November 2008 \ Features \ Product Spotlight \ The Wild and Wacky World of Collectible Effects

The Wild and Wacky World of Collectible Effects

Tom Hughes
Premier Guitar November 2008

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Guitar effects pedals are one of my greatest obsessions. I love them all: vintage, boutique, and everything in-between. I have in fact made an entire career of it, having worked several years for “Analog Man” Mike Piera, who mentored me and bestowed the nickname Analog Tom. With Mike’s invaluable technical assistance, I went on to write Analog Man’s Guide To Vintage Effects, and the rest is history. It’s been nearly four years since the book was published, and my knowledge and awareness of all things stomp-related has expanded enough to consider writing a revised, expanded edition of the book. I now have collector friends and knowledgeable experts all over the world who have given me new insights and info, tons of pictures, and tidbits of pedal minutia that I didn’t have access to when I did my original research.

The Wild and Wacky World of Collectible Effects
Photo: Tom Hughes

So, you may be wondering, what pedals from the original list have proven to be truly rare?
Since a new version of the book isn’t currently in the works, I thought this would be a good opportunity to update and expand upon a few aspects of this subject, specifically the current market for rare and collectible effects. While there have always been certain highly sought-after vintage effects pedals, over the last few years the market has skyrocketed. And despite the recent dip in vintage guitars, vintage effects continue to climb. I’ve gotten my share of disdainful correspondence from disgruntled longtime collectors who were not happy with the attention Analog Man’s Guide brought to the subject, holding me at least partly responsible for driving up the price of many pieces still missing from their collections. Believe it or not, I’ve even had my own words come back to haunt me when trying to negotiate the purchase of certain desirable pedals.

In Analog Man’s Guide, I wrote a chapter called “Hen’s Teeth” where I listed the rarest and most collectible of all vintage effects. Since the time the book was published, I’ve received a great deal of information from many more collectors and experts around the world, in addition to my continued research, that would lead me to change some of the original content of that chapter. There are several pieces I found to be not quite as rare as I originally thought— among them are Tycobrahe pedals (the ParaPedal, PedalFlanger, and Octavia), the Ampeg Scrambler, the Gray Vox Wah, and Tri-Stereo Chorus. Don’t get me wrong, all of these are rare and definitely desirable to many collectors, but they’re not exceedingly scarce. It’s also been brought to my attention that there are at least a few items that were apparently so rare that their existence managed to escape my awareness— the Condor GMS Guitar Synth, for example (thanks Marty!). It seems the stompbox universe is more vast and deep than any of us imagined.

So, you may be wondering, what pedals from the original list have proven to be truly rare? At this moment my list would include the original Interfax Harmonic Percolator, the Pluto Dual Filter, Baldwin-Burns Buzzaround, Castle Phaser, A/DA Harmony Synthesizer, and the Astrotone Fuzz. But the one that topped the list in Analog Man’s Guide is still my number one pick today—the EMS Synthi Hi- Fli (see sidebar).

eBay and the Pricing Conundrum
One of the most frequently asked questions we’ve had since the book was released is: when are you guys going to do a price guide for effects? On the surface, this seems like an appealing idea, but in my view it’s a futile endeavor. First of all, I’ve never been a fan of that concept to begin with. I know it’s very popular with guitars and other instruments, and there’s no doubt they do serve some useful purposes, but it seems to be a very subjective thing, based on the opinions of a handful of individuals who ostensibly have some expertise in the field. And if the experts in question also happen to be retailers of these same instruments, it begs the question of whether an additional agenda may ultimately influence whatever the market value is determined to be. I may be off base on this point, but I have heard this opinion expressed by more than a few people in the industry.

The Wild and Wacky World of Collectible Effects
An original EMS Synthi Hi-Fli is one of the rarest effects out there.
Photo: Tom Hughes
The other problem I have with the idea of a stompbox specific price guide has to do with accuracy (or lack thereof). I’ve been keeping an extensive database of the final sale price of hundreds of different vintage and collectible effects that have been sold on eBay over the past seven years, and I can say with confidence that I’m probably in a better position than anyone to put together a comprehensive and informative vintage effects price guide. But I’m not going to do it. The reason is because, in my opinion, the vintage and collectible effects market isn’t stable enough to do so with any kind of accuracy. The guide would basically be outdated as soon as it was printed, which seems pretty pointless to me. The way I see it, the stompbox scene is the Wild, Wild West of the vintage and collectible music gear market. Any attempt to lay down the law or impose some semblance of order will be met with resistance.

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Comments

(6 comments) display by
UsernameComment
Sean
on 10/26/2011
I found my Pluto at a garage sale down the street from my flat in San Francisco and new right away that it was special. I eventually acquired Georges number and gave him a ring. I'm not a big football fan, at all, But apparently George is, and I called during the Superbowl. He was irritated about my calling but did tell me that the serial code on mine 053 was part of a batch of 100 that Gibson made for a test market. It didn't go over well for some reason and Gibson scrapped the project. He didn't sound very happy about it, but then, his team was losing...After a couple minutes conversation he did loosen up a little and thanked me for calling and was happy that I was liked the pedal.
Mark
on 06/08/2010
I have an excellent condition 1970's Original Tycobrahe Pedalflanger.
What is a range of price expectation to sell this item?
I have requested a range of price from several sources (stores that buy vintage pedals, etc.), and everyone has done the same thing> They have not answered with a potential price, but have asked me what I want for it.
I don't know what is a fair price. Can you let me know what they can fetch? my email is mmg60@comcast.net. Thanks!!!
Digitana
on 05/14/2010
Just to say that further to Tom Hughes's comments about whether the Hi-FLi would ever be reissued, I am re-releasing the Synthi Hi-FLi under license from EMS. Details can be found on my website at http://www.synthi.co.uk/hifli.html
nick haas
on 04/01/2010
So Ive been wondering, what dos a Pluto filter pedal go for? I've been looking for one for a while and can't even find one for sale! slicknickhaas@gmail.com
Ron verboom
on 01/19/2010
I have seen and heard one in action at battlefield park in stoney creek by a band called OLD SAILOR. One of the guys names was Ron Searles from Hamilton early 1970s
Ward
on 04/11/2009
Who ever wants to hear what a Synthi Hi Fli really is capable of , is strongly recommended to listen to 3 albums by a British band called Groundhogs.Their lead-guitarist,songwriter and producer Tony T.S.McPhee had in the very early '70's his own studio ( the only band who had an own studio was the Stones ,who had their mobile unit ), he owned the first Zemaitis metal front guitar and.....he had the Hi Fli.Listen to Solid ('74),Crosscut Saw ('75) and Black Diamond ('76) ,these albums have Hi Fli all over the place ,just listen to the solo's in Fulfillment,Your Love Keeps Me Alive and Light My Light to find out what a killer-box this thing was.(nick-named The Toilet by the way).I've been for 30 odd years now experimenting with all kinds of stompboxes to recreate some of the sounds of the Hi Fli and I got pretty close in some cases but never 100%.I'm waiting for a manufacturor to build a clone , maybe a good idea for Electro Harmonix , since Dave Cockerell ,who designed the HF ,also designed many of E-H's most succesfull stompboxes.There where only 350 HF's build, and they weren't all that roadworthy so let's say a 100 died on their tour of duty , then there's not to much left for us effects-worshippers.I've seen one for sale on French(I think) E-bay , I stopped looking at it when the bids were around $5500 and still rising.There's one lucky bastard in Holland who own(ed?)s one and he paid something like $750.(see the site of Harmony Central)Who knows :maybe Analog Mike or me will get lucky someday?



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