Ruining your pedal board

[Dan German]

Sigh…

In my quixotic quest to build a pedal board that will allow me to put my old Funny Cat into the quiet retirement it deserves, I have failed again. Last year, I bought a Radial Hollywood Bones distortion pedal. I liked it. I added a GupTech Phoque Face. Even better. I still couldn’t get rid of the Funny Cat, though. It has a particular sound I like very much. A boost, says I. Maybe a good boost will get me somewhere that lets me pull the plug on the Funny Cat… Well, the TC Spark is a good… no, great… boost. It has quickly earned a permanent place on the board. Problem is, everything else now sounds so much better (including the Funny Cat), that the Hollywood is just… not needed. I mean, it still sounds good, but I can get lots of good sounds without it. I think part of the problem is that it’s meant to sound like Fender amp distortion, and since I bought it, I have had my Fender amp put back in fighting form. Kinda makes it redundant. And worse, I’m liking the Funny Cat better than ever.

So it goes…

I have feelers out to pedal builders to see if I can get a Funny Cat (Soft Distortion Sustainer side only) replicated. This 40+ year old pedal won’t last forever.

 

[Happy Enchilada]

Is "Funny Cat" code for something? Like my ex-wife's ... never mind.

 

[Dan German]

Is "Funny Cat" code for something? Like my ex-wife's ... never mind.

Roland AG-5 Funny Cat. Unless your ex-wife is vintage and Japanese, there is no resemblance. Or unless your wife has a weird, distorted voice.

 

[artdecade]

Keep the Cat and dump the rest.

 

[Alamo]

Problem is, everything else now sounds so much better

Seems like ...
you need a bigger board

so everyone can get along

 

[Dan German]

Keep the Cat and dump the rest.

Looks like that’s where I’m at. I just want a clone of the Funny Cat SDS because I don’t want to face repairing an obscure vintage pedal if it fails. Also, technically, it’s still my BIL’s pedal. He hasn’t said he wants it back, but a couple of years ago he sent me a link to a Reverb listing for a Funny Cat at an exorbitant price. I’m not sure if that meant he wanted to cash in, or if he was trying to point out how generous he was…

Edit: I’m only getting rid of the distortion pedal, because the Spark and the FF make the Funny Cat even better!

 

[Fretting out]

Seems like ...
you need a bigger board

so everyone can get along

Yes!

Make it big enough that you can fit em all on!

I made a board that fits 20 pedals or so, although I usually only use the bottom six, swapping in and out from time to time

Of course it’s not very portable

 

[Dan German]

While I’m here, I should describe why I want to keep the Funny Cat. If I could post a sound clip, I would (despite how dire my playing is), but in lieu of that, I will attempt to put it in words. The distortion side of the Funny Cat is called “Soft Distortion Sustainer.” That’s not a bad way to put it. It’s a bit fuzzy, but not fuzz, and definitely sustains. If driven too hard, it has a nasty fizziness, but careful knob-twiddling can avoid that. Done right, it is a squishy, splatty kind of distortion. More to my taste than the tight, screaming distortion so often done in pedals. It helps that I’m not hunting the tone of someone in particular, just trying to find the right tone for me.

Yes!

Make it big enough that you can fit em all on!

I made a board that fits a little over 20 pedals, although I usually only use the bottom six, swapping in and out from time to time

Of course it’s not very portable

Portability is important to me. *leaves house with guitar and amp twice a year tops*

Also, as mentioned, I worry about the age of the poor old thing.

 

[turftone]

Roland AG-5 Funny Cat. Unless your ex-wife is vintage and Japanese, there is no resemblance. Or unless your wife has a weird, distorted voice.

So a pedal that sounds like Yoko?

 

[Dan German]

So a pedal that sounds like Yoko?

Don’t worry, Kyoko, I’m only looking for my patch cable in the snow…

 

[Killing Floor]

Keep the Cat if you love it.

FYI several builders have a pretty great secret business in vintage pedal restoration if it ever fails.
Wren & Cuff and Analog Man, for example.

And pics?

 

[bluesholyman]

It’s a bit fuzzy, but not fuzz, and definitely sustains. If driven too hard, it has a nasty fizziness, but careful knob-twiddling can avoid that. Done right, it is a squishy, splatty kind of distortion. More to my taste than the tight, screaming distortion so often done in pedals. It helps that I’m not hunting the tone of someone in particular, just trying to find the right tone for me.

This sort of thing is so subjective, but have you tried a Way Huge Fat Sandwich as a possible alternative? It can be a bit twiddly, as it has no less than 8 knobs to adjust (5 on top, 3 pots on the board) but those 8 knobs let you get quite a range of sounds, and possibly one similar to the funny cat. As an FYI, the "curve" and "drive" internal pots seem to make the biggest difference in how it behaves overall.

 

[Obsessed]

Very difficult to dig yourself out of a distortion rabbit hole. You’ve gotta dig at least part way up before you can see the light.

Good luck.

 

[drmordo]

The SDS schem looks pretty straightforward. I bet someone will build one for you. You might try compression into a very light overdrive, I think that is conceptually what the SDS does, though technically it uses comp into a booster. I need to check out some YT clips.

If I was you I might buy this one, though it is coming from Japan...


https://reverb.com/item/45253570-roland-ag-5-funny-cat-usedhttps://reverb.com/item/45253570-roland-ag-5-funny-cat-used

 

[Jupiter]

This 40+ year old pedal won’t last forever.

Why not? Are you gonna use up the mojo? You can replace switches if you need to...

If I were you I'd just buy couple more of those same pedals.

 

[Dan German]

Keep the Cat if you love it.

FYI several builders have a pretty great secret business in vintage pedal restoration if it ever fails.
Wren & Cuff and Analog Man, for example.

And pics?

Oh, it’s not going anywhere. Good tip about the pedal repair, though, thanks. That’s probably the best plan, should things go south.

This sort of thing is so subjective, but have you tried a Way Huge Fat Sandwich as a possible alternative? It can be a bit twiddly, as it has no less than 8 knobs to adjust (5 on top, 3 pots on the board) but those 8 knobs let you get quite a range of sounds, and possibly one similar to the funny cat. As an FYI, the "curve" and "drive" internal pots seem to make the biggest difference in how it behaves overall.

Never tried that one, but dang, it’s almost as much as just buying a spare Funny Cat.

The SDS schem looks pretty straightforward. I bet someone will build one for you. You might try compression into a very light overdrive, I think that is conceptually what the SDS does, though technically it uses comp into a booster. I need to check out some YT clips.

If I was you I might buy this one, though it is coming from Japan...


https://reverb.com/item/45253570-roland-ag-5-funny-cat-usedhttps://reverb.com/item/45253570-roland-ag-5-funny-cat-used

*silly French voice* “I told dem I already got one. Now go away, or I shall taunt you a second time!”

 

[Dan German]

Why not? Are you gonna use up the mojo? You can replace switches if you need to...

If I were you I'd just buy couple more of those same pedals.

Yeah, I need to stop worrying about it. I’m probably only going to be playing another 20 years or so, anyway. And no, I can’t afford a couple more of them.

 

[J. Bonkosky]

@Dan German PM me I can put one together for you.

 

[JL_LI]

Is "Funny Cat" code for something? Like my ex-wife's ... never mind.

“Funny Cat” sounds like a Russian hackers group. No one is safe.

 

[Killing Floor]

Feline pedal names are fun.