Neil Alex™ Journal

The prototype has been accomplished

Pagkauwi ko ng bahay, nagpuyat ako para tapusin ang DIY project ko, na recently ko lang tinuloy. And heto, natapos ko na rin ang prototype triple momentary switch para sa G2.1u ko.

Picture of the prototype.

The innards...

And now my G2.1u is stuffed with switches.

[EDIT] Kabibili kolang ng 8-pin connector sa DEECO, so methinks na kung lalagyan ko na kaya siya ng LEDs... Mwahahaha!

'Ika nga, "I got stinky, I got dirty... But you see... I learned"...

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Pasasalamat lang sa mga PM forumites

Gusto ko lang magpasalamat sa mga nag-reply sa thread na 'to (actually, a duplicate post), and shared their opinions. Kahit papaano may sense ang naging posts compared sa kabilang thread, na puro gay-ass clones and trolls.

Ano'ng meron sa loob ng G2.1u hmmm?

Spent the day at home, practicin' with my 2 mistresses all day, while texting with friends with my Smart SIM (heheh). Also had some beautiful sleep as well.

Kinagabihan, sinipag akong mag-setup ng mixer sa tabi ng PC ko, sa layuning makapag-record ng mga compo sa mga darating na araw (maybe after my finals, hehe). After some soldering (in-extend ko yung saksakan para maabot yung transformer namin) and a couple of softwares installed, sinubukan kong gamitin si mixer via line inng sound card. Ang resulta: unnecesarily fuzzy clean tone; easily overloading tracks... Then after a few hours, sumuko na ako at tinanggap ang katotohanang bulok ang aking sound card. T___T

Then naisip kong gamitin ang aking G2.1u, at mag-record via USB interface... At dahil may built-in siyang Extra EQ na may cabinet mic simulations, nakapag-record ako ng matino sa Cakewalk, so yay! At heto, nakapag-record lang ako ng short crappy demo ng The Weapon...

Along with that, I enjoyed playin' with a couple of softwares: Native Instruments Guitar Rig 2.0.2 (lotsa guitar gear, from amps to stomps to rack mounts!); and Ampeg SVX 1.1.1 (amp simulator, with stomp boxes)! But due to the crappy sound card, latency issues spoiled the fun. Bleh.

Anyways, I hafta upgrade my recording software soon... ***coughsINEEDSONAR6coughsagain***

(Side-note: Finally I was able to keep in touch with Rainey, after some days, so yay...! ^___^; She's been pretty busy lately...)

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Muling pagbisita sa PIMP Hive~

Tuesday. Panay kalikot mode lang ako buong umaga; then I posted sa isang thread sa PhilMusic, telling pedal mod master BAMF na balak kong dumaan sa place nila. Tinamad din akong magpunta ng school, dahil busy nga ako sa bahay. Around 3pm na akong umalis. Tapos nag-food trip kaunti sa Susano... (Check previous entry.)

Dumaan muna ng Quiapo, to buy some stuffs sa Quiapo -- I discovered then na lumipat na pala 'yung shop na pinagbibilhan ko ng LED's~ (nasa Divisoria na daw sila. T___T) Then afterwards, naisip kong dumaan na sa PIMP (medyo nag-dalawang isip pa nga ako...)

Pagdating doon, muli kong nakita ang mga familiar forumites, and agad kong tinesting ang fully-evolved HM100 doon; plus I had the chance to test much more pedals na nakatambak doon...

Top - L to R: Boss DS-1, Behringer CS100, Boss DD-3, Boss MT-2
Bottom - L to R: Boston CS200, my Boston HM100, Boss CE-3, modded HM100, Boston DS100

(Pinaka-surprised ako sa Boston CS200 -- ampotek, transparent! Hubad na hubad!)

Ayun, I decided na ipa-mod ko na ang dinala kong HM100 (na dinala ko). Actually, dala ko rin 'yung BAKEMONOed DS-1; at dahil sa nabasa ko sa forums about 'shunt-scalarization' sa pedals, pina-ganon ko siya, with an organicore scalarizer. Ang resulta: DAKEL TI TONO! Sabi nga ni BAMF, parang "Cabinet-in-a-Box" na sa laki ng tunog! Lahat kami nagulat eh. Now it's an ORGANIC-BAKEMONO mod! :D

Lastly, I asked him an offer -- kung maaari kong i-trade 'yung XT-2 ko for another pedal of his -- eventually napapayag ko, dahil I sent him the schematics pagkauwi ko... At yun nga, around 12 midnight na akong nakauwi, kaka-test drive ng mga pedals! Sarap eh!

Wednesday. After magbisi-bisihan (ulit) sa bahay, dumerecho na uli ako ng PIMP -- dala-dala ko na 'yung XT-2 ko, and my Arion SDI-1 (for another modification); 'shunt-scalarization' ulit, this time with a metalcore scalarizer, for the mid punch twang... Ang resulta: Strat-twang-in-a-box na siya! Bale gamit ko 'yung RJ Telecaster copy niya, and nagtunog-Strat!! Better than that previous 'vintage ngongo' bite... Now, it's a METAL-BASS-SUSHI mod! :D

My BOSS DF-2 and Arion SDI-1.

Oh, nandiyan sa pic 'yung newly-acquired pedal, na relic na ang itsura -- the BOSS DF-2 SUPER Feedbacker & Distortion. Basically, similar daw sia sa DS-1, pero may dagdag na 'overtone' feature (na tunog-"helicopter", maybe nauso daw nung 70's)... Modded na rin siya, pero BAMF suited it for punk purposes, kaya may harshness pa siya. Pero I checked the innards -- may scalarizer doon (dunno kung series, or shunt...) Basta, balak ko pa siyang ipa-mod... And papalitan ko rin ang scratchy pots niya.

Then pinakain pa ako ni BAMF ng super anghang na soup (w00t, thanks sa treat)~! And late ulit akong nakaalis ng PIMP hive~ (around 11pm!) Antok na akong nakauwi ng 1am ng madaling araw, sobrang naaliw ulit sa mga pedal... XD XD XD

Thursday. Heto ang day na hinintay ko si BAMF sa PIMP Hive, pero hindi siya nakarating (or umalis ako agad?) Bale dumaan ako agad doon arounmd 5pm, pero wala pa daw siya; so naisipan kong dumaan sa Frisco, may binili kaunti sa isang shop doon, then nag-food trip sa palengke. Pagbalik, naghintay ako until 8pm, pero hindi nga siya dumating. Dala ko pa naman 'yung DF-2 chaka yung G2.1u ko, for guinea-pig testing. :p Ayun, napauwi na lang ako ng di-oras.

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Yeeey, enrolled na naman ako!

Friday. Decided na umalis ng umaga, at inasikaso ko na 'yung enrollment ko! (NGAR! ) Napadaan munang SM Fairview, for a short food trip... (Check previous entry ulit.) Dahil late enrollee ako, derecho ako agad sa CE (Civil Eng'g) Department at doon ako nagpa-enlist ng subjects; beforehand, I looked up for my grades sa Registrar -- damn, sumablay pa ako sa isa; tapos incomplete 'yung 2 subjects. T___T

So ayun, bale 10 units lang ako ngayon, dahil sa budget constraints, and offered subjects. Mabilis kong nakuha ang assessment, and sinubukan kong asikasuhin agad 'yung 2 incomplete grades, na pawang MPS (Mathematics & Physical Sciences) Department...Then nalaman kong nag-resign pala 'yung prof namin sa EBAMENG! Buti na lang at sa secretary ng MPS lang pala ang lalapitan for those matters; pero sa huli, she asked for my finals permit nung previous trimester; so ayun, sa pagpasok sa school ko na maaayus ang grades ko, na pawang pasado naman, yehey!

Mabilis din akong nakabayad, dahil sakto lang sa available kong money na dala ko. Then mingled onti sa labas (chat with Nash) bago umalis. Then dumaan ako sa place ng Ate ko, for some matters (ulit). whew, enrolled na ako sa wakas...

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Encrypted Part

( Skip this part. Wala kayong mapapala dito )

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Party Leftovers

Sunday. Dumaan ako kila Jun, for that post-birthday-ng-utol-niya na pagbisita ko -- ayun, bangag ang daddy; paano, magdamag pala silang nag-videoke nila nina Tan and Luciel doon!

(FYI: Supposedly, kumpletong Rtschrck cast sana ang pupunta sa party nung Saturday night, pero 'di pwede si einehell as expected, at naiwan ako sa bahay at hindi makaalis.)

Pinakain nila ako ng natirang handa from previous night -- some spaghetti, manok at pancit... Then afterwards, sinagad na namin ni Jun ang pagvi-videoke, at hinandaan pa ako ng 1 bote ng beer ('yung natira din). Birit hits kami maghapon! Wenk, umulan pa ng malakas dahil sa pagkanta ko ng Always Somewhere... At hanggang ngayon namamaos ang boses ko, dahil ba naman sa mataas na backup voice doon sa Alone. Wahahaha...

Around 5pm na ako nakauwi, medyo groogy kaya't nakatulog ako agad kanina. Nagising din past 9pm, at heto, magdamag online, nyehehe...

Kauuwi ko lang galing band practice ng Nana Shi kanina sa Gig Studio. Grabeeee, I'm really really drained out. So lemme recap ng mga nangyari sa 'kin buong araw...

Arrived at Gig Studio around 5:30 ng hapon, at kasunod lang na dumating si mike5150. Maaga na kami nagset-up, then after about 30 minues dumating along with kr_inuki sina takumii and musicdude13 -- galing pa sila sa kanilang band practice sa bahay nila, kasama si hidetoslave. Pinaka-huling nakarating si neitaro -- galing pa kasi siya ng office; ayun nag-extend na rin kami ng isa pang oras, at ayun mas maigi naming na-practice 'yung mga pondo...

And whoa, dala na niya ang gitara niyang si Totchi, way from Olongapo!

Okay, features niya: plywood body, not-sure cheap wood na neck & fretboard (24 frets, medium sized ata), two humbuckers, 2 pairs of toggles and knobs (volume & tone), a floating bridge na may missing bridge saddle, and hindi ko siya mapatunog (dahil sa faulty wiring niya.)

Back to practice blues: Haay, I was kinda disappointed sa timpla ng distortion sa Zoom G2.1u ko -- minsan very matalas talaga pakinggan; sabagay digital nga naman kasi. Iba parin talaga ang tunog ng SDI-1 + DS-1 (as booster) combination. Balak ko nang mag-lug ng maraming pedals para maka-siguro. Mahirap na... T___T

After practice, kasunod pala namin ang X Versus Zero band; then maya-maya dumating naman si Ron (of Dojibiron/Free Beer), at may practice din sila ng new band niya. Then, nanlibre si neitaro ng pizza sa nearby kainan/store habang tumatambay sa labas.

A few minutes after, dumating bigla si yocia_euphie~ Nanggaling pa daw siya ng Ortigas, at may practice din sila ng band niya later evening. Maya-maya nauna nang umuwi sina mike5150, musicdude13 and neitaro. So ayun, masaya ako't nagkaroon ng chance, pati time na rin makapag-kwentuhan w/ her. I hope na malaki ang maitutulong nung scalarizer keychain na naibigay ko sa kanya. ^___^v

Then tambay ng matagal kasama ang buong Himitsu Heiki gang, and they were having some talk over band matters. Had a short glance w/ a couple of high-end Ibanez axes (RG series) courtesy of Ron and his bandmate. Nakaka-drool as in. O___O; Then kasabay kong umuwi sina takumii and pedz.

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Maraming ka-random-an

»» Finally fixed my mini-amplifier kaninang umaga, yay~ Days ago, nasira kasi 'yung DC jack niya, and some copper (tama ba) was stripped off sa maliit na PCB na pinaglalagyan nun. So I only relied on 9V batteries, which really sucks... Pinalitan lang ng panibagong DC jack, and made direct connections paralleled to the battery cap as well (para sigurado talaga), so ayun napagana ko rin! :D

Maybe next week 'yung stereo jack output naman ang papalitan ko (matagal na kasi sira yun) -- and I badly need that "panghigop ng tingga". XD

»» Oh, I remembered -- nung nag-practice kami Do'ahou nung Wednesday, we were informed na may dagdag-bayad na sa Millennium Studios sa mga drummer na gagamit ng double pedals; and 20 pesos kada oras ang singil. Grabe noh, sila lang ang may ganun -- very pointless, at marami ang tutol (lalo na si the_pink_star) -- tiyak mawawalang sila ng mga suki... Kayo, 'di rin ba papayag sa ganun?

»» Friend ng friend pala ni yocia_euphie si Rachelle Ann Go. La lang, small world!

»» Pinsan pala ni Ludz (bf ni Jhona) 'yung vocalist ng Sacramento (which is ka-org ko sa S.O.N. ang gitarista nilang si Jayvee). Small world na naman!

»» Nung napansin kong floating bridge equipped itong si Totchi, agad kong hinanap yung DAME-fit strat-type tremolo bar... Akalain ko ba namang nagkasya sila sa isa't isa. :D

Now I'm wondering how can I turn this very lightweight, cheap-wooded axe into a monster-sounding string machine... Tadtaran ko kaya ng scalarizers. XD

»» Things I need to accomplish before heading to my bed and fall into sleep:

• Memorize a couple of songs' lyrics~ (yeah, cramming nga naman!)
• Pupuliduhin pa 'yung adlib ng Love Somebody -- as in magdamag kong papraktisin 'yung part na 'yun. Olats talaga ako pagdating sa guitar solos. =(
• Experiment set-up ng stompboxes na gagamitin mamaya. Gahh, magdamag na timplahan 'to...
• Burn ng data CD (ulit)
• Write something important... (ah basta, sikreto na yun.)

Looks like I won't be able to sleep magdamag ng madaling araw.

[EDIT] Mangongodigo na lang ako mamaya ng lyrics. XD XD~ By the way, heto ang plano kong pedal setup mamaya~ (whew, buti kasya sa tote bag ko lahat, at ayokong magbitbit ng malaking gym bag!)

»» Kita kits na lang po tayo mamaya sa My First gig ha! Marami pa akong ticket dito, so sa mga gustong pumunta, sa akin kayo lumapit! XD

( Event Schedule )

Goodluck din po sa mga bands na magpeperform mamaya~

Happenings kagabi

After malling sa SM North, dumaan ako sa house ng ate ko, to give her kambals my gift (kahit maliit lang hehe); at pati ako me regalo rin pala. Then had some minor talk w/ her, regarding family issues. Holiday season na nga, nagkaka-problema pa. ~___~

Being in a dysfunctional family really sucks.

Then nung pauwi na 'ko [nasa terminal ng Shelterville], naabutan kong may pasaherong ubod ang galit at nakikipag-away dun sa driver chaka barker; pinagtatalunan regarding sa pagsakay niya (or sumthin) -- basta mababaw! (Makakauwi naman siya e!) Then maya-maya dinamay sa galit yung isa pang pasahero -- at muntik nang magkagulo sa jeep (akmang susugurin na 'yung hot-head, sa tapat ko pa nangyari.) Wasted effort -- nothing beneficial talaga ang ngawa... Ba't ganun ang Pinoy 'no, ang siga siga sa 'Pinas [sa lansangan], pero 'pag nasa ibang bansa nanliliit naman bigla, at ubod pa ng disiplina. Pakitang-tao talaga, sheesh~

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Small world, after all!

Kahapon bago ako umalis ng bahay, binasa ko 'yung classified thread ni Allan, at may interested buyer, pero undecided pa daw siya... (Hahah, ganyan talaga pag naga-GAS!)

( ... )

Heheh, wala lang~! Small world indeed.

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Laruku Ripoff?

Long long time ago, me and Billy (of xeventhvrsday) chatted about an Indonesian band named J-Rocks~ (well, short for Jakarta Rocks daw -- makes sense eh? ;p) Basically, they are, of course, J-rock influenced; in fact, they already released an album during 2004, titled "Topeng Sahabat". I believe they already have gained popularity there (have no idea how big)... W00t, not bad at all~

Oh, correction: They are heavily L'Arc~en~Ciel influenced, especially the frontman -- a Haido (Hyde) wannabe. Very obvious, I tell you. Lemme convince you -- here are some pics:

J-Rocks

"Topeng Sahabat" album cover

Oh, not yet convinced? Well, lucky enough, I recently acquired (finally!) some mp3's of their album...

( Hear hor yourself )

IMHO, they're a bit "trying too hard" to do a L'Arc~en~ciel... Again, to convince you more, here's the PV (yeah, music video) of their song "Lepaskan Diriku"!

( Watch this )

And oh, just wanna post a screenshot -- look close to this!

Well, the bright side: they are "no-slouch" either; their talent/potential is obvious (especially the drummer, IMO.) Also, they're "spreading the love", that is L'Arc~en~Ciel! XD

(Disclaimer: Just wanna share this info, especially to the Laruku fans there -- I'm not stirring up anything against the Indonesian band; besides, I'm neutral regarding this matter, and I'm not a die-hard Laruku fan! ;p~)

Initial GAS attack!

Kaninang umaga, after I've got my pamasko form my parents na kakapadala lang sa 'kin (well, dahil na rin sa nalaman nila 'yung early December accident shit finally), I've decided to roam around malls, dahil inaatake na naman ako ng GAS! T___T

My initial GAS:

»» A cool uber-padded guit bag case sa Yamaha [worth 2K] or a TKL guit case sa JB Music [worth 1.2K];

»» And a new Boston HM100 (ulit) sa JB Music [worth 1.4K], na balak kong ipa-mod kay BAMF by January -- to substitute my Digitech MetalMaster, dahil 1) Naisip ko na makakaya kong kopyahin 'yung tonalities nung pedal sa G2.1u ko; 2) Nabasa ko sa PhilMusic 'yung comments ng ibang users, noting that tunog-digital daw ito; and 3) Mukhang mas heavy at versatile ang BAMFed Ultra modded HM100...

So off I went to SM North towards JB Music, and unfortunately naubusan daw sila ng stocks. Balik na lang daw ako bukas. =( Then punta ako sa Yamaha, pero biglang umurong na lang ako... So ayun, I only bought another set of gauge-10 strings chaka patch cable sa Lazer. Pfft ;p~

Then lipad naman ako papuntang SM Fairview -- at agad ding nagtungo sa JB Music branch doon; lo and behold, out of stock din! Sa sabado pa daw ang next shipping nila -- but I cahnt (Brit slang ng can't) wait any longer! >:E Gaah, walang kwenta ang JB Music!

So napabili ako ng imortant item -- an extension cord -- sa Ace Hardware. Kaso, wala dun 'yung crush kong kaherang si Apple! T___T Waah, hartbroken pa ako! (LOLZ) Bakit wala siya kanina! Wahh~~~

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Alternate (and current) GAS!

So anyways, naisip ko ding bumili na lang ng ISP card sa katapat na Robinson's Place (well, a different one, 'coz ISPx sucks at this moment).

Tapos napadaan ako sa Handyman Do-It-Yourself center doon; naisip kong magtingin ng bagay-bagay, lalo na ng iba pang extension cords (at baka na-ripoff ako ng Ace Hardware)... And I ended up GASsing some cool items, like a gold-colored PL plug (good for my custom patch cables), a cool toggle switch na kulat transparent-orange, and more. Then napabili din ng rubber puzzle mats (worth 99 ang 10 pieces) para sa pinaplano kong custom pedalboard~ ^^ Above all, 10% discounted pa 'yung items, so winner talaga!

Pero pinaka-panalo e nung nasa cashier na 'ko~ Cutie 'yung taga-balot nung items! (For the moment, napawi niya ang longingness ko! LOL) Then she gave some swwet-toned words, "Salamat po, balik ka ha" sabay killer smile!

(FYI: Refer to the New Found Glory - "Dressed to Kill" music video (embedded below). Ganyan ka-lupet!)

Eto naman, pa-simple, bumalik pa sa loob (at kunyari may nakalimutang bilhin!) Shempre binalikan ko yung same cashier; at umiral na ang kapal muks mode ko -- kaunting talk, tapos nakunan ko pa ng cutie pic si Rocel.

Todo na tew!!! (She actually blushed before I took the pic!)

Believe me, she's much more cutie in person. Ironically, mas marami akong nakitang cutie bebots kanina sa Robinson's -- though anliit lang nung place -- kesa sa SM (combined)... Well, back to the pedal geek talk...

Now, my current GAS:

»» A very rare, cool uber-used (approximately 6 or 7/10 paint condition) Made-in-Japan Boss® CS-2 Compression/Sustainer [worth 2.3K] for my clean channel. XD Habol ko kasi sa kanya 'yung sustaining properties, and pwede ko namang i-adjust 'yung Attack. Initially, I've thought na makokopya ko sa G2.1u ko (again) 'yung compression & sustain tones nung dati kong CS-3 (that's why binenta ako siya, aside from havin' no moolah.) Then I tested the compressor effect of the G2.1u with my LM-2 and woah, I got a cool clean sound.

»» And oh, the TKL guitar case sa JB Music din (they'll be havin' new stocks bukas), but I'll be planning to buy one around mid-January. Gotta save muna! ^^

Factors that made my mind change: 1) I again fell in love with my MetalMaster. I played it again, A-B looped against the Extreme Distortion setting ng G2.1u -- and noticed the distinct tonal difference. Tsaka mas kapit ang ngatngat ng bigat niya. Also listened to the BAMFed HM100 soundclips, and somehow 'di ako satisfied (though Tele/Strat kasi ang gamit)... Tapos naalala ko 'yung same Metal Zone sounds nung nasa 'kin pa si GTX HM100 ko -- it would feel totally redundant... 2) The YAMAHA gig bag looks like an overkill for Syntyche. Enough na 'yung TKL guitar case, 'coz padded din siya, at matibay naman; and lastly, 3) Yet another rare Boss® pedal. 'Nuff said. (Pero actually matagal na 'yung CS-2 ad, at kanina ko lang kinontak 'yung owner.)

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Throwing in a few memes

Snagged some memes from forbiddenaffair~ Videoke naman sana tayo! Wanna see you and sina yuffchan as well. ^^

( Videoke Mini Meme )

( Movie Quote quiz )

HAHAH!

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Family Portrait.

Managed to get a family portrait of my pedals behore 2006 ends, so I lined them up (again). One cool family, pero feel ko may kulang pa eh. XD

Anyways, maaari pa'ng may madagdag diyan before New Year, and after that I would probably start to build my custom pedalboard due to end of January; at the same time I'll have enough time to save for a cool overdrive "screamer" pedal, either the Ibanez® one or the yellow Boss® one -- mint condition, for sure. ^^ GAS GAS GAS!!!

Aethyral accomplishment

Just came home from Aethyra band practice; I reached at Tim's place around 2pm, at nagpalipas oras muna sa paggigitara at pagdadrums, until dumating si Jun (galing pa kasi ng Pasay). Hindi nakarating ang tambolero naming si Tan (ack, yung Fundador, asan naaa!!!!), pati na rin ang guardian force gitarista naming si Allan.

Tinuloy namin 'yung binubuo naming compo nung last practice, and managed to finish the guitar rhythm section~ (Yay!) Buti na lang si G2.1u ang dala ko kanina, at napaglaruan ko 'yung ibang modulation effect for this one! ^^ Tapos maganda din yung input ni Jun sa mga pasok/progression nung riffs; pero okay lang, raw pa lang naman eto, and possible na may madagdagan pang mas maangas na riffs...

At heto, narecord namin sa MP3 player ni Tim 'yung gawa ko habang nag-iinuman kami kanina. Sensya na at crappy 'yung bitrate; tapos nakatutok lang sa ampli 'yung pagkaka-record, kaya medyo harsh talaga~ (I suggested to tune the volume a bit lower when playing) Tapos corrupt pa ung WAV file... T___T

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A few rants...

»» Tsk, napasobra ata ako sa maalat na pagkain. Shempre, Happy Salty peanuts ang tanpulu habang inuman; bago umalis, nagluto kami nina Tim ng french fries, at sagana sa rock salt~ (matabang daw e) Then nung pauwi, kumain pa kami ni Jun sa lugawan sa Almar, at napasobra ang lagay ko ng patis. T___T Right now I'm cravin' for an ice-cold MILO drink~ Masarap Inumin, Lasang Ovaltine! XD XD~

»» Since kaninang umaga, nagkaka-problems sa internet connection ng dalawang ISPs ko... Then kila Tim ganun din, 'di siya maka-browse sa Internet Explorer; akala namin dahil sa spyware shit na naman.

Well, now I know why...

( Tri-Isys Advisory Shit )

»» Badtrip talaga, under maintenence ang PhilMusic until January! My goodness, paano na ang GAS attack ko nyan!!! May nakita pa naman akong GASsable item hours before nagsara! T___T

»» Woke up very late -- past 12 noon. Spent the whole day manipulatin' some audio softwares, composing music, mostly the undone songs we made for Rtschrck (inproved riffs, but not yet finished), and recording using Cubase LE (provided by my G2.1u) via USB interface -- this stuff is really cool! But the downside is, I kept on disconnecting the USB cable just to listen all my recorded stuff, and use some MIDI shit (e.g. Guitar Pro). And yeah, I gotta install my old Fruity Loops software for the drum lines.

»» Received an Xmas e-card from my sister kanina as I've checked my mail~

Wenk, may atraso pa ako sa ate ko; 1) 'Di ako nag-celebrate sa place nila; and 2) 'Di ko sila na-regaluhan. ~___~;

»» Had another series of stupid dreams...

( ... )

'Di pa rin talaga nakakasawang mag-browse sa PhilMusic -- at 'di na nawawalan ng mga flamings doon (2 thumbs up!) kaya lalo akong nage-enjoy. Above all, andami ko pang natututunan, not only guitar-wise.

Currently eto ang mga binabasa kong threads:

( Boutique Pedal Review: Matchless Hot Box -- Not for the financially challenged )

( The Irony of PHILMUSIC )

( Your Customized Pedal Board (post the pic) )

( Custom pedals (check these out! hehe) )

Err... okay, plugging shit 'yung huli, hehe~ XD) Read along, kung gusto nyo! ^^

»» Finally had my pedals fixed in a final (?) setup; I just need to solder more custom patch cables and DC plugs for my chain. And yeah, yesterday na-ground ako sa isang defective patch cable habang nagse-setup, at nakuryente ako~ XD

Anyways, so here's my pedal chain diagram; Just click the pic to see the full pic~ (Idea taken from Guitargeek.com)

A killer overdrive pedal (to be updated as soon as possible!) na lang kulang (clean boost) for that catheter tube sound! XD

No more classes (at last)!...

Maaga ako nagising para maghanda sa mga exams -- tadtad ng review talaga ang ginawa ko, lalo na nung kinagabihan, so definitely short ang nap time ko (again). So ayun basically mga 11pm sana ako aalis...

Pero, tinext ko 'yung kaklase ko sa EDIEQUA, at sinabing 11am-1pm ang exam namin, departmental pa! ~___~!!! "Ampotek, pano yun, e nasa bahay pa 'ko! Waaah!"

So ayun, umalis na lang ako past 12pm, at dumerecho muna sa Retiro (for financial purposes), then derecho sa school ng past 3:30pm. Agad kong tinungo 'yung MPS (Mathematics & Physical Sciences) faculty para makausap 'yung prof ko. Fortunately, nagawan ko na lang ng paraan, at nakapag-special exams ako on-the-spot! (YAY!) Ang matindi pa, nasa ibang mesa pa ako, and walang nagbabantay sa 'kin -- you've guessed it: nabubuklat ko 'yung notes ko! Nyahaha evil! (Divided by cubicles kasi 'yung faculty, so another YAY!) Sisiw pa 'yung exam, so basically I'm confident na papasa ako 'dun.

Then a few minutes later (5pm), nag-exam naman kami sa ENMECH2, at natuyo na naman ang utak ko... Grabe, walang centripetal topic sa mga problems! Puro work/kinetic/potential shit! Tapos sagaran din sa pagco-convert ng units -- buti na lang may conversion 'yung calculator ko. Grabe, me mga incentives nga kami, brutal naman ang exam! T___T Eventually me mga nasagutan naman; but gaah, I'll be crossin; my fingers on this one.

Ayan, wala na akong alalahanin pa! More time for practice, lakwatsa, and GASSSSSSS!!! (somebody plug me with a GAS Suppressor! Hahaha!)

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...and no more GAS power!

Then nagmadaling bumiyahe papuntang SM Fairview~ Hanep, sa sobrang excitement eh nakuntento na ako sa pagsakay sa estribo ng bus all throughout the trip! XD XD~~ Grabe, sobrang siksikan sa loob, as in malaking lata ng sardinas 'yung bus. Tapos me mga maiingay na lokaret pa sa loob. Maaga ako nakarating (around 8pm), and nagliwaliw muna ako around.Past 9pm na kami nagmeet ni ian_zone for the pedal. (See below!)

Sobrang okay ang paint condition niya -- N.O.S. (New Old Stock -- meaning nakatago lang siya sa warehouse ng matagal, at 'di ginagalaw) daw nung nabili niya 'yun sa Bahrain; and 4 months pa lang niya nagagamit. (FYI: the manufacturing of this kind of pedal ceased as of 1992.) Made in Japan pa siya. Ayun, naubos agad ang pera ko, pero sobrang sulit naman talaga itong relic na 'to!!!

Currently playin' this box, timpla-timpla pa muna... Buti na lang at ginising ako kanina ni mizukineige (tumawag dito kasi)... I'll be posting clips kung sakali, 'pag tinopak! ;p~~~

[EDIT] Nadidiskubre ko na ang tonal differences 'pagkasaksak nito; Plugged in with knobs dialed at the following setting (out-of-10 knob ratio): Level 5, Tone 5, Release 4, Treshold 4... At heto ang naging tonal obeservation ko:

Parang "lumalakas" siya after nung attack, then hihina ng malumanay -- basically because of the "release" knob... Then try ko mag-experiment with the built-in compressor sa Zoom G2.1u ko naman for more compression and sustain. Try ko rin ilagay after the distortion stage sa pedal chain. Nakakaaliw magtimpla! XD

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Bringin' you yet another POSS® Compact Pedal here!

Again, dala ng matinding boredom (at post-GAS excitement aftermath), may nagawa na naman akong customized pedal, exclusively availabe here!!! Just contact me and reserve your orders -- this is a perfect gift for your musically-challenged loved-ones! XD~~~

( POSS® BZ-2 Hyper F-Buzz )

Again, check out for more upcoming pedals by POSS®!

Very unproductive day. Natulog lang ako magdamag, dahil malamig ang simoy ng hangin. Fortunately hindi naman umulan ng malakas, nor nag-power failure sa area namin. Umaaraw pa nga buong maghapon.

Then panay practice din ng gitara din sa bahay; tinamad na akong maglakwatsa (??), dahil bukas ko pa pala masusundo si Cliff galing sa ospital. Tapos bukas may customer na ako (yay) para sa Zoom FS01 ko. ^^ Laking tulong talaga ng PhilMusic Classified: Guitar accessories Section!. (Pahamak din, dahil never na ako tinantanan ng GAS!) Anyways, practice/download muna ulit!

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Soundtripping

Panay kinig din ng different stuffs during the past few days. Hindi na rin kasi ako ganung updated sa bagong music, so I decided to download some stuffs. Some notes and comments lang...

√ Dir en grey's new single (Agitated Screams of Maggots) failed to meet my expectations; yeah expected some heaviness within, pero parang monotonous yung song, and somehow lacking... (or maybe it's just me...) Baka kailangan lang ulit-ulitin ang pakikinig para ma-digest.

√ On the other hand, natuwa ako sa bagong single ng Gazette (Filth in the Beauty), which was referred to me a few days ago by uchihayukiko. Hanep, ang catchy ng song! And I liked the music video -- the band's image, and those lovely gear!

√ Nakumpleto ko na rin ang tracks ng self-titled album ng EZO! Pati na rin ang Ghost Reveries album ng Opeth. (Two thumbs up sa dalawang 'to!)

√ Ang sarap balikan yung alternative soundtrip days ko, so I grabbed my backup CDs full of assorted alternative rock. Na-miss ko na ang likes ng Radiohead, Manic Street Preachers, The Wannadies, Ash...

Tapos a whole lot of old school stuff din, tulad ng Nelson, The Ramones, Green Jelly (w00t! XD XD), Incubus (especially the Fungus Amongus album), The Cure...

And paulit-ulit naman sa pakikinig ng Christ Illusion album ng Slayer, tsaka Acid Rain ng Liquid Tension Experiment... Tamang pang-warm-up sa gitara~ (pero gaah, 'di ko pa rin kaya, sa totoo lang. Boplaks pa rin talaga ako...)

√ Need to complete discogs of Gazette and Loudness. Todo na 'to!!!

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Random Thoughts

»» Updated mah plugging shit with actual pics of my items! Gaah, please cure my GAS! (Just wanna re-post!)

( Maagang XMAS sale (updated)! )

»» Explored kanina the various configurations of my hybrid pedal setup -- and I'm having problems on how to boost some tone from my analog pedals; and how to cut some annoying noise due to high gain. The Noise gate built in my G2.1u provides some help, but cuts the sustain. T___T On the other hand, my current favorite effect types are: Early Reflection (reverb), Auto Resonance (like a touch-wah effect), and the Harmonized Pitch~ (yeah, way cool! Did some tweaking, and nailed some harmonizing tones -- e.g. Till Death Do Us Part solo by White Lion.) Gotta explore more on the delays, especially the overdubbing ones, and the big millisecond-gap times.

»» Experiencing more boredomness due to frequent downs ng server ng PhilMusic~ (even at this moment...) Pa'no na ang pangga-GAS ko! ***yamot*** Tsaka 'yun na lang ang forums na napagba-browse ko lagi. Nakakatuwa dahil nakakapulot ako ng info, at maraming flame wars!

»» Grabe, lumalamig lalo ang simoy ng hangin, at lumalakas na ang ulan. Kanina pa-ambon-ambon lang. Sana hindi naman mag-brownout dito! (Or else, ...)

»» Napasaya ako ng pekchur na 'to, letse... Can't help but laugh...

Cueshé drummer = si Kapitan (of Jewel in the Palace fame)! Nyehehe...

»» Nasend-an nga pala ako ng mp3 ng ate ko regarding sa U.K. friend niya... Grabe, ganda ng recording niya, professional na professional. Sariling studio equipment niya kasi. (Tapos sabi niya sa ate ko, janitor lang daw siya, wenk!) Just hear for yourself kung gaano ka-cool yung composition niya. ^^ (About 'ata sa ate ko yung song! Check the title. Grabe na 'to!)

Sana mayroon din akong magandang recording gear tulad niya. T___T The soundtrip doesn't end!

»» Hmm... speaking of soundtrip, nagpatugtog ni mike5150 nung mga Nana Shi mp3's (mga napondo namin) nung nag-inuman kami last Monday. Stumbled upon some thoughts~ Kung gaano ko ka-trips ang tugtugan, kung kailan ang next gig -- if ever magkaka-next gig pa kami... (which I'm having certain doubts, and premonitions).

Until nakausap ko recently itong si Dawny. Tama nga ang hinala ko.

And to someone na "mahilig" sa insekto: Ayan, masaya ka na? Pero fuckshit ka pa rin. Makarma ka sana. I really mean it.

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Memes and quizzes (due to boredom)

( Makikiuso lang, LOL )

More birthday greetings!

Grabe, antagal ko na ring 'di nakapag-entry!!!

First: pa-post ng greetings (kahit late na! ) 'Di ko naipost nung mga nakaraang araw....

Belated Happy Birthday po!, pedz and Marien! Pati na rin sa rin sa pinsan kong si Adrian Arlegui! (Heheh, if ever ma-stumble ka lang dito sa bloggeh ko.)

Lapit na rin ng bertdey ng mga pamangkin ko~ (Yeah, kambals po kasi sila~ ^__^v) Yay!

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Bagong GASsed pedal = No more money!

Nakabili na naman ng bagong multi-effects nung sabado~~ (grahh GAStos na naman!!!) Sobrang sulit talaga ang pagkakabili ko sa Zoom G2.1u dahil sa added features and modulations... (no wonder 'di ako nakakapagpost sa blog, and besides naubos yung ISP cards ko!) Nag-record na naman ako ng crappy demos sa mga nadiskubre kong timpla ng patches... Syet, kakaadik talaga!!!

(Bored? Check nyo na lang 'tong mga crappy audio samples ko hehe! )

Kakatamad mag-analog setup sa practice ng Nana Shi, nyehehe G2.1u lang muna ang dadalhin ko! I think ito lang (chaka a few analog pedals) ang set-up ko sa November 11 gig. Excited na 'ko!!!

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Happenings kahapon~ (Mini-beerday celebration ni Pedz)

Dahil bertdi ni pedz kahapon, nagkayayaan kami ni Julius na makipag-inuman sa kanila. (Wenk, di mo naman dinala si Anne Curtis; este GSM Blue!)

Unexpectedly, nung busy ako sa pagkalikot sa YM, nag-PM sa 'kin bigla si mike5150. Sabi nya, basahin ko daw ang email ng LJ sa 'kin regarding sa new comments~ (In short, he left a comment sa previous entry ko.) Then PM ko daw siya if I want to know some answers.

So ayun, eventually nalaman ko din ang katotohanan; ang dahilan ng lahat-lahat ng nangyayari... Ang ending ng chat namin: ayun niyaya ko na din siya sa inuman. Nyehehe!

Then meet na kami ni Julius sa SM Fairview para sa practice namin kila Dawny. Ayus naman at tamang enjoy (kaso wala sina neitaro and mizukineige, wahh!), nag-jam jam lang kami kasama sina coincibens at fewmany, nyehehe! Binuo pa namin 'yung Sabado Nights (of Rizal Underground), tapos feeling namin kami ang David Lee Roth band! Aaahhhhwww!) Pero at least, nakabuo naman kami ng 1 pondo~ Yay!

After practice, lipad na kami ulit sa Fairview Center Mall and SM Fairview para i-meet si mike5150 (BTW, we decided na mag-inuman na lang sa place nila), at yung beerday celebrant.

( And then... )

Anyways, the greatest thing is, nagbago na ang motto naming tatlo; hindi na "DON'T SHRED", kundi...

Shred sucks!

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At kanina: Sunod-sunod na kamalasan!

Maaga na umuwi si pedz, pero pagkatapos maubos yung isang GSM bilog, saka na kami nabangag at natapos (hehe), then umuwi na ng maaga (around 7pm); shet anlakas ng ulan! Endless Rain na naman ako pauwi sa 'min.

'Di lang yun -- may kasunod pa; pati yung biyahe blues papuntang school. Kanina sobrang nagmamadali na 'ko, di man lang ako pinasabit ng transfer jeep sa village namin! Napilitan akong maglakad papuntang terminal; pero pagdating ko dun kakaalis lang nung jeep! Maghihintay ako ng another 15-30 minutes para mapuno; pero hinde, nag-trike ako papuntang Union Village (worth Php25), at pagdating ko doon, walang kalaman-laman yung terminal! Trike ulit ako papuntang Vicas (worth Php21), at wala ring laman yung FX terminal pa-Blumentritt!

Eventually late na ako ng more than 30 minutes, kaya di ko na pinasukan yung Surveying class ko. Dropped na nga yata ako dun eh, badtrip. Then yung mga subjects ko sa mga sumunod na klase, shete hindi sinipot ng mga prof namin! Tinamad pumasok ampf... Shucks dapat pala hindi ako lumuwas ng Maynila! (Sayang pamasahe! Wwaaahhh!!!)

Ay, may maswerte palang nangyari kanina; nakapulot ako ng Php60 (ata, basta puro beinte bills) na naiwan nung kupal na pasaherong nakatabi ko~ (biro mo umiidlip ako sa jeep, tas pagpasok nya binunggo at dinaganan pa yung braso ko, sabay titig ng masama sa 'kin!) Hah malas lang niya, kinups nya ako eh! Walang sori-sori nyehehe... Pero hayy talagang hindi ko araw ngayon...