JangleBox JangleBox

Pretty easy. Gain controls the volume and compression, Attack the intensity of the compression. I set the Gain control to unity (2 o'clock was a fairly substantial boost in my case), and the Attack to around the suggested setting of 2 o'clock. The compression begins to kick in at around the halfway mark on the guitar volume, getting steadily stronger as you increase the volume.

The fact that the effect is positively grounded but uses a 2.1mm barrel plug is annoying, as you can't use one of those 1-spot 1/8" positive plug extensions for old DOD effects and the like. I don't have the confidence to build my own extension (which in any case will still need its own power supply) so I'm stuck using a battery. I also think it might have been better to put the title under the "J" and have the footswitch closer to the bottom of the pedal. It's pretty close to the controls, and an casual stomp could move the knobs or worse break them or the tone switch off.

Delightful. I play humbuckers with flatwound 12s so have a very mellow tone, and picked this unit up principally to widen the tonal possibilities of the instrument. I'm not gassing for a Tele anymore. It really does make your instrument chime like the guitars on early 60s Beatles records and I'm using a Godin into a Fender Blues Jr. I can only imagine how much more authentic it would sound between a Ric and an AC30.

The unit is not excessively noisy but it does hiss a bit, moreso in bright mode. Perhaps due to the flatwounds, I've found the dark setting to be rather useless. It sounds more or less like I've rolled the tone knob fully down.

Seems well built. The casing is solid, the wiring looks ok.

Nice website, but Janglebox has the worst guarantee policy of any boutique builder I've encountered. Zachary Vex guarantees his handbuilt pedals for life, as do Frostwave. Many other builders at least give you a 3 year guarantee. Janglebox only warrant their pedal for 90 days. I don't know what that says about their confidence in their product, but for a US$215 compressor it's a pretty poor warrantly in my opinion.

A cool little unit. It has really added another 'voice' to my guitar. I'd been eyeing them for a year or two but felt the new price of US$215 (plus shipping) was a little expensive, so when a used one appeared on the local ebay I didn't hesitate. After the fact I'm still not entirely sure I'd pay the new price (which, after shipping, would be approx AUD$330 here), though I suppose that's still a hell of a lot cheaper than buying a second guitar. From what I've read around the place there's nothing else on the market like it. Any Beatles fan, or fans of music from that era, would no doubt appreciate the Janglebox.

The controls on the JangleBox are very straightforward.It doesn't get much easier than this to get a great tone from this product.Setting the gain and attack at 2 o'clock as per instructions with the toggle on the bright setting gives the foundation for all tones Byrd and Beatles.

Although the JangleBox sounds amazing with any 6 string guitar,it is absolutely INCREDIBLE with a 12 string.I play various styles of music and the JangleBox greatly enhances them all.I run my 1968 Ric 360/12 through a 1965 Fender Princeton Reverb,a Marshall DSL 100 with a Marshall 4x12 cabinet containing 4 pre-Rola 25 watt greenbacks and directly into the board for recording, all using my JangleBox.This box is exceptionally quiet as well.With the Ric 360/12 it NAILS Roger McGuinn's and George Harrison's jangly tones as no other compressor can.When playing my Tele through it, the sustain is amazing(as it is with my Ric 12 string) and it imparts an evenness of tone and even greater musical voice.

This product is built extremely well due to the fact that it is hand assembled.You'd have to beat on it with a 10 pound sledge hammer to get it to malfunction.I have no hesitation using it on a live gig knowing that this is the last piece of equipment I'd have to worry about.

I've corresponded with Steve Lasko,whose firm manufactures the JangleBox,several times.He has answered my questions in a very courteous and timely manner.

It doesn't matter what style of music that you play because JangleBox will elevate your sound to levels you might not have thought possible, especially with a 12 string.I've been playing for about 43 years now and this is one of the most amazing products I've ever seen.If you want to replicate "THE SOUND" of The Byrds and The Beatles then by all means look no farther.This is the "Holy Grail" that we have tried to find for so long.It is also rewarding to find a firm with the professionalism to care about the quality of their product and the satisfaction of their customers.Thanks Steve.

This is a simple straightforward layout in a typical stompbox.
There is a contol for the attack and one for sustain.
There is a three way toggle sitch giving you dark normal and bright combinations.

So you have bought your Rickenbacker 12 string (or like me you have searched for the best copy you can find without remortgaging the house!) but it still lacks that defining elusive jingly jangly chime that you hear on all the Byrds, Beatles, Beachboys, Bangles and REM songs.
Well your search is over! THIS is it. This is that defining sound you are looking for. No it's not a multi-effects pedal it is designed specifically to replicate this particular sound.
It chimes, it jangles and shimmers and it sounds awesome. To be honest you do not have to won a Rickenbacker 12 string (or six string) to create that beautiful sound.
This pedal allows that sweet sustain and chime without compromising on hiss or noise and for that I believe what it does is unique.
I used a Rockingbetter (Tokai) 12 string with a Valvetronix 15 watt AND no other effects.
Mr. Tambourine Man,Ticket to Ride, There she goes (The La's)you can nail them all with this.
Check out the website listed at the end of this review and sample the sounds for yourself.

I have only had this pedal about a week.
They are handbuilt in Virginia in the USA so the downside is that there is a waiting list of approximately 6 weeks.
It comes with a twelve month guarantee.Shipping only took four days.

Steve Lasko who owns the company is one of the most reliable guys I have ever dealt with and easy to get hold of either by phone or email.

I have been playing for over 30 years and have a wide tast in music. I particularly love the sixties since I grew up with that music. I love the Byrds, Beatles, Hollies etc. I won a range of guitars including Epiphone J160E (John Lennon) and an Epiphone Texan (Paul McCartney)
Some will say that it is a 'one-trick-pony' but if you never tire of that sound you will not be disappointed I promise you. If I lost this I would definately replace it. This has really helped to enhance the sound I have been looking for. Roger McGuin himself uses it what better endorsement is that??

This is a quite simple to use effect box.
It's a compressor/sustain stomp box and works like a treble booster.
It's the onboards electronic that Roger Mcguinn of The Byrds used in his legendary 60's Rickenbacker 12 String. For all those who can't afford this Ric, now the electronic parts are available in this stomp box.
There are two sockets (input and output) for the guitar cable, one switch (dark/bright) and two pots (gain and attack). Of course it has an on/off switch and a socket for the power cable, but you can use it with a battery too.

The sound is bright and ok, but there are some negatives:

First there are massive feedback problems. You can't use it, in front of the amp.
Second, it's a bit noisy.

It's built ultra-solid. It's all metal, no plastic.
If you throw it, nothing will break.

The guy who sells it, on the homepage is really very kind and helpfull.

Well, it's hard to rate it.
I use it mainly with my 330 Ric and a Vox AC 30 and it works really good. I like this box, but I use it not very often, as I need some other effects too (Reverb, Chorus).
For those, who only want to have the ultimate Rickenbacker 12-String-Sound, this box is heaven. For all other it's maybe much too expensive.

10- Very easy to use. I used to talk via email to Roger McGuinn who endorses the Janglebox. He doesnt use his onboard in his Rickenbacker 370/12RM anymore. I asked where he usually has his settings. Gain set @ 100%
Attack @3 O'clock. The toggle switch depending how much ring and chime you want, either at normal or bright. I prefer the bright setting as my personal preference. It makes my Rickenbacker 360/12VP ring and chime like you wouldn't believe. And by the way it makes my Martin D-12-28 sound really cool too. It's a great addition for any acoustic guitar for that matter.

10 Actually for my solo 12 string acoustic and electric guitar & vocal act I'm using a Behringer PMX Europower 2000 and running it directly into the power amp mixer. I add just a touch of chorus + reverb along with it. It is hardly noisy at all. I used to use a Boss CS-3 Compression/Sustain pedal and it was nothing more than a volume pedal and caused a lot of uncontrollable feedback. The janglebox does neither. Step back into that wonderful 60's sound again. The last set of the night I end it with a tribute to Roger McGuinn/The Byrds. The Janglebox comes thru for me to get that vintage sound everyone is counting on.

No problems so far. been very reliable. It has been my experience that you make sure you are using a reliable 9V battery and it is in good charge shape otherwise it will like any stomp box give a weak signal and break up in your speakers.

Steve Lasko owner/inventor of the Janglebox has given me great support and stands behind his product.

I play mostly 60's & 70's folk, folk rock styles. And Roger McGuinn and Leo Kottke are my mentors as far as 12 string guitar players go.
I started playing guitar at age 13(1965)and in 1977 made the transition over to all 12 string guitars. The 6 string simply became boring to me and I needed to be challenged. I own 3 12 string guitars at present. A 1984 Martin D-12-28(I'm the original owner), a 2003 Martin J1216GT, a 2004 Rickenbacker 360/12VP. If my Janglebox were lost or stolen would I replace it? Dumb ? Without a doubt I would have it replaced asap. My last comment here. I've tried every brand you can think of to get good compression and sustain. The Janglebox is in a class all of its own, there is no comparison. Yes, they are pricey. But you get what you pay for. And the Janglebox delivers 150%. And Janglebox is all American made. Not mass produced by the thousands in some sweat shop in Taiwan or China or Mexico. It is a kitchen table operation so to speak and only 10 at a time are hand assembled. Which I think says a lot about this company.

Just "Gain" and "Attack" dials for the compressor and a Brite, middle
and Dark toggle switch for the tone..............easy as pie.

Nothing much to do except to slowly dial in what works best with the gear or "tone stack"

I use and American Delux Strat with Joe Barden pickups (these are
fantastic with Strats) a Samick R4 Royal hollow thin-line electric
(this is a very well built Korean made guitar)with two Seymour Duncan
Humbuckers (not- Duncan Design ones - the real McCoys I had put in,
this Samick R4 can do any type of music and well. I also have a 360-6
Ric with two high-gain pickups (just a bit warmer than the jangly
toasters). I run directly to the Jangle - Box, then to my Vox
Tonelab unit and then to my Fender Cyber Deluxe (solid state - but
has great tone and response to pic-attacks). The Janglebox really
makes a difference when on and in front of the chain going into
the imput of the amp (no looping here). It adds a presence that makes
it difficult to turn off because it really seems to spice up the
overall tone depending on how you have the toggle switch set. On the brite setting with my Ric I can really nail those early British invasion sounds (Townsend, Beatles -Lennon and Searchers to name a few) plus get those really brite and high attack Byrds tones. Is this
the best sounding compressor I have heard? Nope, but what it does
with the brite switch on, does it better than any other compressor
I have tried. The warmest sweetest sounding compressor that makes all my guitars (and me!!!!!)sound great is the Tech 21 Comptortion pedal
(combines both compression and distortion in one pedal); If you
find one of these BUY-IT, believe me this thing adds a creamy warmth
to your sound that you won't believe. I use it with the distortion
knob all the way down which will still give you just a touch of
breakup with the compressor (believe me its great). Nothing wrong or
bad with the Jangle Box sound; the brite really shines and does jangle
and chime like no other (like having a treble boost for your amp).
I gave it and 8 because it does that one brite thing so well but oveall not as good as my favorite Tech-21 pedal.

Built very well, steel housing and all.............. I do worry about
breaking off the very thin toggle switch (they should use a heavier
switch here). I have only had a few monts so time will tell.

Never dealt with this company before, not sure if they make anything else and I bought it through Musictoyz (they were the only people
that had any in stock).

Great Pedal; If you do classic Rock of yesteryear or Country this
pedal will really shine for you. A bit expensive for doing that
one brite chimmy thing, but if thats the sound you have been seaching
for and can't quite nail it with the gear you have this will do it.

For RIC owner out there.......If your using High Gain pickup and were
thinking about doing the toaster pickup change because you can't get
that chime (but still like the warmth the High Gains give) pick up
the Jangle Box and have the best of both worlds.

The JangleBox is a top-quality compressor, with the great sound of a studio device built into a small and easy to use pedal. It has two knobs for Level and Compression, and a three-position swtich for tone settings labeled as Dark, Normal and Bright. Each tone setting has its uses and all sound great to my ears. Almost plug 'n play simple too.

NOTE: if you want AC power, you must use a center positive power supply. I use the proper cable with my Voodoo Lab Pedal Power.

I'm using my JangleBox with both clean and dirty amp settings, by itself and with a few other pedals too. For guitars, I use a Les Paul Custom with Duncan humbuckers, a Les Paul Special with P90s, a stock American Strat, and a Danelectro 12 string. Amps are Mesa Nomad 100 and Blue Angel combos.

One of the best features of the JangleBox is its ability to deliver its compression benefits without added distortion. Other compressors I've used, like the MXR Dyanacomp and SuperComp, seem to add too much of their own distortion to the mix.

Into a clean amp, the JangleBox' Bright setting is ideal for sparkling Strat tones, such as Steve Miller's "Jet Airliner" tone. With the Dano 12, Bright is the way to go for the Beatles, Byrds, Tom Petty, etc., sound as demonstrated on the JangleBox web site. Normal setting into a clean amp gets a good country chickin' pickin' sound. Dark gets into Orange Squeezer territory.

With a dirty amp, honestly, I never want to turn the JangleBox off! My distorted sounds are louder and clearer. Chords ring out with all their overtones and harmonics, and single note lines just sing. My favorite Les Paul and dirty amp tone is to use the Bright setting, and I get classic 70s Brit distortion tones like Bad Company's first album.

It plays nice with other pedals too. I use the Dark setting to feed a HomeBrew Electronics U.F.O. fuzz to get a warm and wooly Fuzz Face tone. Normal into a distortion box is great for getting big 70s hard rock sounds. Into a clean amp with my MXR EVH Phase 90, the Bright setting nails the Eagles "Hotel California" intro.

It seems to be built well, but it's a little soon to rate this category.

The folks at janglebox.com answered my pre-sale e-mails promptly, and answered a post-sale one quickly too. It took a little while to get this, as they are built to order it seems. Three plus weeks from order entry to delivery, but WORTH THE WAIT!

The builder suggested a positive center adapter for powering the JangleBox, and said that Pedal Power users had reported a "hiss" even when using the correct power cable. I ordered the exact model adapter, but I found the exact opposite to be true. The adapter adds noise, the Pedal Power is quiet.

In the past, compressors to me were pedals that you used without thinking about too much. They just kind of sat there and did their thing, but didn't really have any "personality" of their own. Fuzzes, distortions and wahs (oh my!), on the other hand, were pedals that you "love." Well, I LOVE MY JANGLEBOX!!!! It's one of the best pedal investments I've ever made. It works great with my setup and I enjoy using it on almost every song I play.