Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

HI, all:


Roger never e-mailed back to me when I asked him his opinion of the Byrdbox. I have called Whirlwind a number of times about the Byrdbox. No music stores here in Connecticut want to carry it and when I suggested to Whirlwind that they put up a demo video on their website or YouTube, they agreed.

But, the video they shot had problems with the Fender amp used--and they're waiting for that amp to be fixed!!!!!!

It doesn't look good!!!!!!! As I said before, I love my Janglebox!!!!!!

Thanks, Karl. Keep us posted.
JimK

Hi:

I wonder if anyone else has tried to e-mail Roger. Of course, his opinion would mean a great deal!!!

I haven't tried. I didn't really want to bother him. But that's just me.
JimK

After getting the Janglebox, I didn't look back. Nothing gets as good as the Jbox, in my opinion.

I would be interested in trying the new Byrd Box, but I can't imagine it would equal or top my Janglebox JB2. The JB2 makes my 330/12 sound sublime, and I've
heard it's good with other guitars, too. My next step is to try it out with my Strat and to try to do some direct recording with it. Will keep you all posted on how that goes.

Through a friend in the business, I was given a Byrdbox and I tried it with my Rick 12, Telecaster, and Les Paul Junior. Here's my findings:

The Byrdbox is a decent compressor that will recreate the Rick/McGuinn/Harrison jangle adequately at best. Unlike the Janglebox, there are no gain or brightness controls, only Sustain, Bass, Treble and Volume knobs. There is an On/Off switch and another called a Chime Boost. More on that later.

One disconcerting point right away was the LED for the On/Off switch; it never went off, even when the pedal was not operational. A small point, but one that troubled me a bit. I want lights to go out when a pedal is not in use.

I tried the Byrdbox at all combinations of settings, and what I got was a reasonably decent facsimile approximation of McGuinn's tone. With the Byrdbox, the Rick sounded pretty good, the Telecaster sounded very good, but I didn't care for the P-90 equipped LP Junior's tone too much; very midrangey and squishy. My rating so far; 7 in a 10 scale. I did not try it with a humbucking-equipped guitar.

From a build standpoint, the Byrdbox seems to be well put together and strongly made. It's not the most pleasing looking pedal I ever saw. The sides look like old Chrysler tailfins. The two-tone orange paint is nothing to write home about either, but we're more concerned with tone, aren't we?

The Chime Boost is where the Byrdbox fails. The Bass and Treble controls were useless when the Chime Boost was engaged, and what I got was screechy high-end skronk that was hard to tame, even with the Rick's tone controls all the way on full bass response. The Telecaster sounded like a proverbial ice pick. I had to turn down the treble on the amp to get it to even out. Even then, it was not pleasing to my ears. The manufacturer's rep told me that Chime Boost tone was, "a blast of high end." He was right. I only wish it could be controlled, but there is no way to do that from the box itself. I would rename the Chime Boost the "Screech Boost."

All in all, the Janglebox is still winner and reigning champion. I predict the Byrdbox will make a little splash, sell adequately at first, and fade away quickly. It was designed to go head-to-head with the Janglebox and meant as a cheaper alternative. It is just that; a cheaper alternative, but if you're really concerned about your tone, you'll stick with a JB or JB2.

Remember, you gets what you pays for.

drumbob wrote:From a build standpoint, the Byrdbox seems to be well put together and strongly made. It's not the most pleasing looking pedal I ever saw. The sides look like old Chrysler tailfins. The two-tone orange paint is nothing to write home about either, but we're more concerned with tone, aren't we?

Oh, no. How cool it looks in the pedal board is the most important factor. . .

All kidding aside, thank you very much for the review. Evidently a bunch of us have been wondering what this pedal was like, and now we have a much better idea thanks to your review; lots of easy to follow detail. I especially appreciate the ice pick chime boost warning! The constantly lit LED is an odd feature; malfunction perhaps? PErsonally I think all LEDs should be the size of the pilot lights on Fender Amps!

I'll stick with my Ibanez Soundtank until I feel like plunking down the cash for a JB . . . and maybe one of those MXR Dynacomps as well.

Hey, how does it sound with the newly TV Jones-equipped Gretsch?

Thanks, Bob. I'll take you review under advisement.
JimK

A friend recently purchased a Byrdbox from the US via Ebay.
It cost him £125 with an extra £35 on top of that for customs duty/taxes etc.
I was eager to hear it and compare it with my JB1 and JB2.

We tried every combination of Rickenbacker we had.
We played into a Modern Vox AC30 CC2 on a clean setting, with no other pedals in the chain, and we always use very high quality leads.

The first thing that struck me with the Guitars with Hi gains was how 'squelchy' the tone was, Ok but certainly not great at all.
The toasters sounded better, but it certainly didn't make the guitar 'sing' like the Janglebox.
And as Bob mentioned, the 'Chime boost' pedal is a complete joke.

I'd probably put this as a step above something like a Boss CS3.
And if you could find one for about £40 you'd probably be quite happy with it.
But considering the price point, the styling (Urgh!) and the build quality, at the moment there is absolutely no reason for you to buy anything other than a Janglebox.

If anyone in the UK is interested in buying a Byrdbox, I know where there is one for sale at £155.
Only 2 hours of use or he is willing to swap for a Janglebox.

Mateybob wrote: ...But considering the price point, the styling (Urgh!) and the build quality, at the moment there is absolutely no reason for you to buy anything other than a Janglebox.

As much as I suspected. Thanks, Rob.