Josh Scott Explains Why He Made The Bad Monkey Episode 

People's lack of ability to operate EQ's is what keeps the music gear business afloat.

What Josh tried to say: you can get great tone with cheap gears What people understood: OMG, Bad Monkey is the best pedal ever

Imagine how expensive it would have gotten if it was a good monkey.

Josh - Your video on the Bad Monkey has allowed me to sell mine it order to buy a Klon Cintaur. Thank you!

This whole thing has been hilarious! Please don’t stop doing whatever you want to do.

On a side note: I find it extraordinary cool how JHS / Josh for years promote pedals from other brands.

Josh didn't cause the insanity, he REVEALED it!

Of course, when DigiTech re-releases the Bad Monkey, there will HAVE to be a shootout between the “reissue” and the “vintage”. All of a sudden, the original production version will attain the status of “reference standard”. Never fails.

This is exactly why the Tumnus Deluxe is my favorite drive pedal ever. It has Bass, Middle, and Treble controls, plus hard and soft clipping switch, and it’s not too big. You can make that pedal sound like almost anything.

I am so grateful that I play with a guitarist who understands this stuff. He can match almost any tone he wants, he never gets hyped over a new thing until he thoroughly goes through his setup making sure it can't already achieve what the new thing is doing. And like 80% of the time, it can

Im just happy my video (which was a parody since I got the point of the video) was featured on the scrolling in a JHS vid! Its an honor, sir!

This just demonstrates how little people know about how the devices they use every day actually work. Just watch the show people. Josh and crew are just trying to educate you (and entertain) and at the end of the day, that's what life is all about.

The greatest gem I pulled from this is THE ultimate quote of the century, "Who gives a flying Rat's crack." Josh, I can't even say how I love you so much. You are a geek's hero!

Great! 😤 Now used Tuesdays prices are out of control. Thank you for not doing a comparison with a Monday and it’s still affordable…

Josh Scott is a national treasure. Logical and rational beyond his time. We don't deserve him yet we get him on RU-vid for free. I have a lot of JHS pedals but probably not enough. Sincere Thank you to Josh.

“Use what you have, have fun.” Words to live by. Thank you by the way, for being consistently awesome and down to earth. From now on, the Mini Foot is going back on my pedalboard for a WHOLE MONTH every year, to commemorate the JHS Bad Monkey debacle.

I hate that Josh had to explain himself... Love JHS... The Bad Monkey video killed me! Made my day!!

EQ is such an important part of the sound, if you feel frustrated with your current drive/fuzz pedals: Get a simple Boss GE-7. It's cheap, it works well and it allows you to sculpt your sound. It can also boost which is great if you feed it into a distortion. Try it, you won't regret it. All the best!

Thank you , Josh for doing what you do! Don’t let this insanity drain your awesome energy. And yes, “practice and use what you have “ is the truth!

Because of you, I have all homemade pedals now..... And now because of you I want to remake them all with better EQ sections 😅

Oh great...now allergy medication on Reverb is up 635%. Thanks, dude.

Just one of the most honest guys in the industry telling everyone what some people didn’t want to hear

I wasn't expecting "groupthink" to come up in a gear video, but it absolutely applies. Thank you for addressing it!

Man, you broke many fragile hearts and egos as hurt many feelins around the world. Keep doing that. Olá from Brazil

As a British person, there are 2 things I love about this: Even when unhinged with allergies, Josh is still a respectful, Southern gentleman. The restraint he showed at not saying "See you next Tuesday" at the end.

I watched the Bad Monkey video and loved it. You made it fun and educational. Keep it up.

I’ve been playing guitar for ‘60 yrs and so have been around to see just about all this stuff develop and ……………….. JOSH IS TALKING THE MOST SENSE I’VE HEARD ANYONE SPEAK IN 40 OF THOSE YEARS.

I bought my bad monkey pedal, just because I saw it on Gary Moore‘s pedalboard. That was about 8 years ago. I still have it, because it really sounds excellent. It was good enough for Gary, but it really turned out to be great for me.

I love what Josh said so much that I listed my matching black Nike hoodie on Reverb for $650. Get the tone AND the look now! ❤

I learned a lot from this episode, and the Bad Monkey vs everything episode was educational too. The statement about having the treble and bass controls on the Tube Screamer topography vs. a single tone control allowing for more diversification clicked for me and helped me to see things a little different . I am thankful you and your team made the videos. All your videos are great. I have been very entertained by the Bad Monkey viral outbreak. It has been fun to watch.

That bad Monkey video made me really think about gear I have and how I just need to EQ my stuff the way I want it. Helped me rethink my “usual” tones and led me to find one I really like

All about an EQ pedal use one for guitar and one for bass. It is one of the things so many people forget to invest in for their pedal board. Thanks for keeping the EQ pedal alive.

Extra props for Josh being kind and gracious in answering random DMs from complete strangers. A true class act. Cheers 🍻

...and suddenly Line6 DM4 prices go THROUGH THE ROOF.....

Thanks for this, Josh. Personally, I found the Bad Monkey fascinating. It showed me, for a start, how lazy I am with pedals. Oh, I need a new sound - let me buy another pedal. I've got about twenty overdrive pedals, and now realise I'm just not using them properly. All the best.

You folks are AWESOME. Your knowledge share is what the guitar world has been missing for years. (Even if some use the knowledge for less than ideal purposes) Thank you for what you're doing!!!!!

I grabbed a bad monkey for $40,000. Strummed two notes out in my garage and have gotten 5 record deal offers so far. Totally worth it!

Since the JHS bad monkey video the price of bananas has gone up significantly in Australia. Could it be coincidence? Could it be we’re heading into winter and they’re out of season? Maybe. 😂 I am loving seeing more pedal companies embracing active two and three band, baxandall and tilt style eq’s for drive pedals. I think there should be more of it! Lots of love to Josh and the team. I hope the grumbles of the all-too-serious don’t get you down.

I just want to publicly thank Josh for this episode, since I grabbed my old Bad Monkey out of storage and promptly sold it for a tidy hype-enabled profit. Josh, I'll probably buy a JHS pedal or two with the proceeds anyway.

Apparently, the most frequent types of mass behavior are rumors, gossip, mass hysteria, public opinion, fashions, and fads. Unfortunately, social media makes it much much more contagious.

Omg Josh nailed it almost verbatim for what was on my mind. I still love my Zoom 505II pedal. I know it gets crapped on a lot, but it's just one I really enjoy.

JHS company seems like a perfect candidate to provide a DIY pedal kitting option for those of us who really enjoy building their own pedals. Sites like DIY Clones, Stewmac, and Amplified Parts are my go-to sources for buying and building pedals kits. I imagine you doing the same, but then offering a history lesson, pedal demos, and ideas for mods to customize the kit per user preference. I bet your team would provide this service in such an exciting immersive way. I wish there were more companies doing this.

How can you not know what your original video was about? It’s like people are upset over their inability to comprehend reality. Holy shit, the negative feedback from this is absolutely ridiculous! A 3rd grader can understand the original video. Josh, keep being you my friend and keep giving us awesome pedals and content, it’s always a blast! Cheers! Hopefully you’ll be at NAMM? I’ll stop by and say hi.

Josh...you are brilliant Love your non BS approach... Keep up the great work

There is a secret about the Bad Monkey Josh didn't tell us: If I take my JHS Sweet Tea, I can use the Moonshine section to do the tubey screamy thing and the tone stack of the Angry Charlie to shape it. But, as usually, Josh doesn't mention, that he has actually more than one pedal versatile enough to do the Bad Monkey tricks in the JHS lineup.

Reminds me of the Monty Python Life of Brian "You are all individuals" scene. -BRIAN: Look. You've got it all wrong. You don't need to follow me. You don't need to follow anybody! You've got to think for yourselves. You're all individuals! -FOLLOWERS: Yes, we're all individuals! -BRIAN: You're all different! -FOLLOWERS: Yes, we are all different! -DENNIS: I'm not. -FOLLOWERS: Shh. Shhhh. Shhh. -BRIAN: You've all got to work it out for yourselves! -FOLLOWERS: Yes! We've got to work it out for ourselves! -BRIAN: Exactly! -FOLLOWERS: Tell us more!

What's absolutely wild to me, is the capricious nature of virality, like the blindfold test of the Mosky Horse (can't remember if it was gold or silver) vs the Klon basically did the same thing, with a pedal that was probably even more affordable, but never went anywhere near as viral. (although I must admit I ordered a silver horse right after the bad monkey video came out just in case it caused a revisit!)

It’s because people want “secret weapon” or “sleeper pedal” but they don’t want to do the work to find one. Or they need someone else to tell them it sounds good.

Bottom line, there's two kinds of guitar players; those that listen with their ears, and those that listen with their eyes.

I love your videos, Josh. Some people take life far too seriously. Don’t let them get you down :-)

The big muff was a forgotten pedal until Smashing Pumpkins released Siamese Dream.

Use what you have ... Perfect comment Josh . I was not always able to afford decent equipment so i made what i had available work .. Lots of people liked my tone . One friend who had a lot of money and always wanted to have a tone similar to mine would buy different amps pedals processors and could never copy my tone .. The lesson i tried to teach him was rarely and especially with old equipment was ...it's not just plug and play , you have to dial it in to get the tone. Anyway I appreciate what you do !!!

The Beatles on Ed Sullivan and Josh throwing bananas are the two most influential moments in music history.

I love what you do Josh. You’ve helped me to not buy into “boutique” brands and pedals but to listen to my ear. If it sounds good to me, it is good for me. Thank you for what you do. Loud is more good indeed.

Thanks a lot from Sicily, following you since dawn! Great things learned and heard! Keep on.

Still find it quite funny. JHS provides great videos. Keep up the great work. PS still got my Bad Monkey!!!

Josh always injects sanity into this crazy guitar world. He has quite a sense of humor. I always enjoy his videos. Viva Josh!

Great video Josh. When I first got into guitar I thought I had to have the latest and greatest to get the tone I was looking for. Like many people with this bug I purchased many pedals guitars amps etc. I have a main board just stacked with 16 plus pedals a wet and dry chain etc. Then I have a homemade board that has the basics, one overdrive pedal, reverb, a cheap Jimmy Nova univibe, a chorus, and a tuner. It's powered by a joyo rechargeable power supply. I get some of the cleanest best tones I've ever had off of that board, and any various selected guitar. Backing the point to your video It's how you learn to use the tools you have. If I was to give advice to anybody just starting, I would set them up with some mid-range price pedals, a really good amp, and a guitar of their choice.

In all fairness, not all of us missed the point. Keep rockin’, Josh!

15:26 it’s funny because David Gilmour had an EQ pedal between almost every pedal in his chain so he could get the exact sound he wanted from each pedal.

Josh, keep doing what you’re doing! Great show with crazy followers! Never ceases to entertain!

15 years ago I was really into overdrive pedals and had about 10 different ones...many of them boutique. I quickly came to the realization that there wasn't THAT much difference in all of them simply because what they do is PUSH a tube amp into overdrive. The AMP and GUITAR play a big part in the overall sound. I ended up selling a lot of my expensive boutique pedals as a result. I had a $200 Keeley modded Tube Screamer at the time and the Bad Monkey sounded the same while also having more EQ versatility because it had bass and treble...so I sold the Keeley. For what it's worth, some other overdrive pedals I like a lot that I kept after my decades long quest are: The Radial Tonebone Classic, The BadCat 2-Tone, The Snouse Bluesbreaker clone, and The Digitech Screamin' Blues. There are lots of great pedals out there for overdrive. Find one that works well with your guitar, amp and playing style and don't buy into the hype that any one pedal is "magic" None are better...if anything they might sound slightly different and/or have more tone shaping capability. BTW the overdrive you get by simply cranking your tube amp without using a pedal at all can be nice as well.

Hello, Josh! I'd like to thank you and everyone of your team responsible for the content of your channel. I have lots of fun watching your videos. Here in Brazil it's not that easy to have access to the most legendary boutique pedals. When they miraculously appear over here, they have insane prices, making it very difficult to know how they sound compared to other pedals. Thank you so much for making it possible and fun through your videos. I hope someday in the near future we have JHS pedals over here. Cheers from the middle of the rainforest.

Rene Girard had some interesting stuff to say about this in his theory of mimetic desire (and, since it's good friday - the accompanying theory of the scapegoating mechanism) Did not think when I woke up this morning my day would lead to me saying that in a guitar pedal video comment section. I loved that you brought up Brian May's Fireplace guitar that he made, perfectly highlights the point

Josh, what you said about “Group Thinking/Thought” is so true. My favorite fuzz pedal is what some consider the “worst fuzz ever”, the DOD FX66 Flashback Fuzz. I’ve now owned 3 in my lifetime because there’s just something about that tone I get from it that I love! Recently I paired it with an Earthquaker Devices Tentacle (placed before the FX66), and it’s such an awesome sound!

Great stuff Josh. I am trying to learn contentedness in all parts of life, including guitars and gear. Good reminder for me!

Josh, you're a good dude and I thank you for both informing and entertaining us for so long. Don't let the haters get to you. The problem is NOT you... it's all the people waiting to capitalize on inflating every bit of gear you talk about. It's been happening more and more, in too many different industries, for a few years now. Keep doing what you do. You've got a great personality and wit for doing what you do and you have a superb team as well. Thanks again!

All that this video needed was the "SICK BURN" audio after Josh was talking truth! ❤

Key point for me is not to doubt the tone you love, because some people say it's "bad." Believe in yourself and your ear a little.

Dear Josh, Thank you for this response video. Not only did you face the onslaught and stand your ground, but you also showed me the value of Line 6 distortion. Thanks for all you and the crew do; you all rock! PS: Shout out to Addison. Addison rules!

love your channel man....great info! Your take on "making the equipment you have work for you" is spot on. Creativity is not born with pedals, etc... pedals merely enhance the creativity....the creative part, the stuff that "pleases our earhole" is not always equipment dependent, its more like what you do with whatever equipment you use.

I remember working in a music store in the 80s - and having every pedal by Boss, DOD /Digitech, Arion, and ProCo. I don’t know what became any of that stuff. I’m sure I had a Bad Monkey.

I recently purchased a TC Electronics Zeus pedal - and I love it to bits. Its a cheap Klon clone pedal, which sounds great for me. No hype about this pedal, for me it does the thing. As you say: know your gear and listen. Thank you Josh, I love your channel!!!

Love this video Josh! Keep them coming! Grateful for all of your work and what you all do. Thanks to Nick and Addison and the other folks at JHS, too! You all are great!

I’d read your memoir. Good video, thanks for always having fun with the show. That is the most inspirational part of this channel

Josh said "Saucy" in this video. Does that mean my Way Huge Saucy overdrive is now worth $500?

For decades people have trashed Digitech saying they're junk pedals. Some of the best pedals I've owned have been Digitech. For the last couple of years I've been on a mission to find the perfect Chorus pedal for me. I've tried $20 Nux pedals up to $200 Source Audio pedals and everything in between, the best one I've found is the Digitech Multi Chorus. The second best one I've found is the Digitech Luxe.

Moral of the story? You can't be sarcastic on the internet - ever. And, you can't make fun of people's preconceptions, ever. A good point, entertainingly made.

I support you guys 100% Josh, keep popping out the videos and pedals.

This makes me think of one of my favorite synth shows, Bad Gear. He reviewed synths that a sufficient number of people don't like. I see that show as Buy Gear. There is so much cool stuff out there that people dismiss. Don't worry about having bad gear. If you like the sound and enjoy making music; that's what matters. I go out of my way to buy crappy gear because it's interesting and different. When I go to the thrift shop I always stop by the toy section to look at baby toys. Some of those make cool sounds that I can use in my music. Crappy isn't a bad thing if it's the good kind of crappy. Lately I have been playing around with a micro cassette recorder for a Lo-Fi vibe. I am getting some great results. So don't worry about what social media tell you is good. Use your ears and brain. If like it; that's what matters.

The haters are exactly the people who needed to hear your original message.

Really this whole Bad Monkey thing is the most enjoyable and pleasant aspect of the entire internet at this time. I love the pedal and I like all this.

This is what happens when others want to make money off of your success. Take it all as a complement. You give us great videos, insight, knowledge and entertainment. JHS Show is great!!! I have learned so much from your channel over the past years. Thank you and keep it going. PS, I have owned a Bad Monkey since the first version was released. It's a great pedal. Can't wait for the Lizard Queen to arrive.

Josh, you are a star, I was inspired by the bad monkey versus the world video, it made me think about the pedals I have and how I get the best out of them

Thank you Josh. As I have told you before, your pedal videos, which I have saved, are listed under the title “JHS pedals (and joy).“ That is because your sense of humour permeates each and every show/episode and makes my day better, not only musically, but leaves me with a smile on my face. Your mea culpa was unnecessary, but it shows your integrity. You have now taken enough heat, so carry on the great work. Hope you have a great Easter weekend. (BTW, why is it that I only today received a RU-vid notice of this episode when you reference “something special on Tuesday“ then say you shot this video on 15 March? Were you referring to the bad monkey video? Or the video we just watched?) God bless you - that is from the King James version, as well as the new international version.😊. Hope you get well soon and do try not to employ the antihistamines/decongestants too much. I am a Roctor, MD (medical doctor and musical desideratum … retired unless needed and still rocking, respectively). 🎸👨🏼‍⚕️. 🎶🎵😉😎

Hey Josh! I'm humbled you actually watched and stopped to talk about my thumbnail, that rules! Also to anyone here before you go commenting on my video saying he "talked crap about me", do watch the video, I actually talked about the JHS Channel and how much of a fan I am and how the shootouts are awesome and that I bought a silver horse pedal because of these. Also that the whole point of Josh's video (like most of them) is to show you that you can achieve great tones with what you have, You don't need a $5k klon to sound good. And I appreciate him for that. Thanks JHS for everything you all do, you rule.

Josh your a superstar and a true passionate connoisseur - with a mischievous sense of humour. Who cares whether the Bad Monkey is good or bad. If someone likes it and wants to pay loads for it then good for them. It’s not you fault people are stupid. Keep it up dude, your content is some of the most entertaining content on gear and guitar there is. Your closing points are so true. 👍

This pedal was always a top tier overdrive in in the bass community. Having this circuit getting huge is great for bass OD's.

I am glad this video came out. I have been saying the same thing for years. It is about the player, how they play and knowing how to use what you already own. To prove the point I even went on tour with a $100 guitar that I bought on ebay and modified. No one was concerned with the brand, or what it was, it sounded fine. JHS makes a high quality product at a fair price just as other companies also do. Getting the necessary gear nowadays is not that difficult nor expensive. Get what works but above all invest in knowledge! Go get lessons from a professional, enroll in a course or even pursue music in college. Knowledge is still the driving force that allows you to shape inspiration and channel it into something that can sound good. Fundamentally speaking there are either mid rich drive pedals or transparent ones, modulation or time based effects. There are British voiced amps, American voiced or transparent ones. Almost any piece of gear falls into one of these categories so non of them will do magic for you. In the end it is about playing well, using a smart signal flow with good settings.

The main thing to do is to not change a thing. Love the channel after all these years, and I look forward to every video.

Josh, you’re the best. Great work in restating your original big idea! Simple, profound, relevant, helpful, and encouraging people to play! Honestly I wish we more people applying this big idea in other areas of life, business,etc. It’s been a rough 10 months of health problems for me, can’t even play my guitar now, but these videos have been a boost. Thanks Josh and JHS!

Keep 'em coming, Josh! I love all your stuff.

Just a simple thank you. I cleared $250 on a pedal I wasn't using and have picked up 2 new pedals...including a JHS Reverb...that I really dig.

Flying Rats Crack should be a new JHS pedal. I'm thinking a flanger.

I forgot how many times I've said this by now, but here goes: "Pragmatism and Musicians are like Oil and Water".

I'm very thankful to you from a lesson you always told us: play your guitar, have fun. That's the hole point. 2 words to you: THANK YOU Love your work and the way o relate to music.

The truth is, a large majority of people only need Tone City and Behringer in terms of pedal quality, but people tend to judge sound with their eyes. So, naturally, when they're told that a pedal is cheap and made of plastic, they automatically assume the sound isn't good.

I have 7 Behringer pedals, I have 5 Electro Harmonix Pedals, I have some very very expensive pedals on top of that. I Mix em all, and get some great sounds.

I'm sure that most of us got the message straight away, (as it's been drummed home in many previous JHS videos, especially the Pod "bean" video): There is no grail pedal. Being able to make the most of the gear that you have IS the grail. On a serious note, I was really upset to miss out on getting a Bad Monkey T-shirt. Do you think there's much of a reseller market? I got $650...

What i get from your videos is that while we all like and will keep buying new gear you can also make the best use of what you already have and have fun and be original. Your videos are very fun i love them 🙌🙌