Tak’s current pedalboard

Here is some “Gear Talk” I wrote for Instagram.
But alas, I could not post it there on Instagram because the text was too long.
So I post here.

 

Gear talk! For Guitarists!

Tak’s guitar pedalboard!
(which is not really a pedal board, because I switch those pedals very often.)

 

 

Here’s my current pedalboard (1st pic)

This is a live show board. Please note that for recording session I’m doing it a bit differently.

 

1 – T-Rex TuneMaster Pedal Tuner
A quick tuner. Not accurate enough for recording but good enough for playing live. I’m using it for its buffer and line booster function.

 

2 – Heavy Lid Effects Shoals Overdrive
An overdrive pedal made by a builder from California.
I’ve been using this overdrive since the recording session for “Jesus Wind” back in 2016. It’s a some kind of mid-to-high gain overdrive and not very transparent. But it works perfect to me. It’s actually very versatile if you know how to set it. To me it sounds somewhere between TS808 and SD1 with a higher gain, thicker sound, and low end structure control. I tried so many good overdrive pedals but amazingly this is still staying on my board. I really want to know what this pedal is based on.

 

3 – Albit CB-1G booster
We’ve been using Albit/Cranetortoise pedals for a very long time. They are a small company in Saitama Japan and they have a very distinctive sound. (They’re famous for their bass amps.)
I’m using their stuff almost always for recording purpose and this is what I’m using for current live setting. It has a very powerful buffer and has a very distinctive sound.

 

4 – Effects Bakery Melon Pan Chorus
Usually I put a flanger in this slot but for The Extreme Tour 2022 I chose to use a chorus. Because when playing outside shows a chorus pedal helps so much. This is a very cute small pedal made by a Japanese company. It sounds more than decent. Very affordable, too.

 

5 – Seymour Duncan Vapor Trail delay
Analog delay with a dreamy sound. Probably the best delay I’ve used so far. Although in reality it’s not very different from MXR Carbon Copy. I’m using it because I like the sound, and it’s easy to control, easy to adjust quickly in a live setting. It’s funny but probably this is also my favorite “chorus” pedal when set in a right way.

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Just like any other guitarist I have more than a few overdrive pedals and using them for different purposes. Some of my favorites I’d like to mention here is: TS9 Keeley Baked Mod, VFE Pedals Pale Horse, Maxon OD9pro+, and T-Rex Diva Drive. (They are all based on Tube Screamer.) (Shown in Picture 2)

 

 

When I go for flanger instead of chorus, now I’m using TC Electronic Thunderstorm Flanger. (Pic 3)

It’s an affordable pedal but seriously it’s the best flanger I’ve ever used. It’s really really versatile and it sounds just right for many purposes and settings.

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And one more step. My Sub Board setting. (Pic 4)
That is for occasions where a good tube amp is not available. (Because we don’t usually carry our amps in Japan.)
In those cases I need a good distortion pedal. And I’ve been using Blackstar HT-Metal for a long time now.

Probably there are better choices in the market now, but to me this pedal works perfectly. Sometimes it sounds even better than a tube amp. I only wish it was a bit smaller and lighter in weight. (Subway riding Japanese musician problem)

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That’s it for today.
I will post about Marie’s bass pedalboard (again which is not really a board) sometime later.

If you have any question about our sound, please let us know!