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SurfGuitar101 Forums » Gear »

The Surfy Bear Fet Reverb

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novamax Joined: Jan 23, 2015 Posts: 105	Posted on Jul 19 2015 05:39 AM Thumbs up! I love practical builds! Top
bjoish Joined: Jul 06, 2010 Posts: 596 Stockholm	Posted on Jul 19 2015 04:14 PM Very nice colors for both of these builds !! Top
benevan Joined: May 17, 2015 Posts: 12	Posted on Jul 23 2015 03:13 AM Sorry if this has been asked before, but are there any recommended Surfy Bear builders that can provide completed units? Top
GuitarMuk Joined: Jun 10, 2015 Posts: 172 Cleveland, Ohio	Posted on Jul 23 2015 10:21 AM benevan wrote: Sorry if this has been asked before, but are there any recommended Surfy Bear builders that can provide completed units? Ditto! Top
Sonichris Joined: Mar 06, 2006 Posts: 1892 Wear gloves - I'm in the Rockies	Posted on Jul 23 2015 04:25 PM What would most people be willing to spend on a pre-built unit? — "You can't tell where you're going if you don't know where you've been" Top
bjoish Joined: Jul 06, 2010 Posts: 596 Stockholm	Posted on Jul 24 2015 02:54 AM I would like to build and sell complete units but it takes time to build and the shipping from Sweden might get expensive. Chris Boost have very nice cabinets for sale. You can read about them on the Surfer Joe site: http://www.surferjoestore.com/index.php?view=category&category=gear Its actually very easy to build a Surfy Bear unit. Here are some nice pictures for inspiration: http://fuzzkaizer.tumblr.com/tagged/FET-reverb I built a few prototype units for the Surfer Joe festival and will probably build a few more later this autumn. Last edited: Jul 24, 2015 02:54:36 Top
novamax Joined: Jan 23, 2015 Posts: 105	Posted on Jul 24 2015 05:29 AM That's a great collection of builds there - Perfect inspiration for the range possible! We've been through this here before, but I see a gap: If a really nice empty cab costs €230, a full-blown, shiny, pre-built, plug-in-ready SB will be in a close price-range to a tube Reverb (probably >400 €). You can save by bulding your own small cab, or you can do it even cheaper by ab-using other case types (tool box, cast-aluminum box with external pan). But some just want to skip experiments and effort and just buy a complete product - So I guess: There actually IS a market for a low-budget plug-in-ready SB with a simple enclosure for around 150...200 € inkl. solder and wood/metal work. Yet noone seems to offer it (me neither, actually). Top
Ariel Joined: Aug 29, 2009 Posts: 1556 Israel	Posted on Jul 24 2015 08:57 AM Many are able to wire pedals and print labels. It's no big deal, therefore not a very profitable, and probably boring, endeavor. I do wish to take it 5 steps further (with Bjorn's permission and cooperation), the Surfy-Bear has a revolutionary potential, that has yet to even surface. My resources and knowledge are limited, but there's demand. I made some designs, modular, light and elegant. I have 3D models, enclosure prototypes, ideas-a-plenty. But, I've yet to come up with a really cost effective solution for mass production. Either way, the following summary may help the discussion along - After reviewing the needs and wants expressed in this thread and elsewhere, and my own experience, I can see 3 potential TYPES for a Surfy-Bear commercial unit: A. Complete floor unit, similar to what Bjorn and others have done already. Pros - nice and useful as a pedal or pedalboard. Cons: springs are prone to more damage, less mounting space, less options for the pan (horizontal). Custom made enclosure. ~$500 price range. Only mass manufacturing could justify it. B. Complete vintage type Tolex-ed head. Or rack unit, with even more improvements, routing /control. Perhaps Dual pan with parallel/linear stereo mix options, + MIDI remote control or analog satellite switch. Pros - best of everything. Cons - Heavy, high cost, low numbers. $700 and up... reaching boutique tube unit prices... C. Only the circuit in pedal form. Small enough that can be mounted on amp's plug, or reinforce an already mounted pan such as in Twin-reverb, or sit on a pedalboard with pan underneath. Pros - Cheapest, easiest to manufacture, least responsibility. Can use standard pedal enclosure. Cons - User will have to source his own pan, mount it himself with springs or foam, connect RCA's, manage cable routing, shield it, deal with potential problems of stuff he just didn't want to get into in the 1st place. I wouldn't pay more than $125 for such. $100 more like it. With $180 the commercial digital emulations start to sound really good, and have better resale value. There it is. Am I generally on the mark here? No much sense in competing at the price range of tube units, unless the awesomeness is through the roof! Bjorn's attitude towards this project has always been community, DIY spirited, and I appreciate that a lot. For the poor reverb wielders such as myself, worldwide, this is a miraculous break-through that is well worth the effort. I love the nature of this project, the creativity and joy are apparent in any and all of the custom builds. At the time being, When you add it all up IMHO, DIY is still the best option for this to exist. Last edited: Jul 24, 2015 09:29:04 Top
benevan Joined: May 17, 2015 Posts: 12	Posted on Jul 24 2015 02:57 PM @dreadinbabylon, you really hit on a lot of points that attract me to the Surfy Bear. I think a key aspect here that cannot be ignored is the potential for a compact portable spring reverb that is acceptable for surf guitar. I have never played through a tube tank and I have zero interest in owning one. I do own the Topanga and H9 and while they are very good, I am left wanting more splash which I think is only possible with springs. While there are a number of spring pedals on the market, from what I can tell they are not very well suited for surf, I presume due to the small pan. The size of the pan is a bit of a setback when looking for something compact, however, we cannot forget that the traditional cabinet and tube system also add quite a bit of heft. So I think there is a market, however small, for a more portable, surf suitable reverb. Top
bjoish Joined: Jul 06, 2010 Posts: 596 Stockholm	Posted on Jul 24 2015 05:14 PM Hi Ariel, you really put it all into words I agree its probably difficult to commercially build and sell custom reverb units. DIY is a cost effective and fun way to get a good reverb unit! But... if you need a top notch tank that can withstand touring, the build can be a challenge. Top
bjoish Joined: Jul 06, 2010 Posts: 596 Stockholm	Posted on Jul 25 2015 05:10 PM Ariel, I suppose you didnt attend the Surfer Joe Festival. Would have been nice to meet you in person You would have liked the Reverb Seminar !! Top
novamax Joined: Jan 23, 2015 Posts: 105	Posted on Jul 26 2015 07:32 AM No doubt, DIY is the spirit of the Surfy Bear, and whoever is willing to to do, will get most value and fun out of it and adopt it as one's own - It sure was like that for me! That doesn't help the others, though. So for off-the-shelf-buyers, a digital pedal might stay the only affordable option. Last edited: Jul 26, 2015 07:33:05 Top
Ariel Joined: Aug 29, 2009 Posts: 1556 Israel	Posted on Jul 27 2015 04:15 AM Hi Benevan. You are correct in everything you said, especially this: I am left wanting more splash which I think is only possible with springs. You know what to do... Björn, would have been nice to meet you too. Didn't someone record that seminar? Would love to see/hear it. I heard you won... BTW I'm not giving up on the potential of what I discussed in the above points, still looking for solutions. Sooner or later, a smaller pan must be developed. Miniature, mechanical/analog based, with the same sound characteristics as the Type4. The world is abundant with cellphone mechanics, drone technology and savages playing with atoms. Don't tell me it can't be done! Last edited: Jul 27, 2015 04:17:56 Top
crumble Joined: Sep 09, 2008 Posts: 3158 Guildford England	Posted on Jul 27 2015 05:59 AM DreadInBabylon wrote: Sooner or later, a smaller pan must be developed. Miniature, mechanical/analog based, with the same sound characteristics as the Type4. So nearly Ariel. http://www.accutronicsreverb.com/ Look for Blue Reverb https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvzJLT5N66g Top
bjoish Joined: Jul 06, 2010 Posts: 596 Stockholm	Posted on Jul 27 2015 07:23 AM Yes that's an interesting option Unfortunately the input impedance is 150 or 300 ohm. This makes it impossible to drive the pan as hard as we normally drive a 4AB3C1B pan, using a FET Reverb (or a 6G15). But maybe it sounds good without driving it hard. The "Intellijel Springray Spring Reverb Eurorack Module" that use this pan, have a 'Feedback' control. That feature might improve the sound from a small pan... Would be interesting to try this pan! Top
SanchoPansen Joined: Jan 04, 2011 Posts: 1588 Berlin L-Berg	Posted on Jul 27 2015 07:32 AM Crumble sent me the link to that pan (thanks again!) and it looks really interesting. I might try it out. — The Hicadoolas Top
bjoish Joined: Jul 06, 2010 Posts: 596 Stockholm	Posted on Jul 27 2015 07:49 AM DreadInBabylon wrote: Björn, would have been nice to meet you too. Didn't someone record that seminar? Would love to see/hear it. I heard you won... Yes, Lorenzo have video material that probably will be available later on. The seminar was awesome, so many reverb nerds in one room !! Top
Gilette Joined: May 04, 2014 Posts: 734	Posted on Aug 01 2015 09:13 AM Finally some progress. First fitting of the SB in its new enclosure. Top
dboomer Joined: Jan 05, 2009 Posts: 262 Port Hueneme, CA	Posted on Aug 01 2015 09:49 AM DreadInBabylon wrote: Sooner or later, a smaller pan must be developed. Miniature, mechanical/analog based, with the same sound characteristics as the Type4. The world is abundant with cellphone mechanics, drone technology and savages playing with atoms. Don't tell me it can't be done! It will ... but at about the speed of the ratio between potential cell phone sales (tens of billions) to surf music guitarists (hndreds ??) ;) Top
Krabasti Joined: Jul 18, 2015 Posts: 5	Posted on Aug 09 2015 01:08 PM . Top

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