In memory of Keith VanDerSchaegen 1974-2008

This website is in memory of Keith VanDerSchaegen the owner a designer of Effect Pedals. To my knowledge they were the best effect pedals in the music industry and highly regarded by his peers and musicians around the world.

In 2008 Keith lost his battle to brain cancer, it was a very sad day for his family and the music industry and all the proud owners of his highly respected effect pedals.   Then something weird happened almost like an act of faith or a gift from the higher power.  In January 2010 I won an auction on GoDaddy.com and purchased Keith’s domain name, (http://aramateffects.com).  I knew nothing about Keith when I purchased his expired domain.  I thought it was a catchy name for a domain so without much thought I put in the highest bid and won the auction.

That is when my research started, with every domain I like to see who owned it and what the site was all about. This is when I found out about Keith’s death from cancer and his famous effects pedals.  So I ask myself why I was the lucky one that won the domain auction. This is when the miracle happened.   I’m a cancer victim too, luckily for me I beat all odds and survived my rare bone cancer, when the doctor only gave me a 25% chance of living.  So I feel I have a bond with Keith even though I never met him. I feel he wants me to keep his legacy alive and make a website in honor of him.  Since I have a passion for music it makes this task very easy for me.  So this website will be in honor of Keith and his family.  Since Keith loved music I have devoted this site to focus around musical products and music news.  I kept his logo in remembrance of Keith so His Company name will live on forever.

Plus, I want to showcase his products so people still know he was the creator of one of the best effects pedals.  So I have included his products descriptions below.  I wish I had the resources to acquire his product to sell them to the public to keep Keith’s memories alive but his rare products are very hard to come by.

So if you are visiting this website and you knew Keith or you are a relative of Keith’s, I just want to let you know I will take very good care of his domain name and keep his passion alive for music.

Please enjoy Keith’s Products.  And I encourage you to leave a comment to show your respects.

Green Machine:

Our vastly popular Green Machine Overdrive is a transparent, smooth and warm sounding all analog overdrive pedal. This pedal will drive and accentuate the nuances of your guitar and playing style. This effect is very similar to a naturally overdriven tube amplifier. At a low drive settings the Green Machine acts as a remarkably fat sounding pseudo-clean boost. As the drive is increased your guitar will sing!

The main ingredients in the Green Machine Overdrive which account for the unbeatable tone are as follows: JRC4558D IC chip, carbon composite resistors, metal film capacitors, and Germanium diodes.

All of our pedals are true bypass to avoid tone loss when the pedal is disengaged.

Tubular:

Introducing the new Tubular Tremolo! I designed this effect to sound warm and buttery, as close as possible to vintage tube amp tremolo. Our pedal does not color your tone like other cheap, mass-produced effects can.

So far the Tubular Tremolo has gotten a very positive reception from owners, with a nearly perfect rating (like many of our pedals)on Harmony-Central User Reviews website. The Tubular Tremolo is simple but also has a wide range of settings from slow and mellow to fast and choppy (square wave) and everything in between. This very user-friendly pedal is ideal whether you are looking for mellow rippling, classic tube amp waves, or even psychedelic stutter. Plug it in and catch a wave!

A nice bonus feature of our Tubular Tremolo is that it can also be used as a clean boost (very clean, no grit). You can achieve this my simply turning the “Depth” control all of the way down to remove the ripple effect of the Tremolo and increase the “Volume” knob to your desired setting.

All of our pedals are true bypass to avoid tone loss when the pedal is disengaged.

Treble Master:

Our Treble Master Boost is an amazing sounding treble boost effect pedal. By incorporating a new old stock Germanium transistor (AC128) give your guitar a boost and bite that is unavailable elsewhere. Our Treble Master improves upon the circuit of the highly regarded vintage and extremely rare Dallas Range Master and is NOT a clone. The vintage Range Master effect was used by and defined the signature tones of such artists as Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin, Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple, and Eric Clapton as used on the “Beano” album with John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers (among many others guitar players).

You may use the pedal by itself to get a tight and clean boost with slight dirt and high-end when the “boost” is above 50%. When the Treble Master is used in conjunction with an amp’s overdrive or effect pedal, distortion, or fuzz effect is when this pedal truly shines. The Treble Master will add sonic possibilities that you wouldn’t imagine. It sounds incredible when used in conjunction with our Soul Patch Fuzz, Mojo Fuzz, or Green Machine Overdrive.

All of our pedals are true bypass to avoid tone loss when the pedal is disengaged.

Mojo Fuzz:

The Mojo Fuzz is an upgraded version of the vintage two-knob Fuzz Face circuit and is NOT a clone. Incorporating two matched Germanium Transistors (AC128, new old stock) makes the Mojo Fuzz a very dynamic effect which can absolutely not be recreated by digital means as some current “modelling” effects attempt to do. When the “Fuzz” level is cranked and the Mojo (bias) is at 12 o’clock, this effect sounds like the ultimate FuzzFace. When the Mojo is near or at maximum setting, you can obtain the fat and exciting “superfuzz” wall of tone.

**Since many people ask what the difference is between the Soul Patch Fuzz (SP) and our Mojo Fuzz (MF) I’ll break it down for you. Our SP has a lot more gain and crunch than the MF. The MF is more smooth and dark/warm sounding. You can clean up the MF a lot with your guitar’s volume knob.

Add some Mojo to your pedal chain. Your guitar (and ears) will thank you!!
All of our pedals are true bypass to avoid tone loss when the pedal is disengaged.

Soul Patch:

An extremely vocal and expressive fuzz/drive pedal (overfuzz?). It is an upgrade of the vintage, hailed and nearly impossible to acquire Sola/Colorsound Tonebender MK III pedal, as used by Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, and other greats. Think early Black Sabbath or Led Zep. If you are seeking that classic warm heavy grind of the classic fuzz effects with a wide variety of tones this is your pedal! At the right setting the Soul Patch makes even single coil pickups sound like fat humbuckers.

The Soul Patch Fuzz heats up a trio of new old stock matched Germanium Transistors (AC128), which breathe vitality and personality into the effect. When the Fuzz level at or below 12 o’clock the effect of an overdriven tube amp just on the verge of breaking up is created. By increasing the “Fuzz” level you will add gain and a nearly endless supply of sustain. The “Soul” control adjusts the effects tone from dark and moody to shimmering (and everything in between).

**Since many people ask what the difference is between the Soul Patch Fuzz (SP) and our Mojo Fuzz (MF) I’ll break it down for you. Our SP has a lot more gain and crunch than the MF. The MF is more smooth and dark/warm sounding. You can clean up the MF a lot with your guitar’s volume knob.

All of our pedals are true bypass to avoid tone loss when the pedal is disengaged.