I added a second Arturia X8in 8ch Analog to ADAT converter so I don't have to eat analog patching for a rack of satellite preamps. These things work great, accept Wordclock, and stay in sync. I got the second one B Stock for about a hundo off and if you can get them at a discount they are a good solution for this type of thing.

Donner Harmonic Square Pedal Octave/Pitch Shifter Pedal. For $50 you get a mini pedal that can pitch shift or harmonize between 2, 3, 5, 7, 8 and 16 steps. You can mix the wet and dry signals independently. You can make cool harmonizing chords or pitch shift in a way to make kind of a chorus/phase sound. Overall, a really cool, kind of utility pedal that doesn't take up much space on the board. Not a one trick pony, even though it kind of seems like it on the surface.

Ampeg Gemini VI

Cleans for days, maybe the best amp tremolo I've heard on any amp and that Jensen 15" is no joke. Not bad for $200 (plus a small bench fee to get the dang thing grounded at my shop.)

four_oclocker_2.2 wrote: Sat Dec 14, 2024 5:38 pm Ampeg Gemini VI

Cleans for days, maybe the best amp tremolo I've heard on any amp and that Jensen 15" is no joke. Not bad for $200 (plus a small bench fee to get the dang thing grounded at my shop.)

No shit! I drove to Louisiana for one for $500 a couple years ago - original owner (who passed) with a factory JBL, but mine still needed some work on top of that, but nothing crazy.

It has such a beautiful natural sound, I don’t think I’ve ever even used pedals with it. Like something you’d find on a Verlaine record.

llllllllllllllllllll wrote: Sat Dec 14, 2024 6:54 pm
It has such a beautiful natural sound, I don’t think I’ve ever even used pedals with it. Like something you’d find on a Verlaine record.

100%. I ran an overdrive pedal through it and thought "Yeah, it's 100% a better amp without a pedal slamming the front end."

I recently grabbed a few new mics:

1) Aston Spirt (large diaphragmj, 3-pattern condenser) which, so far, I've only tried on a guitar cab and paired with a Royer 121. They complimented each other nicely, though the Aston wasn't as bright/toppy as I expected. Apparently, the Aston has a pop filter built in to its grill, so I guess I should try it out on some vocals soon. Will report back.

2) AKG c214, which is essentially a cardioid-only c414. For ages, I've had my 1980s-era 414 on the floor tom, but have replaced it with this 214. Now it's time to try to get all those dents out of the 414's grill...

3) Shure SM7B. I haven't really tried it, yet, but I've used these a million times, so there's no rush. It's gonna be great on some voices and maybe even something else.

Traded that Sunn for a Carvin 4*12, the Steve Vai one. Finally, a cabinet for my XB-100.

The rig absolutely kills. Incredible sounds pour out of the thing in an effortless cascade of taco riffs, weedily lixxx, and surprisingly pleasant clean sounds.

I'll probably spend weeks working out exactly what I want from it, but what a set of brushes. The graphic eq rules. The regular eq rules. The drive rules. Hell, even the reverb is great.

Practice was incredible tonight. I'm over the moon.

Vai approves!

I like to think it was sideman era, PIL and Zappa Vai. Not Fingerblasting with the Sprachial Lipnozzle or whatever.


















I would fuck with a hardtail monkey grip Ibanez though

A very old upright piano. There’s a lot wrong with it, sticking keys, very out of tune etc, but I look forward to getting it into shape. I took it apart today, hoovered about half a ton of dust from inside it, found a half penny from 1863 under keys. Cool. Going to be a long ride I think.