guitar sound like other things? Then this pedal might be up you ally. If you like the B9 or C9, then this pedal might interest you as well. Want to turn your insane guitar solos into piano solos? Pump the brakes, make sure you get the sounds you want before picking this pedal up. The tracking sounds good, but there is a lot going on under the hood here. You might have to adjust your playing style to get the best results, but there is a lot of potential here.

The Ugly Truth About PedalboardPlanner.Com

I was messing around on the internet the other night and I found a website that is pretty much the best thing ever. That is, if you are like my and you can stop rearranging your pedal board. The site is pretty simple. You have a long list of pedals to choose from, and a rang of pedalboard (all by pedaltrain). You are allowed to configure them any way you want to. You can even arange the signal path. I could probably spend hours on the site as it is. Although, there are some ugly truths to be told.

1. Its All PedalTrain

Go figure, a site that is produced by PedalTrain only features PedalTrain model pedalboards. The good news is that they support their older model boards as well. They give detentions of the boards so you know just what size you are dealing with. This is helpful to those that don't have a PT board but can find a size close enough to simulate their board. Or, if you are like me and planning a new board, you can get an idea of the size of board you need to fit all your pedals. I'd like to be able to specify your detentions, but I guess you can have everything.

2. The List Of Pedals Is nearly exhaustive. 

Many of the pedal that I own were on the list. Some were not. A lot of the Boss and EHX stuff were there, but others weren't. This isn't a big deal, you can approximate the size of the pedal and stick a pedal of the same size in there, but the whole signal chain thing become pointless at that point. If there were really slick, then they could allow you to upload pictures of your own pedals and add a title and all that. Just a thought.... but a pretty good one.

3. This Site Is Way Too Much Fun

Not only can you arrange the digital representation of the pedal you own, you can fantasize about the pedals you want to own. This is aided by the list of more boutique pedal that are present on the site. Not all obscure pedals are there, but all lot of the more popular ones. I spent close to an hour before pulling myself away. I was in the middle of a pedalboard overhaul at the moment, but I can see my self coming back just to fiddle around. The best thing is that you can download and save your arrangements to use as a template when you actually get to moving your pedals.

4. It's Not As Good As The Real Thing

At the end of the day, all you've done is play on the computer. Your pedals are still mismanaged and you need to get back to doing something important. Not only that, but now you want to go play with your toys... way to go.

Boss RV-6 vs Digitech Polara

Two of the most recent and notable reverb units to hit the shelves of your favorite music store are: the Boss RV-6 Digital Reverb and Digitech's Polara. If this was a beauty contest, then it would be over before it starts. The Polara is a stunning pedal. Boss pedals have done little to improve there cases. But this isn't Miss America, this is a pedal shootout. 

The Digitech Polara

I like this pedal. It has got some huge sounds in the pretty little box. The controls are super easy to manipulate. Dark and moody is a great way to describe this pedal. Seven modes that let you choose from standard favorites and some new settings. Reverse, Halo, and Mod settings are a great addition the the typical palette of reverb colors. The Halo setting is fantastic. The Spring, Room, and Plate are spot-on. Everything sounds clear and the guitar signal is transparent. The toggle to turn trails on and off is a welcome feature. Switching is silent and soft. Signal remains uncolored when pedal is bypassed. This is a solid pedal with a lot of great features. Did I mention that it was pretty? It's, like, really pretty.

The Boss RV-6

Fresh off the presses from Boss is the RV-6 Reveb. No less than 8 mode of fantastic reverb. The Shimmer and Dynamic modes are awesome and work great. Plus this pedal can even add a little bit of Delay if need (adding back a much loved feature from previous models that was removed in the RV-5). This pedal sounds great. Every setting produces solid effects. The Tone knob helps to put the effect exactly where you want it. Dark to bright and everywhere in-between. You can even add an expression pedal to control the effects. This is a super sounding reverb in the familiar Boss brick shape. 

The Conclusion

Both of these pedal do great things. There is a lot of overlap. The Polara is a stand out pedal. People will notice the sounds and the looks of it. The Boss is a pedal jam-packed with great sounding effects and with expression capabilities. It's hard to choose between these two pedals because they both do a great job at producing reverb. But choose is exactly what we have to do. When the rubber meets the road, you have to go with unit that will be most useful in your playing situation. For me, It's the RV-6. The Reverse setting on the Polara is fun, but not very useful for me. The Dynamic mode of the RV-6 can come in handy when switching off the effect is not possible, or when I want to change setting in the middle of the song. Both pedals punch above their price tags, sounding just as good as pedals twice the price. If I had to choose, it the Boss RV-6.