The client wanted a compact pedalboard that possessed all of his staple effects, but also offered some variety of tones within each pedal, having a boost section within the overdrives (with the Fulldirve 2), having multiple presets for delay (with the DL-4). The client provided most of his own pedals which he's been using for years, but requested that we find him a new chorus to emulate old Roland Jazz Chorus tones and to find him a Script circuit Phase 90. We were able to track down a Retro-Sonic Stereo Chorus and find a '78 Block Logo (script circuit) MXR Phase 90. Both are amazing pedals! We modded the Phase 90 for True Bypass, an LED, and 9V jack. We also modded his Boss DS-1 to take away the harshness and give it a more Marshall-esque JCM800 sound and put a True Bypass and 9V tap on his re-housed Crybaby JEN Wah. As usual, we made all of the power and instrument patch cables custom with Mogami cabling throughout.
The client also requested a custom interface and a Vertex Effects Systems Dual Buffer to allow for the purest signal to drive the line all the way from guitar to amp. We also did a custom mod on the buffer to allow for a for a variable input impedance to make the buffer even more transparent depending on the guitar the client used. We measured the impedance coming from the two primary guitars the client plays (a CS Relic '57 Stratocaster and a Gibson VOS '57 Les Paul Goldtop), and put a switch on the buffer to select between the buffer settings for each guitar. The buffer can be used with any guitar on either setting, but there is a slight difference in brightness between the two.
Overall the board has some really great tones and was very small and compact. It covered pretty much all tonal bases and was extremely quiet and road/session ready.
The order of the effects are:
INTERFACE IN (w/Variable Input Impedance Buffer)--> Vintage Crybaby JEN Wah--> Voodoo Lab Micro Vibe--> Vintage MXR Phase 90--> Boss CS-2 Compressor--> Fulltone Fulldrive 2--> Vertex Modded Boss DS-1--> Retro-Sonic Chorus--> EVH Flanger--> Line 6 DL-4 Delay--> Boss TU-2 Tuner--> INTERFACE OUT (to amp)
*Notes: Despite placing the tuner at the end of the chain, which is often not preferred due to tuning issues with modulation effects, the client still opted to have it there to mute the entire chain silently even when Distortion and OD pedals are engaged.
*Stand Outs: As always, I'm a huge fan of the Retro-Sonic Chorus for old Roland JC-120 sounds. It's dark, but very lush. Also, I also really like the Boss CS-2. It does some great single note compression as well as nicely compressing chords. It's no surprise that this is a favorite of many Country players. Lastly, the vintage Phase 90 sounded amazing and rich as well as the JEN Wah - it nails Hendrix's Voodoo Chile so very well.
Enjoy!
~Mason @ Vertex