Guyatone Micro Series Quality?

[GlobalCooling]

Hi guys,

I was thinking about getting a Guyatone MD-3 for simple digital delay stuff. I like the sound quality, but can anyone speak for its build quality? I've read reviews saying the bottom rubber part is crap and it's noisy.

Thanks!

 

[Craise]

I've owned 4-5 of the them. I've never noticed them being noisy.
Rubber part is kinda weird, but it's just for keeping the bottom on and only taken off when you change batteries. So not a big deal really.
MD-3 Delay is one of the best pedals from that series imho...also the Phaser, Auto Wah and Tuner.

 

[GlobalCooling]

I've owned 4-5 of the them. I've never noticed them being noisy.
Rubber part is kinda weird, but it's just for keeping the bottom on and only taken off when you change batteries. So not a big deal really.
MD-3 Delay is one of the best pedals from that series imho...also the Phaser, Auto Wah and Tuner.

Have you owned 4-5 of them because they broke?...

 

[Bobby D]

very good pedals, but that little rubber ring on the bottom is a PITA....

Mighty micro series is MUCH better constructed....

 

[Blix]

I have the MD3 delay, the design is horrible, but the audio quality is excellent!
And the dry signal stays analog, no tone-sucking a/d/a conversion of it.

 

[GlobalCooling]

Can someone explain this rubber bottom to me?...

Is this durable or will it break after a while?

 

[Craise]

Have you owned 4-5 of them because they broke?...

No different ones...
I had a mini board of them! ;-) Tuner, Phaser, Auto Wah, Delay and flanger (plus my BJF ods) Didn't care for the Micro Ods
Like Bobby said...the mighty micros look like a step up...but they are more expensive.
Nice thing about the older ones is they can be had for low $. I've seen even the delay for $50 or $60 bucks.
Mighty micros are $150-$199ish...and I haven't really seen any around used...would like to try one tho.
Haven't had a problem with the rubber myself. It's a rubber square "O ring" type of thing...that goes around the bottom to hold the bottom plate on.
After they are wired up to the power pedal...never really took the bottoms off...since it's just to get to the battery compartment.

 

[dhdfoster]

I have the MD3 delay, the design is horrible, but the audio quality is excellent!
And the dry signal stays analog, no tone-sucking a/d/a conversion of it.

I never new this. I have the micro-delay and always assumed there is a/d conversion of the whole signa. It does sound very good, but I agree that the rubber is a pain. I can never get it to fit back together with a battery in it either.

 

[GlobalCooling]

Thanks for all the answers. I'll be using a PP2, so the rubber doesn't bother me. I just want to know now if it's built to last or if it will break down.

 

[Bobby D]

the Mighty Micros are awesome.

i used several of the earlier Micro pedals when i was touring USA and Europe. they never failed me once.....but it's a pain to put in a battery and get that rubber ring back on the bottom.

i am currently building a very small "fly board" for Brian Stoltz, the guitarist that i "tech" for -- and am using the Godlyke POWERALL supply, and quite a few of the Mighty Micro series pedals, so he can have a board that will easily fit in the overhead on the airplane.

When I get that board finished, I will probably film some demos of it.....

 

[Thames]

I have a MD-2, which is supposed to be better than the MD-3 (dont ask me!) .... 6 years now, bought used, works perfectly.

I use it with my Theremin to get some weird oscillation sounds.

 

[Blix]

I never new this. I have the micro-delay and always assumed there is a/d conversion of the whole signa. It does sound very good, but I agree that the rubber is a pain. I can never get it to fit back together with a battery in it either.

I sent Guyatone an email earlier this summer and got this answer:

"From Guyatone Japan -

We understood your inquiry.
These delay circuits do not convert a dry signal to a digital signal.
It is mix with a digital delay signal and the analog dry signal.

If there is a further question about this matter, please let us know...."

Love this little thing, I actually loaned a Eventide Timefactor for a gig, and never got it to sit as nicely in the mix as my MD3 does.

 

[Evitucci]

MD-3 is a Great pedal I really need to get another one mine was stolen, sound is amazing rubber gasket is a Pain in the arse.

 

[Mac-P]

i am currently building a very small "fly board" for Brian Stoltz, the guitarist that i "tech" for

Brian is the man! Love the funky Meters, etc, have seen him with Anders Osborne and lotsa NOLA folks. Amazing player. The man has the funk

I was thinking about getting a Guyatone MD-3 for simple digital delay stuff. I like the sound quality, but can anyone speak for its build quality? I've read reviews saying the bottom rubber part is crap and it's noisy.

I've used a Guyatone SV2 Slow Volume for years (the kind with the rubber ring). The build is excellent. It survived touring, gigs etc with ease. No problems whatsoever. The only tricky thing is since the rubber ring protrudes around the perimeter on the bottom of the pedal it makes it a bit hard for velcro to reach velcro unless you actually put the velcro "on" the ring - which is no problem actually, just saying. Taking the ring on & off the few times I did was simple, but I use AC power so I never really have to. Regarding longevity of the ring: no one knows how different recipes of rubber last over decades, so how that ring lasts is anybody's guess. But for now, those Micro pedals are TINY & super super convenient. Sound quality is fantastic.

The only thing I truly dislike is that they are not true bypass. I recently became aware that if I placed the SV2 before my fuzzes (or to a lesser degree, overdrive) it makes them noticeably brighter. In the fuzz case, annoyingly so (I was wondering why it was brighter on my board). Boo. I tried the new five knob SVm5 Slow Volume (the newer true bypass "Mighty Micro" series), and i did not like it one bit. The bypassed signal is much better (no surprise), but the effect itself is weak. Really weak. Not even in the same category as the older pedal. More control, and yet I couldn't get my favorite sound out of it. Boo. Ironically there is much better sound quality (to my ears) from the older, simpler, two knob, non-true bypass, rubber ring, little guy. Currently looking into whether Analog Mike can make it true bypass.

 

[muffinman]

I also have the SV-2 and if you open it up the circuit is quality stuff, basically a near-match to the Slow Gear pedal. The buffer itself sounds great but I totally see why some would not want it. I solve that problem in my use by putting the SV-2 after dynamic dirt pedals which is where I seem to like have envelope-controlled volume anyway (!). Overall I think the SV-2 sounds and works fantastic, loads of fun. Yeah it's in my spam thread but I'm thinking of yanking it as it's just too much fun for so little coin.

 

[Terry Hayes]

The Guyatones sound great. I have an MD-2 and an MD-3 - both of which I used for many years.

Unfortunately, they both developed issues where the signal would cut out. If I would tap on the housing it would crackle and the signal would come in and out.

I have not inquired about how much it would cost to fix them. And, I can't comment if this was due to the way they are built. It could have been a fluke since they seem to be made pretty well. The housing is all metal and seems like it would withstand quite a bit of abuse.

 

[GlobalCooling]

Thanks a ton for all the responses. One last question: I read in a bitter review that when you bypass the MD-3 in the middle of a delay, the next time you turn it on, it will play the rest of the feedback from what you were playing before. Is this true?...

 

[Blix]

Thanks a ton for all the responses. One last question: I read in a bitter review that when you bypass the MD-3 in the middle of a delay, the next time you turn it on, it will play the rest of the feedback from what you were playing before. Is this true?...

Nope.

 

[dhdfoster]

Thanks a ton for all the responses. One last question: I read in a bitter review that when you bypass the MD-3 in the middle of a delay, the next time you turn it on, it will play the rest of the feedback from what you were playing before. Is this true?...

I haven't noticed that, but I actually think that would be pretty cool. Hit a note, turn off the delay, wait a few seconds, raise hand in air Jimmy Page style and turn it on again.

 

[Blix]

Just for fun, I recorded a little quick clip using my MD3. Out of tune and clipping though, still fun!

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_songInfo.cfm?bandID=769004&songID=9650860

On the verge of oscillating. Love it.