The Newest Addition

Every family has that one crazy cousin.

This one's ours.

I'm not going to release much info about the newest deisgn until I have a few made. But I did make a soundclip to spark some interest. The whole time I'm just going through the different "channels" of fuzz that are available in this unit.

30 Minutes long, so early Xmas to your fuzz loving ears.

http://www.mediafire.com/?jleteingwg4

Enjoy!

Easter-Themed True Bypass Box

When I modded that Turbo Rat, my payment was an MXR Micro Amp. didn't really dig it, and failed to mod it the way I wanted to [I hate MXR double sided PCB] so I took mom's electric sander, got the enclosure raw, sprayed one layer of pink finish and my little sister painted it for me. Happy Easter, Bell!

Tooskoops Photography

Everybody has that one very talented person in their family that's always out on business. Mine just happens to be one that is always a great friend, reliable and always has my back when I need him.

My uncle Lance Eubanks is a very skilled photographer and does alot of amazing work with his craft. The life that he brings into such simple pictures is phenomenal, and how he does it is absolutely beyond me! He also did my senior pictures and has always hooked me up and gotten me into places I could've never gone.

So here's to you, Lance! My greatest reccomendation for a very high-quality photographer who will give you exactly what you want. I guess it's just in our family to be in this on a personal level. Every person is special and deserves to have it suited to their own needs.

For the very best in any kind of photography that you could ever need, you can call and count on Lance.

www.tooskoopsphotography.com

You really are the man!

Stargazer FX Modded FAB Echo #2

In a bout of trading, I had to let the first one i modified get away. Not again. I went through months of searching, but eventually got another FAB Echo in a trade. This things went from two knobbed and good for nothing and turned into a self-oscillating, infinitely repeating peice of 5 seconds of lo-fi digital madness!

Can't wait to get the new rig all fired up. Looking to design so many cool and new things, and finish one project that will be a major event for the man it was designed for. ;)

pics!!

The Bulbasaur pedal

Its not really a "Bulbasaur-in-a-box". I used an old white MXR sized box that I slapped a good ol' pokemon sticker onto and put a circuit in that is my take on a timeless design. I used a few vintage parts in the circuit to make it even more authentic. They came from PCBs that a good friend sent me from down in florida. He acquired them wen he had to clean out the old Thomas Organ warehouse and had about 13 PCBs that he sent me. the character that those parts provide make this thing phenomenal!

It's an extremely focused and sharp drive, and can reach into fuzz territories. One major point is that it has plenty of clarity, while retaining it's abrasiveness, and really opens up anythign that it is driving. When I use it, I really like to make it sound natural and full by cranking up the volume a tad, but its tricky to do with how much volume and gain it has on tap.

Bryan Ray's Deluxe Bass Dream Muff

Well, this is the fourth muff that I've done a major overhaul to making into someone else's "Dream Muff". Bryan contacted me on yahoo seeking to make his Black Russian Big Muff Pi into a more suitable bass fuzz, and he also mentioned he was a big fan of more experimental types of music.

For a slight idea of what has been done to it, here's a peice of an email I sent him while I was finishing it up.


"Hey Bryan! You'll be happy to know that I've got some news for you!
I've gotten everything wired up except for the mid boost [just two wires left!!!] Everything works as it should, except for two small snags. These are the things I was wanting to tell you about.

The clean blend doesn't do exactly what it was supposed to. It acts sort of as a Master Volume, but I feel like it adds a little something more. When you crank everything on the pedal [with the gate off] you can get insane feedback-y monophonic drone notes! And by playing with the knobs, you can make melodies. The other thing is that the jacks, that hold the PCB up, are still in the original position. My apologies, but I think this is the best way for less confusion and less stress on the wires as well. It doesn't hinder much though, so I doubt it will be a problem for you.

So as far as the clean blend goes, do you want me to keep it as is for crazy stuff, or would you rather it be something more practical, like an input attenuation or "Focus" knob? More signal cleanup or more intensified gain.
But everything else works fine. The Sag can cut alot of voltage, which is alot of fun. the gate works as it should and can provide those crazy sounds. The tone bypass makes the EQ flat, but the tone knob has a very slight influence in this mode. The mid boost will be a huge boost as well. TONs of gain, and all in the best frequencies suited for the bass. DC jack works great, and battery does too. Amber LED is flat out classy. ;)

I'm going to wait to finish it up until you tell me what to do. I have to go to my little sister's birthday party today, so I can do the gist of the remainder of the work tomorrow afternoon after school. I really hope this thing suits you well. I was jamming on it for an hour just to see what all kinds of whacked out tones it can do. Sort of a conglomeration of all the crazy abilities of crazier fuzz pedals combined into a big muff.

Hope everything's well in your life, bud!

Talk to you soon.

-Nate"

So this little monster is stuffed full of features. And though the Clean Blend didn't come out the way as planned, the bypass was repaired and both Bryan and I are psyched for the way it sounds. He'll be recieving it shortly, and I'm making this page for his Deluxe Bass Dream Muff. Congrats, Bryan! I sure hope you enjoy it to it's fullest extent.

daniel.k.n

Such a good dude. A definite long-term and long-distance best bud to me, too. From the Dream Muff MKII and my old Dyna Comp, we've come a long way together gear-wise. Anything he's needed, I've done my best to provide, and every pedal idea I dream up, he gets to feel the experience first-hand.

He recently sent me a vintage CE-2, a Vintage RAT, and I picked up a Bad Monkey tube overdrive for him. I got rid of the excess noise and cleaned up the CE-2 as much as I could within the circuit. Such a pretty gem, too! He got lucky to find it. The Rat was converted to the Mondo Mouse and since he's not using a battery compartment, he can just flip the pedal over and tweak the girth trimpot from the outside.

We've done a ton of deals, Daniel. I appreciate it all and only look forward to more in the future.

Here's your page. = D

Mondo Mouse Mod #1 [Turbo Rat]

A good freind of mine, Patrick Finnicum, told me all about how much he hated his Turbo Rat. He told me everything he wanted changed, and then we sorted the other options out and ended up with the first complete Mondo Mouse Mod.

The List

I found it neccesary to make this because there are many services that I can offer that I haven't had the chance to do yet. Some of the mods/custom builds I can do are:

-All of my own designs, which will be featured on here.

-Mods to most, if not all of the tubescreamer derivatives. [No Bad Monkeys, as they are SMD, but most anything else that have full-sized/non-robot SMD components are game here.

-Danelectro FAB Echoes. Love these little guys, even though they are SMD, they're about the only ones I can manage. Older models are better for me to work with, but newer models are possible as well.

-Big Muffs and their derivatives.

-Rats!!

-Small Clones/Stones

-Custom routing boxes, power supply splitters, power supply converters, voltage sags, etc.

-Most any wahs, the basic kinds like Standard VOX V847 and Crybaby GCB-95 are the best to mod since they're cheap and have alot of potential.

-Tons of mass-produced pedals have may mods available.

-I prefer not to work with MXR because of their double-sided PCB, and don't like the old EHX Green Russian Tanks because of their size, makes it unmanageable. And SMD is on a very strict basis, but on most occassions is unworkable for me.

This is by no means a full list, but just a few to give an idea of where I know I can go. If you have anything at all that needs modding, I'd be more than happy to take a crack at it and see if we can't get something worked out. My job is to aid you in the search for the sound you need to make your music. And where I come from, getting it suited to your individual tastes makes a lot more difference than offering plain old generalized services that everyone can have without having their own personal input on. Youn kow the sound that's in your head; let me help you get it out of yours and into everyone else's ears.

Stargazer FX Dream Muff MK3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1-YHi7lh7E

Yep! Finally a good/decent video of the pedal in action. hopefully you can hear what I'm saying, but for the most part you can understand what's going on. Starts with general muff-tones and adds in some more midrange, and ventures towards a few of the different settings that can be had.

Pictures will be up after it gets drilled.

Line 6 Modeller Stomp Switches

You know how you can get the amazing double presets on your MM-4, DL-4, or any other Line 6 modelling stompbox? Instead of using the expressino pedal, you can have a nifty little stomp switch!

Dream Muff MKII

For Daniel of Canada! Good buddy of mine, and hopefully he sees this! Look to see more of this dude on my pages.



Bought it second hand for him and then modded and sent with the Dyna Comp to his doorstep while he visited the states.

Stargazer FX "Angel Crank"

Well, here goes another one for Eric of Austrailia! A close cousin to the Eulalia pedal in design, but with plenty of crunchy goodness added in!



Hope you enjoy it!

Mondo Mouse #002

Well, each is custom -made for the user. And this one went out to my good friend, Robbie Van Hoy of Red Springs NC. I'm happy to have made Soundland studios one pedal happier! :D

Stargazer FX Mid-Life Crisis

A freind on the guitargeek forums needed a special pedal made. So I took the liberty to fulfill it to his exact specs. The colors, behavior of the pedal, and even the labels for the knobs.

Updates

Hi, everyone!

Stargazer FX is still alive, but I've just been so busy working with pedals, amps, guitars and school that I haven't been able to update in a while. A lot has been done and will be posted as I am able to do so. Have quite a few new products coming your way over the summer. Which is also when I'll be building between one and five of each so that I have some stockpiled without having much wait time for them. Tons of new stuff, and all great and original designs. May also be adding a few tutorials for those who are trying to get into the DIY groove!

I've also been working on recording some new material with my solo music, an online collaboration with some friends overseas. [Predominantly my Austrailian bretheren and "siteren"] =] So expect tons of great new things soon.

Nate

Stargazer FX Modded Marshall Guv'nor +

I had bought one of these pedals back when I first started loving the Marshall sound. Out of the box, I thought it was a bit too compressed and muddy, then the nasally honk of unbalanced midrange was killing me!

So I eventually modded it for a more versatile tone and added a "Model" switch. Then my buddy Donnie of Mississippi ended up trading me a Boss CH-1, Zoom Power Driver 5000, and Danelectro Fab Echo for the Guv'nor Plus. Here's what Donnie said after he had gotten the time to play through it: [two days, and the first was just waiting to find time to play it :D]

"As far as getting the EQ dialed in just right for my tastes, I'm done.

Gain=Max, Deep=2:00, Bass=2:00, Mid=12:00, Treble=1:00, Volume=8:00

B.C. Rich Guitar-GV2-Clean Channel of 5150 Head-DigiVerb set to Spring Emulation in FX Loop-Open Back 2x12" Cabinet. Guitar Vloume set to 5, and Guitar Tone set to 8.

I must confess that for 95% of the hour and a half or so I've spent with this pedal, I've had the Gain maxed out, just trying to get killer JCM and JTM tones via the switch mod. It's a rock-n-roll machine. I've yet to see how it sounds at "Overdrive" settings. I liked it so much as a "Mid-Gain" pedal, that I got sidetracked. Lower gain experiments will happen over the weekend I'm sure.

JCM setting with Gain Maxed = Welcome to the Jungle, Tush
JTM setting with Gain Maxed = Whole Lotta Love, Ain't Talkin' Bout Love

It has a Clear, Articulate, Crisp, Bright, Crunchy, Upper-Mid Emphasis. It sounds just like a Marshall Amp with the Gain set High."

And soon, He will be sending me some audio clips and with his permission, I will add them to the Stargazer FX Soundclick.

Stargazer FX "Mondo Mouse"

For a long time, I have LOVED the sound of a Rat! And now, my aussie friend Eric calls in a request for a Stargazer FX take on a classic design. :) You know where that could end up at!

So I bought every single component in the highest quality and bought a PCB from Tonepad which turned out to be just as much beautiful in looks as sound! This pedal really goes without saying; so here's some pictures to tell you thousands of words:






V controls Volume, F is the Filter, D is the Drive control, G is the Girth of the distortion, and S is the Smoothness in the overdrive; M/T/C switch is the mode selector. M=Mondo/T=Turbo/C=Classic. In the Demo I generally have the settings as you see them in the photos running into my Modified Blues Junior and going through the modes and sometimes fiddling with the knobs settings.

And the soundclips can be found here:
www.soundclick.com/StargazerFXDemos

Congrats to Eric Bagnara of Austrailia! Youve got number one, but Ill have the next one! It was great working with you on it man.

Oh and did I mention that it self-oscialltes at higher gain settings with the Girth and Smoothnes at the more extreme settings? Pretty much every imaginably useful tone can be obtained by the Mondo Mouse! I'm very proud of it and look foward to your demos Eric.

Stargazer Fx Waves of Aurora

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEe9aKa_YVI

One of my favorite designs has just been decided to be a full release! My best design, IMO, for a fuzz/overdrive hybrid. Cleaning up the fuzziness leads to a softer distortion/smooth overdrive tonality. This is one pedal that you can always count on to respond to whatever you play into it. The dynamics of your playing will greatly affect the texture and feel of the W.o.A. Silicon-based and can be custom-designed per order. [Colors, Extra tone controls, etc.] True Bypass, super-bright LED, and handcrafted by me in the USA. All orders made on a requested basis, and personal contact and conversations will be made concerning your order.

My Updated Rig [Hopefully the Real Thing!]

8/18/09

I modded the amp last night and put it together this morning. sounds good, but I just have to sort out the Hum issues. I removed the reverb and master volume controls and replaced the master with a new volume control, and added an FX Loop toggle for straight amp/Amp with FX Loop. It's got a very nice twin-ish/blackface-y sound to it, I threw in some more midrange though. Touch of warmth too!

I think to fix the hum, Ill just have to send all of the reverb signal to ground. The only other thing is how the speaker buzzes when I play a resonant note or if I play loud at all...

8/19/09

Okay, here's the newest incarnation!

Guitars:
-MIM Fender Fat Strat HH Deluxe [Black]
-MIM Fender Standard Tele [White]

Gigs:
Gtr>SD-1>Blues Jr.

Recording/Home:
Gtr>A/B/Y>[A]>SD-1>Blues Jr[send>MX200, left channel in and out>return]
>[b]>GV-2>Hot Rod Dlx[send>SSVB>MX200, right ch, in& out>return]

A/B/Y is homemade, Spidey Stomp Volume Box is homemade, SD-1 is modded ["Passion Drive"], Gv-2 is modded [less mud, LED and GE/LED clip switch], Blues Jr is modded [Blackface, True bypassable FX Loop, Celestion G12-HT 100 speaker, Reverb circuit is hard-wired to "off" mode and all connections to the reverb circuit from the rest of the amp are disconnected].

Tubes:
[Blues Jr.]
Sovtek 12AX7 as V1, Groove Tube 12AX7-R as V2, and EHX 12AX7EH as V3, Matched pair of JJ EL84 output tubes.

[HRD]
EHX 12AX7EH as V1 & V2, all else is stock.

(pics and vids are soon to come. Need to get rid of the speaker resonance!)

Pics:




Soundclips here:
www.Soundclick.com/StargazerFXDemos

8-22-09

Okay, so im changing a few things around!

My Tele and Strat each have their own rigs:

Tele>SD-1*>Red '69 Fuzz [made by plmr5181]>Blues Jr.*
[in FX Loop] Digitech RP80>DD-20>Phase 90*>Digiverb>Choralflange>RC-2

Strat>GV-2*>MT-2*>BF-3>HRD[Spidey Stomp Volume box in loop]

Tele's Rig is more for general playing and spacey/everything just about. Strat's Rig is more of a driving rock sound! and more of a "Standard" sort of rock/rawk tone for Bigger distortion tones.

Oh! Im also starting to love my little Yamaha keyboard. Tons of fun and great for recording backing tracks and such. I use it with the RC-2 alot to record the background loops when Im not running the Tele through a loop.

*=Stargazer FX Modified

Tons of pics and music to come! Ill actually find time to record.