A pedal effects unit with lots of knobs. Sheesh!

You can just imagine the meeting.

"Boss, I have finished designing the Roland RC20XL Loopstation."

"Hiro, you Idiot! You have created a machine that makes no sense! You designed a guitar player's pedal effect with lots of knobs. In order to use things as basic as the "tap tempo" feature, the player has to save a phrase, and that means quit playing guitar in mid-song and get down on all fours...Aw, Jeez."

"I'll fix it, Boss. Don't cry. What should I do?"

"OK, Hiro, we might not be sunk yet. Listen carefully. Add a stereo TRS quarter-inch jack to this design so that we can plug a dual footswitch into it. That way when the owner realizes that our design is idiotic, he might think it's his fault for not having bought the accessory. He'll buy the pedal, he'll be able to mount the box high and hit the pedals with his feet, and we'll make a couple of bucks to boot. This could just work..."

Two Weeks Later. Time to Ship Product.

"I did it, Boss! I added expandability that allows for optional pedals that sit on the floor while the rest of the box is up high. And guess what? I've got a surprise for you. The remote pedals serve completely different functions from the built in ones!!!"

"Um, so the thing is still unusable, it's more confusing, and the user can now buy optional equipment to compound his misery."

"Exactly!"

"Hiro, you're fired, Man. And you're out of the band, too."

-----------------------------------------

I have a new, um, "instrument" called The Big Rig, about which we might perhaps write more later, which features a brand new Roland Loopstation. But unlike Hiro, I solved my problem with a throttle cable from a lawnmower. Can Roland sell those?

The Loop Station. Note the cable attachment in the lower left of the photo.
The Lawnmower Cable Pedal

Maybe Hiro can get his job back...

OH, my God, I just searched for a photo of the Offending Hardware and found out...the same problem applies to an entire line of products!!!!

YIIIIIII!
Roland Twin Pedals

What problems have _you_ solved with a throttle cable?