timhulio wrote:Earth wrote:Like I said, there is no such thing as "Better".
Its all subjective opinion, mine too.
My opinion is that EHX make better pedals than every single bootweak pedal company around.
Every pedal I use/need is made by EHX and Boss. That's 3 pedals, a distortion, a muff, and a tuner.
Where would the Melvins be without companies like Boss? No where cause that's all Buzz uses and the Melvins sound sick! We wouldnt have the Cure either as Roberts a huge Boss pedal fan.
Boutique is 100% unnecessary IMO.
I agree with 90% of this, and I make pedals too. What people need to remember is that bootweakers are usually just one guy (or girl) working solo. The build quality and after-sales support (things you take for granted with big companies like EHX or Boss) is only as good or bad as the skill/flakiness of the individual builder. For every Dave Main, Made by Mike, Frantone, you get a Death By Audio or worse. Shonky shit that won't last, pedals with random unrepeatable settings, and companies that vanish overnight (Sustain Punch?!?).
For me the beauty of boutique is to fill a gap in the market for desirable vintage clones at prices guitarists can actually afford. You can argue that there's no need for vintage clones and new stuff can be made to sound just as good, but there's still a demand.
Like I said, and its just my biased opinion (and I'm very opinionated
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) , They aren't needed (for me). I don't need the services of boutique pedal builders and that is why they are unnecessary to me personally. If there's a pedal that is no longer made and I want one I'll just make it myself. I do understand that most people cant just make a pedal and that it does fill a gap in the market for sure.
Its just like you said, for every so and so there's so and so with shitty pedals etc etc.
Mike wrote:I don't think there has to be an all or nothing approach here. I don't make pedals because I don't think Boss and Electro-Harmonix make good enough pedals.
I make them because a hobby got out of hand.
Also I'd have to say that personally I'm not really keen on any of the Amplike Overdrive pedals that Boss or EHX, or other mainstream manufacturers make to honest. I think a lot of the best stuff in that ilk has come from the "Boutique" (yuck I hate that word) arena.
And that's fair enough Mike!
I used to make a lot of pedals as a hobby myself and sold a few locally for a few months and when I was invited over to FSO not long after it opened I kinda went anti-boutique because as you know (as I've seen you there) a lot of the big bootweakers are just that, tweakers and they wont even admit that their tweakers not designers, and part of that has still stuck with me.
I see no harm in your MBM pedals whatsoever, its not like your a "Fooltone" or a landgraff or zachary vex etc charging ridiculous prices for a redressed 808 or 5SHO's in series with a Marshall tonestack or anything. And the same goes for SUF and a couple other small builders that charge reasonably and admit what their pedals really are.
Anyone that builds clones/tweaked clones AND admits that's what they are AND doesn't try to shaft people with stupid prices is fine by me as they aren't the guys I (and FSO) are putting shit on/exposing as shysters.
When I say "the bootweakers" I don't mean to include all the "at home made in my basement not a company and I only charge for parts and labor" builders, I'm talking about the big guys with big money involved.
Anyways, I have bought boutique in the past and I RE'd some of them and sold them once I realized what they were and caught on to the game of the boutique pedal bizness.
Each to his own I guess...
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