OT- Does this site belong to someone that is a member here??

[Mike Nichting]

I was looking around Ebay for tasty pedals and came across this site. It was actaully a Fuzz pedal and when I read more about it I saw that they had their site in the auction as well.
So I checked out the site and saw that the pedals offered and some of the "language" used I have read here.
The pedals look really cool and sound good as well so I was just wondering if someone here had the "balls" to start selling pedals~!!??
http://www.vintagetoneproject.com/index.htm

Good luck to whoever it is~!!!

Mike

[Ed G.]

Solid core wire sounding better than stranded in a 9V circuit? What a crock of ....

[R.G.]

It does give me bit a fatherly pride to see the flowering of a hundred new effects makers pushing their wares with stuff I had a hand in getting out to the public through the net. That simply didn't exist not too long ago.  There were a few people with access to the vintage effects schematics and the training to make things out of them, but they didn't tell others how to do it very much. Craig Anderton was a dramatic exception. We have a fundamentally different environment today, and that's very good.

On the web site:
There is a lot of hype there. But it's no worse that many other boutique builders who bought their first toner transfer sheets from me.  I guess when you try to make money, you inevitably go to using advertising hype.  That's actually pretty understandable. People want to make money, and making effects is a reasonably honorable way to do it.

Although this site is no better or worse than others, I did note the use of the term "finest components".

In commercial speech, you sometimes have to back up your claims. For things without a clear poor, fair, and good ranking, commerce law holds that every product is a member of a parity class. For instance, all toothpaste is pretty much the same stuff, blather as they will about NEW!! contents. Commerce law holds that all members of a parity class are about the same.

Here's the fun part. Since they're all about the same, they are all arguably the **finest and best** in the class.  Hence, each and every one can truthfully claim to be the best, or to use the finest components.

Note that they can't say "better" because then they might actually have to prove the claim.

So "best" means "same as the rest" and "better" means "provably better"; this means that unless there is some plausible test proving "better" you won't see it in advertising.

"New" is an interesting one too. In commercial speech, "new" can be used any time you make a notable change in the product contents **or packaging**. Legally, the courts hold that something with such a change can reasonably be called "new" for about four to six months. As a result, you will find all brand of highly advertised goods with new packaging, artwork, labels, flavoring, color, or some such junk every six months, so they can be called "NEW AND IMPROVED".

Anyway, the guy is fully and legally able to claim "finest components" because they probably are the finest - and only - class of parts we can get.

R.G.

[Rob Strand]

"NEW AND IMPROVED".

The contradiction between those type of  statements and the fact most vintage die hards always seem to like the earliest revisions gives me the occasional chuckle.

[The Tone God]

I'm sure the builder wasn't using the terms knowing the legal implications. They are just using the same catch phrases heard in alot of the advertising that we are bombarded with everyday. You can pick apart just about every claim there but that would be a waste of time. Just because someone uses alot of the same terms as other builders doesn't mean you shouldn't use a critical eye.

With that I wish them luck.

Andrew

[runmikeyrun]

just do a WHOIS search on the domain name and see if it's anyone from here...

[Dan N]

Thank goodness this guy also uses "only the best quality components".

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2554762287


Put what you want in my fuzz face, but don't you skimp with my kazoo!

[Paul Marossy]

Cool!! Sign me up for one of them thar elektronic kazus!  :shock:

[Mike Nichting]

I'm glad this didn't turn into a hang 'em high thread~!!
R.G. may I ask why you have never used your extensive knowledge to put out a line of effects that would take the industry by storm?? Much like ZVEX did~!! ZVEX opened the market up to quality effects that simply rock and some that had never been seen before.
For ZVEX to put his heart and soul into his line of superior pedals is an awesome thing to see~!!
Other names come to mind too, Paul Perry/Frostwave, Jon Bessent/ Austone Electronics, Geoffrey Teese/Real McCoy Custom wahs, ZVEX, Nick Greer,Barber etc. etc.

Bill Bergman could do real well in the business. His pedals are art work inside :-) He is the man.
I believe that there are a few here that could open the market up to effects that are really different. Charlie, you could be out there.
Aron, you would do well with your line of awesome effects~!!

 Anyway, I believe that you guys could do it and we would all be behind you if you decided to do it one day~!!

 Lastly, I want to thank all of you for being so kind with your knowledge and thanks for all of the help~!!!
sorry if I left anyones name out I didn't mean anything by it if I did :-)


Mike

[The Tone God]

From above auction:

I use only the best quality components. I start with kazoos made in the USA, not cheap imports, then I hand assemble and test each kazoo.

BUWHAHAHAHA!!!! Sorry I'm not laughing at the guy but when I read that it made me laugh. I didn't know that USA kazoos were so much better then "cheap imports". Now I know. Something for the US to be proud of for sure. He tests them...isn't that unsanatary to sell afterwards ? Oh well. They're still the best you can buy/bid.

patent pending electric kazoo

mmm. Patent pending-lishous. That lighten up my day.  :lol: Hey I can do "Crosstown Traffic" now. Anybody got a schematic or is that off limits ?

Andrew

[Steve C]

Since there's so many people doing the "Boutique" thing now (seems like a new one everyday at Musictoyz.com), I guess it's finally to the point of who'll do it cheaper?  Unless of course you where one of the early birds and have already made a name for yourself, or one of the ones that think if you charge out the whazoo for it, it'll be legendary.  

Interesting that there's only a handful that actually have original circuits.

[Jered]

Anyway, I believe that you guys could do it and we would all be behind you if you decided to do it one day~!!
 
    Indeed we would. On the other side of the fence, Joe Davisson was selling Obsidian's and/or Blackfire pedals for $99 and sales were almost non existent. Two great sounding original designs, very nice artwork on the pedals(no sharpie), and under a hundred bucks, and not many takers. Its got to be disheartening.
 Maybe Joe Gagan could chime in and give us the cold hard facts, he's got four or five boxes out in production right now.........  i think.
   Jered