There are so many critical comments on this video... This wasn't intended to replace the "standard" of guitar making -if one exists. It's an interesting, well executed tool for creativity. No one has to buy one, but new innovations in the guitar industry demand more respect... that's how it all started years ago.
Indeed! It's crazy how resistant people are to new ideas sometimes. I really like this innovation and it's a shame I can't afford to buy a nice custom Ruokangas with valvebucker right now.
This innovation doesnt seem to bring much to the table for how much more maintenance a tube pickup would need. It looks like innovation but its honestly kinda dumb. I would never use this
@@FakeFlourescentSkies Yeah, well I think it's not supposed to be a mass product at all. Ruokangas guitars aren't exactly mass products either, since they're handcrafted to your specs and thus not on the cheapest side either. (Well depends on what you go for, when I previously used their guitar creator tool, I think the approx. price for my dream build was like 14000€.)
@@FakeFlourescentSkies How is a valve an innovation ?Do you see valve TVs coming back,or Radios,does it sound any better,even in the late 50s ,they didn't use valves.
Not practical for most guitarists, but I see no problem with a little bit of ingenuity in the guitar gear industry. This thing is a pretty damn cool feat of engineering.
Wow. Ok at first I was like "what's the big deal", then the middle position. Very nice. I can in- vision a show where the light go down, and all you see is the tubes.
This looks and sounds amazing! One pickup that does the job of 3, what's not to like? On the top of it you can replace the tubes according to your needs, tastes and styles.
You are an innovator man, keep it up! All these negative comments and feedback are exactly the same thing Les Paul had to face when he was building The Log. And we all know how that turned out. Great job man sounds tight, and Beautiful t style! MC
@@ruokangas Wonder if there would be an advantage of using a sub-miniature type of tube. Could possibly save a lot of space for other positions? In any case, it sounds like it's quite responsive - an inspiring instrument to play no doubt!!
Thank you! More videos in the works. This one was mainly for the tech talk, and we'll have pro players demonstrate the Valvebucker sounds in more depth.
I like that guitar! It really looks like a fender telecaster! The pickup is so cool because it’s just a single valvebucker but it can replicate the neck position, the bridge position, and the middle position.
Dude! The middle position sounds amazing! My dad and I were oogling over an article about this. The two of us love our tube amps and guitars. We both love all forms of fast aggressive music!
It’s basically a really well done integration of a preamp circuit into an active pickup guitar. I toyed around with the idea of doing that for a bass. Using a tube pre amp circuit instead of a standard pre amp. I realized that it’s just much easier to have it separate. To me it doesn’t seem to be a tube powered pickup as much as an active pickup with a tube pre amp circuit real close to it.
I think this is awesome, it's something completely different, that "both pickups" position was wild, almost like a sitar. I was hoping you'd play that one in overdrive.
Good on you, Mr. Ruokangas. I think it's great to see people continue to push the boundaries. Without this we would never have had electric guitars, or the humbucker, or active pickups, or many other great things. I hope that you are able to sell enough of these to make the invention worthwhile and that you can invent more things. Sadly, guitarists are averse to new technology, although some things do eventually carve out a place in the market. You might actually find bass players a more receptive audience. I'm not sure why bass players seem more willing to adopt new innovations in their instruments, but in my experience this is the case. Have you considered making a Valvebucker bass?
Way to go guys! For ages there's been tube mikes for singers. IMHO guitars are kinda singers too, so why not a tube pickup!? Why not put "tubebucker" soundclip link in the front page on your website? It took stupid me minutes to spot them out.
It would be great if you do a proper demo so that we can get a better idea of the sound. But damn, contrary to some of the comments down below, I though the sound on that middle setting was beautiful and unique. It sent shivers down my spine! Let me know when you build a lefty version, I'll be the first to order!!
Sooooo.....granted this guitar is very nicely constructed and the effort that went into integrating a valve section is exceptional, but - I don't get it. Kinda sounds like any other guitar, especially when the pedals kick in. Am I missing something?
Thanks for watching and commenting. As you must know as a guitar player, a lot of the subtleties what make a guitar exceptional can't really be judged in any other way than playing the guitar yourself. Also, this videoclip was made rather for questions & answers purposes than a properly recorded demo of the tonal range.
@@Releasethebats123 every guitar thing is unnecessary. My dad got so much crap from his dad about wanting an electric guitar. Just let people innovate and make new things.
Westone made a tube preamp mounted inside the guitar, it massaged a normal pup configuration thru it. It required a separate power lead. It failed because excess vibration caused microphony within the tube/ board. Aria did it to some domestic jap basses. Never caught on really, somewhat prone to breaking down. The valvebucker needs more tones, the " neck" position did not sound right. The pup itself needed to be either in the bridge or the neck. But I guess width is an issue... .
I think this is great. I would love one of these but I suspect they may be a bit expensive. Which is fine. I think something like this has major mojo, and is cool engineering, and it's also sounding fantastic.
Thank you Warren for your positive feedback. My guitars are all custom made, and the prices are currently (2019) starting from about EUR 3500. That is here in Europe, and when exported outside EU, the price adjusts accordingly (exchange ratings, customs, shipping, brokerage fees..). The Valvebucker is a EUR 1200 additional option to any guitar we make.
Brilliant concept! Way ahead of its time. Would a rechargeable ion lithium battery (like in a Dewalt drill) provide enough current to run these tubes in the pickup's preamp for a few hours? If so you could just pop a battery into a compartment in the guitar's body and plug it straight into a regular input jack on an amp and avoid the power supply box and XLR cable.
The way I see it, Les Paul got laughed at when he showed his "Log" to Gibson. So it's wait and see what happens. There is one issue though, guitar players like what they like, and that doesn't change very often.
Ok! Sounds amazing! Not gonna lie! And you said, whenever there's a chance try it. I'm from India. It's possibly gonna take another 10 years for valvebuckers to reach India(any similar country) for try and buy for differences and stuffs. A comparison of what the major difference is, would be great coz not all of us will get a chance to try and buy. I would trust your side by side comparison to buy it directly from you. I do see there's a lot that has gone into making this guitar. It stands out. Looks great. Sounds amazing. But why should I buy it based on difference is what many of us watching this video will want to know. Thanks 🙂
Nice guitar ! That middle position sounded beautiful. I think it's great idea. Remember Mr. Randall got laughed out of the Namm show, when Fender debuted the Telecaster. Thanks for trying something different.
Pretty neat! Starved plate design? They definitely add a “tube feel” to overdrive pedals despite what people say on forums. At least the one I built does.
Thank you. The Valvebucker circuit is not a starved plate design. It makes use of sweet spots found from outside the typical operational points of vacuum tubes, by using relatively low voltages - but high enough to generate a dynamic signal with a healthy amplitude.
This sounds nice, but at the same time, I dont see why a boutique pickup designer couldnt wind me something completely passive that sounds just as good, if not a little better. *That said* I do understand that this is the first stage of a new invention, which is just seeing if it will work. I wanna see more, and different
I love seeing innovation and chances being taken.... But what is the draw of this? I don't hear anything but a pretty guitar. If you want a built in preamp, give me more to work with. Maybe build in multiple EQ channels to switch between rapidly, or multiple gain stages?
So how is that voltage produced? Is this a gimmick? I mean without some serious rectified plate voltages, there is no way that these tubes can do anything for the guitar signal path. Without that, you essentially have two really cool looking light bulbs.
@@srtamplification Thanks. We started the research & development for this product from an empty table, and we have no intention to disclose novel technical details of it. Others are free to find their own solutions how to design a new type of a tube amp and how to power it up. Not a gimmick, but not technical magic either - just a lot of hard work.
I'd also like to know how any tube pedal gets its voltage out of 18v DC current like my Radial hot british? I'm pretty sure there's transistors doing most of the work, but it sounds great and it's cool to have a tube in there, even if it's just for show.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voltage_multiplier It's been well understood for a long time how to do this sort of thing. -There are some tubes that will run on 12V plate voltage as well, but that's probably not what they used. Transformers are a possibility given that the input voltage is AC, but those are bulky.- (Edit: apparently it's low voltage, so it might just be 300V tubes running on 12V.) I'm sure whatever's in there has been refined and optimized considering the space constraints, and I'll give 'em credit for the work that went into that, but I doubt anything truly novel is going on in there.
Lots of folks saying they don't see a point. Lots of guitar innovations these days ultimately serve little to no game changing point. TT frets, Fanned frets, evertune, robot tuners, etc. (none of which I have a particular interest in owning, some of which I've already owned, tried, and moved on.) It's just another option. Some people will swear by it, other people will treat it like trash. I see it, just like the previously mentioned stuff, as just another option. And while it might not be for me, there's no reason to shit on it. I'm more a fan of the bridge pickup position, and this lacks that. It emulates it, but it is not the same. Pinch harmonics and the like will always sound like a middle pickup. The guitar sounds nice, and I'm sure playing it in person, the characteristics would shine more. At the very least, I think it looks pretty damn cool.
This video was made more like a questions and answers type instead of an actual demo. For a better recording of the tone, check this: th-cam.com/video/MSJ8d4LFq-I/w-d-xo.html - or listen to the audio samples on this page: ruokangas.com/specifications/valvebucker/
There are plenty of solid state powered active electric guitar pickups available... and the Valvebucker is definitely different from them. You can read here comments by people who have in fact played a Valvebucker equipped guitar: www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/bravo-juha-bravo.2010914/
So, this guitar would have to have a switching power supply inside of it to boost the 12-volts up to presumably a 100 volts or more for use as plate voltage to the tubes. 12 volts by itself isn't of much use except to power the heaters of the tubes.
That middle position is quite unique. But do yourself and all gigging customers a favor and make the tubes accessible from the backside. Most tubes are not designed to be moved around and those who were, are typically very hard to get. And even those will brake once in a while. So imagine you play that beautiful guitar on a gig and one of your tubes blow. At that moment you would wish you could access the blown tube easily.
So other than how it clips, what does this do that a TL062, for example, can't do better and more efficiently? I'm sure that for what this costs you could buy 4 or 5 Peavey Classic 50s or whatever and have that "Real Toob Tone" everyone wants. That said, it's still cool as hell. My only real qualm would be the position of the pickup.
It's not really comparable to plugging a guitar into a tube amplifier. This is an active pickup with the preamp stage amplified with tubes. So it's a signal amplifier with optional voicings. With such system we have better control over the signal sent to the actual guitar amp. The Valvebucker guitar sounds fab with a Peavey Classic - but different from a passive pickup guitar run into a Peavey Classic. :) The position of the pickup is deceiving, too. It doesn't sound what you'd expect from a pickup in this position. :)
A 'friking' mazing!!!! That Sounds So Much More Colorful! A Thicker Clear' Yet Stays Articulate When Pushed! _ for those people who are jabbing This Audio Genious Artwork!?_ 'please go back to your profit lumber' Wtf?_ Thank You 'Juha and Crew' For This Long Over Due Advancement ToThe Electric Guitar Dimension' Most Awesome!🌎🌍🌏 🎸🔊🎼
A vaccuum tube in a guitar!?!? Sounds sick! It does take some level of madmanship to come up with something like this, I imagine. :,-) Are you aware of KORG’s NuTube? It could take away the heating, be less fragile and take less space, but don’t know how it would affect the tone...
Yes we're aware of the NuTube. Maybe something for the future for us, but the Valvebucker concept works and sounds absolutely great with the old NOS tubes we're using, without any heat issues. And the looks... you have to admit that the Valvebucker would lose some of its Mojo without the sight of those glowing valves..! :D
I like the look of the guitar, but I would be happy if it just had a humbucker pickup in the normal position plus a P90 in the neck. Love the fretboard too!
Its weird. The only way i see this as a benefit is if your amp is solidstate. Maybe havin a Peavey Bandit, or Nashville. Roland Jazz Chorus is a amazing Ss too.
No. We use military spec NOS tubes that have been used in airplanes, radars and other extremely critical applications back in the day. They take vibration extremely well without causing trouble.
the guitar with the valvebucker looks killer and sounds pretty good. i think ypu should provide a reference where you compare it to the same type of guitar equipped with a normal active pickup.
uli roth's sky guitar has an 18v preamp that drives his output so high that it fries the inputs of any amp except marshalls and blackstars. just saying...
Seeing as how there's a pedal. Why didn't he put the valves and the rest of the circuit in the pedal. Then he could sell the pedal to be used with any guitar. I'm not clear on why the valves need to be in the guitar?
its basicly a tube eq and preamp build intoo the guitar , i wouldnt want to stand in front of a marshall stack at full tilt with the thing as those tubes could become pretty microfonic and it whont be musical at all , its allso sumting that you shouldnt wear around youre neck as the internals of the tubes are fragile (fysical shocks from playing / showing off on stage , sweat and theatre smoke can wreak havoc on powered electronics even if its low power , if its all in a stompbox its good enough , and you can run all youre guitars through it it might be a nice guitar for studio work as you probably can plug it straight intoo the board
Lmao these comments are why I hate guitarists. You guys aren’t open to any innovation. I know classical violin players who are happy to try a whole host of new things, saxophonists who play with synthetic reeds etc. This is something new, not meant to replace anything, but as a new colour in the pallet
This isn't innovation though. This just takes something we already have and builds it into a guitar, which is arguably not the best place for it. Sure it's cool, and I respect the engineering that went into it, but at the end of the day it's just a gimmick. Which is fine, you can't ever have too many cool gimmicky accessories for your guitar. This one just isn't the most practical.
@@SodomySnake Thank you. A lot of people say our invention is a gimmick. However, it appears that 100% of those people have not had a chance to play such a guitar. :) On the other hand, 100% of those people who have in fact played such a guitar, immediately understand the significance of it. There is quite a contrast in opinions before and after playing it. You can read here comments by some of those players: www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/bravo-juha-bravo.2010914/
The more technology advances the better guitars get, but guitars themselves don't need to change. Modern amps and pedals and the way pickups are dialed in now, you can slap pickups on your dinner table and make it sound like a 57 les paul with the right amp and pedals or software. Purists would disagree but in a blind test they'd be surprised.
Tubes really don't like to be jostled around.. I can imagine a tupe-powered pickup developing some bad microphonics. It might make a cool effect but hearing high pitched chimes and ringing in the overtones would get old quickly.
There's none of that happening. You can read hear some comments from people who have actually played such a guitar: www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/bravo-juha-bravo.2010914/
@@ruokangas You know how many musical instrument gimmicks were built on fake forum reviews? I'm not saying the link to the forum you posted is full of fake reviews... but it happens too much for me to bother taking forums seriously... a few fake email accounts can get you a few sock puppet profiles and BOOM, instant buzz on a forum. Also, you should try to choose your wording and emphasis more wisely. When you emphasize "PLAYED" it reads as condescending to a potential customer who may be simply stating a potential concern. You can take your pickup and stick it up your ass.
There are so many critical comments on this video... This wasn't intended to replace the "standard" of guitar making -if one exists. It's an interesting, well executed tool for creativity. No one has to buy one, but new innovations in the guitar industry demand more respect... that's how it all started years ago.
Indeed! It's crazy how resistant people are to new ideas sometimes. I really like this innovation and it's a shame I can't afford to buy a nice custom Ruokangas with valvebucker right now.
We live in a world full of douche bags. It's just a fact of today.
This innovation doesnt seem to bring much to the table for how much more maintenance a tube pickup would need. It looks like innovation but its honestly kinda dumb. I would never use this
@@FakeFlourescentSkies Yeah, well I think it's not supposed to be a mass product at all. Ruokangas guitars aren't exactly mass products either, since they're handcrafted to your specs and thus not on the cheapest side either. (Well depends on what you go for, when I previously used their guitar creator tool, I think the approx. price for my dream build was like 14000€.)
@@FakeFlourescentSkies How is a valve an innovation ?Do you see valve TVs coming back,or Radios,does it sound any better,even in the late 50s ,they didn't use valves.
Not practical for most guitarists, but I see no problem with a little bit of ingenuity in the guitar gear industry. This thing is a pretty damn cool feat of engineering.
Wow. Ok at first I was like "what's the big deal", then the middle position. Very nice. I can in- vision a show where the light go down, and all you see is the tubes.
This looks and sounds amazing! One pickup that does the job of 3, what's not to like? On the top of it you can replace the tubes according to your needs, tastes and styles.
Thank you. It is a very versatile and inspirational tool to make music with. The tubes can't be changed to other types, though.
That Fingerboard looks incredible
You ain't lyin
Next:
Valved pics.
Valved strings
Valved cables
Valved pickguard
Valved pickup selector
Valved straps
Valved bridge
Valved guitar player )
At least you're never getting cold while jamming.
And valved valves
Valved tuner😂
Arthur Machado Caruso it’s almost already done with the push-pull configurations of some amps😂😂
You are an innovator man, keep it up! All these negative comments and feedback are exactly the same thing Les Paul had to face when he was building The Log. And we all know how that turned out. Great job man sounds tight, and Beautiful t style! MC
I know this about the pickup but the pick guard is amazing looking. The middle sounds like a Strat in the #4 position. Really nice
I only like the middle sound haha
I've heard that if you stick 12ax7 in your ear, everything sounds better!
True
#truewords
😂😂😂😂
@@malcolmhardwick4258 kt66s are more sensual
You heard wrong, it's a 12au7 and it's not supposed to be put in your ear, it's supposed to be inserted in your redfin rectum.
Since no one commented on it, I will: these are the chords from "Rain Song". Actually a very good choice to demonstrate the acoustic-like sound. 😀
🙏
I knew it was The Rain Song but I was not aware that it was recorded on an acoustic. It sounds more like a clean electric.
MrJohnnyDistortion it’s an overlay of an acoustic and electric in the Rain Song
The question being - how does it sound? IMO, it really sounds great - really does!!
Thank you!
@@ruokangas Oh yes! I'd need a lefty though. No doubt that guitar would sound stellar through a Morgan AC-20+ !!
@@ruokangas Wonder if there would be an advantage of using a sub-miniature type of tube. Could possibly save a lot of space for other positions? In any case, it sounds like it's quite responsive - an inspiring instrument to play no doubt!!
@@Cluless02 Thanks! Lefties available too. :)
Cool concept but is it necessary to have a valve powered pickup? It's kind of like hunting rabbits with a machine gun.
You mean extremely fun? :)
Like shooting a turkey with a 12 gauge slug (I did that lol)
Corey Cann yeehaa sounds like overkill to me. I’d try to wrangle it. My question is cost. It’s probably holy shit expensive
It essentially turns any solid state amp into a tube tastic tyrannical monster of tone! In other words it sound like your playing through a tube amp.
Joshua Loveless Hahahahahh I get it tune tastic and I think your 100% right
Clear, articulate, and lots of chime. Nice guitar.
Thank you! More videos in the works. This one was mainly for the tech talk, and we'll have pro players demonstrate the Valvebucker sounds in more depth.
Interesting concept and beautiful guitar. I look forward to hearing more about this.
Thank you!
I like that guitar! It really looks like a fender telecaster! The pickup is so cool because it’s just a single valvebucker but it can replicate the neck position, the bridge position, and the middle position.
Thank you for posting this, but I still don't quite get the point of having a tube powered pickup.
Russell Wiggins to play with a dumble transistor amp😜
it looks cool
There are almost no mics with tubes in it haha
@@kkpiemels3113 Your joking right?
www.micreviews.com/guides/top-10-best-tube-microphones
Idk, my tubes are tied🧱🔩🧱
It sounds great. Need there be any more discussion?
GAWDAMN, that fretboard is gorgeous!!
Dude! The middle position sounds amazing! My dad and I were oogling over an article about this. The two of us love our tube amps and guitars. We both love all forms of fast aggressive music!
It’s basically a really well done integration of a preamp circuit into an active pickup guitar. I toyed around with the idea of doing that for a bass. Using a tube pre amp circuit instead of a standard pre amp. I realized that it’s just much easier to have it separate. To me it doesn’t seem to be a tube powered pickup as much as an active pickup with a tube pre amp circuit real close to it.
I think this is awesome, it's something completely different, that "both pickups" position was wild, almost like a sitar. I was hoping you'd play that one in overdrive.
Good on you, Mr. Ruokangas. I think it's great to see people continue to push the boundaries. Without this we would never have had electric guitars, or the humbucker, or active pickups, or many other great things. I hope that you are able to sell enough of these to make the invention worthwhile and that you can invent more things. Sadly, guitarists are averse to new technology, although some things do eventually carve out a place in the market. You might actually find bass players a more receptive audience. I'm not sure why bass players seem more willing to adopt new innovations in their instruments, but in my experience this is the case. Have you considered making a Valvebucker bass?
Thank you. We are indeed working on a bass version as well. :)
The clean tones sound very Houses of the Holy, I love it!
Way to go guys! For ages there's been tube mikes for singers. IMHO guitars are kinda singers too, so why not a tube pickup!?
Why not put "tubebucker" soundclip link in the front page on your website? It took stupid me minutes to spot them out.
Really like that center position!
It would be great if you do a proper demo so that we can get a better idea of the sound. But damn, contrary to some of the comments down below, I though the sound on that middle setting was beautiful and unique. It sent shivers down my spine! Let me know when you build a lefty version, I'll be the first to order!!
Thanks. There will be more demos, for sure!
Sounds awesome🤘
Sooooo.....granted this guitar is very nicely constructed and the effort that went into integrating a valve section is exceptional, but - I don't get it. Kinda sounds like any other guitar, especially when the pedals kick in. Am I missing something?
Thanks for watching and commenting. As you must know as a guitar player, a lot of the subtleties what make a guitar exceptional can't really be judged in any other way than playing the guitar yourself. Also, this videoclip was made rather for questions & answers purposes than a properly recorded demo of the tonal range.
Hmmm, I noticed quite a bit difference in sound and then the middle selector made it sound completely different.
Different ears and all that.
@@jimmyhazard Thanks. You can find a few more audio clips on this page: ruokangas.com/specifications/valvebucker/
It's unnecessary as f***. I can't understand it. I guess I'm missing something as well
@@Releasethebats123 every guitar thing is unnecessary. My dad got so much crap from his dad about wanting an electric guitar. Just let people innovate and make new things.
I wonder what the Valvebucker would sound like in a National Tricone Resonator ? I bet you could get a real bluesy delta slide sound.
Thanks. Agreed! There are a lot of different possibilities to explore in the future regarding the Valvebucker. :)
Yes I can imagine this application sounding very good too.
Westone made a tube preamp mounted inside the guitar, it massaged a normal pup configuration thru it. It required a separate power lead. It failed because excess vibration caused microphony within the tube/ board. Aria did it to some domestic jap basses. Never caught on really, somewhat prone to breaking down. The valvebucker needs more tones, the " neck" position did not sound right. The pup itself needed to be either in the bridge or the neck. But I guess width is an issue... .
Westone did that?! Truly an impressive feat for the '80s. Westone is the best!
I think this is great. I would love one of these but I suspect they may be a bit expensive. Which is fine. I think something like this has major mojo, and is cool engineering, and it's also sounding fantastic.
Thank you Warren for your positive feedback. My guitars are all custom made, and the prices are currently (2019) starting from about EUR 3500. That is here in Europe, and when exported outside EU, the price adjusts accordingly (exchange ratings, customs, shipping, brokerage fees..). The Valvebucker is a EUR 1200 additional option to any guitar we make.
@@ruokangas That is totally competitive to custom shop and boutique builder territory. Very nice!
@@WarrenPostma Thank you. Yes, the price level should not be unreasonable. :)
Sounds nice for sure
To me appears to be nothing more than a Internal Preamp . I'll pass .
Yeah, it's like they're in cahoots with XLR cable manufacturers.
I personally love the look and sound.
It sounds like Ian Thornley of Big Wreck would dig this tone.
Very nice! Congratulations on developing this.
love this idea!
Dude,how did you play the rain song without the G sus 4th tuning???
Amazing!!! Best reguards from Rockpedia Radio Station from Brasil...Abração, meu querido!
Great looking gtar sans tubes or not! How many amps do the tubes draw? How is this any different from running into a tube driven preamp pedal?
This really cool.
I love the outro and I could not agree more
Thank you! :)
Middle position sounds fab.
Thank you!
Loved the middle position and how it looks. But was kind of expecting more from the other positions. Nice job anyway!
Oh man, that tube light up!!!
WOW!
Brilliant concept! Way ahead of its time. Would a rechargeable ion lithium battery (like in a Dewalt drill) provide enough current to run these tubes in the pickup's preamp for a few hours? If so you could just pop a battery into a compartment in the guitar's body and plug it straight into a regular input jack on an amp and avoid the power supply box and XLR cable.
And the cable doesn’t get out without pressing the button👍😀😎 nice product, great sound
The way I see it, Les Paul got laughed at when he showed his "Log" to Gibson. So it's wait and see what happens. There is one issue though, guitar players like what they like, and that doesn't change very often.
Does the 3 way switch work as a position selector with only one pickup. Kind of confused about how it works still
That's awesome. And if I'm correct, the guitar could be powered by the phantom power on the Line 6 Helix XLR input yeah?
Will it still work if a tube goes out or do you have to disassemble it immideately to replace the bad tube?
Very cool, I'll hopefully be doing the same thing someday.
Ok! Sounds amazing! Not gonna lie! And you said, whenever there's a chance try it. I'm from India. It's possibly gonna take another 10 years for valvebuckers to reach India(any similar country) for try and buy for differences and stuffs. A comparison of what the major difference is, would be great coz not all of us will get a chance to try and buy. I would trust your side by side comparison to buy it directly from you. I do see there's a lot that has gone into making this guitar. It stands out. Looks great. Sounds amazing. But why should I buy it based on difference is what many of us watching this video will want to know. Thanks 🙂
Nice guitar ! That middle position sounded beautiful. I think it's great idea. Remember Mr. Randall got laughed out of the Namm show, when Fender debuted the Telecaster. Thanks for trying something different.
Pretty neat! Starved plate design? They definitely add a “tube feel” to overdrive pedals despite what people say on forums. At least the one I built does.
Thank you. The Valvebucker circuit is not a starved plate design. It makes use of sweet spots found from outside the typical operational points of vacuum tubes, by using relatively low voltages - but high enough to generate a dynamic signal with a healthy amplitude.
This sounds nice, but at the same time, I dont see why a boutique pickup designer couldnt wind me something completely passive that sounds just as good, if not a little better. *That said* I do understand that this is the first stage of a new invention, which is just seeing if it will work. I wanna see more, and different
I wanna buy one of those but I can find them for sale anywhere
Yellow Jackets Thanks. The Valvebucker is available in custom guitars made by us. You can simply contact us by email at juha@ruokangas.com
wow that middle pickup
Thank you.
Can someone explain how the three way switch is working when there is only one pickup, are there different channels or something?
Wouldn't the heat from the tubes make the pickup eventually go microphonic from loosening the wax in the pickup?
No. It doesn't heat that much at all.
Your guitar is so beautiful...
I love seeing innovation and chances being taken.... But what is the draw of this? I don't hear anything but a pretty guitar. If you want a built in preamp, give me more to work with. Maybe build in multiple EQ channels to switch between rapidly, or multiple gain stages?
So you have the 12VAC for the filament. Is it a directly heated cathode/filament? What is being used for the B+ plate voltage?
Yes we need 12v for the heaters. Naturally anode voltages need to be little higher.
So how is that voltage produced? Is this a gimmick? I mean without some serious rectified plate voltages, there is no way that these tubes can do anything for the guitar signal path. Without that, you essentially have two really cool looking light bulbs.
@@srtamplification Thanks. We started the research & development for this product from an empty table, and we have no intention to disclose novel technical details of it. Others are free to find their own solutions how to design a new type of a tube amp and how to power it up. Not a gimmick, but not technical magic either - just a lot of hard work.
I'd also like to know how any tube pedal gets its voltage out of 18v DC current like my Radial hot british? I'm pretty sure there's transistors doing most of the work, but it sounds great and it's cool to have a tube in there, even if it's just for show.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voltage_multiplier
It's been well understood for a long time how to do this sort of thing. -There are some tubes that will run on 12V plate voltage as well, but that's probably not what they used. Transformers are a possibility given that the input voltage is AC, but those are bulky.- (Edit: apparently it's low voltage, so it might just be 300V tubes running on 12V.) I'm sure whatever's in there has been refined and optimized considering the space constraints, and I'll give 'em credit for the work that went into that, but I doubt anything truly novel is going on in there.
very cool! what's the price point on that axe?
With those specs (prices of our guitars vary depending on the specs chosen) the year 2019 price point is USD 6k. That's EUR 5500.
Lots of folks saying they don't see a point. Lots of guitar innovations these days ultimately serve little to no game changing point. TT frets, Fanned frets, evertune, robot tuners, etc. (none of which I have a particular interest in owning, some of which I've already owned, tried, and moved on.) It's just another option. Some people will swear by it, other people will treat it like trash. I see it, just like the previously mentioned stuff, as just another option. And while it might not be for me, there's no reason to shit on it. I'm more a fan of the bridge pickup position, and this lacks that. It emulates it, but it is not the same. Pinch harmonics and the like will always sound like a middle pickup. The guitar sounds nice, and I'm sure playing it in person, the characteristics would shine more. At the very least, I think it looks pretty damn cool.
The middle position was the only one that sounded good. For obvious reasons. Not sold on this. Guitar is beautiful though.
This video was made more like a questions and answers type instead of an actual demo. For a better recording of the tone, check this: th-cam.com/video/MSJ8d4LFq-I/w-d-xo.html - or listen to the audio samples on this page: ruokangas.com/specifications/valvebucker/
Perhaps this would be most useful on a solid state amp???
In a tube amp it seems rather redundant.
But to each their own.😊
Wow I can finally find my guitar on a dark stage!
I bet the is less hum if the signal is amplified at the pickup. I ask why not use transistors or op amps today?
There are plenty of solid state powered active electric guitar pickups available... and the Valvebucker is definitely different from them. You can read here comments by people who have in fact played a Valvebucker equipped guitar: www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/bravo-juha-bravo.2010914/
Groovy!
Try it through a Dumble transistor amp, that would probably be awesome
So, this guitar would have to have a switching power supply inside of it to boost the 12-volts up to presumably a 100 volts or more for use as plate voltage to the tubes. 12 volts by itself isn't of much use except to power the heaters of the tubes.
Genial!
That middle position is quite unique. But do yourself and all gigging customers a favor and make the tubes accessible from the backside. Most tubes are not designed to be moved around and those who were, are typically very hard to get. And even those will brake once in a while. So imagine you play that beautiful guitar on a gig and one of your tubes blow. At that moment you would wish you could access the blown tube easily.
So other than how it clips, what does this do that a TL062, for example, can't do better and more efficiently? I'm sure that for what this costs you could buy 4 or 5 Peavey Classic 50s or whatever and have that "Real Toob Tone" everyone wants. That said, it's still cool as hell. My only real qualm would be the position of the pickup.
It's not really comparable to plugging a guitar into a tube amplifier. This is an active pickup with the preamp stage amplified with tubes. So it's a signal amplifier with optional voicings. With such system we have better control over the signal sent to the actual guitar amp. The Valvebucker guitar sounds fab with a Peavey Classic - but different from a passive pickup guitar run into a Peavey Classic. :) The position of the pickup is deceiving, too. It doesn't sound what you'd expect from a pickup in this position. :)
I get it, it’s an analog EMG
A 'friking' mazing!!!! That Sounds So Much More Colorful! A Thicker Clear' Yet Stays Articulate When Pushed! _ for those people who are jabbing This Audio Genious Artwork!?_ 'please go back to your profit lumber' Wtf?_ Thank You 'Juha and Crew' For This Long Over Due Advancement ToThe Electric Guitar Dimension' Most Awesome!🌎🌍🌏 🎸🔊🎼
A vaccuum tube in a guitar!?!? Sounds sick! It does take some level of madmanship to come up with something like this, I imagine. :,-)
Are you aware of KORG’s NuTube? It could take away the heating, be less fragile and take less space, but don’t know how it would affect the tone...
Yes we're aware of the NuTube. Maybe something for the future for us, but the Valvebucker concept works and sounds absolutely great with the old NOS tubes we're using, without any heat issues. And the looks... you have to admit that the Valvebucker would lose some of its Mojo without the sight of those glowing valves..! :D
Ruokangas Guitars Hmm, that’s a good point! Didnt think of the aesthetic perspective.
I like the look of the guitar, but I would be happy if it just had a humbucker pickup in the normal position plus a P90 in the neck. Love the fretboard too!
Its weird. The only way i see this as a benefit is if your amp is solidstate. Maybe havin a Peavey Bandit, or Nashville. Roland Jazz Chorus is a amazing Ss too.
What about moving it around while the tubes are hot? Won't that ruin them?
No. We use military spec NOS tubes that have been used in airplanes, radars and other extremely critical applications back in the day. They take vibration extremely well without causing trouble.
@@ruokangas oh okay that's great.
the guitar with the valvebucker looks killer and sounds pretty good.
i think ypu should provide a reference where you compare it to the same type of guitar equipped with a normal active pickup.
Thank you! We will definitely make A/B comparison video(s) in the near future!
uli roth's sky guitar has an 18v preamp that drives his output so high that it fries the inputs of any amp except marshalls and blackstars. just saying...
Swimming pool routing just became useful
Tubes in my guitar make me hot but the Mike cable to my pedal board seems odd and the whole set up gives me one hard tube
Seeing as how there's a pedal. Why didn't he put the valves and the rest of the circuit in the pedal. Then he could sell the pedal to be used with any guitar. I'm not clear on why the valves need to be in the guitar?
It essentially turns any solid state amp into a tube tastic tyrannical monster of tone! In other words it sound like your playing through a tube amp.
Possibly the world's first ELECTRIC guitar.
Can it not be routed so the pickup is in the traditional bridge pickup?
Thanks. There are a lot of possibilities this technology allows in the future, for sure. :)
its basicly a tube eq and preamp build intoo the guitar , i wouldnt want to stand in front of a marshall stack at full tilt with the thing as those tubes could become pretty microfonic and it whont be musical at all , its allso sumting that you shouldnt wear around youre neck as the internals of the tubes are fragile (fysical shocks from playing / showing off on stage , sweat and theatre smoke can wreak havoc on powered electronics even if its low power , if its all in a stompbox its good enough , and you can run all youre guitars through it
it might be a nice guitar for studio work as you probably can plug it straight intoo the board
The valvebucker needs to go into a Steampunk styled guitar!
Id like to try it put ina cbg
Not bad at all!! But it must be a special guitar for installing this device.
Thank you. Yes, the pickup is only available in our custom made guitars.
Lmao these comments are why I hate guitarists. You guys aren’t open to any innovation. I know classical violin players who are happy to try a whole host of new things, saxophonists who play with synthetic reeds etc. This is something new, not meant to replace anything, but as a new colour in the pallet
This isn't innovation though. This just takes something we already have and builds it into a guitar, which is arguably not the best place for it. Sure it's cool, and I respect the engineering that went into it, but at the end of the day it's just a gimmick. Which is fine, you can't ever have too many cool gimmicky accessories for your guitar. This one just isn't the most practical.
@@SodomySnake Thank you. A lot of people say our invention is a gimmick. However, it appears that 100% of those people have not had a chance to play such a guitar. :) On the other hand, 100% of those people who have in fact played such a guitar, immediately understand the significance of it. There is quite a contrast in opinions before and after playing it. You can read here comments by some of those players: www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/bravo-juha-bravo.2010914/
The more technology advances the better guitars get, but guitars themselves don't need to change. Modern amps and pedals and the way pickups are dialed in now, you can slap pickups on your dinner table and make it sound like a 57 les paul with the right amp and pedals or software. Purists would disagree but in a blind test they'd be surprised.
Your dinner table probably already sounds better than a '57 Les Paul (assuming you're not eating off a folding card table or something).
Rain song :))))))
TheHypermew was searching for someone who’d recognize it
Next LINE6 makes the valvebucker modeling digital guitar
Preamp?
Middle position was nice, and that sounded more like neck position to me.
André Orsel Thanks. We have actually swapped the ‘middle’ and ‘neck’ positions around after making this video. :)
Ruokangas Guitars hahaha! Can happen ;-)
Tubes really don't like to be jostled around.. I can imagine a tupe-powered pickup developing some bad microphonics. It might make a cool effect but hearing high pitched chimes and ringing in the overtones would get old quickly.
There's none of that happening. You can read hear some comments from people who have actually played such a guitar: www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/bravo-juha-bravo.2010914/
@@ruokangas You know how many musical instrument gimmicks were built on fake forum reviews? I'm not saying the link to the forum you posted is full of fake reviews... but it happens too much for me to bother taking forums seriously... a few fake email accounts can get you a few sock puppet profiles and BOOM, instant buzz on a forum. Also, you should try to choose your wording and emphasis more wisely. When you emphasize "PLAYED" it reads as condescending to a potential customer who may be simply stating a potential concern. You can take your pickup and stick it up your ass.