User Manual

STEEL LEATHER
Bass Expander
Congratulations on your purchase of the Steel Leather! The Steel Leather is a result of Electro-
Harmonix’s commitment to present a useful and dynamic effect that is specifically designed for
the bass. It presents you with a powerful attack control that gives your bass a cutting edge both
on stage and in the studio. Reading these instructions carefully will ensure that you will get the
most out of the Steel Leather.
- THEORY OF OPERATION -
The Steel Leather is an effect pedal designed to enhance your picking and plucking on the bass
guitar. The enhanced notes will allow the bass to cut through more easily and give your notes a
sharp attack. Using the two knobs you can adjust the Steel Leather’s effect from subtle to a
total emphasis of the attack portion of your playing. You have separate control over both the
response and the volume of the effect.
The Steel Leather is an expander that operates over a narrow frequency range. The frequency
range was chosen specifically to expand the attack portion of a bass guitar’s notes. An expander
is a device that makes loud signals louder and quiet signals quieter. An expander is the opposite
of a compressor, making your playing more dynamic. The louder your notes the more the Steel
Leather will expand or emphasize your attack. On quiet notes, it may not emphasize the attack
at all. What this means is that the musician can use the Steel Leather to sharpen the attack on
their notes just by simply playing louder. Of course you can also set up the Steel Leather so that
it emphasizes every note you play, no matter how quiet the note.
As you start to use the Steel Leather, invest some time to experiment with the controls and how
they interact. You will discover very interesting possibilities including many different attack
emphasis points that apply to various music styles. Once you understand the possibilities you
will find out that small changes can make a huge difference.
- CONTROLS -
Effect Level Knob – controls the volume of the Steel Leather effect. When turned down to 0,
completely counter clockwise, no effect will be heard just the original dry signal. As you turn the
Effect Level knob up, or clockwise, the volume of the effect will increase, while the level of the
dry signal remains constant. The farther you turn the Effect Level knob up, the more effect you
will hear, making your attack more dramatic. The Effect Level knob is completely independent of
the Response knob though the two work hand in hand to create the overall effect.
Response Knob – controls the response or sensitivity of the effect to your picking. When the
Response knob is set to a low setting, below 12 o’clock, only the loudest notes you play will be
emphasized. Turn the Response knob above 12 o’clock and soon every note you play, no matter
how lightly you play them, will be emphasized. Use the Response knob to set how the Steel
Leather responds to your dynamics and picking. As you turn the Response knob up, or
clockwise, you will notice your quiet notes begin to trigger the Steel Leather effect. As you turn
the Response knob down, or counter-clockwise, you will need to play louder to emphasize your
notes. For example, you can set up the Steel Leather to only respond to your loudest notes so
that it can be used to emphasize a certain passage in a song.
You may also find that the Steel Leather responds differently when you switch from plucking the
notes with your fingers to plucking the notes with a pick. Usually a finger plucked note will have
a softer attack as compared to a picked note, so in general the Response knob needs to be
turned up higher when playing with your fingers.
Status LED and Footswitch- When the LED is lit; the Steel Leather is in effect mode. When the
LED is off, the Steel Leather is in True Bypass mode and power is completely disengaged. So
when the Steel Leather is in Bypass, it is off and does not draw power from the battery. The
Footswitch toggles between effect mode and off/bypass mode. Removing the input plug will also
turn the Steel Leather off.
INPUT Jack – This ¼” jack is the audio input to the Steel Leather. The input impedance
presented at this jack is 1MΩ. A ¼” plug must be connected to the INPUT to turn the Steel
Leather on.
AMP Jack – This ¼” jack is the audio output from the Steel Leather. When the Steel Leather is
in Bypass mode, the OUTPUT jack is connected directly to the INPUT jack.
9V Power Jack – The Steel Leather can run off of a 9V battery or you can connect a 9VDC
battery eliminator capable of delivering at least 100mA to the 9V power jack. The battery
eliminator must have a barrel connector with center negative. The battery may be left in or
taken out when using an eliminator.
- POWER -
IMPORTANT PLEASE READ: The Steel Leather will not work with the same power adaptor that is
daisy chained to other pedals in its signal chain. Please run the Steel Leather off of its own
power adapter or a battery. The battery will last a long time.
Power from the internal 9-volt battery is activated by plugging into the INPUT jack and engaging
the effect with the Footswitch. To disconnect power either press the Footswitch so the LED is off
and/or remove the input cable. Whether you use a battery or an external AC Adapter, the Steel
Leather powers up only when a plug is inserted into the INPUT jack and the LED is on.
To change the 9-volt battery, you must remove the 4 screws on the bottom of the Steel
Leather. Once the screws are removed, you can take off the bottom plate and change the
battery. Please do not touch the circuit board while the bottom plate is off or you risk damaging
a component.