Do all the good Vibes muck with your tone?

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SpiderWars

SpiderWars

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I've only had two 'good' ones, a Sweetsound UltraVibe and a Classic Amplification Vibe-Baby and I love the dual-swirl and throb but both mucked with your tone. I know the originals did too so maybe it's just part of the deal but it would be cool if that were improved.
 
SpiderWars":yw9t0tvj said:
I've only had two 'good' ones, a Sweetsound UltraVibe and a Classic Amplification Vibe-Baby and I love the dual-swirl and throb but both mucked with your tone. I know the originals did too so maybe it's just part of the deal but it would be cool if that were improved.
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Man this is another rabbit hole I just go out of the last few months. Now I didn't own anything on the Sir Henry or $800 range Shin Ei stuff but...I went through quite a few.

Starting with my old original Micro Vibe, Purple Moon, MJM 60's, Mojo Vibe, Mini Deja MkII, Jam Retro, Dawner Prince, Vibronaut, Drybell (both), Klinger 69 Vibe, Voodoo Vibe TC and a modified JHS Micro Vibe. Of course the theme here was pedal board friendly.

The two I kept are the Roger Mayer Voodoo TC and modded JHS Micro. Neither mess with the tone at all to me. Both give me the throb and swirl that I wanted to hear as well. None were really bad, and I would have kept a few more if I could but those two stood out to me. Besides the two I kept I liked the Jam as well. I borrowed the Mojo but I may buy one of those one day just to have it since it's a pretty cool classic pedal. Dawner, didn't dig it, weird warble. Purple Moon, interesting but sounded more like a phase and it was not a photocell. Vibronaut, liked it alot but noisy. Klinger was very cool but I could never get it brightened up. If I could have gotten it brighter, would have kept it as I like where the pulse of the throb landed. And to me Brett Kingmans demo is hands down the best vibe demo I've heard. I think I like the V1 Vibe Machine better than the V2. I could never get the V2 dialed in which I got fed up with quickly. Deja mini, I quite liked it but it seemed to like volume, wanted to be cranked.

There's still a couple vibes I want to try out...the Kingtone and the Shin-Ei Vibe Bro but I'm not in a rush at the moment. The Voodoo Vibe TC is very nice, and the one I'm favoring at the moment is the JHS modded Micro Vibe, that thing just delivers the goods. I guess I need to try JHS Unicorn but just never have. I'm honestly surprised the modded Micro Vibe is so good but it kinda became the benchmark. Blasphemous to some I'm sure but for me...the throb and the swirl is exactly in the right spot.

Anyway just my recent experience.
 
Lots of good info there. :thumbsup: I'll prob start with either a Unicorn or a Voodoo Vibe TC.

I'm liking the Vibe Baby but it's a finicky pedal. It needs alot of 18v juice (300mA) and must be in the right spot (I have it first). And the tone change.
 
SpiderWars":5hojcyah said:
Lots of good info there. :thumbsup: I'll prob start with either a Unicorn or a Voodoo Vibe TC.

I'm liking the Vibe Baby but it's a finicky pedal. It needs alot of 18v juice (300mA) and must be in the right spot (I have it first). And the tone change.
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Well juice is another thing that I had to look at and most of the ones I tried were 9V and the one's I kept were 9V. Plus placement as you said as well.

Now there were a few that ran on a higher voltage - for example the Deja Mini. Granted had it blown me away I would have made accommodations for it but since my board is already wired, the 9V's worked. I've studied alot information on various forums about Vibes and many feel to get the true Vibe it needs to be at higher voltages but most are bigger units, and I just didn't want to go that route now. Plus I tapped out at the $400+ mark with the Voodoo TC. Get one used if you can...at the time I couldn't find any.

I do like the form factor of the JHS Unicorn V2 but no clue how it sounds other than demo's. I will try one for sure soon but maybe it's like the mod he put into that Micro Vibe, I love that thing. Obviously no clue what he did but it's deep, swirly and doesn't mess with my tone. For me, my testing point is I'll do like a Hendrix bend and then listen for the throb and how it swirls back around and the modded Micro is perfect. The TC is real close but has a little more movement, more circular whereas the modded Micro seems to be more square for lack of a better explanation but chewy. The Klinger 69 was perfect as well but it was dark and I couldn't get it unity. The Jam to me is kinda like the Voodoo TC but with a little more movement. One thing I learned for me...is I want to hear the throb a certain way. Not sure if that is what the "classic" way is but it's how I want to hear it.

One thing on the Klinger 69, as I said above Kingmans demo is the best vibe demo I've heard. But in that video he was using a tele. If I ordered another one from Shaun, I'd tell him those two things. However their somewhat built to the original spec...so maybe that's the way they are supposed to sound. It didn't work for me but I don't regret ordering as Shaun is a cool dude. Oh well.
 
Depends on the pickups. Vintage spec vibe pedals are finicky when it comes to humbucker pickups. The Drybell Vibe Machine sports a "Bright" mode; for use with HB pickups. For SC pickup play, switch to "Original" mode.
 
Both of those vibes I mentioned I've had are allegedly 'clones' and both had a trimpot inside to adjust. I can't remember what Sweetsound called it but the Vibe Baby calls it 'throb'. When I got it the throb was a very one-dimensional swoosh but after setting it right the throb is very "swarooshooraws"...like BOG. :yes:
 
Goat":1gc2jyl1 said:
Depends on the pickups. Vintage spec vibe pedals are finicky when it comes to humbucker pickups. The Drybell Vibe Machine sports a "Bright" mode; for use with HB pickups. For SC pickup play, switch to "Original" mode.
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Yep, and that's one of the things I think that probably could be easily improved, just pad the input for higher output pickups. I have found that just cracking the guitar volume down a little helps with the compression/distortion the vibe preamp has.
 
And fwiw (no need to ask how I know this), regarding the Vibe Baby and it's power supply needs:
At 9v/500mA: Distorted preamp and vibe no worky
At 18v/100mA: You'd be very disappointed at the shitty tone and weak vibe and think you got one of the fakes
At 18v/1A: Sounds as it should
 
The DryBell V2 (for me) was the best pedal for pickup, amp, guitar versatility or I guess I could say played the nicest with a bunch of variables. I also really like the pedal adjustability to accommodate all the variables. I am not a huge user of the effect but I do love how it sounds the 1/10th of 1% of the time that I use it. :)
 
Markedman":2wfhi7k3 said:
This one is good and does not suck your tone. - https://reverb.com/item/6700992-prescri ... -unit-blue
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Those are basically UltraVibes, I had one of those. The Vibe effect is very good but I found mine to mess with my tone. I think anything that stays true to the original will have that tonal impact that I don't want. I guess I'm wondering if that tonal impact is required to get a good Vibe effect.

Many years ago I went back and forth with Bob Keeley complaining that his 2-knob compressor did not play well with higher output pickups. He basically said that was the old design and nothing could be done. Then a few years later he came out with a 4-knob compressor addressing the exact problem. I think that's all these Vibes need, just modernize the preamp to play nice with hotter input signals.
 
Tried the JHS Unicorn and it pretty much resolves the tone change. Very pleased with that part and power supply needs. And the Vibe effect is good but not as lush/3D as the clones I've had. Both clones I've had you pretty much had to max the Intensity control to get full on BOG or Bridge of Sighs but the Unicorn has way more to go on the Depth knob. However as you increase Depth past halfway it gets overly throbby and doesn't sound right.

I put it on the board for now but Imma try the Drybell too.
 
Not sure if this is a true 'vibe' but my FoxRox Aquavibe doesn't mess with the tone at all. It uses a photocell.
 
thegame":1nxqii4w said:
Not sure if this is a true 'vibe' but my FoxRox Aquavibe doesn't mess with the tone at all. It uses a photocell.
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The FoxRox Aqua gets lots of love from Vibe enthusiasts. Only reason it never made my list was the size. But I'll revisit it one day. Right now I'm satisfied with my modded Micro and the Mayer TC but who knows how long that will last. Hopefully for a long time as I went through alot and dropped some coin. Funniest thing is the two pedals I'm always somewhat in search of is a chorus and vibe and I use both less than any other pedal.
 
SpiderWars":1jzmjhqr said:
Tried the JHS Unicorn and it pretty much resolves the tone change. Very pleased with that part and power supply needs. And the Vibe effect is good but not as lush/3D as the clones I've had. Both clones I've had you pretty much had to max the Intensity control to get full on BOG or Bridge of Sighs but the Unicorn has way more to go on the Depth knob. However as you increase Depth past halfway it gets overly throbby and doesn't sound right.

I put it on the board for now but Imma try the Drybell too.
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How does the Unicorn handle gain?

That's one thing I loved about the two I kept...both sounded great. The Drybell...on the VibeMachine2, try your best to get it set with the basic controls i.e Intensity, Speed, and the Custom/Bright/Original switch before messing the trim pots. Work the Vol / Grit pot next. Try and stay away from the Range/ Sym pot. Whatever you do trim pot wise...mark your spot with some tape or something. Once I hit the Range/Sym, even with my spot marked it was game over. I tried the original after the VB2 and it either sounded better or it was me thinking it did because I avoided the Rang/Sym on that and had a better experience. Regardless of my preference they are super fine pedals.
 
I think it does gain well, especially since the base tone is better preserved.

That hair-trigger pot you are talking about sounds like the Throb pot in the Vibe Baby and Ultra Vibe. I remember Bob Sweet didn't really even want you fucking with it once he had set it. There is an exact setting where you get the perfect balance between throb and swirl.
 
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