The Maricela “MJ” Juarez 40th Anniversary limited-edition sets include collaborations with Peter Frampton, Steve Miller and Pete Anderson. Each collaboration is limited to 160 sets worldwide.
MJ remarks about the collaborations: When I started working at Seymour Duncan in March 1983, I had no idea that I would have the opportunity to custom-wind pickups for some of the best guitar players in music. Over the last 40 years, I have put my love, heart, and soul into every aspect of what I do here at the company. Peter Frampton, Steve Miller, and Pete Anderson are like family to me, and it has been an honor to help them craft their signature sounds that have been heard by people all over the world. Now we are excited to give musicians everywhere access to these special pickups we have created together. I hope they bring you joy, inspiration, and great tone!
Frampton Comes Alive Humbucker Set
When Maricela “MJ” Juarez first started winding pickups at Seymour Duncan in 1983 she already had dreams of working with one guitarist in particular: the one and only Peter Frampton. Once she began managing the Custom Shop and building pickups for some of the biggest guitarists in music, her dream came true. MJ was afforded the opportunity to wind a set of humbuckers for Peter. He has since used these pickups in countless recordings and performances over the years. The Frampton Comes Alive Humbucker set is built to those same specs with Alnico 2 magnets and a vintage output for Peter’s dynamic, stadium-filling sound. The first 160 sets were signed by Frampton and MJ and will show you the way to Peter’s great humbucker tone - whether through your talk box or the sound system of a sold-out arena! To quote Peter: “They bring the best out of the guitar.”
A portion of the proceeds from the “Frampton Comes Alive” MJ40th Pickups will be donated to The Peter Frampton Myositis Research Fund as well as Notes for Notes, who provide youth with free access to music instruments, instruction, and recording studio environments so that music may become a profoundly positive influence in their lives.
The Joker Strat Set
2023 marks the 50th year since Steve Miller’s multi-platinum album ‘The Joker’ was released and it is also MJ’s 40th year with Seymour Duncan. To celebrate both historic occasions, MJ is proud to present The Joker Strat set. The set features a custom wind MJ has been making Steve for years. All three single-coil pickups are wound for vintage output around Alnico 2 magnets, with Steve’s signature printed on the cover and the iconic Joker mask on the bottom plate. This set is a must-have for Steve Miller fans and Strat players alike.
A portion of the proceeds from “The Joker” MJ40th Strat Pickups will be donated to Notes for Notes, who provide youth with free access to music instruments, instruction, and recording studio environments so that music may become a profoundly positive influence in their lives.
The Pete Anderson Working Class Tele Set
The powerhouse guitarist and producer behind Dwight Yoakam’s biggest hits, Pete’s signature Bakersfield-inspired tone is instantly recognizable. Over 40 years winding pickups at Seymour Duncan, Maricela “MJ” Juarez has built sets for Pete that have been on chart-topping records and on stage heard by fans all over the world.
The Pete Anderson Working Class Tele Set is a recreation of the pickups in his 1959 Telecaster. These are the pickups you’ve heard on the numerous classic records Pete has played on and produced. The first 160 sets have been aged to perfection in the custom shop and are signed by both Pete and MJ. With Alnico 5 magnets and a vintage output wind, these expressive pickups are perfect for those looking for a tried-and-true Telecaster tone!
A portion of the proceeds from the “Working Class” MJ40th Tele Pickups will be donated to Notes for Notes, who provide youth with free access to music instruments, instruction, and recording studio environments so that music may become a profoundly positive influence in their lives.
For more information, please visit customshop.seymourduncan.com.
- Builder Profile: Seymour Duncan's Custom Shop Queen - Maricela “MJ” Juarez ›
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Effects Bakery MECHA-PAN BAKERY Series MECHA-BAGEL OVERDRIVE
Konnichiwa, guitar lovers! 🎸✨
Are you ready to add some sweetness to your pedalboard? Let’s dive into the adorable world of the Effects Bakery Mecha-Pan Overdrive, part of the super kawaii Mecha-Pan Bakery Series!
🍩 Sweet Treats for Your Ears! 🍩
The Mecha-Pan Overdrive is like a delicious bagel for your guitar tone, but it’s been upgraded to a new level of cuteness and functionality!
Effects Bakery has taken their popular Bagel OverDrive and given it a magical makeover. Imagine your favorite overdrive sound but with more elegance and warmth – it’s like hugging a fluffy cat while playing your guitar!
Resistance to digital amps might just be futile at this point. Many tunes you hear—and an increasing number of live gigs—feature a bit of faux-tube tone somewhere in the mix. But while the sound of pro-level modelers can be nearly indistinguishable from their analog counterparts in a mix, the feel and simplicity of a real amplifiers remain appealing and even indispensable to many players. That said, modelers that make usability, convenience, and price priorities can convince even die-hard tube users to see what’s on the other side of the fence. IK Multimedia’s TONEX ONE is one modeling device that might make the cut. It’s likely the smallest, most portable modeler out there. And at $179, it’s easily the most affordable.
Big Tones, Tiny Controls
The TONEX ONE isn’t designed to put a million different options at your feet, and that economy may be the unit’s strongest feature. It features several different modes, but the primary operating mode allows you to either switch between two different models, or simply use the unit as a stompbox. Each model can be an amp, an amp and cab, a pedal, or a pedal driving an amp and cab. Judging by how deep the online repository tone.net is for user-created presets, the options are nearly endless, which speaks to the already sizable user base. It’s a little strange to consider a modeler in a package this small with so few controls. There’s a large main knob that controls volume and gain (when you’re in ALT mode), and above that are three illuminated mini knobs that control the 3-band EQ, gate, compression, and reverb. You can also plug your headphones directly into the pedal, which makes it a dynamite silent practice amp.
My experience with modelers is that high-gain tones and clean tones are relatively easy to achieve and typically very good. After unboxing the TONEX ONE, I loaded up a slightly dirty Vox-style amp to evaluate the edge-of-breakup tones. I paired the pedal with humbuckers (with a coil split option), Stratocaster single coils, and P-90s in a T-style solidbody. With each one, the Vox-style amp was punchy and clear but could also range to very nice higher-gain sounds. Naturally, each version of a modeled amp offers different gain structures, so it pays to experiment. Combining the humbuckers in a PRS SE DGT with a few hot-rodded Marshall emulations and the growl offered tones nearly as good as those from much more expensive modelers. In a blind test, I’m not sure I could hear—or feel—much of a difference. As I explored further and fine-tuned things a bit more, the ToneX One felt more alive in my hand,s and sounded much less shrill in the top end than other digital solutions I’ve encountered.
One of the most obvious tone fixers in a modeler—and maybe one of the most underutilized—is the EQ section, and kudos are due to IK for placing those controls at the fore. Being able to adjust the most immediate tone-shaping options without having to dig through menus or touchscreens is a pleasure.
There are many possible uses for the TONEX ONE. It can serve as a high-quality direct solution on your pedalboard, a portable recording interface, and a plug-and-play practice solution when high volume is a no-go. One handy setup I tried was disabling the cabinet emulation in the pedal and then plugging into the effects return of a combo amp, in this case, a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. I immediately imagined many backline amp headaches being a thing of the past. You can always plug directly into a flat-response cabinet or PA system too.
Because it has such a small footprint and streamlined controls, harnessing the unit’s full potential, and accessing all the different modes, takes a bit of effort. You can store 20 different presets within the pedal and assign them to any of the three active slots (two for dual mode and one for stomp mode). And although doing this on the fly is handy, I found it much easier to program the presets via the easy-to-use desktop editor.
The Verdict
TONEX ONE benefits from a rather singular focus and its biggest advantage is that it’s not shrouded in unnecessary layers of tweakable options. You can simply load up a base sound or two, drop it at the end of your pedalboard, and go.The included software allows you create your own models and makes swapping presets easy. I did find the multitude of modes, and their color-coded indicators, a bit confusing at times, but IK’s documentation was very clear and got me through any trouble spots. The TONEX ONE would serve well to those who want to explore digital modeling but still hold on to their analog pedalboards, and at $179 it’s a steal.
If 3 Were 6
With six times the controls found on the 1 and 2 versions (if you discount the original’s on/off slider switch,) the LPB-3’s control complement offers pre-gain, boost, mid freq, bass, treble, and mid knobs, with a center detent on the latter three so you can find the midpoint easily. A mini-toggle labeled “max” selects between 20 dB and 33 dB of maximum gain, and another labeled “Q” flips the resonance of the mid EQ between high and low. Obviously, this represents a significant expansion of the LPB’s capabilities.
More than just a booster with a passive tone, the LPB-3 boasts a genuine active EQ stage plus parametric midrange section, comprising the two knobs with shaded legends, mid freq and mid level. The gain stages have also been reimagined to include a pre-gain stage before the EQ, which enables up to 20 dB of input gain. The boost stage that follows the EQ is essentially a level control with gain to allow for up to 33 dB of gain through the LPB-3 when the “max” mini toggle is set to 33dB
A slider switch accessible inside the pedal selects between buffered or true bypass for the hard-latch footswitch. An AC adapter is included, which supplies 200mA of DC at 9.6 volts to the center-negative power input, and EHX specifies that nothing supplying less than 120mA or more than 12 volts should be used. There’s no space for an internal battery.
Power-Boosted
The LPB-3 reveals boatloads of range that betters many linear boosts on the market. There’s lots of tone-shaping power here. Uncolored boost is available when you want it, and the preamp gain knob colors and fattens your signal as you crank it up—even before you tap into the massive flexibility in the EQ stage.
“The preamp gain knob colors and fattens your signal as you crank it up—even before you tap into the massive flexibility in the EQ stage.”
I found the two mid controls work best when used judiciously, and my guitars and amps preferred subtle changes pretty close to the midpoint on each. However, there are still tremendous variations in your mid boost (or scoop, for that matter) within just 15 or 20 percent range in either direction from the center detent. Pushing the boost and pre-gain too far, particularly with the 33 dB setting engaged, can lead to some harsh sounds, but they are easy to avoid and might even be desirable for some users that like to work at more creative extremes.
The Verdict
The new LPB-3 has much, much more range than its predecessors, providing flexible preamp, boost, and overdrive sounds that can be reshaped in significant ways via the powerful EQ. It gives precise tone-tuning flexibility to sticklers that like to match a guitar and amp to a song in a very precise way, but also opens up more radical paths for experimentalists. That it does all this at a $129 price is beyond reasonable.
Electro-Harmonix Lpb-3 Linear Power Booster & Eq Effect Pedal Silver And Blue
