Bought A Neat New Toy This Week

[ProfessorGAC]

Bought the Boss AS-2, Acoustic Simulator. Plug an electric into it, turn it on, and it gives the guitar the character of an acoustic. It's not perfect or anything, but it does sound really good!

I found a couple of combinations of knobs i really like. It sounds terrific if using a Tele with both pickups on. Has the woody thunk of the strum with a neat shimmer over it.

Set super thin, with chorus, it also creates a wonderful shimmering sound. Doesn't sound acoustic at all, but is a unique clean guitar sound just the same.

Then, if using a saturated tone, step on it, and you get a thinned out tone that allows Cropperisms and funky chords while still distorted.

As near as i can figure, what it does is notch out the midrange rather dramatically. Acoustic guitar sounds are characterized by a big smile shaped curve. Lots of lows, lots of highs, but weak in the midrange. The mahogany body and depth makes it boom, and the top makes the strings shimmer. So, this thing notches out the mids that a pickup on an electric would reveal, that an acoustic wouldn't. Also, it has a direct out, so if you have it through your amp, you can send the acoustic signal to another amp or the PA or something. Pretty convenient.

Not too expensive, (around $90) and a very nice addition to my tonal pallette. Now, i'm guitar, AS-2, wah, and amp. (Reverb and delay are in the FX loop.)

If you're looking for something to give your electric some added versatiliity, especially for live where changing to an acoustic and keeping it from feeding back is a pain, give it a listen.
The Professor

[chaska]

1. Or...

You could get an Rockman Acoustic Pedal on ebay. I prefer it to the Boss.

But my favorite sounding one is the Clean 2 setting on a Rockman Sustainor. I once actually fooled another musician in a blind listening test into thinking that I had a real amplified acoustic. To be fair I did use an outboard eq and some effects, but....

[ProfessorGAC]

2. Don't Like Rockman Products

I had one. The sounds are too compressed for my taste. They are phenomenal for recording but not too effective for live, IMO.

Remember also, i bought it for the other sound i described. It truly gives me the Iin/Iang that i seek. Totally thin, shimmery and clean, vs. saturated to the max.

I tried others. I bought what sounded best to my ear, which is what all of us should always do, no? I'm sure you did with the one you got.
The Professor

[dbt]

3. This world sure needs more Cropperisms!

Thanks for the reminder. I gotta go listen to "Hip Hug Her" now!

:smoke: