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2013 Idiotbox Mad Doctor Stutter

Year: 2013
Brand: Idiotbox
Model: Mad Doctor Stutter
Class: Stutter
Owner: Jeff Hewitt
Status: In Studio.

This is the "Mad Doctor" stutter from Idiotbox, with Tom Baker graphics in TARDIS blue of course. I'm a big Dr Who nerd, so when I see an affordable pedal from another Texas based builder with graphics inspired by the 4th Doctor..... it's a no brainer. Merry Christmas to me!
On that note it's new pedal review time!

I'll start with the aesthetics. The pedal arrived nicely packaged in plain brown paper wrapper, reminiscent of an "Adult order". The box beneath the wrappings was nicely screened with the Idiotbox and Mad Doctor Stutter logos. The pedal looked great, good finish and nicely screened graphics. While inspecting the screened graphic I lightly ran my thumb nail across the image, which resulted in the white ink coming right off.

After effortlessly defacing Tom Backer, I decided this pedal needed a couple of coats of lacquer before putting it under foot. When I opened the pedal case I was surprised to see how the power was wired. The majority of pedals are wired to power off when the input isn't connected to preserve battery life, but this one was not.

So after removing the circuit I gave the graphic a quick touch up and let it dry. Then I degreased the pedal and began layering light coats of lacquer over the case, allowing it to cure between coats.

As the pedal was curing, I decided to rewire the input with a stereo jack to disrupt the circuit power when the input cable is not connected. Personally I believe all pedals with a battery connector should be wired this way, but that's just my opinion. After I reassembled the pedal it was time for a full test.

The stutter is similar to a Tremolo effect, but instead of attenuating the volume it disrupts the signal all together. Basically it uses an LFO and a vactrol to turn on and off the Volume. It has two variable controls, Rate and Ratio, and a switch to reverse the ratio. It also has an external expression jack control the rate. The pedal ranges from the simple on/off to a percussive almost digital sound. The pedal does have a very heavy tick. I'm not sure if this is due to the design of the LFO or the connect and disconnect of the signal. Over all I dig the pedal, my main concern would be about the durability of the graphic.