The MXR Blue Box

The first MXR effects pedal was the M-101 MXR Phase 90, widely used on the first two Van Halen albums[1]. A milder version of the effect was also released, the MXR Phase 45, and a programmable version, the Phase 100.
Each of these enclosures had 4 screws attaching the bottom plate. A 9V battery powered these effects; to change the battery, one had to unscrew the bottom plate. There were three distinct periods through out the years of the reference series. The script logo, the box logo with out an LED and power jack, and a box logo with LED and power jack. Script boxes often had carbon resistors and are highly sought after by collectors and vintage gear hounds. Some of the earliest Script logo pedals were actually made by hand in the basement shop and feature hand applied silk screen lettering. Also, early on in the script logo phase, BUD boxes were used. They were made with aluminum, and are much lighter when compared side to side with a die cast box. The BUD Box Company was out of Willoubhy, OH. Script logo boxes included the Blue Box, Distortion +, Dyna Comp, Phase 45, Phase 90, and the Phase 100.

This unassuming little box shovels out enough low frequencies to scare a blue whale. It takes your guitar signal, fuzzes it up, then duplicates it two octaves down. You control the output and the mix between the dry signal and the effect. Using it 100% wet is quite an experience, but more recognizable sounds appear as you dial In more dry signal. The Blue Box is known for having a chaotic personality that can make each session a totally unique experience! Power: Single 9 volt battery or Dunlop ECB-002 AC adapter - Controls: Footswitch toggles effect on/bypass (red LED indicates on) Output knob sets total output gain Blend knob adjusts ratio of dry (clean) with wet (effects) signal.

This fiesty little fella has been wisely re-issued to save us all from collectors prices and all those empty handed pawnshop outings. It's here and it's just as mean as ever. The tracking on this unit is very random so don't ever plan on predictable results. Expecting sheer madness when stomping on this is a whole lot of fun and the experience is refreshing compared to the safe sonic trips we all end up taking with most of our effects. The Blue Box will twist and pulverize your riffs and notes into something very sick and, at times, very synthy . Need a little sanity? Try backing off the blend knob and things get a little more manageable. Everyone needs a secret weapon in their rig and this one is the perfect candidate. As used by Thurston Moore, J Mascis, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Trent Reznor, Frank Zappa, Buzz and many many more.
This is a Tym guitars favorite and the Blue Box and all the other MXR pedals are available now at Tym guitars.

The Creepy Fingers Fuzznugget

Appropriate name considering half the bands on the Nuggets 60's garage compilations were using circuits like it. Based on the Gibson Maestro fz-1a, one of the earliest fuzz pedals. Using NOS germanium 2n2613 transistors the Fuzznugget can nail the tone of the Maestro. It also features 3 switchable output caps for varying degrees of low end output. From the original treble buzz of the original to the fat honk of the mid setting, all the way to the fat fuzzy low setting.
The Fuzznugget is built exclusively on terminal strips with true point to point hand
wiring. Runs on a single "AA" battery just like the original. Metallic gold enclosure. Davies knobs. True bypass switching. To preserve the tones of the original units no leds or battery eliminator jacks on this one.
Available NOW at Tym guitars.

Bigsby. “I can build anything.”

“I can build anything.” Paul Bigsby







With that statement, Mr. Paul Bigsby switched from building Crocker motorcycles to making musical instruments.
In the 1940s, Paul Adelburt Bigsby was a skilled foreman at a machine shop in Los Angeles owned by Albert Crocker of the famous Crocker Motorcycle Company. Paul’s interest in motorcycles and Western music brought him into contact with Merle Travis. As they both were avid motorcyclists and music lovers, Paul and Merle became good friends.
During this same time, Merle brought his Gibson L-10 guitar to P.A., as Bigsby was called, with a worn out Kaufman vibrato that wouldn’t stay in tune. “Can you fix this for me?” asked Merle. “I can fix anything” said Paul. But seeing the shortcomings of the Kaufman vibrato and at Merle’s suggestion, he ended up designing a whole new mechanism which worked perfectly. This device set the standard and became the vibrato of choice for most guitar manufacturers the world over and remains so today.


One day in late 1946, Merle and P.A. Bigsby were having lunch. Merle, an accomplished cartoonist, had sketched an idea for a new guitar on a Pasadena radio station’s program sheet and passed the drawing to Paul. “Can you make this, P.A.?” asked Merle. P.A. answered, “I can make anything.”



Bigsby original headstock design










And indeed he could! That drawing of the Solid Body electric guitar with all six tuning pegs on one side of the headstock was built the following year and played by Merle on recordings, radio and in public appearances. The guitar attracted a lot of attention, and caught the eye and ear of other players and builders, famous and not so famous. This compact-sized guitar changed the sound and look of guitars forever. Billy Byrd, Butterball Paige and Grady Martin, to name but a few, ordered a copy of this guitar, and Paul set up shop in a small building built next to his house on Phlox Street in Downey, California.
That same year, a local steel guitarist, the legendary Joaquin Murphey, asked Paul to build him a steel guitar. With his “I can build anything” attitude, Paul set out to build the best steel guitar there ever was. And he did, delivering it to Joaquin in 1947.
Not to be outdone, Speedy West, another local up-and-coming steel guitarist, asked Paul to build him a steel guitar, this time with pedals. On February 8, 1948, the second steel was finished: a triple neck with 4 pedals.
As the word and sound of these new steel guitars traveled, more players wanted one for themselves. When Bud Isaacs played his Bigsby with pedals on the groundbreaking Webb Perce song “Slowly,” most steelers felt they had to have one.
Because Bigsby’s instruments were built on a custom basis, he could not keep up with the orders that poured in, and a waiting list of two or more years followed. Slowing him down even more was the fact that Paul wanted to make almost every part himself, even winding his own pickups. He was kept busy for several years trying to build one guitar a month. Over time, the Bigsby Vibratos took up more and more of his time, and his instrument making dwindled down to a precious few.















By 1965, Paul was experiencing some health problems and wanted to sell his company. He called up his old associate Ted McCarty, the retired president of Gibson guitars. Ted purchased the Bigsby name and all inventory effective January 1, 1966. Paul passed away in 1968. On May 10, 1999, the Gretsch Guitar Company purchased Bigsby Accessories from Ted McCarty.
Unlike some guitar makers who kept track of every instrument sale, Paul Bigsby had no log book and left no records. How many instruments did Paul make? We will never know exactly. After 15 years of research, we can document only 47 steels, six standard guitars, one tenor guitar, two double neck guitars, two mandolins and six neck replacements that are still around today. Are there others in a closet or under a bed just waiting to be discovered? We can only hope. All Bigsby instruments are highly collectable today. Bigsby.

Pfeiffer Electronics

Guitar Effect Pedals For Those Seeking The Ultimate Tone!
Every design from Pfeiffer Electronics is carefully evaluated to ensure minimum tone loss. We believe less is more when it comes to effect pedal technology. We remove as much tone-shaping circuitry as possible to produce a pronounced effect but still retain the original tone.

This delay pedal uses a digital echo processor to produce extremely accurate repeats. What you play is what you get! Delay speeds up to 500ms.
Repeats controls the number of echoes
Volume controls the echo volume. This is very useful for creating repeats that don't step on or cover up your original notes.
Speed controls the speed of the echoes; up to 500ms of delay
This guitar pedal has true bypass using a 3PDT heavy duty stomp switch. Powered by a 9V, negative post AC adaptor (not included), or battery. Includes reverse polarity protection circuitry.
Dimensions: 125B enclosure (4.7" x 2.5" x 1.5")

This is an Octavia Fuzz guitar effect pedal based on the Tycobrahe Octavia circuit. Originally designed by Roger Mayer and possibly copied by the Tycobrahe Sound Company. Rumor has it that Jimi Hendrix brought his Roger Mayer Octavio in for repair to Tycobrahe and that’s when they supposedly cloned it.
This guitar effect pedal uses a small audio transformer to create the octave-up sound. Two germanium diodes and three high-gain silicon transistors create a screaming, yet surprisingly controllable fuzz effect.
Level controls the overall volume. Because of the high gain transistors used, the fuzz-o can get very loud. Use this knob to set a desirable output level.
Gain controls the amount of overdrive/distortion. At low gain setting, the octave effect is more pronounced.
ByPass engages the pedal on/off.
Octifier engages the octave effect on/off. When turned off, the Fuzz-O is just a normal fuzz effect.
Dimensions: 125B enclosure (4.7" x 2.5" x 1.5")

The LEVELER is a unique volume pedal. Unique because the analog signal is maintained yet levels are digitally controlled. Crisp clear tone is preserved at all volume levels. The inspiration for this pedal came from years of frustration when performing live and not having the correct volume levels. Now there is volume control.
3RD GENERATION NOW AVAILABLE!
For the past two years, we have been refining the Leveler to meet the demands of musicians around the world. Here's what we've changed:
added internal gain trimmer so you can adjust the overall volume level...increasing the volume moves unity gain downward from default level 4...decreasing the volume moves unity gain upward from level 4
changed output capacitor for better bass response...extremely transparent tone!
added true bypass option
Distinct & Consistent Volume Levels
Analog-controlled volume pedals are great for crescendo/decrescendo but it is very difficult to hit a consistent volume level somewhere in the middle of the total volume range. Because the LEVELER volume pedal is digitally controlled, precise and consistent volume levels are easy to achieve.
Tap the up button a couple of times and you have a boost for solo. Then tap the down button a couple of times and you are back to the EXACT volume you were before the solo.
I have adjusted the volume of my effect patches over and over again prior to setting up at a gig. However, when I'm on stage, the dynamics of the hall and sound mix are so variable that more often than not my volume levels are off. Sometimes it will even change from song to song. The LEVELER volume pedal allows me to dial in the correct volume on the fly!
Unlike passive volume knobs like on your guitar, the LEVELER volume pedal incorporates a booster circuit that produces nice clear tone at all volume levels.
Also works well with other instruments such as keyboard or bass.
The signal path is all analog and includes a mosfet pre-amp followed by volume attenuation. The level however, is digitally controlled with up/down buttons and displayed on a 7-segment display. Volume levels go from 0 to 7.
Dimensions: 125B enclosure (4.7" x 2.5" x 1.5")

This phaser guitar effect pedal is modeled after the MXR Phase 90, probably the most popular four stage phaser of all time. The design uses four carefully matched JFET N-Channel transistors and TL071 op-amps to create its signature sound. With the modifications below, it is capable of both the block and script phaser sounds.
Two modifications have been made to the original phaser effect. First, in order to gain more control of the sweep and have both script and block phaser capabilities, we added a depth knob. When the depth knob is fully clockwise, you have a script phaser, all other positions are different variations of a block phaser. The second modification is the addition of the feedback knob. This knob controls how much of the output signal is fed back into the input path. This creates a more pronounced phaser effect and makes this guitar effect pedal more versatile.
Depth The depth knob controls the depth of the effect. When the depth knob is fully clockwise, you have a script phaser, all other positions are different variations of a block phaser..
Rate controls the oscillation speed.
Feedback enables extremely pronounced phaser sounds. It does this by sending the 4th stage of the phase shifter signal back into the 1st stage. This knob is what sets the Pfeiffer Phaser apart from other phaser effects. Experiment with different combinations of feedback and depth to discover some very unique tones.
ByPass engages the pedal on/off.
Dimensions: 125B enclosure (4.7" x 2.5" x 1.5")

All pedals have true bypass using a 3PDT heavy duty stomp switch. Powered by a 9V, negative post AC adaptor (not included), or battery. Includes reverse polarity protection circuitry.
All Pfeiffer pedals are hand-wired and finished with attractive laser printed lettering sealed in a polymer coating.
Two year warranty.
These will be available soon at Tym guitars.

Tym Skateboard guitar

When Matt from the Outpost here in Brisbane asked if I'd make something for his annual "I Used to Skate once" art exhibition, there was only one thing I could do........
Being that all the "artists" (and I use the term loosely in my instance) had to work with Skateboards and I make guitars, the end result was obvious.
The process was kind of easy. Use the deck as the body and attach a neck, right.

Apart from the obvious differences between a guitar body and a skate deck the theory is the same. You just need something to bolt the neck and bridge to and have somewhere to attach the pick ups, pots, jack etc.
Once I worked out the shape (keeping the deck shape as intact as possible) and bolted the neck to it, the idea of using the truck as a wraparound bridge hit me !!

With the neck and bridge in place I needed a design for the headstock. This I took from a skate ramp, and yes, it has a lot of vert for a ramp but it looked different and fitted in with the guitar. Tuners run all the way around the "ramp".

The knobs were obvious. Wheels were used as volume and tone knobs. The pick up is a P-90 and sits on two wheel "spacers" for the right height adjustment.


The neck plate is the bottom of the truck. The bridge is machined for intonation and is height adjustable using the torsion bolt of the truck.


















This guitar is fully playable and sounds, I might add, TOO GOOD for the sum of it's parts ? It, with lots of other great skateboard art will be available for sale at this years show on the 24th June at The Zoo...

Lehle switches

Lehle Switches are a line of high quality boutique guitar pedal loopers, switchers, buffers, and DI Boxes manufactured in Germany.



Lehle switches have the following features.
Gold-plated relay and switch contacts.
The signal from the pickups of an electric guitar and bass is so weak that poor-quality cables, cold joints and cheap contact m aterials ruin your sound.
Switch contact need to be made of special materials to permit loss-free switching of these low-level signals.
All Lehle switchers feature special relays and slide switches with gold-plated contacts for totally reliable, absolutely zero-loss switching.
The Lehle LTHZ transformer.
Hum loops and phase cancellations can occur as soon as the signal from an instrumentis fed to more amp simultaneously.
The one and only remedy for this is a high-quality transformer.
Standard transformers modify the tone of electric guitars and basses very severely, since they are not designed to handle the low-strength high-impedance signals generated by instrument pickups.
The lehle LTHZ, on the other hand, has been specifically conceived for use with these high-impedance signal, preserving intrument tone and the interaction between instrument and amp and eliminating hum loops.
Goodbye to hum loops.
All Lehle products not featuring an LTHZ transformer and bearing this symbol switch the signal ground parrallel to the signal itself via switches or relays with gold-plated contacts.
Hum loops are thus effectively eliminated when switching backwards and forwards between different signal sources without, for example, simultaneous activation of two amps.
Stereo.
Many effects units feature stereo outputs.
Or: instruments frequently have two pickup systems, e.g. a combination of conventional magnetic and Piezo types, to emulate an acoustic sound. Lehle accessories are ideal for trouble-free routing of such dual-channel stereo signals.
All stereo-capable Lehle products are, of course suitable for mon operation.
Transmit and recieve MIDI.
All products in the Second Generation of Switching (SGoS) range are programmable and can be networked with each other via MIDI program-change commands.
External MIDI equipment can also be integrated without difficulty.
Programming is intuitive, and is quick and easy to learn.
Adjustable gain.
Adjustments of volume ar distirtion using a gain controller is a vital feature in many situations.
The gain controller on the corresponding Lehle products feature black anodized aluminium knobs set back into the housing so that they can be easily fingertip rotated but keep their settings during performance and transportation.
18V.
To exploit the dynamics of tube amplifiers to the full, the input voltage of Lehle products bearing this symbol is rectified from the power supply socket, the filtered, stablized and doubled to 18V.

Harmony guitars

Tym guitars is now stocking Harmony guitars.
Harmony was at one time the production king of American instruments, and during it’s heyday it accounted for over half the guitars built in this country each year. In 1892 Wilhelm J. F. Schultz purchased a two-room loft on the top floor of the Edison Building at Washington and Market Streets, later the site of Chicago’s Civic Opera House. He and four employees began production on a modest scale; the first Transaction was the sale of two guitars in 1892 to the Chicago Music Company. Schultz’s business grew fast and boasted 40 employees by 1894. In 1904 Schultz and crew settled into their own three-story, 30,000 square foot plant at 1738-1754 North Lawndale Avenue. A new wing was added in 1906 and by 1915 Harmony had a quarter of a million dollars in annual sales and 125 employees.

H54RBS The Harmony H54 Rocket single cutaway two pickup. It was first introduced in 1959 and quickly became one of the most popular guitars ever made.
Hand-Crafted in Korea



H59-1GS The Harmony H59 Rocket three pickup double cutaway was introduced in 1968. It featured 6 controls with a volume and tone for each pickup.
Hand-Crafted in Korea





H44BRZ The Harmony H44 Stratotone feature a neck-thru body design, cupcake knobs and the original Hershey bar pickup.
Hand-Crafted in Korea












Today, Harmony Guitars is owned by President Charlie Subecz. In 2008, Charlie decided the time was right to bring back the old Harmonys by re-launching a series of Vintage Re-issues. Fourteen meticulas recreations from the 1950's and 60's, including the Rocket, Bobkat, Meteor and more along with a signature Ritchie Valens classic.
Since 1892, The Harmony Guitar Company continues to keep a tradition of fine quality guitars.
We have these and others in stock now at Tym guitars. Contact us for more info and prices.

The Zvex Inventobox

The Inventobox comes fully assembled with Fuzz Factory, tone stack, and Super Hard On modules.
Ever want to build your own pedal, but weren't interested in the soldering, drilling, painting, and all of the assembly needed to make one from scratch? The Z.Vex Effects Inventobox is a unique new product which allows you to quickly design, build and/or modify your own pedals without soldering! It comes with two different channels so you can build either one or two different devices into the same box. All of the necessary components are included to make it easy for you... there's a variety of potentiometer values and switches all ready inside the box, quickly accessible through tiny sockets which accept standard experimenter socket wires or included cables. The unit is easily opened by hand to make fast modifications to the circuitry.

WAMPLER HOT WIRED BRENT MASON OVERDRIVE DISTORTION.

Wampler has been working with Brent Mason for a while. If you haven't heard of him, I'm sure you've heard him. He plays on almost everything you hear on the radio in the country music world, tons of TV, commercials, and movies as well. He's one of the most recorded guitarists in history and is huge in the studio world.
He and I have been working through tons and tons of different overdrive and distortion pedal circuits to get to this point - the point where he plugs in, looks at me and says "OH YEAH! THIS IS IT!!!". The One. For Brent, The pedal that sounds and reacts to touch better than anything available today.

SPECIFICATIONS:
- High grade film capacitors and resistors picked for their superior sound and response
- Completely true bypass
- Battery connection and 9v power jack (barrel plug like Boss)
- Glowing Fire orange in color or Silver/Black silver vein
- Built to Brent's specs exactly
- 2 separate pedals in one box - volume/tone/gain
- Bass boost switch on each channel
- 3.5" x 4.5" in size
- Super durable powder coat finish
- TONS of volume potential if you need it
- Not a clone of any previous circuit unlike so many others!
- Brent's personal pedal is the exact same as the ones we build for everyone
- Both channels can be used at the same time for ultimate "stacking" tones
- Lifetime warranty coverage on any malfunction except due to abuse.

Tym guitars on video

I've had some people ask about my guitars on video. I don't know where a lot of the footage might be but I found these quickly on the net ? I know my guitars have been used to record lots of stuff, but obviously there's no (or little) footage of that that I know of. Enjoy.

This is 3 film clips the Hellacopters did. Nicke owns 5 of my guitars including the Royale model designed by himself and I. This first clip he's using a Wosrite VIII. This is a copy of the VIII Mosrite from the 80's with 3 pick ups.


the Hellacopters - By the Grace of God

This clip he's using the Johnny model I made him. This was the first guitar Nicke got off me and he used it the day after he picked it up in front of thousands of people at the Big Day Out.


the Hellacopters - Toys and Flavors

He's using the Johnny again here.


the Hellacopters - Hopeless Case Of A Kid In Denial

I have done lots of work for Magic Dirt. I make the Big Bottom bass pedal that was designed for Dean Turner. In this clip Raul is using the first of 2 Crestwood copies I've made for him. This was a solid thick mahogany body with set mahogany neck and a mini humbucker in the neck and a full HB in the bridge. This has been Rauls main guitar since I made it but has now been delegated to second after I made him a new blue Wilshire copy.


Magic Dirt - Plastic Loveless Letter


Magic Dirt - All My Crushes / Vulcanella

A few years ago Speedo (RFTC, Drive like Jehu, Hotsnakes) toured and I went to see him in the Hotsnakes. After the show the tour manager came out and said "John wants to meet you" We talked and the next day he came round to my workshop and we talked about making a signature guitar. This was the end result. The Swami Scimitar. It's based on a Tokai Hummingbird but built more like a LP Custom. We're just about to start the Scimitar II which will be the same shape but with some mods to suit his new band, the Night Marchers.


Night Marchers - Tropical Depression

One of THE BEST bands in Australia is these guys. I've done a bit of work for them too and I made this Johnny for Tom a few years back. Solid, one piece honduran mahogany body and maple neck with 3 pick ups (Tom always has to go further)


THE NATION BLUE - IDIOT

THE NATION BLUE | MySpace Music Videos
The Nation Blue - IDIOT

Now this band I've done HEAPS of work for. This is another one of THE BEST bands in Australia (well, the US at the moment) I built a "Tele" for Luke with a P-90 and wraparound bridge, one volume knob and two output jacks as his main touring guitar. The first one was smashed I think, the second stolen in Sydney and this is the third one. They've been his main guitar since I came up with the idea. Simple, "tourproof" and sounds great.


Violent Soho - Love is a Heavy Word


Violent Soho - Bombs Over Broadway


Violent Soho - Jesus Stole My Girlfriend

If anyone knows of any more feel free to send it to me.

EarthQuaker Hoof fuzz

I LOVE THIS FUZZ !! The Hoof is a no-fuss, easy to use device capable of sounds from warm, gritty overdrive to a huge sustaining fuzz. It's a germanium/silicon hybrid muff style fuzz (based on the old green russian muff) with massive amounts of volume on tap and smooth amp-like sustain. It has a tighter, cleaner sound than most muff's which makes it more cutting and discernible in a band setting. The newly added shift control changes the frequency response of the tone control, mainly on the treble side (but takes out the mud on the bass side). Clockwise scoops the mids and counterclockwise enhances the mids. When the shift control is set dead center it has roughly the same frequency response as the original hoof (almost flat but still slightly scooped).
Measures
4 5/8" x 2 1/2" x 1 1/2"
Power
9v Battery or any standard 9 volt DC power supply with a negative center 2.1mm barrel.
Controls:
Fuzz
Tone
Level
Shift (mids)

Speakers

We have just got some shipments of speakers in to fill my cabs and currently have good stock of speakers.
We mainly stock and use Celestion, Jensen and Eminence speakers but can get other brands on request.
The most common Celestions we stock is the Greenback, Vintage 30, Alnico blue, Hot 100 and Neo Vintage. We also stock Jensen C12Q and MOD 12/80's and I use MOD 10/50's in my 4x10 guitar cabs.

The alnico blue classic guitar speaker actually started life as a radio speaker that was modified specifically for use in electric guitar amplifiers. In its original incarnation as the G12 T530 it appeared in several colour variations, but it was the Blue version, fitted as standard into Vox AC30 amps, that secured its place in guitar tone history. The Blue found favour with notable guitarists like Brian May, due to its glorious dampened attack, warm lows, mellow upper-mids and brilliant belllike top-end. When coupled with a suitable amplifier it evokes rich definition and develops beautiful musical compression when pushed. According to tone enthusiasts worldwide, the Blue is the benchmark for guitar speaker perfection.
The G12M Greenback has evolved over the decades but still retains its essential, sought-after tone. This version exhibits all the classic G12M characteristics but is voiced with additional broad mid-range attack and restrained top-end to give a forward, punchy attitude to chords and a searing lead tone without fizz. With its well-controlled low-end it can be used singly in low-powered amps, or in multiples for high-power rock heads. It’s an ideal speaker to bring drive and definition to modern high gain amps.

I'm big fan of Jensen speakers and while I love their alnico I think they're MOD and NEO series are fantastic. Great tone with lots of round bottom end and lots of sparkle.
The very first speaker ever used in a guitar amplifier was a Jensen® Alnico speaker - the P15N. The first Fender® Bassman® and Bandmaster® amplifiers were loaded with Jensen® P15N Alnico speakers. In fact, Alnico speakers were originally used exclusively by Fender® and other amp manufacturers. The P10R was the signature speaker in Fender's legendary Super Reverb®.

I mainly use Eminence speakers in my bass cabs but they make some great guitar speakers also.

Contact Tym guitars for prices and availability.

Traves effects

Tym guitars is now stocking TRAVES guitar effects. Made here in Australia.
Traves Guitar Effects evolved out of Dave's long term interest in music. More specifically, music he likes. This more often than not involved loud, distorted, fuzzed and otherwise effected guitars. Dinosaur jr, Radio Birdman, Mudhoney, New Christs, Celibate Rifles, The Saints, Sonic Youth, Qotsa etc...
While playing in a band he built a pedal and thought it was pretty cool. The band thing was good but didn't seem to keep everyone happy, so that got shelved.
To keep some sanity he figured he'd make some pedals and keep himself amused that way. Dave doesn't do anything half-arsed, so here is TRAVES effects.
They are hand built from scratch, the old kinda way. Drilling, painting and labelling enclosures. Dave uses Vero board, cut to size and designs a layout based on the old schematic, adding modern tweaks, control options, pull down resistors, power filtering, reverse polarity protection etc..
They use Alpha pots, metal film resistors where possible and NOS transistors where applicable.
All pedals have True Bypass,Led's and Boss style DC adaptors. (Apart from Puke).
Dave's not trying to re-invent the wheel (well not just yet), just keep the thing rollin'. His aim is to build a quality, affordable product that's a little different that people will appreciate and really enjoy getting some cool sounds. And Handbuilt in Australia.













ACID : Based on Stratoblaster. Single jfet trasistor clean booster. Single volume knob. Unity gain at 0, adding some depth and sparkle.
Good volume boost without colouring sound. He has added a couple of different opposed diodes to ground on the output via the toggle (dirty) just to add a bit of grit and variation.

























PUKE : Based on Rangemaster. CV 7004 (oc45) Germanium Transistor. Don't have to explain too much here. Added 3 way toggle to change input cap. Hi / Mid / Full.

GUNK : Based on Mosrite Fuzzrite. Using BC108A or 2n2222a transistors.

SMOG : Based on Jordan Bosstone. 2n2222a and 2n3906 transistors. Ranging from overdrive like through to 'smoother' fuzz with cool sag and pick attack.

SLUDGE : Based on Shin ei Companion fuzz. 2n2222a's in fuzz section, 2n3904 on output section. Added toggle to switch between scooped filter section of original and 'Raw' filter bypass section.

GRIME : Based on Ampeg Scrambler. Using Darlingtons and BC108B.

These are available NOW at Tym guitars. Made here in Australia.

Custom Tym bass speaker cabs

Since the Tym cabs have been going so well we've been getting asked more and more for custom made cabs. We are of course, happy to oblige as these are all hand made here in Brisbane.
Here's 2 I just finished loading yesterday. The first is a 1x15 in one of our 2x12 cabs. This is for a great Tym customer in Melbourne who already has one of my 2x12 bass cabs and wanted a matching 1x15 to run them together, stacked. This one has had different bracing and ports due to the speaker but the cab itself is identical to the standard 2x12 guitar cab. It has side handles like his other cab and is a good idea with the extra weight of the bass speaker magnets.

This is fitted with a 500 W Eminence speaker at 4 Ohm.

The other cab is one of our 4x10 cabs fitted with 2 12" 450W Eminence bass speakers. These are staggered and again, the bracing and ports are modified for the different speaker combination , but the cab itself is the same as my standard 4x10 guitar or bass cab.

I have been using black grill cloth for bass cabs and silver for guitar cabs but this is of course completely optional. As is the case with tolex, handles and speakers. We offer any colour combinations currently available to us.
All our cabs are handmade using void free 19mm ply and glued, screwed and sealed by hand.
Fittings are all top quality metal feet and corners and all cabs come with 2 input/output jacks for "jumping" cabs if you only have one output on your amp.


Both of these cabs are now a standard order and will be listed on the site soon. We will be making 2x10 cabs next with other custom and standard cabs to follow. Contact us for any info or check the site for prices and specs of the cabs currently available.

The Tym Jazzmaster guitar, bass thingy .......

I've been wanting to make "this" guitar for years. In fact ever since I saw Local H live twice in the 90's and was blown away with the sound their lead singer/guitarist/bass player Scott Lucas made. His idea was, them being a 2 piece (before 2 pieces were cool) was to play guitar AND bass together, on one guitar. It wasn't until I started my new band, Midget Pillion recently that after some teething "problems" ended up being a 3 piece with 2 guitars and drums that the opportunity arose to do it.
The idea is simple..... kind of. You put a pick up under the "E" string and send that to a separate output jack. This goes through an octave pedal, through your bass pedals and into a bass amp. The rest of the guitar is standard and goes through your guitar pedals and into a guitar amp. This allows you to play the root note on the E string, which sounds like a bass as well as playing the rest of the guitar as normal. Simple.
I've had this old Jazzmaster body lying around the workshop for years just waiting for the opportunity to live again. It had been refinished and stripped several times. It was in good condition considering and is a great piece of ash.

I fitted a Mustang bass pick up under the E string in the neck pick up cavity. This goes to a volume pot and out the first output jack. This gets sent through an EH Micro POG and then through my Big Bottom and onto a Tym Toecutter and BigMudd, then to the bass amp.
The Tele deluxe humbucker is wired to the 3 way toggle in conjunction with the P bass pick up in the neck pick up cavity. This pick up just picks up the D,G,B and E strings and gives a "trebbly" thin sound that's ideal for "shoegazing" style drones. The Tele HB is LOUD and works well with the Jazzmaster platform (ask Lee Ranaldo) These pick ups go to the other volume pot and then out the second output jack. These get sent through a standard guitar pedal set up and into a guitar amp.
I've also anchored the E string from the vibrato (or tremolo as Leo would call it) so I can use the vibrato on guitar but keep the bass note intact giving the effect of 2 separate instruments.
The neck is an old neck that has been mistreated but is thin and straight, two things I LIKE in a neck. It has re-issue F tuners and a great piece of rosewood.
This does mean I have to take 2 amps with me, but I was running stereo amps on guitar anyway so 2 Tym 2x12's (one bass, one guitar) isn't too much work. I've been using a '72 Orange 120 as a bass amp and my Tym Supertone 40 as the guitar amp and it works a treat.
I will update any tricks I come up with in the future but this set up is proving to be quite good, once I've mastered the playing technique better. Until then, I'll just keep turning the fuzz pedals up, and up, and up ..........

Pedal parts

I just got a big shipment of effects pedal parts. Contact us for availability and prices.
I have DPDT and TPDT stomp switches available. These are the generic version of the Fulltone switch as used by EVERYONE. These can be used in new effects where true bypass is wanted with an LED or for modding an older effect to have true bypass and/or LED.
Also, a big shipment of Switchcraft mono and stereo jacks. These are by far THE BEST quality value for money jacks out there. I use these in all my guitar, effects and amp work here.
I have just got a shipment of IC's as well. WE have stock of LM308's as used in Pro Co RATs and many clones and JRC4558's as used in Tubescreamers and lots and lots of clones. These can both be retrofitted into modern re-issues to get closer to the original tone.
On top of this I have stock of most common and some hard to get transistors such as 2N2222 and 2N5088's as used in vintage Big Muffs and C945's as used in vintage Shen-ei and Univox fuzzes. We also have a big range of mini toggle switches from DPDT to 4PDT and DPTT and a range of 16mm pots from 10K to 1M. I currently have limited stock of Hammond enclosures in both MXR sizes. Lots of knobs, diodes, caps, electros, FET's and resistors in stock also. Contact Tym guitars for availability and prices.