BJFE / BearFoot fx Guitar Effects Community

How this came into my posession is a rather long story, one that serves to illustrate how helpful Bjorn can be to his customers, but I'll skip that stuff for now and get straight down to business...



Here's what BJ told me about it...

The LPOD is actually the same circuit as the Amber OD that Doc Rock has and something I made to go well as a rythm OD in conjunction with DRD, and have been meaning to make one for myself also- especially now when I realize there's no real OD in the BJF line- this one I enjoy by itself and combining with DRD for a natural sequence of three distorted sounds.However I always want to be sure and test things well before adding a new model. We can say this is a prototype.

What else can I tell you about it? Well, as DocRock will testify, the LPOD is an overdrive in the classic BJFE vein. When I first plugged it between my Tele and AC30 I was reminded of both the DRD and EGDM, it has the bite and chime of the Emerald Green, but with the more neutral midrange of the Dyna Red. It is also wonderfully dynamic, as are all of Bjorn's pedals. There is little compression compared to EGD & HBOD for example, it's more open than even the DRD if memory serves correct.

In short it's turning out to be a great rhythm overdrive in my set up. The treble control seems to zoom in and offer precise control over a certain window that proves itself very useful for guitar. There is enough gain to get crunchy, perhaps equal to somewhere above noon on the DRD, if I had to compare from memory. It strikes me as sounding very "British" and has reminded me very much of some of my favourite Hendrix album tones, that raw and open rhythm sound that Jimi exploits so well with single coils... a very purple tone indeed.



Big thanks to Donner too, for the excellent box design, insight and assistance!

Ahhh, yes, congrats to Teahead!!! Now you, too, are tasting the greatness for yourself. Not only is it my all-time favorite BJF, but also my all-time favorite OD pedal...EVER.

I ended up trading my one-channel non-master JTM-45/Plexi for a two-channel Guytron GT100, so I no longer needed the DRD--as I'm getting my higher-gain distortion from the amp now. (I do plan to re-buy a DRD some day, though, as it is my favorite distortion pedal ever.) I was feeding the Amber OD into the DRD, as has been described. It worked out great. Now, I treat the amp distortion I get from the Guytron as if it were the DRD, and still use the Amber OD regularly. My results with that pedal have been spectacular! Into the clean channel of the Guytron, set to have a little hair on its own, the resulting tone I get with the Amber OD is fabulous. Even better than what I had going on before. It's important to note that, while the Amber circuit was originally designed as a rhythm OD/companion to the Dyna Red (and works great in that capacity, by the way), it is also the most incredible stand-alone OD pedal I've ever come across. The reason I am offering this level of detail is to make sure that people realize that it has uses both with clean/high-headroom and dirty/low-headroom amps.

Just an amazing pedal which I can see many people enjoying, if BJ decides to add it to his line.

Congrats, Tea!!! Enjoy!!!

Doc

Bjorn,
I want to make it official that I want to be on the list for the little purple OD !! or at least the list to be on the list..

Yes , I want one of those toys that the other kid has!!!!

seriously a rythem OD pedal, Just tell me where to send the $$ (it's going to make me play better, right??) peace mike

heheh - well this one is having an interesting birth - there are 5 of this proto circuit and 4 of them have different names ! ! but its looking good so far........



Man , Teahead that came out beautiful !!! I can imagine how deep that purple looks with the lattice pattern......


theres no list (yet), more testing yet, but it could end up as a R teammate

DocRock wrote:... The reason I am offering this level of detail is to make sure that people realize that it has uses both with clean/high-headroom and dirty/low-headroom amps.

Just an amazing pedal which I can see many people enjoying, if BJ decides to add it to his line.

Congrats, Tea!!! Enjoy!!!

Doc

Great point there, Doc. Bjorn went so far as to test this LPOD into a cranked AC30 Normal Channel, as he knows that is what I use and that it bares it's own influence on any pedals which preceed it. I needed something to bring clarity and a tighter bass response when my amp was working really hard, with a specific treble enhancement and the Lil' Purple does just that.

Of course, I've also been using it at home to great effect, where my AC30 is at almost minimum volume as opposed to almost maximum. This backs up your point nicely as I really couldn't say the LPOD shines best in either application, it seems to perform equally well no matter how hard my amp is working.

Right on, Tea. Yeah, it's so responsive. I find that I set volume lower and drive higher in cleaner amps, and the inverse for dirtier amps. AWESOME.

Doc

We have a similar approach then! I also find myself setting treble lower when drive is high and vice a versa. I've noticed that this one is perhaps the easiest of all BJ's dirt boxes (that I've tried) to balance with the PGC. Although the LGW is supposed to be perfect with his comp, I've just yet to try that combo.

That sounds really cool. I've actually never tried the PGC, believe it or not. One of the few with which I haven't gotten the chance.

Hey Tea,

Do you have any clips of the LPOD forthcoming? I'm very interested to hear how you use it.

Cheers,

Doc

Hey Teahead! Which BJFs do you still own and which did you let go?