There are a couple of pedals from Strymon that are currently in high demand almost everywhere you look: the TimeLine, BigSky, Flint and BlueSky are on a TON of pedalboards throughout the world, and rightfully so, as all three are tops in their respective pedal fields. However, Strymon does actually make more than those 3 pedals, believe it or not, and we’re going to check one out today – get ready for the Orbit dBucket Flanger.
This little purple beauty was designed to emulate and recreate sounds from some classic vintage analog flangers, ones you’ve heard on hundreds, if not thousands, of recordings, but with some modern functionality as well. Let’s check out the controls and go from there, shall we? The Speed knob adjusts the, well, speed of the LFO (Low-Frequency Oscillation), and the Width adjusts the LFO’s overall depth. Regen controls the feedback intensity, and works in conjunction with the first two controls to produce a marvelous array of flanged tones. The Mix knob is a welcome addition to a flanger, and varies the amount of your guitar’s dry signal that gets mixed in with the Orbit’s wet signal, for total control over how the effect shapes your tone and sound. The final main knob is called Manual, and this one sets the delay time for the flanging, working with the Width and Regen controls for maximum visibility.
Next up, we’ve got a couple of toggle switches for even more versatility and experimentation. The Feedback toggle sports 3 settings: Positive (jet-engine flange sounds), Negative (watery, shimmery flange sounds) and +/-, which is unique to the Orbit, and basically combines pieces of the Positive and Negative settings, for an entirely new array of tones, great for really seeing what this pedal can produce. The final toggle has 3 settings also, and it sets the overall LFO. LOG (Logarithmic) gives you an even sweep of the flanger’s frequency, while LIN (Linear) speeds up as the frequency gets higher, and slows down as it drops down. Thru 0 is a rad setting, also unique to the Orbit, that puts the wet signal ahead of your dry signal, creating some unusual and intense flanging options. These six settings plus the ranges of all the aforementioned control knobs make the flanging possibilities almost endless, with lots of new sounds to discover and even create on your own.
As with all Strymon gear, the sound is just phenomenal, and will put a big grin on your face as soon as you plug it in. Made from only the highest-quality components, the design and build teams have once again taken no shortcuts, and has created an incredible flanger with loads of options, tons of range and delicious sonic sounds, for a great addition to any rig. Thanks once again to Priscilla and everyone at Strymon for letting us attempt to tackle this purple-headed warrior, stay tuned for more reviews of their wicked rad gear in the near future!
Specs:
Hand crafted dBucket algorithm for highly accurate reproduction of every stage of an analog bucket brigade chip. Built on the dBucket building blocks developed for our Brigadier delay.
Super low noise, high performance A/D and D/A converters w/ 110dB signal to noise
High performance DSP stuffed into a compact form factor
3 LFO types (log, lin, through zero)
3 Feedback types (positive, negative, pos/neg)
TRUE BYPASS (electromechanical relay switching)
Stereo output
Expression pedal input with selectable control over any knob parameter
Favorite footswitch for saving your favorite setting
Powered with a standard 9V center negative DC supply. Compatible with all major DC supply brands. Current consumption 200mA – (250mA recommended supply)
Premium analog front end and output section
No-nonsense user interface
Strong and lightweight purple anodized aluminum chassis
Crafted with love in the USA
Submitted by Mike B, Website
Demo Rock pedalboard by West Coast Pedalboard
