NSFW What's up with the buffers in cornish designs?

[Robert]

...extremely rugged, tour grade construction, etc.

I realize they're known for their "impeccable" build quality, but I must say, I'm not feeling it.

Plain paper labels, severely oversized, gooped / spray painted / hand etched PCBs, zip ties, and more offboard wiring than a 1950's telephone exchange... Better hope they're rugged because no one in their right mind is going to want to repair one.

They make my skin crawl to be honest... I really dread working with them and the goop is the least of my concerns.

 

[Big Monk]

I realize they're known for their "impeccable" build quality, but I must say, I'm not feeling it.

Plain paper labels, severely oversized, gooped / spray painted / hand etched PCBs, zip ties, and more offboard wiring than a 1950's telephone exchange... Better hope they're rugged because no one in their right mind is going to want to repair one.

They make my skin crawl to be honest... I really dread working with them and the goop is the least of my concerns.

I don't disagree at all.

I just think it's hilarious how much people like to shit on things. I mean, I really only shit on Chase Tone and that has ZERO to do with the actual pedals.

I just can't see someone like you putting some douchey statement out about a trace. You do what you do and you leave the rest of us to decide about what we think.

When I started out building/learning about pedals around 2008 or so, I can't remember the community being to heavy handed with the shit talk about designs. Of course, even then, people knew that about YATS, etc. but it was more about discovery and tweaking, and less about this holier than thou shit.

I just find it funny.

 

[Robert]

I just can't see someone like you putting some douchey statement out about a trace.

I actually like the sound of the G2, P2, and NG3.

None of the others do a whole lot for me personally though.

 

[Harry Klippton]

Guy Finds Opinions on the Internet and More at 11:00

 

[Big Monk]

I actually like the sound of the G2, P2, and NG3.

None of the others do a whole lot for me personally though.

This concept transcends the circuits though: It just seems to me that everyone is a flippin' expert these days about someone else's circuit.

This forum has had it's recent examples too.

I get it, if a tracer releases a schematic, suddenly everyone thinks they are an expert.

What I find disconcerting is that instead of NOT looking that gift horse in the mouth, everyone seems very content to hack the poor creatures head off with a broadsword and stomp on it.

 

[Robert]

At least it's not a buffer that pulls 120mA +140mA while idle.

 

[Big Monk]

At least it's not a buffer that pulls 120mA.

I agree but that is a sore subject for me as well.

Obviously 29 Pedals was too utopian in his idea about the inevitability of tracing, but we also can't turn our heads and say he didn't get some pretty raw treatment from some people here, datasheet power supply or not.

To me there just seems to be a real aggression around circuit analysis lately. It's like people are personally offended if someone doesn't design some brand new shit out of the ether.

I agree that people should be WAY more honest in their ad copy but some people want to use that lack of transparency to sell things and that's just the way business is.

 

[Robert]

Obviously 29 Pedals was too utopian in his idea about the inevitability of tracing, but we also can't turn our heads and say he didn't get some pretty raw treatment from some people here, datasheet power supply or not.

I don't think the negative response was a result of his circuit design.

 

[Big Monk]

I don't think the negative response was a result of his circuit design.

I also don't think it was a lot of people being nasty toward him either. In fact, it was one person.

You definitely were not. I just think it's there is an irrational, existential terror linked to someone tracing your shit, and some people react to that differently.

But definitely not worth telling a guy to go fuck himself over.

Either way, my personal opinion is to take these schematics we get for NOTHING and simply appreciate them for what they are. Slagging the builder ON TOP of getting to take a peek into their circuit seems unsavory.

 

[jesuscrisp]

Of course, even then, people knew that about YATS, etc. but it was more about discovery and tweaking, and less about this holier than thou shit.

I just find it funny.

Most of the shit talk is often if

A) the marketing is clearly lying about the circuit or is (unironically) over the top with the claims
B) the circuit is clearly a clone of something with next to no innovation
C) ridiculously priced
D) overengineered (often to justify driving up the price)
E) a combination of any number of the 4 options above

Issues with the builders' personality, support/service, build quality, etc. all factor in why I personally hate on a couple of builders, but the points above are what I think are people's issues that lead them to hate on the designs.

You don't have to be an expert on anything to utter an opinion such as "I don't think the tone justifies the parts count/price tag" etc. Tone is subjective, so one person's overengineered 369$ tubescreamer might be another guy's perfect dumble tone just because of an extra knob and 5 part swaps. And really nothing in this thread was crazy toxic, it was people sharing their experiences.

 

[Laundryroom David]

Most of the shit talk is often if

A) the marketing is clearly lying about the circuit or is (unironically) over the top with the claims
B) the circuit is clearly a clone of something with next to no innovation
C) ridiculously priced
D) overengineered (often to justify driving up the price)
E) a combination of any number of the 4 options above

Issues with the builders' personality, support/service, build quality, etc. all factor in why I personally hate on a couple of builders, but the points above are what I think are people's issues that lead them to hate on the designs.

You don't have to be an expert on anything to utter an opinion such as "I don't think the tone justifies the parts count/price tag" etc. Tone is subjective, so one person's overengineered 369$ tubescreamer might be another guy's perfect dumble tone just because of an extra knob and 5 part swaps. And really nothing in this thread was crazy toxic, it was people sharing their experiences.

 

[Feral Feline]

At least it's not a buffer that pulls 120mA +140mA while idle.

View attachment 58062

Really? So Euna'f one that does that?

 

[Robert]

Really? So Euna'f one that does that?

I believe it has the lowest current consumption out of the four.

300mA, for an overdrive that isn't much different component-wise from a TS or OCD.

 

[manfesto]

At least it's not a buffer that pulls 120mA +140mA while idle.

View attachment 58062

That's more current than most taps on my isolated power supply can provide (and who out there is gonna waste one of their high-current taps on a buffer???).

So, it's not so much a "whatever" power supply after all then, is it.

 

[phi1]

At one point several years ago I had read enough hype about the Cornish buffer that I built one, thought it was pleasant and that’s been my go to standalone buffer.

Maybe we need a pcb with 3-4 buffer types selectable on a rotary switch. Maybe simple BJT (like TS), simple op amp (like Klon,m), Cornish, and JFET. And a toggle sw to bypass the buffers? Maybe just three circuits if that helps it fit in 125B.

Will they all sound very similar in most rigs? Yes but it shouldn’t be a challenging build and would give any who are interested a chance to compare, and we could have a thread where people share their findings. and then it’s still a useable buffer pedal once you’re done testing

thoughts?

 

[Big Monk]

At one point several years ago I had read enough hype about the Cornish buffer that I built one, thought it was pleasant and that’s been my go to standalone buffer.

Maybe we need a pcb with 3-4 buffer types selectable on a rotary switch. Maybe simple BJT (like TS), simple op amp (like Klon,m), Cornish, and JFET. And a toggle sw to bypass the buffers? Maybe just three circuits if that helps it fit in 125B.

Will they all sound very similar in most rigs? Yes but it shouldn’t be a challenging build and would give any who are interested a chance to compare, and we could have a thread where people share their findings. and then it’s still a useable buffer pedal once you’re done testing

thoughts?

I think the design of the Cornish differs in the sense that it buffers the input path when engaged and in bypass, right?

Which for the customers he was originally designing for was radical for the time. Pro musicians were starting to care about that sort of thing.

In the practical sense, not required for us bedroom wankers with 15ft of cable total in our rigs.

 

[rhaas]

15ft of cable total

 

[owlexifry]

but it was more about discovery and tweaking, and less about this holier than thou shit.

To me there just seems to be a real aggression around circuit analysis lately. It's like people are personally offended if someone doesn't design some brand new shit out of the ether.

these schematics we get for NOTHING and simply appreciate them for what they are. Slagging the builder ON TOP of getting to take a peek into their circuit seems unsavory.

im glad you've made these points.

it's hard to put it in words, and its gonna probably sound real soppy, but a community like this feels way better when people engage in positivity and celebrate the abundance of schematics and designs that have been made available to us all for nothing, rather than just arrogantly shitting on everything that isn't groundbreaking genius design.

i understand the need to flex disapproval on designs that may not be that innovative or novel ..but idk, i sorta like to think of circuit design/pedal/amp building as an art form.
i like seeing different takes on YATS.
fuzz has never been my thing, i don't care for it at all, but i think it's fucken cool that there are thousands of folks out there building a hundred different takes on a fuzz face or a tone bender.
does it matter that they're all kinda the same? well, i don't really care, because more art is good. not everything is gonna make me rigid with excitement, but that doesn't mean it's shit.
of course there are exceptions that are souring, like the marketing wank and sheer robbery that we saw with the lizard queen, or anything british pedal co has ever done.

 

[Bricksnbeatles]

Yeah, no idea about the Cornish pedals (I’ve never built one, but I’ve never heard a demo that I was crazy about of one), but I do quite enjoy the Cornish buffer. My go to buffer because it’s super transparent (as a buffer would hopefully be) and most pedals I’ve put after it react better to it than certain other popular buffer designs.

 

[finebyfine]

I think the design of the Cornish differs in the sense that it buffers the input path when engaged and in bypass, right?

Nah, that's par for the course. Every buffered bypass effect I've seen other than the DRV uses this arrangement. No reason to reinvent the wheel if the first stage of the effect is a buffer anyway. It wouldn't surprise me if there's some other counter examples but every Boss pedal is an example