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How do new Morley compare to the old Tel-Rays?

Posted: Fri Sep 11, 2020 3:08 am
by qersty
Anybody knows? Only wondering about the wah. They still make power wahs but are they the same circuit as the old ones? Love the sweep on those (I listened to ALOT of early metallica as a kid so that sound kinda stuck) but since only pubescent trash-metallers discuss them there isnt too much factual info about them

Re: How do new Morley compare to the old Tel-Rays?

Posted: Fri Sep 11, 2020 6:25 am
by Scruffie
Any particular models? There's a lot to choose from.

But it does seem it changed from a transistor based circuit with the big steel enclosures to op amp for the more modern style.

Re: How do new Morley compare to the old Tel-Rays?

Posted: Fri Sep 11, 2020 12:32 pm
by qersty
Well the "power wah" models

Re: How do new Morley compare to the old Tel-Rays?

Posted: Sat Sep 12, 2020 3:29 pm
by rfurtkamp
I'd ask on the "Circle of Tone" FB group - mostly metal guys, but they're hardcore about gear and what was used and how to recreate.

Re: How do new Morley compare to the old Tel-Rays?

Posted: Sat Sep 12, 2020 4:06 pm
by Scruffie
It took some digging to find an original schematic but yeah, the circuit is different, for a start the originals ran off 55V! https://web.archive.org/web/20071108141 ... /pwoes.pdf

The new ones use a different inductor based filter and run off 9V https://elektrotanya.com/PREVIEWS/63463 ... .pdf_1.png

I did see a schematic for an op amp version too, although it wasn't official Morley.

Re: How do new Morley compare to the old Tel-Rays?

Posted: Sun Sep 13, 2020 5:28 am
by qersty
Jesus! That's some headroom. Would that change the sound much though? It's not like a wah wah often gets hit but alot of voltage so more than 9v seems overkill. One of the crybabies were 18v tho right? if one is inductor based, however, and the other one isnt thats probably a big no.

I did managed to find a talk bass thread about it and it seems they were very different. I didn't get much description of how the sound differed; Some tribute band guy said "old wah=cliff, new wah=jason". I do not really understand what that difference is. They never mentioned if both had that cool vocal quality. Most of the thread were middle aged guys with a middle school mentality (as metal guys tend to be)

I have given up on using facebook for gear talk. I kinda got fed up with it when it was impossible to explain that a "transparent boost" pedal was not probably a good idea to use as a pure volume boost on acoustic instruments. Oscillating fuzz was also not popular :(

Re: How do new Morley compare to the old Tel-Rays?

Posted: Sun Sep 13, 2020 6:33 am
by Scruffie
Nah, 18V would probably be just fine (with re-biasing), I assume it was due to a holdover from stuff like their oilcan delays and such, they had the transformers and the transistors took it so why not?

I'm too lazy to simulate how close they are in practice but it does look like it was dragged heavily in the direction of the cry baby instead of the original t-filter.

Re: How do new Morley compare to the old Tel-Rays?

Posted: Sun Sep 13, 2020 8:47 am
by qersty
Yeah probably.

I checked if it was similar to the colorsound wah. Kinda was, kinda wasn't. I dont get what the extra transistor does nor why it is biased at 25v.

Re: How do new Morley compare to the old Tel-Rays?

Posted: Sun Jun 19, 2022 5:44 am
by qersty
Of course I had made this thread already :lol:

Had gas for one, these hogs go for fucking 300$+ now geez. they only one close to affordable was missing the transformer and bottom plate. Still was 200€

Need to get healthier wah interests but they look soooo goood