Lovepedal EnglishWOMAN - anyone have anything?

effcee · Post by **effcee** » 19 Jul 2012, 09:21

Wondering if anyone has anything for the Lovepedal EnglishWOMAN, as I'm itching to take a crack at building one. Searching around all evening has turned up nothing whatsoever. The EnglishMAN, I can find. But not the lass!

Thanks in advance!

effcee · Post by **effcee** » 20 Jul 2012, 00:01

The EnglishWOMAN is a fantastic pedal, and here's why:

For anyone thinking that you can achieve that sexy, sultry 'woman tone' simply by turning down your tone knob, here's what you're missing: The great thing about the Lovepedal Englishwoman is that, as you back your guitar's volume knob down for rhythm parts, you're tone not only cleans up *very* well, but it becomes *brighter*, too -- to the point where it's not some undefined, woofy mess which destroys chord clarity. And such is not the case when you achieve your 'woman tone' the old fashioned way, simply by turning down your tone knob. Because when you do that to modify your lead tone, you are then left with an overly wooly mess of chord tones with almost no distinguishable harmonic clarity or string separation.

Therefore, imho, if you want a great 'woman tone' which leaves you with plenty of backed-off rhythm tones -- on *both* pickups -- the Lovepedal Englishwoman is the only way to go! I use mine nearly 100% of the time for a great blatty, splatty, deep sexy kind of tone. And if I can't find another one to buy, then I at least want to build a few for backup. Because, honestly, it's nearly magical the way it transforms from fat leads to useably trim rhythm chord tones. I've never before played anything like it!

So, any and all help is greatly appreciated!

LaceSensor · Post by **LaceSensor** » 20 Jul 2012, 00:02

Hmmm if you own it why not post up the gutshots at the very least?!

IvIark · Post by **IvIark** » 20 Jul 2012, 00:21

Yes a gutshot would help a lot. But it'll be an Electra

effcee · Post by **effcee** » 20 Jul 2012, 00:36

I'll get some pics when I get it back. It's on loan for a few days.

Mugshot · Post by **Mugshot** » 20 Jul 2012, 01:30

shill harder.

effcee · Post by **effcee** » 20 Jul 2012, 02:29

"shill harder."

Huh? Is this not a place where users can enthusiastically sing the praises of gear they enjoy? Granted, some of us are more effusive than others. But it's not my fault if some people are more comfortable with fainter praise. Personally, I am often irked by people who lack the communication skills to really hammer home a point they are trying to make. Aloof and understated does not cut it for some of us. I'm all about the f'n ----> '!!!'s

roseblood11 · Post by **roseblood11** » 20 Jul 2012, 03:38

Just listened to a few clips on youtube.
My guess is it's a simple silicon fuzz face with switch for the input cap (maybe from 2µ2 to 100n or sim.)

EDIT: The text on this page says it's a "three position clipping switch", and it's a 2pdt:
www.j-guitar.com/product_id16049.html

effcee wrote:The great thing about the Lovepedal Englishwoman is that, as you back your guitar's volume knob down for rhythm parts, you're tone not only cleans up *very* well, but it becomes *brighter*, too -- to the point where it's not some undefined, woofy mess which destroys chord clarity.

That's how any fuzz face reacts...

Gutshot:

Mugshot · Post by **Mugshot** » 20 Jul 2012, 03:56

effcee wrote:"shill harder."

Huh? Is this not a place where users can enthusiastically sing the praises of gear they enjoy? Granted, some of us are more effusive than others. But it's not my fault if some people are more comfortable with fainter praise. Personally, I am often irked by people who lack the communication skills to really hammer home a point they are trying to make. Aloof and understated does not cut it for some of us. I'm all about the f'n ----> '!!!'s

idk, my itch is tingling.

effcee · Post by **effcee** » 20 Jul 2012, 04:29

Some Fuzz Faces do clean up well when rolling back the guitar's volume knob, yes, mostly (but not always) the germanium units. But, again, the thing which most surprises me about this pedal is that it *not only* cleans up...but that it also goes from a very bassy lead tone to brighter, thinner (in a useable way) rhythm tone at the same time. It's not just about going from dirty to clean. It does that *as well* as changing it's tone in a big way so as to be useful for chording, and I -- having played lots of gear over the years -- am unaware of another pedal with those particular attributes.

It's been a godsend for me, because I always wanted a quick and easy way to go from 'woman tone' to brighter, crispy rhythm tones with a minimum of futzing around. And now I can do that by just altering my guitar's volume without screwing around with tone knobs at the same time!

And btw, if it seems like I'm really pushing this pedal, it's because I'm hoping that someone more knowledgeable than myself might work up a schematic. The thought that I'd be 'shilling' for someone hardly makes any sense when I'm trying to make something myself rather than buy it from the manufacturer 2 or 3 times in a row! :sheesh:

Plus, if it becomes a more well known and popular circuit, maybe we'll see some cool variants from other builders.

effcee · Post by **effcee** » 20 Jul 2012, 04:35

And perhaps I should clarify even *further*:

I'm completely familiar with how a Fuzz Face not only cleans up but gets useably brighter. FFs are my favorite kind of fuzz pedal, I have several of them. I'm talking about going from that REALLY woofy 'woman tone' (not the same thing as a dark Fuzz Face, as any dirt afficianado knows) to a moderately bright and clean sound - it's a different thing. I hope this clarifies my point.

Seiche · Post by **Seiche** » 20 Jul 2012, 05:46

yeah if you own it and since you want to build it so badly, you should do the trace.

effcee · Post by **effcee** » 20 Jul 2012, 06:17

Jeez, people are f'n edgy around here. Is the whole forum like this?

Here's the deal. I'm a newb. I'll need help to even build the damn thing. I'm just trying to start somewhere, figured I'd take a stab at something I really like.

Any more jabs or retorts? Ugh.

oh7hhi · Post by **oh7hhi** » 20 Jul 2012, 06:53

Don't take it so personally

.
I guess people are trying to tell you that they really can't help you if you don't post pics on both sides of the circuit board.

effcee · Post by **effcee** » 20 Jul 2012, 07:07

Thanks, o7hhi, I'll keep that in mind.

sinner · Post by **sinner** » 20 Jul 2012, 08:31

IvIark wrote:Yes a gutshot would help a lot. But it'll be an Electra

small +1

roseblood11 wrote:Just listened to a few clips on youtube.
My guess is it's a simple silicon fuzz face with switch for the input cap (maybe from 2µ2 to 100n or sim.)

Big -1

it's more like LPB-1 really.

It shares the same pbc tracks as the Englishman that I've traced while ago viewtopic.php?f=7&t=15940&hilit=englishman

It just differently voiced

effcee wrote:Jeez, people are f'n edgy around here. Is the whole forum like this?

not whole, but yeah - in general

Big hug for component side

BlueMeany · Post by **BlueMeany** » 20 Jul 2012, 10:13

It'll be an LPB-1 like the Englishman but with a few tweaks here and there for a slightly flabby low end and a rolled off high end...

MoonWatcher · Post by **MoonWatcher** » 20 Jul 2012, 11:43

sinner wrote:it's more like LPB-1 really.

It shares the same pbc tracks as the Englishman that I've traced while ago viewtopic.php?f=7&t=15940&hilit=englishman

It just differently voiced

Yes - the Lovepedal/Sean method. Take one really common and basic design, change a few parts, and release it as a different pedal. What is amazing is how it gets embraced by the masses.

I guess he's feeling a little tapped out on how to come up with any more Electra distortion variations?

The guy is freakin brilliant when it comes to releasing one transistor pedals and marketing them so that the masses snatch them up. If he ever actually came up with something that was somewhat clever, I think the world would stop spinning.

MoonWatcher · Post by **MoonWatcher** » 20 Jul 2012, 11:48

effcee wrote:...the thing which most surprises me about this pedal is that it *not only* cleans up...but that it also goes from a very bassy lead tone to brighter, thinner (in a useable way) rhythm tone at the same time. It's not just about going from dirty to clean. It does that *as well* as changing it's tone in a big way so as to be useful for chording, and I -- having played lots of gear over the years -- am unaware of another pedal with those particular attributes.

Try the LPB-1. It has those particular attributes. That is what people tend to like about it. And it is what the clean boost users hate about it. Very bassy/dark at full tilt, but cleans up like any other single bipolar transistor usually will, since it's mainly a matter of low input impedance. Nothing magical or new there.

Seiche · Post by **Seiche** » 20 Jul 2012, 17:51

effcee wrote:Jeez, people are f'n edgy around here. Is the whole forum like this?

Here's the deal. I'm a newb. I'll need help to even build the damn thing. I'm just trying to start somewhere, figured I'd take a stab at something I really like.

Any more jabs or retorts? Ugh.

sorry about that, I guess that was directed at me (to my defense I just woke up and it was 7:46 over here

)

I was actually just trying to say two things:
- you have the pedal
- you really want a clone

so out of practicality the easiest option is you having a stab at the trace (since tracing is easiest with the pedal at hand). OF COURSE if you provide pictures and information (like component values) people here WILL help you with tracing it (or might even already have a very good idea of the circuit, like sinner). Since you are a "newb" as you say, the best way to learn is to jump in the cold water. It will actually help you get better at building it later on, because you have a general idea of how everything is connected and won't make as many mistakes in building it.

The "really want a clone" part is important, because there is probably no one here, that has as much motivation as you to trace it (especially us knowing most other lovepedals and this being another variation of a well known theme). Motivation is your strongest advantage as a tracer.

So in conclusion, not trying to be edgy or anything, people here are usually really helpful (myself included), but most people like to help more if it's not a "do something for me" but rather a "I need help doing this", you know what I mean? It's more a charity vs. helping to help yourself kinda thing.

For a start, your best bet would be, as others have stated, to post pictures of the PCB.

cheers and welcome to the forum