How did you get into BJF pedals?

[Eskimo_Joe]

We all love BJF pedals. It would be interesting to know how we all got here. When/how did you hear of BJF pedals? What was your first one? If you could only keep one, which would it be?

For me, I remember hearing some rave reviews about the Baby Blue Overdrive in the early 2000's on the Musictoyz Forums. I was into pedals to a moderate degree then, but then went through an extended period of time when I didn't visit the forums and didn't really even pay attention to gear. I had what I liked and didn't really think about it.

Fast forward several years and I got into a cover band with some of my classmates in my masters program. Needed to branch out and be able to get more sounds. Remembered the Baby Blue, sought it out and landed one. I can't remember if it was ebay or where. It came in the mail and blew my mind from the get go. Then I pulled up the videos on Toyz and as many reviews as I could find, etc. Somewhere along the line, I discovered TGP and it was all over from there. Bought the DRD, EGDM, and PPF within a week of each other and each blew me away and I've been a BJF junkie ever since.

If I could only keep one, I'd see if Bjorn would build me a mega BJF pedal that held the BBOD, the DRD, the CAF, and the MGMV...and the SBEQ.

[thebot75]

My answer to both the questions would be the Honey Bee. I also own a PGC and a DRD with custom artwork (that I must post pictures of sometime!). I couldn't really let go of the DRD because of the custom stuff and I love the sound as well, and the PGC is just a fantastic tone shaping tool. But the Honey Bee is my most used pedal, just sitting at the end of my dirt chain and taking anything good about any other pedals and making them great, particularly fuzz which is my main obsession.

I think I heard about them from the Gear Page, if I recall correctly.

[I am Incinerator]

I was looking a couple years ago for something to replace my FD2 that would better fit my TopHat Club Royale. Jkoeth recommended the EGDM. A few days after I found one for sale on the TGP. After I got it I was floored with the sound, dynamics, and versatility. I ran into some bad luck and had to let it go earlier in the year.

I picked up a RRB in June and got on the list for a HB and another EGDM. So, I can't wait to get those in and start making some music!

[mopfloyd]

Early 2000's for me.
I had just got a Victoria 20112 and was looking for a boost and a nice tweedy od.
I drove up to see a cetain friend in the biz and low and behold came home with a Baby Pink and BBOD.
Sold him back the BPB like an idiot a little while later due to obsessing about treble boosters.
Oh well ....by the way this was just as the BBOD BPB were first being talked about on the forums as well.
Been on the BJF orbit for a long time.Listening and learning on the usual boards.
I think I'm at the point that I can help with a few comments or settings questions from time to time.
My only problem is lack of know how/hardware to record clips
Mop

[DCHORD]

I guess my discovery of Tophat Amps is what led me to BJF pedals. Tophats are very rich, complex sounding amps, that in my opinion were designed to be played without pedals. Consequently they don't take pedals well. I went through quite a few pedals untill Jkoeth (another Tophat user) convinced me to try BJF's through his posts on the Tophat Forum. I currently own RRB, EGDM, LGW, and MRD, all of which sound fantastic with my Tophats.

[DocRock]

I had first heard about BJF on The Gear Page. I joined TGP in February of 2006, but that now seems like a long time ago. I don't even remember how I heard about TGP now. Anyway, around the Spring of 2006, the buzz on TGP about this "Honeybee" was incredible. Everybody kept talking about a Honeybee, and I had no clue what the hell they were all raving about.

Anyway, I eventually figured out that the Honeybee was made by this one-man outfit in Sweden called "BJF." Fast forward to the beginning of June of 2006...that was the Chicago ToneFest. It was there that I actually met BJ & Donner. At the time, was having a great deal of difficulty finding the perfect distortion pedal. Man, I'd been through so many.

It was at ToneFest that BJ personally demoed a Dyna Red for me. He took a lot of time out and spent a considerable amount of one-on-one time with me in the demo room. We even played some other distortion pedals that day, and he was explaining differences not only in sound but in feel. It was quite brilliant, actually.

I ended up buying that Dyna Red, and that's where it all started for me. Shortly thereafter, BJ had risen to the challenge of fashioning a custom overdrive for me, to act as a companion to my DRD, based on my tonal preferences that are strongly rooted in England, classic rock & electric blues, and in EL-34 type amps.

This is where the Dynamic Amber Overdrive came from, which is now the Sparkling Yellow Overdrive that Donner was most recently offering through the BJF Customshop.

I now have: DRD, DAOD, Folk Phaser, CAF, RRB, and MP DBD. If I could only keep one...Amber for sure. I love them all, but the Amber is the most versatile for my needs. It has so much volume available that I could even use it like a booster if I needed to. Never heard any other overdrive that I've enjoyed nearly as much.

I had made the unfortunate mistake of selling my DRD last Fall to fund the purchase of an amp that I didn't end up keeping.

But BJ was kind enough to make me another DRD, this time in a custom paint job..."DocRock's Distortion." It still gets to carry the DRD initials as well, which is nice.

Yes, tough to decide what I'd keep if I had to unload any of them. I hope I never have to do that. I do love them all, really.

Have fun

Doc

[fugot]

just one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!-that hurts my brain, make it stop.....

TGP.....but originally, I owned some of the first digitech multieffects units in early 90's (dsp-128 then the twice as powerful, dsp-256-> you get the picture). mostly acoustic songwriter.
So in september 2006 when I found the TGP, I only owned a boss bluesdriver and a crybaby. .........My goal now is to be able to fit all my pedals on the 4 puma boards I have. (soon I hope to finalize a bjf board-But hey I need some more mad professor pedals [and money])

As a player, Am i worthy of all the cool pedals I own, oh heck No. Has owning them and playing them through my own amps been a learning lesson-OH YEAH. (though I must have read hundreds of hours of info in the last year to help understand as well).
if I had to limit to just one, just one bjf......the model R is what i can't find in any other one pedal, followed by the honey bee, ppf, pgc and mp delay, ok drd also...darn, forgot all about the mgmv

ok the model r and mgmv that's the one........peace mike

[Donner]

Well my intro is a bit embarrassing.... I was at my drug dealers house and was explaining that I really enjoyed using crack and meth in stereo , but I wondered if he might have something even more addictive and he handed me a BBOD - and he was right !!!

Ok now this wont seem nearly as embarrasing

It was about 2001 and I had started seriously painting pedals, and was buying up unpainted protos and pedals that needed to be repainted off ebay etc....
and I came across a beaten up BBOD that looked like it could use a repainting ....

And in posting about it there was a 'gooping' discussion and I said it could be a TS10 for all we know - BJ happened to see it and contacted me to make sure I new it wasnt a TS10 - and we got to talking about pedal painting and other things....... and 6 years and many thousands of emails later hes one of my very best friends funny how things develop


One Pedal ? bahbwhwbhwbahwbahbhb!!

Ok well if it has to be just one ~ probably the Nunya drive

[analoghog]

well, mine in sort of dull...don't know what year it was, but i remember hearing about the BBOD on the TGP....being the overdrive/fuzz pedal freak i am, i wanted to hear more, and more, and eventually i bought a BBOD...it was over for me...i loved it!...my curiousity for all the other BJFE pedals didn't peak until a little later on.....but here i am now..... YES, my name is analoghog, and i'm an addict...and i'm very O.K. with that.... i love this BJFE stuff!....many thanks to BJ, Donner & this site, and the TGP'ers...you all helped changed my sound for the better!!

[fugot]

the question should be, how do you get out?




I've tripped and I can't get down.