Hrm, Tom from Fanatix has one of these, maybe he will pipe in...?
They are cool amps, I'd be happy to recondition it for ya :-)
--
Darren
Lucidtone Electronics
I could get into anything aye. I just want to get the synthesisers out of the wardrobe again. Pop, 70s prog, electroclash, I could even do a covers band...
Hey.
Keyboard player available for any interesting project you may have. I like 80s synth music so there ya go, if you think I could add to your group then drop me a line.
Oh, hi Benjamin! =)
The original tone is calibrated to play approximately the same range as an electric guitar's bottom three strings under normal stage light conditions. You can kick it up to higher notes using a torch, LED torches work best.
So in frequency terms you can get from 10Hz-100Hz with your hand right over the right hand sensor, with your hand/foot 1-6 inches away up to around 600Hz, and with a torch you can get it as high as 4kHz. So quite usable for doing melodies!
> i fckn lovedd using the lucid tone amp
Sweet, glad you liked it!
(i borrowed one for about 6 gigs)..it has heaps of character and is a solid workhorse. I felt it sounded like a slightly more muscular AC30. Although i did miss having tone controls as i find i usually have different tone levels for diferent rooms/diferent songst etc.
> I was meaning to buy a theremin but [...] they had none in stock
Back in stock. :-) Hooray.
> keep up the good work darren
Oh i so will. you should hear the tremolo, it kicks ass. annoying that i haven't been able to finish it tho, technology has beaten me thus far... i'm working on the tremolo and delay simultaneously cos they'll be using the same computer chips. Computer controlled analog tremolo and analog delay, don't think anyone's done that yet, it sounds so fat tho. The RNC Really Nice Compressor is the same idea but a compressor and everyone raves about that one!
Thanks for your kind words, do you have any photos with the Model 420 in it on stage somewhere perchance? =D
Yes, that is most certainly doable. I'd suggest 1 or 2 watts as 5 watts is still really loud. I built a 1W amp into an oven tray with high sides (roasting dish? dunno what you call it) a few years ago, it sounded awesome through a Marshall quad!
The cost would be around the same as a 20W however as the only things that are cheaper are the power tubes and the power transformer... I do want one day to release an amp that has two power amps, switchable 1W/20W. Not feasible right away though.
// What about creating a 420 head? Then you could offer a
// tuned or detuned cabinet for it to clip on.
I've been considering making heads and cabs only. Combo amps are actually not a great idea tonally, they encourage microphonics.
//The pickups let it down
// Pickups from http://www.billlawrence.com/ retail slightly cheaper than the Kent Armstrongs.
I actually really like the samarium cobalt pickups in the deluxe series, substantially nicer than the standard series. That could definitely be a goer, thanks!!
// The high end Agile guitars almost get there.
You can never be too sure, but Agile are made in either the same factory as the parts I'm using, or 'another factory down the road'. I talked to Agile about a year ago and they weren't interested in a dealership in NZ as they ship direct to here anyway...
As our existing customers will testify, the difference between an average guitar and an average guitar that's been set up properly is quite astounding. I reckon a guitar using the quality woods that Agile and other Korean mfgs use, with a set of decent pickups and a thorough setup, can be *excellent* guitars, as good sounding and playing as anything two or three times the price.
// Looks like Realtone have got into a price war with DBM Music over Kent Armstrong pickups.
They just aren't very good sounding pickups IMO. No better than, say, Samick or Epiphone, and I want to be able to offer you guys better than that. =)
> Darren, do you know how may Kiwi made products are available here in the UK ?
Well, Joh's guitars and the Hot Cake are both very popular over there, as are the Red Witch phasers. I'm pretty sure G2D have a distributer in the UK as well, which is hilarious as they don't really have one in NZ!!
Joh Lang only sells direct in NZ, I've asked him about putting some of his guitars into the shop and he isn't keen.
> are any of your products available over here ??
You can order Lucidtone pedals etc from lucidtone.com and I deliver worldwide. It's unlikely that I'll have a distributer in the UK any time soon as each pedal and amp is handmade, the internet with no promotion gets me enough orders to fill my time!
> (dont the unpowered ones kill your signal?)
Awesome, I love dispelling myths =D DI boxes and A/B splitters should use the same technology, though I've seen some that don't try to seperate the ground paths of the A and B signals at all. If you connect a cable from out A to amp A, and out B to amp B, and the outputs are connected together, and the amps are plugged into power points on the same circuit, that is a big ground loop and it hums like anything. the problems are as folows, this cut from elsewhere on the inter-web:
a) A passive DI does not offer better electrical isolation than an active. A passive will couple output to input at the square of the transformer's turns ratio. What a passive does offer is superior "ground" isolation, a subtle but important distinction.
b) Yes, transformers can be influenced by external hum fields. That is their operational mechanism after all. That said they are not all influenced equally. Higher quality passive designs will use shielding to reduce problematic interference. Less expensive product uses a cheaper transformer that reportedly lacks proper shielding and probably skimped on iron too.
c)Active direct boxes are in fact cheaper to make than a passive. You can buy a lot of electronics for the cost of one even inexpensive transformer. A good transformer would cost more than most customers would be willing to pay for the whole product.
The basic problem is that if I was to build a wicked A/B/Y splitter using common parts, it would cost a lot of money, around $350!! I'd like it to be more like $250, so I'm searching for some uncommon parts. ;-)
> I'd happily pay more for amazing pickups and keep the neck and everything else quality up.
Yeah, me too. Just $1100 sounds so much less than $1500 when you're going to actually buy a guitar. I guess I'd need to cause a stir... in the meantime, you can get a Realtone and drop a set of whatever pickups you want in when you can afford it ;-)
> Why not brand your guitars as Lucidtone though?
I'm not actually making them, I just have a hand in the organisation of it. Although it looks as though we may end up going a different route, with handmade pickups and hand assembled instruments, which I may end up being happy enough with to brand Lucidtone.
> Could you do a good "better Gibson than Gibson" Les Paul for a similar cost
I don't know. Setting a neck is a difficult thing. I work with three luthiers, and only one has any experience with this. There is also an issue with finding supply of parts, if anyone speaks Korean or knows anyone who does I'd *love* to hear from them. We'll be doing just bolt-necks for a start because we've been setting up five or ten a week of those for years already.
Chur =)
Re: size, sweet, one vote for little ones with less bass :-)
Re: volume, my amps are 20W, is that about right do you reckon?
I've only played a couple and didn't like either, cold neck, weird overtones - was I playing the wrong ones? I dunno how I'd go finding a supplier for aluminium necks, but if I did, should I get some do you reckon?
Heh, that is actually really really on the cards. So many kiwis love playing multiple amp setups. If you want a splitter that doesn't hum, you need an isolation transformer, and good ones are not only pricey but often too big to fit in a stompy box!
Stay tuned, watch the Lucidtone mailing list.
Kia ora! =)
Dunno about you lot but I'm a big fan of kiwi built gear. There are some awesome products out there and there seem to be a few more every year which is excellent!
AMPS - HUGE OR TINY?
From my experience with valve amp building so far (I build Lucidtone amps and pedals), I've made quite a few amps and everyone is rapt with the tone, but almost everyone wishes they were smaller. I guess I'd like your comments - what's more important for *you*, bottom end or portability? I'm considering losing all that wonderful thump in favour of a smaller, more car-friendly box.
My current design uses a 'detuned' single 12" cabinet, similar in size to a Vox AC-30 2x12" combo. I'm thinking of putting it in a box more like a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe.
KIWI BUILT GUITARS - HELP!
Some of you have probably seen our new Realtone guitars on TradeMe. They're hand assembled in NZ using Korean parts, set up by a technician to play great, and are around $1100 for a tele or strat type guitar. I personally play one of these now as my main guitar.
I'd like your advice, as people who play and buy guitars.
Pro 1. It plays as good if not better than any other stratocaster on the market IMO.
Pro 2. It is really, really affordable.
Con 1. The pickups let it down and it doesn't sound as good as it can with a better set of pickups in it.
Do you all think I should source some better sounding pickups, and would you rather the price went up or the body and neck quality went down to keep the price the same? On one hand, the guitar would be $1400 rather than $1100. On the other, it would only play about the same as a US Standard rather than better.
EFFECTS PEDAL IDEAS
Theremins have been bloody popular, I can't keep up with demand, as it should be :-P
If you have any cool pedal ideas, feel free to email me, darren@lucidtone.com.
Cheers for your comments!
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Darren inwood
Lucidtone
Kia Ora loudness fans,
I type this sitting in my lounge feeling verrrry mellow. And I am looking forward to this gig tonight. A really eclectic mix of live rock, spanning decades and half the country. Bands from Hamilton and Auckland are showing up. Wicked.
I just bought a B-52 bomber camo net, made from this white stuff with all these different sized holes in it. It's apparently the size of a football field. *heh*
The lighting is sitting across the room from me now, and there is *loads* of it, this is going to be a visually appetising gig! I'm putting my tent up outside in the alleyway with fairy ights and bubble machines.
The lineup :-
* Libra Accord
* Cop Car
* Idle Faction
* The Body Corporate (Auckland)
* Dragstrip
* Alabaster Theatre
* Amy Racecar (Hamilton)
Tonight, Friday September 16th, 7 bands for $7, Valve Bar on Vivian Street. Bands start at 10pm so you can head down to Valve after Fly My Pretties finales. =)
Cheers for your support Lucidtone, NORML and of course Cosmic Corner!
Chocolate.
Oh yeah. Vote for Pedro, and all your wildest dreams will come true.
Delay? Can do. I even have a delay chip at home not doing anything. Let me know what you need, I shall make it happen. =D
oh yeah!! =D *wooooooooooooooooooooeeeeeeeeeeeeeeiiiieeeooouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuooooooooble*
Hahah! Yeah, half a second on one Idle Faction track. Actually The Body Corporate have been using one for a while now too and have it featured in a song. :)
Hrm. I think I should enlist the help of one of my many home-recordist mates some time soon. I've kinda been waiting till I have an entire range of stuff ready so I can do it all at once, but now seems a good time to bite the bullet.
So we have this wicked drummer who drums at like a million miles a second, and this bass player who goes down more actaves than yo mama, and this guitarist who has the tone from heaven/hell.
if you're a guitarist who wants to vent, or a singer who wants to vent, definietly give us a shout!