This is a top-five style list. But it’s my top-five list. This is the list of my five favourite guitar moments from 2015. This is the Scarebear 2015 in review article I never thought I’d do. What can I say, I’ve rediscovered the blogging bug.
I’m pretty sure there’s a cure for that. I just don’t care to take it. … 2015 in review—My five favourite guitar moments
Today’s entry in the 52 Pedals series follows not one, but two recent trends I’ve had going. Firstly, this is an overdrive pedal. Secondly, it’s another pedal I came across at the 2015 Winter NAMM. How I miss Winter NAMM and America.
This pedal though was quite unique. At first glance it doesn’t even look like a pedal. It looks like something that should have instead been at a Sci-Fi convention. That’s what drew me to it. Then I saw the name. As someone who likes to make up words, the Tubeholic appealed to me greatly. Nice work Ogre. This pedal looks fantastarific! … 52 pedals, week 46—Ogre Tubeholic Overdrive
Guess what?! I’ve saved another pedal discovery from the 2015 Winter NAMM Show for the end of the 52 Pedals series. I’m so sneaky. This pedal is shockingly an overdrive style guitar pedal. I’ve pretty much given up on looking at pedals that don’t enhance my overdriven or distorted tones.
Oh, I should point out that when I say discovery I am referring to the fact that the pedal was a discovery for me. I didn’t discover this pedal some some kind of Captain Cook of the guitar world. Although Captain Cook didn’t discover something that people before him didn’t know about. Huh … I guess I am like Captain Cook. I’m more piratey though.
And on that note … “Arrrrh! That be the Rockbox Brown Sugar pedal and I likes it!” … 52 pedals, week 45—Rockbox Brown Sugar
The year is coming to an end and so to is my 52 pedals series. I’ve been slack with my post regularity, but the pedals that would appear in the list have been planned—for the most part—since the beginning of the year. How can I prove this? By writing about a pedal I actually tried at the 2015 Winter NAMM Show. Damn, Winter NAMM 2015 was a highlight for me this year. I have to do that again before I die. Well, maybe a different NAMM unless I figure out time travel.
Oh, the pedal I am writing about is the Nemphasis Dark Lady ‘Red Knobs’ Distortion. I actually have first hand experience with this one! … 52 pedals, week 44—Nemphasis Dark Lady ‘Red Knobs’ Distortion
Sticking with my new theme of I’m a lazy person who really should have written this already, I’ll revisit a brand I wrote about in week 15 of my current 52 pedals series—F-Pedals. The Edstortion pedal is an amazing pedal (which is why I added it to my pedals series) but the PhazeVibe deserves a mention too. Both pedals combined … Even better.
Apart from the pedals’ awesome tones and features, they both offer the ability to draw their power from their power board using the patent pending wireless F-Power unit. It’s so cool. Changing pedals on a pedal board will never be the same again. … Things I should have already written since the NAMM Show 2015—F-Pedals
As Winter approaches here in Australia, I’m reminded of that awesome Summer I had visiting Los Angeles for their Winter. Clearly those seasonal changes played tiny tricks on my feeble mind, because in the months since I was in Los Angeles I have not written about everything I should have from that wonderful experience I’ve decided to call The NAMM Show 2015. It makes sense to call it that actually, because that was it’s name.
One of my favourite experiences at The NAMM Show 2015 was visiting the booth for ToneWood-Amp. I’ve written about ToneWood-Amp before, but let me tell you, seeing and hearing is believing. This thing is way better than I’d imagined. … Things I should have already written since the NAMM Show 2015—Tonewood-Amp
I may have mentioned last week that I am writing a lot about distortion pedals this year. I can’t help it. They’re awesome. One thing I haven’t done a lot of this year though—and to be honest this is appalling—is write about some of the cool things I came across at the 2015 Winter NAMM. I saw so much amazing gear. Pedals? I saw plenty. Distortion pedals in particular? Plenty. Distortion pedals that didn’t require standard power to function? Just one—the F-Pedals Edstortion. It’s a tiny little power house that brings its own power. Nifty right?! … 52 pedals, week 15—F-Pedals EK-Edstortion
I have an embarrassing confession to make. I’ve owned a set of Dialtone Pickups since the end of the 2015 Winter NAMM and I have still not installed them. I’m lame. I embarrass myself. It’s not because I’m not keen and it’s not because I don’t want to install the pickups. No, it’s because of this stupid thing I’d only ever really read about up until February—the real world. I have to now say, I don’t like it.
I mention this because the real world is stopping me from doing the things I am truly interested in. For example, it was through my favourite online realms that I first discovered the beauty that is NAMM. I’d never heard of it until several years ago when Twitter went crazy one January. My Twitter feed was full of guitar porn. I was in virtual heaven. Many years later, I discovered Dialtone Pickups—once again thanks to Twitter on account of its awesomeness—and my fascination with pickup innovation began.
I became super-keen on the Dialtone Pickups. Super keen is like keen, but it wears a cape and is unrecognisable without glasses. I became so super-keen that I pre-paid for a set of pickups, got invited to join the Dialtone Pickups team at the 2015 Winter NAMM in Anaheim, assisted with some of their graphic design work and blogged about them like a madman. Fast forward to the week I returned to Australia after NAMM and this real world nonsense took a hold of my life like a NAMM attendee receiving free promotional gear. Trust me, that’s a grip you won’t break.
Like I said … I’m lame. But sometime soon—I hope—that all changes. Why? Because I just posted this article letting people know I have some awesome pickups to install. I better pull that finger out that I hear so much about. … The Dialtone Pickups that I WILL install!
I enjoyed writing last week’s article in the 52 pedals series so much that I decided to stick with the same theme I’d chosen for that week—pedals I’ve actually played through. The Mystic by El Rey Effects is one of those pedals. And just like last week’s entry, this is a pedal I came across at the 2015 NAMM Show.
As I have played this pedal I will let you know that the settings in the photograph I’ve included with this article are all set to the pedal’s sweet spot. To my liking at least. This pedal has it going on. … 52 pedals, week 5—El Rey Effects The Mystic
Loknob was another of the cool pieces of initiative I came across in Hall E at the 2015 NAMM Show. Loknob allows you to easily switch out the knobs on almost any guitar pedal or amplifier with knobs that can be locked into place (stopping accidental adjustments in the live setting). Now you can slam your foot all over that guitar pedal like the badass you are knowing your sound is not going to be affected. Your fans will love you for it. … Loknob—knob upgrades for your pedals, amps and more
