The Watering Hole

BJFe version vs Mad Professor (licensed version).
Note that even though Mad Professor builds their Honey Bee on a license from BJFe, it sounds way different.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxpAMQGCeoc

Here's a comparison between the Bearfoot (also BJFe licensed) and the BJFe version: I think the differences in these builds are more subtle.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUlz4jXgTn4

Note that I can build any/all of these.

I think I like the BJFe version better than the Bearfoot version.

I prefer the Mad Professor over the originals, though it's a pretty different pedal.

word at TGP is, that the real one (BJFE) is the best.  I've read more than one review of a guy who has had both BJFE and Mad Prof versions at the same time to compare, and swears that the BJFE is better.  Some say its really close, but others say the difference is the MP is a great pedal but the BJFE has the magic that makes it one of the all time best pedals.  

I wonder if they hear better because they paid more, but, I've rarely heard anyone say they couldn't tell the difference and rarely does someone prefer the MP over the BJFE.  

I haven't played either, although GC now carries the MP line, so I'm just saying what I've read.  One of the guys who said the Honey Bee was one of the greatest ever and the BJFE was not at that level is a guy I know pretty well and talk to often.  He leaves his BJFE at home and takes his MP to gigs.  He said with the BJFE being worth up to $450 or more he's worried about someone stealing it at a gig.  I trust his ear and opinion.  He says the BJFE is an all time classic great pedal that just has something others don't.  

I haven't read much on the Bearfoot stuff but most of it has been good.  What I have read, is that they are exact BJFE's copies, but made here by the one famous pedal dude whose name escapes me...    Donner!  That's who builds them here in the USA.  

YMMV

Well, it's interesting that people are paying $450 for a pedal that's got $25 in parts in it.  Proves that people are insane.  Bearfoot licenses the pedal and builds it in the US to save shipping and import taxes I believe... it's still $222 which is a ludicrous price.  Maybe those LEDs they use for clipping are made of solid gold.  Anyway, I hear the BJFE sounds slightly better than the Bearfoot, and there are some circuit differences, so that makes sense.  The Mad Professor sounds like a more wicked pedal to me, but in some sense with that much gain, it's similar to a lot of other pedals.  I've got all the parts to build both (or all three)... About $25 to build that I think.  I'll definitely sell you one for an inflated price once I've built it!

BTW did you listen to the clips?  It's close between the bjfe and bearfoot, not so close that it's "monster cable" BS, they definitely sound different, but it's a bit hard to pick one over the other.  They're really very close to the same.

I wasn't justifying price or anything, was just talking about sound.  I'm aware of the "parts cost" to build any of these.  I also know that many claim that R+D is MOST of their expense, not the parts.  Also, many claim that they spend hours obsessing over box vs. film vs. ceramic etc. etc. and each part is evaluated separately for what type and value sound the best.  

I can tell you from experience that parts make a difference.  I have an EXACT value clone OCD that doesn't sound like my Fulltone.  There are different types of caps and resistors, and the pedals sounds different.  I'm not talking minute differences that would be explainable by cap tolerances or even the bigger ones that can happen with 20% tolerance pots.  The character of one OCD I built is different.  Good, but not the same.  Not as open.  More compressed.  My two SHO clones were not identical either.  One was significantly louder even thought the mosfet measured out the same.  I figure pot variance on that one, but wow was it louder.  One as as loud at 11:00 as the other was a 1:30     Built two screamers with identical VALUE parts but different types of caps in different places per some reading about lovepedal and using tants and ceramics in certain spots because they "sounded" better.  That screamer was different in tone.  Noticeably.  

One of the things you ALWAYS run into on clones is just that.  Those guys spent hours and hours determining the best sounding part in each spot in many cases.  We get the VALUE and put in whatever we have in most cases.  It won't sound identical...    

ymmv.  

p.s.  That is from experience. I've probably bought 30 or more pedals on the BYOC forum.  Clones of all kinds of things.  Many times I'd by a clone of something I had.  If it was as good, I'd sell the original and keep the clone.  I tried all kinds of things.  I can honestly tell you, most are close, some aren't, but RARELY do you get one identical to a top flight pedal.  UNLESS you really copy every part exactly, not just the values.  IMHO

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2vs0K2G8VU&feature=player_embedded#!

This thing sounds GREAT!

MP sounds  really good in that demo.  BJFE sounds great!  

Now on to watch the second one...

DreamTheaterRules — Sep 18, 2012I wasn't justifying price or anything, was just talking about sound.  I'm aware of the "parts cost" to build any of these.  I also know that many claim that R+D is MOST of their expense, not the parts.  Also, many claim that they spend hours obsessing over box vs. film vs. ceramic etc. etc. and each part is evaluated separately for what type and value sound the best.  

I can tell you from experience that parts make a difference.  I have an EXACT value clone OCD that doesn't sound like my Fulltone.  There are different types of caps and resistors, and the pedals sounds different.  I'm not talking minute differences that would be explainable by cap tolerances or even the bigger ones that can happen with 20% tolerance pots.  The character of one OCD I built is different.  Good, but not the same.  Not as open.  More compressed.  My two SHO clones were not identical either.  One was significantly louder even thought the mosfet measured out the same.  I figure pot variance on that one, but wow was it louder.  One as as loud at 11:00 as the other was a 1:30     Built two screamers with identical VALUE parts but different types of caps in different places per some reading about lovepedal and using tants and ceramics in certain spots because they "sounded" better.  That screamer was different in tone.  Noticeably.  

One of the things you ALWAYS run into on clones is just that.  Those guys spent hours and hours determining the best sounding part in each spot in many cases.  We get the VALUE and put in whatever we have in most cases.  It won't sound identical...    

ymmv.  

But you know what? All of the Zvex SHOs sound different too.  Many people can attest to trying a bunch until they found the right one.
It's pretty simple, say all of your 5% resistors measure at the low end of the scale in one build, and all of them measure at the high end in another... film caps are standard 10% variance... electrolytics, 20%.  I like to use tantalums for their accuracy, but sometimes the effect sounds "worse" with more accurate parts.  Sometimes the effect is designed to have a lot of swing in it.  Sometimes the builder just uses what he has on hand... for example, one builder uses 1n4006 diodes for polarity protection, instead of 1n4001. The 4001 is rated for up to 35v, as much as any pedal will ever handle.  The 4006 a whopping 560v!  But odds are he scored a massive pile for cheap, so he just uses them.  

I can tell you that my Sobbat clone sounds nearly identical to the real effect, the only real difference being the pot positions (and standard pots have a 20% variance and are crude at best) and how I screwed on the knobs relative to the real effect.

I seem to remember something about a band recording with the SHO where it died and the guitar tech opened it up and found a replacement BS170 taped inside "as if they knew it was going to happen.  When they stuck the spare in there it sounded way different and they were tripping because they were part way through their album or something.... When they called Mr. Vex he said something like, "Yeah, they'll all sound different."  Was in the pedal movie "Fuzz", I believe...

heh heh