The Steel Guitar Forum

I oredered a Lil Izzy last night and will add it to my arsenal of gear. I have to try everything so I am looking forward to receiving it.

Lenny

I am a newbie, a raw newby I have just bought a lil izzy and I am running it through a pevey Nashville
400 I cant seem to get the sound right could a member of the forum that has been using a lil izzy
with a simular set up, help me out with some settings
matthew

I'd start with either pulling down the presence and boosting the treble a bit, or just start from scratch.
Use the procedure in the second post here:
bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=223731

I've known Craig and his product Lil Izzy for a long time (I served as art & advertising director on Tom Bradshaw's "Steel Guitarist Magazine" in the early 1908's, Craig was an advertiser). He was kind enough to send me his new Lil Izzy to try out. I had the old one, loved it, but lost track of it in the fogs of time.

Finally had a chance to carefully check it out this week. It's wonderful!

I did turn down the treble in my signal chain a little, but other than that, the notes really sparkle now. Without it, everything sounds noticeably duller.

My setup: Mullen Pre-RP D-12, new Lil Izzy, Telonics volume pedal, Stereo Steel, TC Electronics M-One XL for effects, various cabinets and speakers. And with a Sarno Black Box right after the Izzy, it all sounds even better.

Check's in the mail, Craig!

"in the early 1908's"

Wow, John, you age well!

John,
Thank you for complimenting Li'l Izzy here on the forum. Your comments regarding Li'l Izzy are gratefully
appreciated, as they have no doubt increased the esteem Li’l Izzy enjoys in the marketplace.

Again, Thank you John.


Scott,
"1908" ?
You ought to see some of the mistakes I make!
In all the years we ran magazine ads while John was "Art and Advertising Director", we never had one tpyo!

Sincerely,
Craig Baker 706-485-8792

cmbakerelectronics@gmail.com

C.M. Baker Electronics
P.O. Box 3965
Eatonton, GA 31024

The first Izzys were steam powered.

John McClung

Did I give you an Izzy, or an Izzy Plus? What are you personal thoughts comparing it to the new one?

Chris

Like this one Lane
I think mine is a late 70's or 1980 and I put a battery in it & she still sings!

John McClung wrote: And with a Sarno Black Box right after the Izzy, it all sounds even better.

Check's in the mail, Craig!

I wondered if my Black Box would have to go. Now I know. LOL Thanks John.

Bill,
Whatever you do, don't let that Black Box get away. It's a great product with a huge fan club.

Sincerely,
Craig Baker 706-485-8792

cmbakerelectronics@gmail.com

C.M. Baker Electronics
P.O. Box 3965
Eatonton, GA 31024

1908...guess I'm human after all! 1980's it should have read.

Chris, you're right, and I absolutely forgot about it! It's squirreled away somewhere, I'll find it and compare new vs vintage Izzy. Thanks for that nice gift. If you'd like it back, just let me know, I can live with just one I think.

Izzy and Black Box do different things, both nice enhancements to tone.

Just having some fun with you John!

I've had my Izzy for a while now, and I will not play without it!

At last night's gig, our lead player was raving about my tone. Could have been the Li'l Izzy, but there other factors: he stood right in front of me, so he could for the first time hear direct tone from my Mullen/Stereo Steel/Telonics cabs; I was also using the Black Box (post-Izzy), which I don't always use for one-night gigs.

Be that as it may, to my ears my tone WAS improved and "awesomer". When I unplugged the Izzy for a couple of songs, tone went to relative mush. I'd always liked my tone before, but until you hear the difference, you'll find the improvement hard to believe.

John,
Thank you for taking the time to experiment and become familiar with Li'l Izzy.
I think that is the real key to eventually finding that elusive sound we have all chased.

It's my observation that most steel guitars can produce a very clear, clean and pleasing sound. . . but the right "doors" must be opened, or that sound will never get to the amplifier.

Of course it's always going to be my favorite buffer, and I may have to work hard to be objective, but posts like yours convince me even further, that Li'l Izzy might just be the best friend a pickup ever had.

Thank you again John.

Sincerely,
Craig Baker 706-485-8792

cmbakerelectronics@gmail.com

C.M. Baker Electronics
P.O. Box 3965
Eatonton, GA 31024

I've said it before: I've played through several different buffers (but no Sarno gear, to be honest), and no dedicated buffer comes close (the only one that has come close was the EHX Holy Grail).
And Craig hasn't ever¹ compensated me for my endorsement, after all I'm just the trucker.

¹yet.

I think I quit using mine because I didn't like all the "stuff" hanging off my guitar end as I was plugging a Boss Tone in as well. ( still do)

Used it with the green Twin last night.
It never quite sang before the volume pedal so I didn't run it with the Twin; which is why I said I wouldn't run solid state without it.
Craig suggested after the volume pedal, before the long cable back to the amp.
Damn, it's good there.
Maybe I'll buy a second one for there when I'm running Peavey Power

I've had my original Izzy for a long time and I got the other right when Craig started making them again. I tried making a Izzy clone myself but I couldn't ever get it quite right. Makes a big difference in tone using a regular volume pedal like Ernie Ball or Sho-Bud
I've even used it on Bass guitar and 6 string and makes a difference there too.

Hi John,
Always good to hear from someone out there still using a vintage Li'l Izzy. Hang on to them John, there may be a Li'l Izzy museum some day. From your photo, it looks like the epoxy ink and the electronics have well outlasted the paint.
We've since gone to a powder coated case, and I'm not sure the Army Corps of Engineers could scratch the new ones.

Thanks for writing and sharing your experience John.

Best personal regards,
Craig Baker 706-485-8792

cmbakerelectronics@gmail.com

C.M. Baker Electronics
P.O. Box 3965
Eatonton, GA 31024

Craig, I sold my pot VP long ago. Can I run the Li'l Izzy with a Hilton VP? Also do I need a Hilton with the Izzy ?
If you think about it, Guitar, Izzy ( processor ), Black Box ( processor ) , Hilton ( processor ), Wet Reverb ( Processor ), amp ?? Lot's of processing going on there.
If I could just find a Talent ( processor ) I would have it all !

Hi Bill,
Thank you for your question.
The simple answer is yes, many players are using Li'l Izzy with Hilton, Telonics and of course the old standard, passive "pot" type pedals, all with excellent results. Li'l Izzy, when used correctly, right at the pickup, allows all of the guitar's natural overtones to be heard. (perhaps for the first time.) Without a good buffer right at the pickup, a few feet of even the very best guitar cord immediately roll off the highs.

Here is a more in depth explanation:

Consider a scale of 1 to 10. 10=perfect tone. A well-designed buffer right at the pickup will give you 8. A Hilton, Telonics, or a pot-type pedal followed by a good buffer circuit, right at the pedal’s output will provide the remaining 2. Most guitars produce excellent sound and beautiful overtones. Best to let the pickup produce all of the music it can, unrestricted. Without a buffer immediately following a high impedance pickup, guitar cords will dull the sound and all of that beautiful tone you paid for, will never reach the amplifier.

The real advantage of Li'l Izzy comes from using it directly at the pickup. It only takes a short piece of even the best guitar cord to roll off the overtones that create such a pleasing sound. Turning up the treble artificially adds highs, along with whatever noise and hiss is in the system, but it can't replace the lost purity and string separation. Connecting directly to the pickup, before a guitar cord can dull the sound, is what makes Li'l Izzy so effective. It is essential to protect the integrity of the guitar's sound before the unwanted capacity of the guitar cords can do their damage. Without a properly designed buffer circuit connected to the pickup, active pedals, such as the Hilton or Telonics, can only help preserve what tone remains.

Hope this information is helpful

Sincerely,
Craig Baker 706-485-8792

cmbakerelectronics@gmail.com

C.M. Baker Electronics
P.O. Box 3965
Eatonton, GA 31024

[quote="Craig Baker"]Hi Bill,
Thank you for your question.
Without a properly designed buffer circuit connected to the pickup, active pedals, such as the Hilton or Telonics, can only help preserve what tone remains.

Hope this information is helpful

Sincerely,
Craig Baker

Craig your a pretty good salesman ! Ever think of running for Congress ? "Sorry Bob"

Bill,
Thank you for the compliment, but I am simply here to assist those striving for the best possible sound.
Li'l Izzy pretty well sells itself. I'm just the guy that fills out the paper work.

I did work for an excellent salesman years back though. In fact he once sold a milking machine to a dairy farmer and took the guy's cows as a down payment!!!

Again, thank you Bill.

Sincerely,
Craig Baker 706-485-8792

cmbakerelectronics@gmail.com

C.M. Baker Electronics
P.O. Box 3965
Eatonton, GA 31024