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Comment by François on February 12, 2019 at 12:27pm

Probably scratching on an old 6 string and sounding terrible... at least that would be my case (though I can play a few things pretty good, like Johnny Be Goode and Ça Plane Pour Moi)...

The more I look at this, the more I want to build my own... I guess I'll be off to eBay tomorrow during the big snow storm...

Comment by Steebos Kalist on February 12, 2019 at 10:12am

Thanks dudes! Yeah, I got the idea from Shane Speal. I was going to suggest the same videos Brian did. The videos pretty much explain it all & the book has step by step instructions with pictures for the build. Would any of us even be here without Shane?

Comment by François on February 11, 2019 at 10:06am

Pretty good idea to put the pre-amp and the EQ in a box. Makes everything cheaper to build and make those piezos sound a lot better. All it's missing is a bypass switch in case you miss the crappy sound ;-)

Comment by Uncle John on February 10, 2019 at 4:03am

I just gifted away an old 3 with and equalizer and it sounded great.  I have another to put into a guitar sometime soon.  Kind of cold and snowy now.

Comment by Brian Thompson on February 10, 2019 at 2:27am

That's a good idea Unc, but in the meantime check out Shane Speal's excellent demo video of a rod piezo equipped cbg with one of these preamp/eq's fitted; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1G_T-4c7bPg It gives a really good idea of what they do for the sound.

This next video he produced is a great demo of the standalone unit in use with a guitar and shows even more of the sound variations available; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nmFq8mV-FQ

Also, Shane did another helpful video on the importance of having a battery with a good charge in these preamp/eq's to avoid poor performance. It's worth saying too, that if you leave it plugged in (input) when not in use it will drain the battery....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euvrkxsU5GE

It was Shane that originally came up with the idea for this preamp/eq 'standalone' hack, and in his superb book 'Making Poor Man's Guitars' (everyone should buy a copy!!) he sums it up perfectly...(quote) "You'll get reduced feedback, deeper bass response, and it gets rid of piezo pickup ("fart box") tones for any instrument wired with a piezo pickup. It also enhances guitars with magnetic pickups by adding boost and eq." I'd add that it helps boost the signal from a piezo for use with other pedals, such as delays etc.

I think the point is that these units are dirt cheap to buy and make a fun little project that, as Steebos said, can be completed indoors when it's too cold to work in the shop and fill a bit of 'down time' and all part of the fun of experimenting with cheap as chips kit and making something cool and useful from scraps and spare parts that cost next to nothing and may already be just waiting on your shelf. OK, I can get similar results using my Boss GE7 graphic eq, but that was ten times the price and I didn't have the fun of making it....! Why not just give one a try and see what you reckon.....I can't see anyone being disappointed!

Once again, with huge thanks and appreciation to Shane Speal for yet another very cool idea to try out, and for all the brilliant stuff he produces for us all to enjoy......cheers Shane!!

PS I also meant to add that I really like the corner protectors you used on your's Steebos.....they go so well with the box and must add a useful bit of strength.....nice one!

Comment by Uncle John on February 9, 2019 at 3:08pm

How about a video demo on piez o guys - with and without the equalizer??  You and Brian may be into something highly useful.

Comment by Steebos Kalist on February 9, 2019 at 2:09pm

Thanks man. I dig yours too.

Comment by Brian Thompson on February 9, 2019 at 11:58am

Nice job Steebos, cool box too.....looks great man!

They work well don't they, and great to have in 'pedal' form so you can use it with all your piezo equipped instruments. Cool idea using the pennies for in/out too....!

For interest, here's the similar one I made.....