The
Box of Rock (TM) is Z.Vex Effect's first "distortion"
pedal, highly specialized to simulate the "everything on 10"
sound of a classic Marshall ® JTM45 non-master-volume amplifier.
You may use the Box of Rock effectively with many different amplifiers,
but to get the sound I heard when I designed it, try it through
a Marshall at least once. You may use your guitar's volume control
to adjust for the exact amount of distortion you need, all the way
down to very clean and clear with most drive settings. You will
notice the words "distortron engine" on the Vexter version
of this pedal (no, that's not a misprint) on the pedal. This is
what I named my distortion circuit... call me crazy. On the hand-painted
version, the stomp switch on the right is labeled "ROCK"
instead, because our paint brushes are too wide for so many small
letters.
The
Box of Rock also contains an extremely high-headroom, unity-to-50X
gain booster with nominal input impedance and low hiss. It is very
similar to the SHO boost circuit, with refinements to make it sound
more like a standard amp input and less glassy. The boost channel
can be used alone or in conjunction with the "distortron engine"
channel. The boost channel follows the distortion channel so that
the distortion is able to hit your amp harder (at a higher volume)
when both switches are engaged, for boosting solos and what-not.
Look out when boosting what-not.
The
Controls:
Drive: Sets the amount of distortion. Start around 1:00 o'clock.
Tone: Adjust for treble content. Start around 2:00 o'clock.
Vol: Adjust for distortron engine volume level. Start around 9:00
o'clock.
Boost: Sets the boost level, which is engaged with the left stomp
switch. Start around 11:00 o'clock.
The
Drive and Boost controls are based on my original Super Hard-On
gain control, so they may crackle when turned. This is perfectly
normal.
Operation:
Plug your guitar (or any effect’s output) into the right hand
input jack. Plug the output into an amp or other effect’s
input. Rock out. Careful with the Boost setting when using a high-powered
amp with lots of headroom... you may be shocked at how loud it can
get!
The
best way to complete this pedal is to run it through a Marshall
amplifier on a warm clean setting (try strapping the channels, setting
the volumes below 3, and setting all other controls to 6 as a start
point), which has the proper voicing to reveal the "rock"
in the Box of Rock.
Battery
Change:
If the performance of your pedal seems diminished or the LEDs become
very dim, it's time to change your battery. Remove the four screws
on the bottom of the pedal and carefully remove and replace the
old battery, putting it back exactly in the center of the pedal
on edge so that it is gripped tightly by the lid when it is screwed
back in place.
Specifications:
Uses 1 9V battery (preferably alkaline, but the unit is shipped
with a carbon-zinc battery.) The low current operation of this pedal's
circuit will give you a long battery life. Current draw is approximately
3mA. A DC power jack (standard Boss configuration with center negative)
is provided on the side of the pedal. Use a high- quality 9V adaptor
for all high-gain effects!
Warranty:
Your Vexter Box of Rock is warranted for 1 year from date of purchase,
or 2 years if you send in your warranty card.
