Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

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GreenKnee
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Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by GreenKnee » Tue May 24, 2022 5:13 am

A few weeks ago I picked a DBA Germanium Filter for a good price on reverb. I'd seen a couple of demos of it on YouTube and thought it would be ideal for recording: the broad filter range is perfect for double tracking parts and really making the guitar come to life.
I was blown away by the pedal and how versatile it is, it goes from a lovely touch-sensitive mild OD up to a scorching steaming fuzz sound, it's insane. And then if I drop the volume pedal it cleans up as if nothing happened, no extra noise, just smooth clean loveliness and every step in between.
I've been looking round at other germanium pedals now and it would seem this is a common theme that runs amongst them. The touch-sensitivity whilst running as a light OD is just magical, and there's no fizzy gain as the notes die off (not sure what you would call this, but all pedals I've tried marketed as OD seem to do it, kind of like artifacts as notes decay). They have the feel of playing an edge-of-breakup amp.

I'm a convert and now I'm looking at replacing my JAM Lucydreamer with something germanium to give me that edge-of-breakup super low OD rhythm sound. This one in particular sounds great! https://youtu.be/Bas8z0ukiJ4

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by bubba899 » Tue May 24, 2022 6:13 am

That sounds awesome. Seems almost too obvious to suggest at this point, but Hudson Electronics Broadcast or Sidecar would be a great place to start. Sidecar in particular is based on a TS circuit but with Germanium diodes.

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by marqueemoon » Tue May 24, 2022 6:28 am

I’ve been curious about the Broadcast for a while now.

I guess the only 100% germanium pedal I have is my EQD Bows. It’s neat, but generally not a go-to for me.

Don’t think I’ve tried enough germanium circuits to be able to generalize.

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by GreenKnee » Tue May 24, 2022 7:10 am

Nice, I've heard of the Broadcast but never really looked in to it so now's the time, thanks.

I definitely haven't played enough germanium pedals to generalize either, I may be getting ahead of myself but it seems an interesting path to follow for a while :)

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by Shadoweclipse13 » Tue May 24, 2022 7:42 am

I had a Broadcast and didn't like it, but I've definitely been curious about germanium-based drives for a little while, just to have a different flavor for double-tracking and the like.
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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by MechaBulletBill » Tue May 24, 2022 7:48 am

Shadoweclipse13 wrote:
Tue May 24, 2022 7:42 am
I had a Broadcast and didn't like it
what was your issue with it? i haven't used mine in a long time, and i find it's only really good at really low or really high gain settings but when i'm after that flavour, it's pretty flippin great

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by Shadoweclipse13 » Tue May 24, 2022 7:59 am

MechaBulletBill wrote:
Tue May 24, 2022 7:48 am
Shadoweclipse13 wrote:
Tue May 24, 2022 7:42 am
I had a Broadcast and didn't like it
what was your issue with it? i haven't used mine in a long time, and i find it's only really good at really low or really high gain settings but when i'm after that flavour, it's pretty flippin great
I don't remember exactly, but I got it for my bass board and it didn't do anything for me. Granted, I mostly play at low volumes at home, so maybe I would've liked it at higher volumes. I think it was the 2nd version with the low/high gain switch.
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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by GreenKnee » Tue May 24, 2022 12:48 pm

Been searching around for some information about germanium transistors and Robert Keeley's blog post describes what I hear perfectly:
“Subjectively the sound of Germanium offers a smoother, more-ear pleasing distortion. Whether that’s technically due to greater capacitances, lower bandwidth (Germanium can’t handle those higher frequencies that can sometimes lead to harshness) as well as lower gain, can sometimes lead to more gratifying sounds. There’s another phenomenon called Miller capacitance, which is the capacitance between the pins and the internal structure of transistors or tubes— which leads to smoothing and roundness, attributes that sound better to us guitar players.” – Robert Keeley
https://robertkeeley.com/2013/09/germanium-transistors/

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by Veitchy » Tue May 24, 2022 4:27 pm

I'm really keen to pick up an Accomplished Badger. Between the two diode options, the amount of headroom and the blendability it looks pretty versatile. As far as I can tell it's an original circuit which is cool to see too.
Last edited by Veitchy on Wed May 25, 2022 2:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by GreenKnee » Tue May 24, 2022 10:40 pm

Veitchy wrote:
Tue May 24, 2022 4:27 pm
I'm really keen to pick up an Accomplished Badger. Between the two diode options, the amount of headroom and the blendability it looks pretty versatile. As far as I can tell it's an original circuit which is cook to see too.
Thanks for this, it sounds brilliant and exactly the sort of thing I'm looking for at the minute. The last part of the demo on Frederic's site shows just how touch sensitive these types of pedals can be

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by CorporateDisguise » Wed May 25, 2022 1:42 am

I’m a late convert to germanium as well. It all started with a Catalinbread Karma Suture. Technically a fuzz, but I use it more like a gritty overdrive. Just keep the bass knob down low. Probably my favorite overdrive tone.

Next I picked up a CTC Constellation, which is basically a collection of 7 different germanium fuzzes/treble boosters. I never though I’d be a Fuzz Face guy, but hot damn this thing sounds glorious. While I do love the fuzz tones, the magic lies in the in between sounds accessed by rolling down your guitars volume.

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by bubba899 » Thu May 26, 2022 7:19 am

Veitchy wrote:
Tue May 24, 2022 4:27 pm
I'm really keen to pick up an Accomplished Badger. Between the two diode options, the amount of headroom and the blendability it looks pretty versatile. As far as I can tell it's an original circuit which is cool to see too.
Anything Fredric does is always worth looking at.

As for the comments on the Broadcast. I can definitely agree that it's not the most versatile pedal. It's basically an always on job for me, just gives everything a lift and the bass cut is super useful. The High gain setting when running with my Jag is a fantastic rhythm distortion but I think it's best application is running it into other drives.

Speaking of Keeley. This is a super underrated pedal.

https://robertkeeley.com/product/germa ... od-silver/

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by GreenKnee » Thu May 26, 2022 7:27 am

bubba899 wrote:
Thu May 26, 2022 7:19 am

Speaking of Keeley. This is a super underrated pedal.

https://robertkeeley.com/product/germa ... od-silver/

Image
I've actually checked this out before but Blues Driver type pedals just aren't my thing. Not sure why because on paper they should be, I've just never enjoyed the sound of them. This design is actually a Blues Driver into a germanium clipping stage, not the clipping part of a Blues Driver replaced with germanium.

The Red Dirt germanium is a bit too gainy for what I'm after as well. I already use a Keeley Filaments for my high gain sounds, but the milder stuff isn't for me unfortunately.


I'm trying so hard not to blow some cash on that Fredric pedal need to save cash

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by bubba899 » Fri May 27, 2022 1:09 am

GreenKnee wrote:
Thu May 26, 2022 7:27 am
bubba899 wrote:
Thu May 26, 2022 7:19 am

Speaking of Keeley. This is a super underrated pedal.

https://robertkeeley.com/product/germa ... od-silver/

Image
I've actually checked this out before but Blues Driver type pedals just aren't my thing. Not sure why because on paper they should be, I've just never enjoyed the sound of them. This design is actually a Blues Driver into a germanium clipping stage, not the clipping part of a Blues Driver replaced with germanium.

The Red Dirt germanium is a bit too gainy for what I'm after as well. I already use a Keeley Filaments for my high gain sounds, but the milder stuff isn't for me unfortunately.


I'm trying so hard not to blow some cash on that Fredric pedal need to save cash
Yeah that's a big reason why I like it. Jfet drive circuit into germanium gain stage gives me all my vitamins. But yeah, if you're not into the Blues Driver it wont be for you.

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Re: Germanium Pedals - I've been missing out

Post by smitty1981 » Fri May 27, 2022 5:39 am

The Benson Germanium Boost is not overly gainy and adds something special to your sound.

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