New Products - Opinions Please / On-Board Circuits

[Evan Skopp]

We were discussing new products to release and one of the things we're talking about are on-board circuits for guitar. They could be mid-boost, EQ, or anything for that matter.

What do you think about that?

Would you buy one for your guitar?

If so, what product sounds the coolest to you?

If so, how much would you pay?

Our goal is to give you the tools you need. Thank you in advance for offering your opinions here.

[Benjy_26]

Well, I'm a huge fan of the EMG SPC and EXG circuits that are part of the DG-20 set in my strat. One way that they could be improved upon though is by adding a traditional tone control to tame the high emd at times. Possible having the boost circuits on a concentric pot and then having a volume/tone set up would be cool.

[dominus]

You need to offer versions of the passive pickups in all black. (Adjustable and non-adjustable pole pieces.) I think those would look pretty cool. Something like this:




Maybe also allow SD owners to buy the adjustable screws (hex head and flat head) to experiment with.

[Got_tone?]

I'd be interested in something like a on-board circuit EQ.

Our goal is to give you the tools you need. Thank you in advance for offering your opinions here.

PLEASE offer some CS pup as production model(s). Or at least a production model version.

[DrNewcenstein]

Instead of black screws and rods, why not just black plastic covers for passives?

But then if you don't want anything to be seen on stage, get off the stage.


As for new products i.e. onboard circuits: how about something that can interface with the TripleShot? Say instead of using the TS to do what it normally does, you could wire it to an onboard circuit so the switches control whatever the circuit does? I'm thinking like onboard EQ where the TS will select operating frequency, or a gain boost where the TS will select between Max boost, Moderate boost, and "just a touch", and the associated knob itself will control the actual amount, or no knob at all.

I've always liked those old Korean junkers with the onboard effects - chorus, flange, distortion, etc - but the effects were crap as were the guitars themselves. Maybe something like that where the TS controls a given effect on/off?


But then that means running wires up to the pickup cavity. Not a problem for Strats, but LPs and such.....


Then there's modular pickups where the sealed and potted coils plug into the baseplate and you can swap them out till your head explodes

[veryhungrycaterpilla]

Noiseless P90 that sounds like a P90.

Brobucker production model.

[Got_tone?]

As for new products i.e. onboard circuits: how about something that can interface with the TripleShot? Say instead of using the TS to do what it normally does, you could wire it to an onboard circuit so the switches control whatever the circuit does? I'm thinking like onboard EQ where the TS will select operating frequency, or a gain boost where the TS will select between Max boost, Moderate boost, and "just a touch", and the associated knob itself will control the actual amount, or no knob at all.

That sounds great.

[Laughing Kookaburra]

On board talent circuit. Using a pedal version is so embarrassing.

Seriously, I think a mid boost would be cool. I have no idea what a price point should be.

[tone4days]

i wonder how it might go over to put the sfx-01 on board ... the boost could even be unity or a small fixed amount ... but the resonance switch could be fun to go from single coil to double coil or vice versa at the flick of a switch ...

the install thing, with power source, is the potential hang up ... i mean, i am fine with it, but we get a lot of guys on here who are otherwise into tone tweaking who get nervous with a soldering pencil .. it has to fit in the existing cavity too, which might be tricky to deal with too ... which might tend to indicate it has to be an OEM focus ...

dunno, sounds risky ... but potentially very cool

now, find a way to shrink the mamabear circuitry into something that fits under the hood, and then we're talkin

[Empty Pockets]

Can i get a 32-band EQ put on the front of my Les Paul?

[Evan Skopp]

Noiseless P90 that sounds like a P90.

Great idea. I'm not sure how it would exist as an on-board circuit...

[DrNewcenstein]

The trouble with Custom Shop anything as a production model is volume: there's probably not enough Brobucker or other CS pickup orders to expect a reasonable profit on a production version, and then someone's going to be left holding a ton of pickups that most people don't want.

[Evan Skopp]

Great ideas, guys. But can we stick to on-board circuits?

[B2D]

I'd love the idea of an on-board SFX01.

A little tiny parametric or graphic EQ might also be neat... acoustic guitars have these all the time but you'd have to solve the problem of fitting that into an average electric's control cavity. Maybe find a way to put it into the pickup ring like the TripleShot?

A single-knobbed mid boost with a mini-switch to select two or three different curves could be very neat.

[Got_tone?]

Can't blame me (or us) for trying.

IMO, a EQ has the most potential to become a best seller.

Price??? Not sure.

[ErikH]

The fun part is coming up with something that hasn't already been done. An EQ of some sort sounds like the logical choice. However, I like Bill's idea of the onboard SFX-01. Using SMT components and a tight layout, it could be possible to make something small enough.

[MikeS]

What do you think about that?

I think it would be fun, though likely a novelty within a community of guitar players much like us on the forum. To attract players I think it would have to require minimal, if any, modification to a guitar.

Would you buy one for your guitar?

Would honestly depend on what the circuit does, the street price, and how extensive the installation is. Assuming it's reasonably priced and requires minimal modification, yes, it could potentially be considered. Again, depends on what it does.

If so, what product sounds the coolest to you?

Mid boosts are always good. t4d's idea of the sfx-01 circuitry on board is very cool... both require 9V power. I personally find other effects on-board rather gimmicky.

If so, how much would you pay?

Depends on the options. At the very least, it has to be less than any pedals that produce a similar result.

[El CHupacabra]

I'd love a mid boost for mah strat. Although I don't know where I'd put it, it would certainly be something I could spring for.

[Fikealox]

An active tone knob designed for use with the Blackouts, with a trim pot to control range or other EQ parameters. Maybe you could have a push-pull mid-boost built in. I had a horrible time trying to get a useful sweep using passive controls with the Blackouts, and something like that would have been just the ticket.

[Got_tone?]

I just googled SFX-01.......... I know.

















MAKE IT HAPPEN!!!!!!!!!