Lizard Queen ehx - jhs

[edkoppel]

It sounds good.

I think sometimes we can decide we dislike a person or brand and then we have to find a reason to hate everything they do because of this.

I'll be honest though, over the last couple of years I've gotten to know both Daniel (who does post here) and Josh, and they're both good dudes, and just as obsessed with digging and finding vintage pedals as the rest of us.

The behind the scenes work they put in to unlocking bits of pedal history is a benefit to everyone in here, as that same passion was the core of this forum for years. *see Graham's book-long posts.

So we can nitpick and talk about things like switches, or maybe we could just applaud two fellow pedal nerds for making something happen that wouldn't have otherwise.

Do whatever you like, but just know that sometimes people aren't as bad as you've been lead to believe.

[squarewave]

Well said sir

[phidias]

It sounds good.

I think sometimes we can decide we dislike a person or brand and then we have to find a reason to hate everything they do because of this.

I'll be honest though, over the last couple of years I've gotten to know both Daniel (who does post here) and Josh, and they're both good dudes, and just as obsessed with digging and finding vintage pedals as the rest of us.

The behind the scenes work they put in to unlocking bits of pedal history is a benefit to everyone in here, as that same passion was the core of this forum for years. *see Graham's book-long posts.

So we can nitpick and talk about things like switches, or maybe we could just applaud two fellow pedal nerds for making something happen that wouldn't have otherwise.

Do whatever you like, but just know that sometimes people aren't as bad as you've been lead to believe.

THIS!

[Dr Tony Balls]

So we can nitpick and talk about things like switches, or maybe we could just applaud two fellow pedal nerds for making something happen that wouldn't have otherwise.

Its about HOW you do it though. This circuit is the combination of two very well known DIY circuits that have been around the community for ~20 years. Now there is NOTHING wrong with standing on the shoulders of giants. The fact that we are all on this forum should support that. However, this is not what i would call being a good dude about it:



I've never met Josh and while he may come off as a good dude in certain contexts, in this one he's a smarmy-ass, full of himself liar.

[devnulljp]

jhs? Hard pass.

in this one he's a smarmy-ass, full of himself liar.

That's his standard MO. He's been doing this for years.

[edkoppel]

Now I'm being sincere here, with how simple those circuits are, are you saying that A. They're not derivative of anything prior? and B. A builder could never just stumble across a single stage fuzz with like 5 parts?

I know very little about electronics, so I'm genuinely curious about this.

And I don't know the answer to this, but let's say you and FSB are correct that he simply combined two existing circuit designs, modified them and created this pedal; has that been done before in this way? Or are there like 20 other pedals floating around out there that are literally the lizard queen design?

[Dr Tony Balls]

Now I'm being sincere here, with how simple those circuits are, are you saying that A. They're not derivative of anything prior? and B. A builder could never just stumble across a single stage fuzz with like 5 parts?

The two constituent parts here are two circuits which have been put into series not dissimilar from putting a rangemaster in front of a fuzz face. Each one is pretty dang unique and not very similar to other prior circuits. A builder could of course stumble across a unique fuzz but I'd bet my 401K that Josh Smith has heard of these circuits before and nothing was stumbled upon.

And I don't know the answer to this, but let's say you and FSB are correct that he simply combined two existing circuit designs, modified them and created this pedal; has that been done before in this way? Or are there like 20 other pedals floating around out there that are literally the lizard queen design?

Yes it has been done before in that way, however to my knowledge it wasnt done before 7 months ago (or at least not publicly acknowledged). So there's a possibility that JHS didnt rip off the idea of combining them. However, assembling constituent parts and saying its original, unique, or that you designed it without giving credence to the people that actually did is HORSESHIT, imo.

[walkingtiger]

While casting shade on others is a total bummer, sometimes people’s actions are a total bummer. JHS is gentrifying a sub culture and knowingly pushing it into the mainstream to make a heavy profit. Business men have done this in every counter culture, and it usually destroys the original spirit and creativity. It’s happened in Rock N Roll, Punk, Skateboarding, Surfing, etc.

I don’t want to spew any negative energy into the world, but it’s understandable why JHS leaves a bad taste in peoples’ mouth. Most of the people that are turned off were involved in the pedal world far before Josh became an online influencer.

[edkoppel]

It's all good. I'm not really trying to change anybody's minds here. Just letting you know my experience with the guy has been a good one.

I appreciate anyone who is genuinely into the nerdy side of pedal collecting.

And to his credit, he's never hit me up for gut pics of any super rare pedals that I own (so he can make a clone and sell it). Which i can't say is the case for some people in here and 90% of people on FSB any time I've posted something.
I've actually been shit-talked for not freely giving out enough detailed gut shots, or photos of the trace side, or component side, etc. Just so someone can build a clone and start selling it for a profit.
So I can see the irony of all this from that perspective too.

But it's all good. Keep doing your thing and maybe just let other people do their thing, if you feel like it.

[Nick]

JHS is gentrifying a sub culture and knowingly pushing it into the mainstream to make a heavy profit. Business men have done this in every counter culture, and it usually destroys the original spirit and creativity. It’s happened in Rock N Roll, Punk, Skateboarding, Surfing, etc.

Stompboxes have been big business for as long as I've been playing guitar. Are we perhaps a little more sensitive here because the Lizard Queen is exactly the sort of fuzz pedal that our community would ordinarily love? I like seeing such a massive interest in terrible-sounding, vintage-style fuzz pedals where the masses are typically more interested in Klons and delay pedals etc, and it doesn't bother me if this comes from an 'influencer'. The JHS community is also pretty separate from our small circles here, so it's not like you'll be competing with them for the pedals that you actually want.

BTW, did anyone else also get their pedalboard on 2020's Animal Crossing: New Horizons? That was the point when I realised how mainstream these things really are