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Topic: Tone pedal |
Dwayne Martineau
From:
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
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Posted 8 Mar 2005 10:46 am |
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Has anyone ever tried ripping the tone pot out of an old steel and installing it in a foot pedal?
-Dm |
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Tim Whitlock
From:
Colorado, USA
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Posted 8 Mar 2005 1:41 pm
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| I considered it, until I acquired an old Fender vol/tone pedal. Great pedal but requires maintenance and prices are climbing. [This message was edited by Tim Whitlock on 08 March 2005 at 01:42 PM.] |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 8 Mar 2005 1:59 pm
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I've done it, but you don't need to rip the tone pot out of guitar--after all, a tone control is nothing but a potentiometer with a capacitor. I gutted a wah pedal and replaced it with a tone control that I wired up. I drew a schematic and wiring diagram of it, but I'd have to look for it.
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Dwayne Martineau
From:
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
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Posted 8 Mar 2005 2:43 pm
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Oh yeah... I guess what I meant was: "has anyone built a better wah pedal?"
Mike, did you use the same cap/pot values as a particular steel, and did it end up sounding the same?
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db
From:
Bethlehem, PA 18015 USA
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Posted 8 Mar 2005 5:45 pm
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I have been negotiating with Fred Gretsch for a number of years about acquiring the inventory and licensing for the Bigsby "Volume/Tone" pedal.
He initially wanted 5 figures!
We started taking about a "By Piece" pricing on parts . . .
But, I have had a lot of things going on at the "home-front" and had to drop out.
The parts & labor costs are pretty high . . .
My initial estimate would put the price of the thing just under $300 !
( That's a long way from the 1965 price of $65 ! )
That's quite bit more than inflation.
Part of the problem is the "Demand-Factor".
I have tried putting out "feelers" to see what the demand potential could be . . .
I still have this project on my "Wish-List" . . .
And after the "dust-settles", I will look into it again.
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Dan Balde
U-12/8&5, S-7/D 3&1, S-6/E,A & G3
[This message was edited by db on 08 March 2005 at 05:48 PM.] |
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Charlie McDonald
From:
out of the blue
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Posted 8 Mar 2005 8:14 pm
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| Wouldn't that basically be a wah-wah pedal? |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 8 Mar 2005 8:19 pm
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| No, a wah pedal has much more complicated circuitry, including inductors. Wah pedals are very resonant and active (they require power). |
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Jeff Strouse
From:
Jacksonville, Florida, USA
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Posted 8 Mar 2005 11:11 pm
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Mike, if you run across that diagram, I'd love to see it!!  I've been wanting to control the tone with my foot as well, because my tone control is a bit far to reach (not by the pinky like on some lap steels). |
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Cartwright Thompson
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Posted 9 Mar 2005 4:42 am
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Actually, according to the Inflation Calculator website:
"What cost $65 in 1965 would cost $368.62 in 2003" |
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Steve Merritt
From:
Alameda, California, USA
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Posted 9 Mar 2005 8:58 am
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The last time I saw a discussion on this it seemed that the people who had or had tried both the Bigsby pedal and Fender pedal seemed to prefer the Fender. I have a Fender and it works fine (after I replaced the volume pot and tone pot, thanks db!). The Bigsby pedals seem to be going for about $250 on eBay. That's too much for two potentiometers and a piece of string!
As to Dwaynes question, I would say yes, it was done my both Fender and Bigsby but both companies have long discontinued production. As Dan mentioned, there isn't enough of a demand. |
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Bill Creller
From:
Saginaw, Michigan, USA (deceased)
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Posted 9 Mar 2005 2:45 pm
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| Heck, I would give $368 bucks for a combo tone/volume pedal. It wouldn't be very easy to build one, but I could probably do it. |
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Dwayne Martineau
From:
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
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Posted 9 Mar 2005 3:24 pm
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| Quote: |
| there isn't enough of a demand. |
And yet the wah pedal is ubiquitous.
Sigh...
How, in the guitarist's quest for Perfect Tone, did the tone knob get relegated to little more than a cute decoration to be permanently duct-taped at 10 (or 11, where possible). Pretty funny, really.
Set faders on stun!
I have to get a new tone pot for my steel, anyway, so I may as well buy two and gut my wah. Or maybe I'll put the old pot in a pedal. Hmm.
Mike, did you build your tone pedal with a wah-style on/off switch, or was it always active?
[This message was edited by Dwayne Martineau on 09 March 2005 at 03:24 PM.] |
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db
From:
Bethlehem, PA 18015 USA
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Posted 10 Mar 2005 7:06 pm
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I'd buy the rights & inventory in a minute if I could be assured of a 100 units annually!
But, the demand is just not there!
I personally think that it is the greatest thing on earth,
especially if you add the option of an "expression pedal" control function for the "swivel"!
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Dan Balde
U-12/8&5, S-7/D 3&1, S-6/E,A & G3
[This message was edited by db on 10 March 2005 at 07:06 PM.] |
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db
From:
Bethlehem, PA 18015 USA
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Posted 10 Mar 2005 7:10 pm
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Hey Cartwright. . .
Thanks for the inflation calculations!
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Dan Balde
U-12/8&5, S-7/D 3&1, S-6/E,A & G3
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db
From:
Bethlehem, PA 18015 USA
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Posted 12 Mar 2005 9:15 pm
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Hey Cartwright,
What is the link to the inflation calculator website?
I'd like to know what the Bigsby BP-15 Palm Pedal assembly should be going for today . . .
When it was priced at about $77 in 1976.
Thanks,
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Dan Balde
U-12/8&5, S-7/D 3&1, S-6/E,A & G3
[This message was edited by db on 12 March 2005 at 09:17 PM.] |
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Gary Boyett
From:
Colorado
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db
From:
Bethlehem, PA 18015 USA
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Posted 13 Mar 2005 5:11 pm
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The "westegg" only goes to 2003
The one here goes to 2005
http://www.bls.gov/cpi/
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Dan Balde
U-12/8&5, S-7/D 3&1, S-6/E,A & G3
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