Craig Anderton Gets Two Thumbs Up

[ibanezts808]

I've gotten my Electronics Projects for Musicians in and this book is phenominal.  He uses easy to understand analogies, great diagrams, and easy to use language for all of us newbies out there.  This book, in my opinion, is a must have for any newbies.  I bought it off of amazon for like 16 bucks I think.  But wow, I can't stop raving about this book!

[troubledtom]

but of course , CA
        IS THE MAN!
              - tom

[ErikMiller]

It's amazing how much capacity that book still has to inspire and educate, as out of date as it is part-wise.

Probably done more for me than any other electronics book....

[d95err]

I'll add an extra thumb up for the following story:

A few weeks ago I purchased the AC BOX Combo virtual guitar amp from Native Instruments. In the manual, there was a schematic on a simple buffer to use for direct recording guitar into a computer soundcard.

It looked like a capacitor was missing from the schematic, so I posted a question on the Native Instruments user foum. I didn't really expect anyone to reply since it was an analoge guitar electronics question on what is mainly a digital synth modelling forum.

Imagine my surprise when the next day I got a reply from Craig Andersson! He gave a long and very pedagogic explanation of the missing capacitor, the circuit, some possible modifications etc. Fantastic!

[WGTP]

I still have the one I bought 30??? years ago.  I did an independent study in college one summer and got 5 credit hours for building the compressor.  

[PB Wilson]

While some of the parts in the book are hard or impossible to find, General Guitar Gadgets has updated many of the projects and has them listed under "Other Projects."

[Paul Marossy]

Just one project out of "Electronic Projects for Guitarists" was worth the purchase amount for me.  Craig is a clever individual.

[Mark Hammer]

Craig is a gentleman.  Like Jack Orman, I also had the pleasure of contributing a bit to the DEVICE newsletter that came and went in 1979 like a comet.  Some three or 4 years later, while he was editor of Electronic Musician, I received an apologetic letter of thanks from Craig indicating that he was cleaning out his drawers and realized he had never thanked me for my article.  You don't forget decency like that quickly.

[Paul Marossy]

You don't forget decency like that quickly.

Yeah, integrity isn't as common as it ought to be.

[jmusser]

I got mine about 2 months ago, along with the much coveted "Stompbox Cookbook", off Amazon. It was a great score. Since I have been reading the EPFG explaination of circuits, it's hard not to think of R.G.'s in depth synopsis of circuits here on the forum.

[Joe Kramer]

Craig Anderton should be the first Inductee to the DIYstompboxes Hall of Fame!

I had the first-edition EPFM in about 1977.  In the pre-internet days, the second-edition EPFM was my one and only resource and my entire education in electronics.  If there is a single must-have DIYstompbox book, it's EPFM.  

I went to see Mr. Anderton give a seminar on analog synthesis (which also happened to be a plug for the Alesis Ion synth) at West LA Music, early in 2004 IIRC.  There were about twenty people there.  He gave a fun presentation, had a great sense of humor.  Afterwards, I went to the front and showed him my beat-up , pages-falling-out copy of EPFM.  I told him how much the book meant to me, how, in a way it had been a good friend to me, had kept me out of trouble.  I thanked him and asked if he would sign it.  He laughed with surprise to see the book, and very self-effacingly mumbled something about being sorry for getting so many people "into all that stuff."  Then he wrote, "Hey Joe, Glad all this stuff worked for you!" and signed his name.

It worked all right.  And it still works.  And I have no doubt it will continue working thanks to what I learned from him.   Thanks again Craig!

Regards,
Joe

PS: Another great CA book is the older edition of Home Recording for Musicians.  This one has schemos and plans for building an entire mixing console from scratch (as well as a cover pic of Anderton in a paisley shirt!).  The newer edition has no schemos or projects, unfortunately.

[Mark F]

Craig is a gentleman.  Like Jack Orman, I also had the pleasure of contributing a bit to the DEVICE newsletter that came and went in 1979 like a comet.  Some three or 4 years later, while he was editor of Electronic Musician, I received an apologetic letter of thanks from Craig indicating that he was cleaning out his drawers and realized he had never thanked me for my article.  You don't forget decency like that quickly.

I still have my original EPFM from 1977 or thereabouts AND I also have all the issues of DEVICE. Man, does that take me back! I still sometimes sit here & marvel at the internet etc. Remember when DEVICE was such an earth shattering idea? A place where people actually discussed the inner workings of Stompboxes? Imagine! :shock:

[aron]

I thanked Craig Anderton as well at a NAMM show. Too bad I didn't get his autograph!

[troubledtom]

he took pictures of one of my noiseswashes 5-6 yrs ago at the namm ehow in nashville and . he told told me he'd post a pix and write about it
but i naver saw, i didn't know where to look. it was the snakeskin swash.
           -tom
pix here.......
http://www.troubledvariance.com/catalog.htm