Why some "boutiquees" get homaged, and not others?

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comradehoser

Well-known member
Just out of curiosity, why so some smaller builders (JHS, EQD all day, Catalinbread, Wampler, etc.) be the subject of "homages", but others not? For example, I don't think I've ever seen anyone do Old Blood Noise Endeavors, even though they are pretty interesting.

Is it general respect for the builder? Are they too complex/idiosyncratic? A general rule against homaging current production pedals? Inquiring minds are inquiring...
 
Ha! It's funny but all of those you list are in my view becoming kinda mainstream and are pretty boring. Maybe I'm becoming jaded? And I thought JHS was a divisive character? He gets a lot of criticism online - I just find him slightly annoying and smug. I am yet to find a Catalinbread pedal I can actually use - same with EQD.

Smaller output manufacturers I do find interesting would be Menatone, Skreddy, Animals Pedal, One Control (particularly their BJF stuff), Hudson, Gamechanger, Reuss, Rockett, Thorpy (well, mainly the Dane!) and Universal Audio. There will be others but I can't remember.

Why some are revered I can't say, apart from the herd mentality of the internet. Why is the TS9/10/808 held up as the wonder overdrive? Or the Klon? Buggered if I know! I guess it's fanboi stuff - if your hero plays it it must be good. I have never understood the online popularity of Catalinbread. Whenever I have been taken in by the hype I have generally instantly regretted it.
 
HamishR said:
Smaller output manufacturers I do find interesting would be Menatone, Skreddy, Animals Pedal, One Control (particularly their BJF stuff), Hudson, Gamechanger, Reuss, Rockett, Thorpy (well, mainly the Dane!) and Universal Audio. There will be others but I can't remember.
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I'm sure you didn't intend it as a list of things you would like to get clones of, but I'm fairly sure Gamechanger would be quite difficult (opto-physical spring, plasma tube, digital stuff) and UA is right out of the discussion (they're all digital and proprietary). I'm not sure if Hudson makes more than the Broadcast and Sidecar and both have PCB's already?

Personally I'd be more interested in some more doom/stonery stuff like Black Arts Toneworks or similar, but in the end I think it's like the pedal manufacturers say - everyone thinks they want the new unique and interesting thing, but tubescreamer clones keep selling like hotcakes. I suspect the DIY market is probably less tubescreamery, but it's still more worthwhile to do the bigger name stuff compared to less known stuff.
 
Oh Gamechanger must be impossible (almost) to copy! It's their Bigsby pedal in particular which interests me, but it sure ain't cheap.

As you correctly guessed, this was just a list of manufacturers who produce things which interest me. Although Skreddy, One Control and and Hudson have provided me with endless entertainment with trying and modifying their circuits.

I do find it fascinating that the Tubescreamer and Klon seem to be very much of a natural progression of the treble booster. They both work on the same kind of midrange frequencies which make the guitar sound more vocal, just as the treble booster did in the beginning. They have become more sophisticated versions, but still do a very similar thing. I seem to prefer the original sounds of the treble booster, although I do like to have those same midrange frequencies prominent in whatever overdrive I use. It's how the circuit fills out the rest of the spectrum which interests me.
 
Yeah, my list was definitely not meant as a enumeration of true boutiquery. And maybe that's why they get homaged, because they are more known and looked for than others.
HamishR said:
Menatone, Skreddy, Animals Pedal, One Control (particularly their BJF stuff), Hudson, Gamechanger, Reuss, Rockett, Thorpy (well, mainly the Dane!) and Universal Audio
Click to expand...
I've seen homages for Hudson, Gamechanger, Rockett, and Thorpy. As well as many, many DBA and Zvex, but nary a one OBNE--it just made me curious, is all, if there is a secret pact or if folks are friends in the scene or whatever it could be. But maybe it's just not worth the effort for DIY production to wade into the schematics and algorithms of something like the dark star.

As for usable pedals, it depends what you are looking for, I guess. I really do enjoy some EQD stuff, particularly the Hizumitas. Plumes ain't bad. I like the homages I have built for the life pedal and hoof reaper. And the Afterneath! Love that. For Catalinbread, the Sabbra Cadabra I built is pretty spot on for Iommi tone, and the Naga Viper is also good. JHS, I just don't have the cash for, but currently gearing up for the Angry Timmy+ to feed my new love of higher gain and higher voltage pedals. Loving the Okko Diablo, Tyrian, and Aion's VH-1 and amptweaker tightmetal at the mo.
 
Hirti said:
I think most OBNE pedals are FV-1 based, no? Makes cloning them a bit hard.
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I think I've seen Robert mention that it comes down to proprietary issues with their coding. Walrus Audio stuff is in the same boat. We could technically clone them, but that would require ripping off their code.
 
jwyles90 said:
I think I've seen Robert mention that it comes down to proprietary issues with their coding. Walrus Audio stuff is in the same boat. We could technically clone them, but that would require ripping off their code.
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That's not entirely true. While using the exact code is indeed infringement, writing new code that emulates the performance of the pedal/circuit is perfectly fine.
 
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