The Mystery of KMD Pedals
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- Опубліковано 22 тра 2024
- KMD pedals are a sort of an enigma among guitar pedal enthusiasts, because there's not a lot of information about who designed these, what factory they were made in, and who actually made them. There's actually a juicy TMZ style rumor that BOSS Roland actually manufactured these secretly. And honestly, I've seen these pedals around for about 10 years, and I haven't slept a night since then because I need answers. And today this episode has one goal: to get me some answers, and to share answers with you.
www.thejhsshow.com/
www.jhspedals.info/
/ thejhsshow
Check out the gear in this and past episodes here:
reverb.com/c/jhs-pedal-picks?...
Josh's Amp: www.sweetwater.com/store/deta...
Josh's T-Shirt: shop.merchcentral.com/collect...
4:04 KMD Analog Distortion
5:04 KMD Analog Delay
reverb.com/p/kmd-analog-delay...
6:41 KMD Phaser
8:30 KMD Overdrive
10:11 KMD Flanger
12:05 KMD Stereo Chorus
Record Time:
Boards of Canada - Music Has The Right To Children
amzn.to/3fYLzYi
Josh’s record player is by U-Turn Audio:
amzn.to/34CRXjr
#jhs #thejhsshow #kmd
immediately after this video was released, my KMD chorus listing on Reverb was sold
damn, im a huge collector of analogue choruses and now i see i’ll have a challenge on my hands
@@ExperimentIV Did pedals make you huge? Maybe you should eat Behringer, which are lighter, and that way you don't get challenge all over your hands. And wear a mask.
Well this video is proof you made the right choice listing it ;)
i think the question everyone is asking at this point is.... did you have the box?
@@MrJC1 unfortunately no lol
"I think it's salmon coloured, Nick, is that right?"
"More of a red"
"Yeah, its salmon"
Josh: "Reso... is, guess"
Me: "Distortion"
Josh: "Resonance"
Me: "Dammit"
hahaha
"Meticulously obsessing over small details no one should ever care about." Thanks for explaining my entire career.
^This^
This
@ultimateguitarwizard and somehow we care
“You’re not gonna turn this phaser on and join Incubus” love that quote 7:16
He has the box!
I know it's coming, but somehow I laugh everytime.
I kind of miss the stutter/pause effect on the phrase from the live show.
And you don't have the box!
Needs to be a notification tone lol
I sold KMD products in a store I managed in the 90s. KAMAN was the distributor (Bruno and son) out of Chicago (?).
We sold lots of the amps, and had Richie Ssmbora do a stop in. We also did Kramer a, and Ovation. All Richie stuff at the time.
The KAMAN rep, a fella named Bob, wanted me to get the pedals in. At the time, pedals were soft and everyone wanted ADA preamps and full racks. He pushed on the pricing, and told me, "Yeah! BOSS makes them!" No idea if that was ever true, but he also left out that most of the manufacturing ended, and they were already booting those pedals through other competing wholesale outlets. I still have a ton of KMD stickers, but sold any of the amps I had, and some pieces were really good! The amps were made in England, sounded pretty good, but looked like they were made of plastic and old Playschool parts. I still have a Chorus pedal.
How had I never come across this channel till 2 days ago? Love your presentation; relaxed, informative and funny. You even just made my wife chuckle. Guys like you are the reason jobs don't get done around the house and yet you still managed to charm her. Bravo Sir, bravo. Anyway just wanted to say thanks for the channel, keep fighting the good fight. Aloha.
I just found it 2 months ago myself. You're way ahead! HOOKED.
Does anyone know what kind of power supply these pedals use I can’t find anything online and I don’t want to fry my dads pedals
This is my favorite JHS video so far. I live in CT, not far from KAMAN Aerospace and the old Ovation factory in New Hartford. I still have my 1984 Ovation Balladeer and it still slides off my lap when I play it (which is not very often). Gimmicky plastic guitars... well played Charlie Kaman (RIP).
Boards of Canada are the best. The EP “in a beautiful place out in the country” is maybe my favorite thing they’ve done.
11:51 I nearly squealed with joy and whatever that high pitched noise is there. Wowza!
Never thought I'd see BOARDS OF CANADA on record time! Legendary album for me as a guitarist turned electronic musician who is lately eschewing my synthesizers & getting back in touch with my guitar 👍
acoustipop?
Boards of Canada are great! Especially the album "music has the right to children". Also the other Warp records bands, such as squarepusher and Aphex twin.
Just got into them! Can't believe I missed out until now. Love The Campfire Headphase too!
Dude, I love that Label. Can’t forget Battles (first albums are some of my favorites).
This was my favorite chill album back in the early 2000s. Listened to it over and over and over again. So good front to back!
Orange
I highly recommend listening to MHTRTC on 45rpm if you have a vinyl copy - I hadn't heard any of the tracks before buying (back in 2000) and assumed it was a more upbeat album!
The overdrive sounds like when I used to play through my dad's hifi system in the eighties. When he was out, obvs.
When I was 15 in the 80s I used to plug my guitar in dad's tape deck and turn the input levels all the way up so it was really distorted thru dad's hifi. My mate was a very decent guitarist in a gigging band at the time and came over and said: "that's really cool, it sounds like the guitar tone on the intro to roadhouse blues!" and he grabbed my guitar started playing cool blues riffs, I was so proud. A few weeks later dad unexpectedly came home when I was cranked to 10 thru his stereo and that was the end of that. My dad still has that hifi in his shed, I should get it out!
"Nick what do you think"
"I don't know it's like a really chill red"
"It's a salmon color"
Josh, you always record pedals that you absolutely loooooooove! How about an episode of the pedals you absolutely hate?
I had the KMD Delay back in the late 90s, kind of your standard analog bucket brigade delay, never really used it that much and eventually sold it off at some point. The thing that did impress me about it was the weight, it was definitely the heaviest, most solid feeling compact effects pedal I've ever owned, and I've gone through a lot over the years. I don't remember if the case itself was thicker than a standard Boss enclosure, but I recall the battery/switch cover feeling beefier, also the bottom plate.
I was just given my first JHS pedal, the muffleta, and I haven't been able to turn it off, the Big Muff pi circuit is my favorite, and I have even written part of a song around the pedal. So thank you for making an inspiring pedal that has gotten me out of a writing Rut
I bought the delay a few months ago after watching the video where you mentioned it and it’s one of my favorite pedals. Love the sound when you crank the repeat to 100%
My favorite part about these videos is seeing the set gradually get more and more like a room I'd like to room in.
The best distortion sound I ever recorded was an 80s KMD amp in a basement studio in Paris. I've never found an amp as rocking as that amp. I'm still looking to buy one!
This is now officially my fave record time you've done. I genuinely lost it when you mentioned them. BoC are electronic perfection. Their tunes are life changing 😁 No summer is complete without MHTRTC & Geogaddi playing while watching the sunset, as I've done on many an occasion.
This range seems like it should have its own jingle: “It has a tone!”
This is great!! I bought the Delay from my bass teacher almost 30 years ago and knew nothing else about it. I still have it and it still sounds really good.
Loved hearing about these! I got the analog delay as my very first pedal. Had played bass for awhile and got a Peavey Mantis guitar that looked like a pulled/roots included wisdom tooth and the analog delay from a buddy and bought an early four track cassette recorder. Used the delay for everything I recorded. Didn’t even have a mic or di box, ran everything through a passive mixer into my Roland bass amp w onboard chorus. Lol. The delay was so useful and had that warm old school tone. Hadn’t thought about it in decades.
Two words Josh; Sovtek Episode.
Cool video, I have the KMD distortion pedal. Bought it off some guy for $20. To me, after cranking it up it sounds like a fuzz pedal. They are hard to find online but I would love to have them all. Thank you for the knowledge. Great job
Yeah that was what I remembered about mine as well, at light settings it was nice and gritty, at medium settings it sounded kinda Boss DS-1-ish, but pushed it really got saturated and fuzzy without losing definition. Definitely one for the "ones that got away" wish list....
great episode ! i'm surprised you didn't go with The Campfire Headphase cause it's got way more guitar on it !
music has the right to children is the most important ambient record since Apollo - Atmospheres and Soundtracks. Bloody brilliant stuff Josh as usual!
Boards of Canada is one of my all time favourite musical groups. I especially love The Campfire Headphase.
Seems like there was a design decision made. Kamen: "Jimmy, we are only gonna design one style of enclosure and it's gonna have 4 knob holes." Jimmy: "I know it's the 80s but everything is getting a tone knob even if it isn't common for this era" Kamen fires Jimmy for making a 3 knob Chorus pedal....
I’m dubbing that overdrive sound the “Transistor Screamer” 🎛
Wow! I had a KMD Chorus back in the very late '90s into early '00s, I had been missing that pedal something fierce... Until I actually heard one again in this video. Now I'm kind of low-key lusting after the KMD Flanger for its chorus tone.
"..The Alaskan caught salmon phaser.." - Josh Scott
Jhs pedals are incredible and I love and support them, but Josh's sense of humour is the main reason I am a hardcore fan of #Thejhsshow
Both KMC and KMD were distributors I worked with often in the mid 2000's at the guitar store I was working for. They distributed everything from like.. Gibralter drum hardware, to Fender parts, pedals, etc - in fact, still now, KMC is a distributor for Digitech, Supro, Pigtronix, etc.
The last time I was this early these pedals were still cheap.
When I worked at a music store a few years ago, Kaman was still one of the main middlemen/wholesalers of music accessories. Mostly smaller stuff - strings, straps, cases, stands, hardware, effects, etc. Maybe a few instruments and amps.
Love the T Shirt Josh, I used to do similar at work on the notice boards at work years ago, ending with ... 'must eradicate time wasters who read non- sensical messages, now go and do some work'. Just watching their reaction after reading was priceless, either re-reading or doing a quick glance left and right and heading off at speed!
I love watching your show while driving to work! So many near accidents but it is worth it (for me)...
Love your videos, Josh! I love how much in depth knowledge you have on random things in the music gear world-it shows your passion.
Oh and by the way, I live in Alaska and if you ever want to come on up to catch some wild Alaskan salmon... well, I guess hit me up. We can make it happen!
The phaser was pure Pink Floyd..
Flanger - Lincoln-Green - like RobinHood
Man - I love that you have a record player in your car ... makes Josh-Win every day of the week.
Hey man, stereo chorus is super fun! I just rediscovered it and now I know why Alex Lifeson was so addicted to it!
The overdrive reminded me of my Electro Harmonix Lumberjack.
It also does the simultaneous clean/drive thing.
First off, great video as always!
Secondly, in my years working at a music store that was 95% Kaman product, I was under the impression that it was pronounced "Kuh-man" rather than "Kay-men" since that's how our rep and all the people on the phone said it.
Kind of like their Takamine guitars:
Some say "Tak-uh-me-knee", but the people at the company always said "Tack-uh-mine".
Sorry for the "well, actually" comments, but since Josh probably knows the people who lent their names to these products, I'd like some closure...
Oh, and can we get a "RockTek" episode some day? Pretty sure those were also Kaman.
I can't avoid sing "he's got the box" the instant a box is shown in his hands anymore...
I even got the right timing singing along the video
I’ve had to explain this to my wife
You're making me doubt whether or not it's "he has the box," but I swear I'm right
@@wyssmaster "he has the box" 8:26
Huge fan of all your pedals! Looking into getting the twin Twelve soon!
Oh man! Just when I asked you about a delay with tone control, you come with this one!
That “he has the box” is awesome every time
I bought the Analog Delay brand new in the late 80's (I had the box). I was buying a Crate amp and had some cash in the budget left. Asked if they had any delay pedals. Guy said "How about this one?" and showed me the KMD. Tried it out, liked it and bought it. Sold it a couple of years later when I was buying my 1st Jem. I'd only been playing guitar a year or 2 at that point and had no idea what a cool and unique pedal it was.
I 'm not sure if you are familiar with these guys but this ep is so good. Rain Parade- "Explosions in the Glass Palace" They're a bay area band from the early 80's. Very moody, nice use of effects and well written songs. My fave song is Broken Horse. Keep up the good work or else my mom will ground me.
I love the little stand for the pedals that they stand upright. :D
Those KMD cabs were 410 and actually sounded sweet when I paired one with with my Peavey XXX and Randall oversized 412!
Love your videos Josh. I'm not normally a commenter, but I thought I'd make an exception, since I have some experience working for/with wholesalers.
Production and rebranding companies come in all shapes and sizes. The most common are companies that make the exact same thing for whoever asks with whatever logo they want, as you say. RCA, Polaroid, Westinghouse, and fifteen other brands all have the exact same TV for sale, and none of those companies make anything - they're just labels. There are some brands that I we dealt with that changed the look of the product so it didn't look like their own version, and some that wouldn't bother, or didn't even make one under their own name.
We also dealt with a lot of companies that would give us samples. We might say, "We like your doodad, and can you make some for us?" They'd show us a few doodads of different quality levels and price points, and we'd pick one and order a whole ton. Usually we ended up trying to shave a few bucks off the name brand without the quality getting too much worse, but every once in a while we ordered one that was BETTER than the name brand one, because we knew our clientele that would pay for more quality than the name brand thought they would.
It's possible these pedals ARE made by BOSS, even though the construction techniques are different. BOSS may not have used ribbon connectors, but Roland certainly has that capability, and they may not care if there is a quality difference when it has someone else's name on it. My guess though is that they were probably made by whomever built the enclosures for BOSS. The extra cost of having two separate manufacturing processes would make it pretty unlikely to be worth BOSS's time to do ... but on the other hand, those enclosures are pretty unique. So the box maker is my final answer :)
Flanger and od sounded amazing. BoC are amazing
Please make an episode about Fairfield effects!
Do you know Oliver pedals? They are pedals (Boss/Roland) made in Brazil
Great pedals by the way! Had a flanger (wich i liked more than my current Taiwanese Boss Bf2), a SD1 overdrive and still love my chorus.
Just to make it clear: they were licensed Boss clones when importing had severe restrictions in Brazil, so the solution was to manufacture it locally. Also, the components were sometimes the Brazilian-equivalent considering the availability. On late 70s and 80s that was pretty common in Brazil. For example, Gradiente implemented JVC designs (and on late 90s even Nokia clones).
@@ianalves9256 Os pedais são muito bons mesmo, tenho o Chorus e o Heavy Metal, o Chorus é perfeito
@@semiografo A história é realmente essa, são pedais muito bons, relíquias nacionais agora
Vi um chorus hi por 200 reais. Me faltou a grana
Such a great record. The detuned keyboard stuff had a big influence on my playing in my band.
Amazing stuff, Josh, thank you.
That overdrive is SICK. A bit fuzzed out, so awesome.
Found this episode after coming across the KDM Overdrive.
Planning to pick it up after Josh's comment that it's different than most other things!
I was thinking "Isn't that Kaman Music Division?". I knew something Josh didn't. Yes!!!
Their Kaman Performer strings were pretty decent in the eighties. Lasted forever. Iirc.
Nice history on KMD! I've always wondered, since I bought a KMD guitar pickup in the 80s.
You where always a good presenter, but lately you are simply on fire, sir. Thank you from Brazil.
Sorry, almost forgot: Please come to Brazil.
very cool, had never heard of them before! Please do a video about tremolo, it never gets enough love as it deserves and I need to spend my money on more tremolo effects!
I have the phaser. It's thick and warm, not thin, even with the tone all the way up. I love it. I think it's a sleeper.
The colors are against the rules! Chorus is supposed to be blue, overdrive yellow, etc...
Helicopter man lol! what an awesome back story for these pedals, I just picked up the KMD stereo chorus after watching this episode, stoked!
I NEED THE SOVTEK EPISODE RIGHT NOW!!!!
I'd say if the dude had an idea like the ovation guitar bouncing around his grapefruit, he'd definitely have odd circuit ideas for pedals.
Awesome record time. I have to put it on right now!
Damn I haven't thought about Boards of Canada in a long time. Good shit.
Aloha! In the mid eighties, Kaman had a promotion. Buy a box of electric guitar strings, send the top of box with coupon from dealer and select the effect of your choice. I picked the analog delay. It was one of my first effect and I really enjoyed it. I. Believe you only had four choices of effects. I wish I still had it.
I liked this Pedal CSI format. You could come with that type of thing every so often.
Catch the Rainbow kind of vibes, with the Phaser ? Great videos and record times !
KMD amps were made by harman (JBL) that was my first amp. Seems like I had a poster with Ritchie sambora on it??? Not sure if they related but I’ll watch to find out 👍🏽
The KMD Flanger does some really weird stuff with an almost dead battery.
The KMD analog delay pedal was probably the best sounding delay pedal I have ever owned. When combined with distortion it would give me the most insane "alive" sounding leads that would morph into amazing sounds as I would bend strings. Sadly, these pedals DO NOT HAVE POLARITY REVERSAL PROTECTION and one day I plugged the wrong power adapter into it and the pedal literally went up in smoke catching on fire briefly. And that was the end of that pedal. The closet I can find to it, sound-wise, is the Electro Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man.
"he has the box" gets me every time lol
My manager at my new job put that BOC record on and I was like "very cool!"
I have more great anecdotes about that album
That phaser sounds cool! A unique Salmon-colored phaser!!😁🎸🎸
I wish you’d stacked the overdrive or the distortion into the chorus...cos that’s definitely how I use chorus!
I have a KMD STAXX preamp. It's supposed to go with a powered speaker to make a guitar combo, but when I found it at a yard sale, the speaker was long gone. Very little info about these things out there. No idea what I want to do with it, but I couldn't pass it up. Never seen one before, not since.
Highly recommend “The Campfire Headphase”, also by BoC. Slightly more ‘gaze.
What? No solder analysis?Board material, lithography, paint code decryption? I'm impressed! 👍
The track "One very important thought" from Boards of Canada was not played enough on radio or tv... this should be on everyone's playlist.
KMD did more then just pedals. I actually owned, in another life time, a KMD 24 channel mixer my old band used. It wasn't fancy but it got the job done. Thanks for the walk down amnesia lane Sir. Cheers
the way that overdrive sounds like it has the clean signal blended in makes me want to put it after a distortion or fuzz
Yes interesting
I liked that mewling sound of the flanger. About Kaman - are their Performer strings still being made? Best strings ever, especially for guitar synths, but I can't find them anymore.
wild salmon? are they bucket brigade?
fun show. informative as well.
Tq so much 4 this episode this one is my fave
Never expected BoC to be a recommendation on this channel! Pleasantly surprised.
Getting some real Hüsker Dü vibes from that distortion pedal (which was an MXR Distortion +, I think).
thank you, this was very informative!
🍀🍀🍀
The KMD amp range were designed...as I remember it, by the people from British company ProAmp and involved some of the design engineers from the early Selmer range of amps....I had the ProAmp Venom and Viper combos...which were fantastic......of course there is no saying they were also involved with the pedal range....but maybe....the drive channels on those amps were little out of the ordinary.
I’ve bought right now the JHS andy timmons pedal. Amazing product, very versatile and useful. 🖤 Regards from Italy 🇮🇹
Josh after hearing about these pedals: i don’t need sleep, i need answers
Very cool episode! I know you are mostly a pedal guy but could you do something on the kmd amps. I still have mine from the 80s😀🤘
You guys should do a mini-series on "the best pedals of 60s,70s,80s ect". Also shout out on the 101 series
My very first pedal I ever bought at age 15 new was a KMD distortion. And guess what, I never sold it or traded it! I’m not a big metal guy but you can get it to sound pretty chainsaw-ish.
Your videos feel like Im watching a good ass TV show and taking breakfast while at it.
Love it.
This is posted as I’m slowly reverse engineering the phaser from them. A project I undertook with the fear I would one day lose it to time and not have it anymore. I bought it in probably 98 along with the flanger, but sadly while I still own the Flanger I know it’s buried in storage and will take days to find. And I’ve never been able to find any others like them myself which has left me wondering for ages