NAMM 2017: Earthquaker Devices
A new delay and some upgrades from the prolific pedals producers
Known for their sheer volume of new pedal releases, Earthquaker Devices have announced 6 brand new models at NAMM 2017.
Space Spiral
The Space Spiral is an analog-voiced digital delay pedal with a variable waveshape LFO hitting the repeated signal for a world of warm modulated echo tones. Perfect for those who want vintage warble with digital control. With 30ms – 600ms of delay time and a variable waveshape LFO, the Space Spiral is designed to create dark and dreamy delay sound.
Levitation V2
The Levitation V2 is a natural upgrade of the first version of Earthquaker's psych rock reverb. Its vintage-voiced algorithm offers lo-fi sixties verbs, splashy springs and huge reverberating plates. The V2 includes upgraded op-amps for better performance and lower noise, a true bypass circuit, silent soft-touch switching and top-mounted jacks.
Organizer V2
Organ emulators for guitar have become all the rage in the last few years and Earthquaker's The Organizer V2 is the cream of the crop. Capable of generating two octaves up and two down, the Organizer has a warm feel, with a hint of Leslie warble not found on other organ sims.
Hoof and Cloven Hoof V2
Two of Earthquaker's most famous fuzz pedals also receive an upgrade this year. The Hoof V2 is based on a classic green Russian fuzz and is built around a blend of silicon and germanium transistors. The Cloven Hoof starts with a similar template but adds copious amounts of gain for a gnarly fuzz with tone mashing capabilities.
Bit Commander V2
One of Earthquaker's most well know pedals, the Bit Commander is a monophonic guitar synth that offers four octaves of crazy square wave tones. The V2 offers analogue dry-through, top mounted jacks and silent soft-touch switching.
NAMM 2017: Dunlop, MXR and Way Huge
Jim Dunlop have been rather busy!
Jim Dunlop have announced a whole host of new pedals under their Dunlop, MXR and Way Huge brands.
MXR return to the well, with some new iterations of classic pedals, including the Dyna Comp Mini, a smaller version of the classic compressor with an added attack speed switch, six and ten-band EQ pedals and the Sub Octave Bass Fuzz, which offers two switchable fuzz tones and a sub octave mode. Rounding out the MXR lineup is the Il Diavolo Overdrive, a brand new hot-rodded designed in collaboration with Italian pedal designer Carlo Sorasio.
New to the Dunlop brand five new Hendrix models. The classic Fuzz Face, Univibe and Octavio Fuzz are joined by the Gypsy Fuzz and a Mini version of Hendrix's signature Cry Baby Wah. All of the pedals (minus the Cry Baby) feature art from rock artist Gered Mankowitz.
Way Huge complete the Jim Dunlop lineup for 2017 with two new fuzz pedals, the Conquistador and Russian Pickle, giving players two new go-to noisemakers.
NAMM 2017: Atomic Amplifiers Ampli-Firebox
Atomic's new box of tricks utilises technical wizardry from Studio Devil
Atomic Amplifiers have announced the Ampli-Firebox, a collaboration with software geniuses Studio Devil.
With its familiar amp controls, the Ampli-Firebox distills the world's best amp modeling into an incredibly easy-to-use package in the form of a traditional guitar pedal with no display or menu system to navigate. Ampli-Firebox also includes great-sounding reverbs and extremely accurate speaker-cabinet simulations. Three toggle switches allow access to nine amps and three cabinets covering the entire spectrum of guitar tones from the beginning of electric amplification to the present.
For players seeking deeper tone-shaping features, the pedal can connect to a Mac or PC via USB to customize amp slot selections from Studio Devil's entire patented AmpliFIRE series library of models, upload third-party cabinet simulations (1024-point impulse responses) and access more advanced tone-shaping tools.
"Studio Devil Founder, Marc Gallo, and myself are especially excited to reach a whole new audience with Ampli-Firebox. We feel that many players have not yet embraced modeling because either they didn't like the 'all-in-one' approach of traditional modeling processors, the complex menu systems, or lackluster sound and feel. Ampli-Firebox solves all these issues and makes it simple to sound amazing," remarked Atomic Founder Tom King.
Ampli-Firebox will be available in the Spring of 2017 and will have an MSRP of $299.
NAMM 2017: Digitech FreqOut and DOD Rubberneck
Two brand new pedals from haus Digitech.
Digitech have announced two new pedals already this week (with more on the way, apparently!) and oh boy do they look excellent fun.
First up is the FreqOut Natural Feedback Creator. Feedback generators are an effect that we’ve not seen a huge amount of in the coming years. Boss released the FB-2 a few years back but not to huge acclaim, this looks far more interesting than that one.
The FreqOut appears to offer a number of different frequencies that you can highlight, plus a gain control and the ability to turn on and off your wet/dry signal. Personally I think the coolest thing about this is the momentary option.
Plus apart from everything else, who doesn’t like a pedal with loads of lights and switches?
Next up we’ve got the DOD Rubberneck Analog Delay, with even more knobs and switches than the FreqOut. Digitech have done some of our absolute favourite pedals of the last couple years under the DOD name so we have full confidence that this is sure to fall in line with what we’ve all come to expect.
Real exciting! This week is getting better and better!
NAMM 2017: Black Cat Stereo Black Cat Vibe
Black Cat's latest release innovates on a classic formula.
Black Cat Pedals has announced the new Stereo Black Cat Vibe ahead of NAMM 2017.
The original Black Cat Vibe has garnered a reputation among many players as the best Univibe effect ever made, and has been used by Trey Anastasio, Steve Lukather, Scott Henderson, Michael Landau, Elliott Randall, and many others.
The new Stereo Black Cat Vibe uses the same circuit as its predecessor, with the addition of a second output jack for true stereo operation, and enhanced power supply circuitry to accommodate 12V DC power, or 12V AC.
The Black Cat Vibe uses a flashing incandescent lamp and four photocells to create its distinctive sound. This essential part of the unit accurately recreates the authentic Univibe effect. The new Black Cat Vibe features a custom 3D printed Black Cat Dome to shield the lamp and photocells and create the proper environment for optimal response.
Features:
* Same circuit as the original Black Cat Vibe
* Custom fabricated Metallic Silver enclosure - Made the USA
* Custom 3D printed Black Cat Dome lamp/LDR cover - Made in USA
* Second output for true stereo operation
* Expression pedal jack for manual speed control
* Comes with 12V DC power adapter
* Hand-wired, Boutique quality, Made in USA
The new Stereo Black Cat Vibe retails for $325. Check out www.blackcatpedals.com for more.
NAMM 2017: Mooer micro preamp pedals
Mooer announce ten new amp-style pedals in tiny boxes.
Holy moley what do we have here? Mooer have dropped a HUGE pre-NAMM announcement on us here with 10 (ten!) new pre-amp models which really appear to have a few interesting little features on them.
First up, just have a *look* at the line-up, there’s been a huge step-up on the aesthetics from what we’ve been used to from Mooer. Secondly, you’ll notice that there are five micro-knobs, as well a single “soft-switch” which is something we’re pretty sure we’ve not seen on a Mooer pedal before.
This soft-switch actually has two functions. Press once, and you switch between two assignable EQ’s, effectively giving you two channels. Press and hold on the soft-switch and you can turn on or off a built-in cab simulator which allows these pre-amps to be used directly into a PA or audio interface.
The actual footswitch on the pedals can be assigned to either turn the pedal on/off, or to switch between the two channels in a more gig-friendly manner than having to press the soft-switch.
Now, Mooer haven’t officially announced what each of these pre-amps are based on (not that we’d expect them to!), but based on the aesthetics it looks like there are models that’ll be designed to sound like Diezel, Marshall, Vox, EVH, Fender, Mesa Boogie and Engl among others. Obviously we’re not going to know for sure what each of these pre-amps are based on until we hear them all, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see a Dumble hidden away in there somewhere, especially given the company’s relatively heavy cult following that’s emerged recently.
This really is a pretty big statement for Mooer make in 2017. We’ve not seen anybody release such a comprehensive line-up of “modelling” pre-amps since Tech 21 released their Character series at the start of the decade. Now, no pricing has been released as of yet, but we’re pretty certain these are far more likely to be around Mooer’s sub-£100 price point than the £150-200 that you’d expect to pay for their Tech 21 counterparts.
Rock Stock Pedals announces the Bright Switch USB pedal board light.
This USB light could be the perfect addition to your pedalboard.
The Bright Switch pedal board light from Rock Stock is the perfect tool for players with large pedalboards performing in dimly lit venues. The dual USB design let's you light things up and charge your iPhone, iPad or other USB device at the same time. Have a larger pedal board? Use 2 LED lamps and double your coverage. Use your pedal power supply lead from 9-24VDC and it will be converted to proper 5V USB power. For devices requiring more current than your power supply can handle, a higher current power adapter is included.
Features:
• Small footprint
• 2 USB Connections (switched and always on)
• Indicator LED for switched connection
• Will convert 9-24VDC to 5V USB power
• Includes Mighty Bright® USB LED Light
• 9V 2A power supply included
The Bright Switch is available now for $49.00. See more here.
Fredric Effects announce Utility Perkolator MkII
A classic Harmonic Perkolator with some unique new features.
The Utility Perkolator based the fabled Interfax Harmonic Percolator from the 1970s. The Harmonic Percolator is a simple yet fascinating circuit which readily lends itself to tweaking and improvement. Fredric Effects already build a faithfully vintage correct version of the Harmonic Percolator, however the Utility Perkolator takes this circuit in another direction. Using higher gain, lower leakage Russian Germanium transistors, and a low pass filter which only removes the high-end hisses and glitches associated with the HP, the Utility Perkolator has a considerably lower noise floor. The result is a tighter and more controllable effect which is still capable of producing the classic Harmonic Percolator sound.
The Utility Perkolator MkII is available in attractive 'cold war cream' with two colour black/metallic silver screen printed artwork featuring the Berlin TV Tower for £95 RRP.
Check out Fredric Effects' demo below:
About Fredric Effects
Based in North London, Fredric Effects has grown in the last five years to become one of the best regarded UK effects manufacturers. They build high quality handmade boutique pedals at realistic prices working musicians can afford. Fredric Effects pedals have found their way onto the pedal boards of many well-known and ground-breaking guitarists and bassists around the world.
See more at:
http://www.fredric.co.uk/utility-perkolator
SUMMER NAMM 2016: Jam Pedals Delay Llama Supreme
Jam Pedals' new delay offers some seriously different sounds.
Jam pedals have always been a source of interesting, unique and beautifully presented effects, and so it is the case here with their latest addition at Summer NAMM 2016; introducing the Delay Llama Supreme.
A souped up version of their successful Delay Llama pedal, the supreme adds a load of cool features; a Note-Divide control, two expression in's for delay level and delay time, and a modulation switch.
With such an entourage of wacky features, the Delay Llama could be an essential addition for all players looking for a delay with a twist.
SUMMER NAMM 2016: Pigtronix Philosopher's Tone Micro
Awesome compression in a pedalboard-friendly format!
Pigtronix have announced a brand new addition to their range of guitar effects pedals, the Philosopher's Tone Micro.
The original Pigtronix Philosopher's Tone is known for its noiseless clean sustain, and the new micro version is no different. Ushering in a new generation of futuristic analog technology, the Philosopher's Tone Micro delivers all of the parallel optical compression and unrivaled sustain of the original award-winning Pigtronix pedal in a micro-size chassis that runs on standard 9V external power.
In addition to VOLUME and SUSTAIN controls, the Philosopher's Tone Micro features a parallel BLEND knob that allows the musician to mix their instrument's original tone with the compressed sound effect. This technique restores natural pick-attack and allows more extreme sustain settings to remain musical. The TREBLE control provides up to 6db cut or boost at 2KHz for fine-tuning the frequency response of the effect. The Philosopher's Tone Micro features true-bypass switching and 9V operation, with internal 18V power rails for maximum clean headroom, even when used with hot pickups and line-level signals.
Features:
- Noiseless Clean Sustain
- Blend control for Parallel Compression
- Treble EQ for Boost or Cut at 2kHz
- Runs on standard 9V external power
- Internal 18V power for max headroom
- True Bypass switching
- Size = 3.75" x 1.5" x 1.75"
Check out Paul Gilbert's demo of the Philosopher's Tone Micro below:
SUMMER NAMM 2016: Hungry Robot Starlite V2
The latest update to the Starlite adds some great new features.
Hungry Robot have announced a brand new update to their Starlite reverb.
The original Starlite was the world's 1st modulated reverb with tap tempo controlled rate. The release of this pedal marked a giant leap forward in the world of time-based effects. Version 2 adds an updated LFO for smoother modulation and quieter operation and a new knob that controls LFO Ramp Up/Ramp Down.
The Starlite is an offshoot of Hungry Robot's popular Stargazer reverb, known for being an extremely musical reverb, and features an atmospheric, present reverb with the same self-oscillation capabilities. The addition of thick, pulsating modulation makes The Starlite the ultimate ambient experience.
SUMMER NAMM 2016: Boss Waza Craft CE-2w
The latest Waza Craft pedal brings multiple flavours of classic chorus tones.
Boss have announced a brand new addition to their Waza Craft line, the CE-2w Chorus. With a default sound based on the original 1979 CE-2 Chorus the Waza Craft model adds an expansive new sound field with stereo output, which was unavailable in the mono CE-2. An additional CE-1 mode fully reproduces the stereo chorus and vibrato sounds of the legendary CE-1, with the addition of variable chorus depth not available in the original pedal. To commemorate the birth of BOSS effects, the CE-2W is made exclusively in Japan, just as the original CE-1 and CE-2 were.
Boss Waza Craft CE-w Features:
• Special edition Waza Craft pedal delivers the ultimate BOSS tone experience
• Standard mode provides a perfect reproduction of the legendary CE-2 sound
• CE-1 mode features chorus and vibrato, authentically reproducing the two stereo sound modes in the world’s first chorus pedal
• Includes new sounds not available in the original pedals, including CE-2 stereo output and variable depth for CE-1 chorus sounds
• Rate and Depth knobs provide fine sound adjustment in both pedal modes
• Premium all-analog circuitry with bucket-brigade (BBD) delay line
• Made in Japan to celebrate the 40th anniversary of BOSS effects
• BOSS five-year warranty
Check out Boss' demo of the CE-2w:
Ibanez doing 'mini' properly
This year Ibanez have expanded their mini pedal range from the simple, but brilliant Tube Screamer Mini to now include a Chorus, Metal and gloriously a Delay.
Parent and child
Based on the Ibanez AD-9 the Analog Delay Mini offers you all the qualities of an incredibly high spec delay in a tiny package. Still made in Japan the Mini Delay is a great example of tiny pedals done well. The market has become flooded with cheap mini pedals that offer space saving at the expense of tone, this is no such pedal. Heavy weight and high quality, when put side by side against its older sibling there is little difference, which is astounding! The AD-9 is nearly £200 and with good reason, for years the AD-9 has been the bench mark for Analog delays...the mini by comparison is £70!?! A remarkable price!
so what is everyone waiting for? We've all got a tiny bit of room on our board that we could fill up, and what better way to do it than with a tiny, brilliant, legendary analog delay.
TC Electronic announces Sub 'N' Up Octaver
TC Electronic's latest Toneprint pedal brings high performance to the pitch pack.
TC Electronic have announced a brand new pitch manipulating stompbox, the Sub 'N' Up Octaver.
Featuring TC's own next generation octave-engine and individual blend controls for dry, octave up and two sub-octaves, the Sub 'N' Up is designed to deliver flawless octave tones whether you're playing complex chords or single-note lines. As with the rest of the Toneprint series, the Sub 'N' Up allows the user to connect to an editor for further customisation, in this case, adding modulation to the mix.
TC Electronic Sub 'N' Up Features:
- Next generation octave-engine - for flawless polyphonic tracking
- Classic monophonic octaver - cool old-school octaver tones
- TonePrint Editor w. Modulation - for otherworldly octave tones
- TonePrint enabled
- True Bypass
- Compact design
- 9V/100mA
- High quality components
- Road-ready design
Check out TC Electronic's demo below:
Pedal Of The Week: CAST Engineering Casper Delay
This digital delay delivers some seriously analog vibes.
This new digital delay is definitely friendly, but does it have the capacity to be spooky?
Pedal Of The Week: Jonny Rock Gear Dino Range
Matt checks out this awesome compressor.
This week, Matt checks out the Jonny Rock Gear Dino Range compressor.
Kleissonic announce the Lucid fuzz
This extremely versatile fuzz is designed to be responsive to your guitar's volume control.
Kleissonic Boutique Pedals have announced the Lucid, an extremely versatile fuzz pedal
The Lucid features just two controls, Volume and Harmonics, with the Harmonics knob adjusting the harmonic consistency and range of the signal and the Volume knob controlling the overall output.
Designed to be responsive to the player's volume control, the Lucid cleans up nicely when you turn it down and doesn't get lost in the mix when it's cranked. The tone control of the guitar is also very effective and it doesn't get lost in the gain stages.
Kleissonic Lucid Features:
• True Bypass
• Input impedance: 3,8MOhm
• Output impedance: 9,5KOhm
• Power: Battery or center negative tip from 9-18 Volts DC
• Low power consumption <2mA at 9VDC.
• Dimensions:111 x 60 x 32 (mm)
• Weight: 270 gr
All Kleissonic Pedals are designed and built in Berlin, Germany. The Lucid carries retail suggested price of 175€ (euros), and can be purchased directly from the Kleissonic online shop at www.kleissonic.com, or by the authorized dealers.
Musikmesse 2016: Digitech Whammy Ricochet and Dirty Robot
Digitech have done it again. Two new pedals that will cause some serious sonic disruption.
Digitech have announced two brand new pedals, the Whammy Ricochet pitch shifter and the Dirty Robot stereo micro synth.
The Whammy Ricochet utilises the Whammy pitch shifting effect and puts in a pedal with a smaller pedalboard footprint. Without the realtime treadle controller, the Ricochet bends the pitch of the incoming note at a rate determined by shift and return controls, allowing the player to bounce their sound up or down in pitch for incredibly unique effects.
With seven pitch selections: 2nd, 4th, 5th, 7th, Octave, Double Octave, and Octave+Dry, as well as a toggle to select up or down for the selected pitch, the Whammy Ricochet offers non-latching or latching footswitch modes. An LED display shows the pitch trajectory at all times.
One of our all time favourite pedals at GN towers is Digitech Bass Synth Wah, so when we heard that Digitech were announcing a successor, the Dirty Robot, we all got rather excited.
Containing two synth voices (common envelope-style synthesis and vocal formant synthesis) and seven controls, including mix, modulation, drift, sensitivity, start, stop and time, the Dirty Robot offers the player a huge amount of control, and is capable of producing some incredible analog synth-style tones.
Musikmesse 2016: Boss TU-3S and TU-3W
Boss' new tuners are designed to revolutionise your pedalboard.
Boss have announced two brand new compact tuners at Musikmesse 2016.
Offering the same reliable operation and bulletproof durability as the rest of the Boss compact range, the TU-3S delivers industry-standard performance with a tiny pedalboard footprint. Both the display and tuning functions are identical to the ubiquitous TU-3, and the removal of the on/off switch makes this new model ideal for use with pedal switching systems like the BOSS ES-8 and ES-5.
Boss TU-3S Features:
• 21-segment LED meter with brightness control
• High Brightness mode enhances meter visibility outdoors
• Accu-Pitch Sign function provides visual verification when tuning is complete
• Chromatic and Guitar/Bass modes, with support for 7-string guitars and 6-string basses
• Guitar Flat mode supports “drop” tunings up to six semitones below standard pitch
• Powered by optional PSA-series adapter; DC Out jack for powering up to seven BOSS compact effect pedals via an optional PCS-20A daisy-chain cable
• BOSS five-year warranty
The latest addition to the Waza Craft series, the Boss TU-3W offers the same rock-solid tuning of the industry-standard TU-3. However the TU-3W now features redesigned circuitry with selectable buffered or true-bypass operation and the most transparent audio pass-through available.
Boss TU-3W Features:
• Superior tuning and premium signal buffer in one pedal
• Tuning functions are identical to the industry-standard TU-3
• Refined audio circuitry for exceptionally pure signal pass-through
• Buffer can be turned off for true-bypass operation
• BOSS five-year warranty
Pedalboard Showcase: Ben Thompson of Nai Harvest
Jay caught up with Ben Thompson of Nai Harvest to talk about his pedalboard and multi-amp setup.
Jay caught up with Ben Thompson of Nai Harvest at the Hope and Ruin in Brighton to talk about his pedalboard and multi-amp setup.