Used PH-1r - is it really in original condition?

[Erwinsoundsystem]

Thanks Pepe!

Maybe I just let it be. I think I am just not that "I'll go to the police" kind of guy. It may be the most impertinent fraud I experinced (even if possibly unknowingly) but by far not the most expensive. It's just disappointing when people don't take responsibility for what they've sold you, I really don't understand this kind behavior.

After all this pedal is quite bizarre and unique and it even sounds pretty good I must admit (I wouldn't have paid a 100 bucks for that). I'll just mod the pedal: make it compatible with PSA 9V, reduce the output (that thing is too loud!) and whatever I can find.

[Pepe]

That thing is indeed pretty loud. I did a demo video with an early single screw version a while ago:

[Erwinsoundsystem]

That's a great demo and actually one of the videos i watched that convinced me to buy the pedal in the first place.

[laurie]

My opinions (to support my colleagues):
- The circuit board appears to be modern. PH-1R boards were laid-oud by hand - they are all curves and varying thicknesses of traces. The board in this pedal is laid out by CAD program. I have pics of boards for 5 PH-1R pedals in my archive, plus many I've found on-line, and none of them are machine laid-out.
- Resistors are wrong. Capacitors and opamps look OK to me. I have one in my archives with those components (including tantalum instead of paper electros). But it kind of doesn't matter if the entire board is a "fraud".
- Paint is definitely wrong. Plus it has been given a clear-coat by the look of it. Printing looks like non-Boss stencil. The case is almost certainly a re-house.
- Jacks are definitely wrong.
- Treadle and base rubbers are new - stick-on rubbers can be obtained from Roland so that might be what has happened here.
- Serial label is definitely a re-print. The numbers on the originals do not line up and are a different font.
- Pots are wrong.

It is definitely a not original, but it does have some value as a curiosity. Is it worth 100 Euros? Not to me. I'd pay $50 knowing it was a curiosity.

It feels like a huge amount of work. Perhaps this looks like the kind of project that someone would do "to see if they could do it"?

I'd be interested to know - how bright is the LED? LEDs on these pedals are old-tech and should be very dim.

[Erwinsoundsystem]

Thank you very much for your comprehensive assessment Laurie!

So there seems to be nothing really original about the pedal - the amount of work that someone must have put into this is really crazy. The seller almost immediately pulled the "you are the real fraud" card, I think there will be no further dialogue. He claims that it wasn't his intention to scam me and that he doesn't have any expertise - even if that is believable I wonder why he offered the pedal as "vintage" and "MIJ" in the first place. As far as I understand, he bought the pedal from someone else, too. Given his attitude there will be no stories about the origin of the pedal I suppose.

Anyway, it's just not economical to pursue any kind of legal action as far as I can see and given the German law. So even if the pedal is not the collectors item i was keen on (and definitely not worth a 100 bucks to me), perhaps I can utilize it in an interesting way (what else can I do...).

I was just starting to write O Tempora, O Mores, when I thought about how great it is to have found this forum, to browse your interesting contributions and to benefit from your time and effort to help me this promptly.

[Erwinsoundsystem]

The LED is a modern bright one:

[Erwinsoundsystem]

Out of curiosity I posted an ad on Ebay Germany (it works like "classified ads" if that is the right expression in English) to find the original builder of the pedal. I immediately received messages from people who had noticed the ad, too.

https://www.ebay-kleinanzeigen.de/s-anz ... 95-74-9368

The text says:
I bought here on Ebay according to the offer a MIJ Boss PH-1r Phaser. Unfortunately, I received a very well made plagiarism. Apparently, it is a complete plagiarism: from the circuit board to the labels to the paint job of the enclosure, everything seems to be self-made. The discussion about this can be read in the BossArea forum: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=598.

According to the seller, he bought the pedal used himself. I am now looking for the person who built the pedal: I would love to hear the story about this curious pedal (no bad intentions or hidden agenda - I promise). If you read this, please get in touch with me.

[Pepe]

That's a great demo and actually one of the videos i watched that convinced me to buy the pedal in the first place.

Yay!

[sclitheroe]

So how does it sound compared to Pepe's demo?

[laurie]

The LED is a modern bright one:

Definitely too bright.