Nick Johns & J.B. Brisendine Atlanta, GA Brother Hawk brotherhawkatl.com facebook.com/BrotherHawkATL twitter.com/brotherhawkatl youtube.com/brotherhawkatl instagram.com/brotherhawkatl How long have you guys been musicians? How did you get into it in the first place? Nick: I had always been surrounded by a family of musicians my whole life and started picking songs out on the piano by ear when I was 4 years old. I started piano...
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There are pedals and amps that produce tones which just make you take a step back the first time you hear them. A good number of these have been produced by Marshall, and today’s pedal is a take on possubly their most famous pedal: the Blues Breaker. Taking that awesome piece of gear, tweaking it a bit and adding more options, the Mount Pleasant from Vick Audio aims to reproduce those vintage tones, but in a smaller footprint...
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We love a good mini, pedalboard-friendly pedal here at Pedal of the Day, and who doesn’t? The crew at CNZ Audio has devised an entire lineup of these little wonders, and we’ve got the first of many coming at you today. The Tape Echo is, well, a tape echo pedal, with a ton of features packed into a small enclosure, and offering a compact fit, but not sacrificing any tone… Designed to emulate vintage reel-to-reel...
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Today’s guest review comes to us from Monique Hernandez-Fuentes – you can find her with Guitar Tricks on Facebook, Twitter and on the Guitar Tricks website. Thanks again, Monique! In my quest for the ultimate high gain, I stumbled across the awesome Heavy by Canadian heavy weights, Empress Effects. Originally, I was looking for something super versatile and was referred to Empress by a guitar buddy of mine on Instagram. One thing I...
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Anyone who knows Lone Wolf Audio and its proprietor, Joe Anastasio, knows that they don’t mess around when it comes to effects pedals geared (pun intended) towards the heavier side of music. Today’s featured pedal, the Outer Heaven Fuzz, continues that staunch tradition by bringing a fury of fuzzy and distorted tones to the forefront, while taking your average fuzz pedal and flipping it upside down and around, as Joe has...
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We loved both the Battering Ram and Echo Drive pedals we reviewed from Wounded Paw Audio, so we were stoked to be able to try another one of their creations for today’s featured pedal. The Black Wolf is a monster of a distortion pedal, with a tone of options for dialing in the perfect tone, and plenty of volume and gain on tap as well. If you’re looking for a clean boost or light overdrive pedal, you’d better get...
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We’ve had a blast over the years reviewing effects pedals from Ninevolt Pedals/Animals Pedal, and today we’re venturing for the first time into acoustic territory from these guys. The Firewood Acoustic D.I. is an active D.I. that fits in both live stages and recording studios alike, using analog and discrete circuits and able to output to a mixer or an amplifier without missing delicate expressions. This simple pedal...
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For some reason, the “Power Series” of pedals made by Ibanez/Maxon in the mid-to-late 80’s don’t get the respect they truly deserve, and we’re bringing you another one of those pedals today to prove it. The DL10 Digital Delay is a simply-controlled, excellent-sounding and now extremely affordable delay effect, one that should definitely be popping up on more boards across the globe. Famed for its crystal...
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This is the Number 23 Fuzz from our friends at Vaux Flores. Small, purple, full of tone and killer in any setup, this fuzz-based beauty features a splash of upper octave cream and heterodyned, atonal artifacts with a sound few compare to. Not overly complex, but with enough gusto and tonal range to get the job done, and done well, let’s put this guy through the ringer and see what comes out on the other side, shall we? Upon...
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With a long-standing tradition of being anything but traditional, Dwarfcraft Devices have been pushing, reshaping and demolishing the sonic envelopes that we are all used to, and show no signs of stopping that in the near future. A perfect example of the inventive and creative products they’re producing is today’s pedal, the Grazer, a bright orange behemoth that acts as a granular repeater, delay, sampler, and all out wack...
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Today’s piece of gear isn’t a pedal, but something that every player should have as the first bit of equipment they buy along with their instrument: a tuner. No ordinary tuner, either, mind you: this thing is in a class all its own, untouched so far by imitators or copycats. Now completely wireless with no phone necessary (although you can still use the app in many beneficial ways), this is some next level tuning right...
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Ahhh, delay….our favorite effect. It comes in so many different shapes and colors and flavors and options, and we love ’em all – not equally, though. Once in a while, an effects pedal makes its way to our shop and we are absolutely blown away, and today’s pedal did exactly that as soon as we plugged it in. The Echoczar Analog Delay from Toneczar Effects is a BBD-infused, vintage-inspired, modulated black beauty...
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Happy Valentine’s Day!….or whatever. Now, here’s something important: If you’re a fan of Andy Summers’ guitar work, there’s a good chance you’ve always tried to figure out just what created those classic sounds that he and The Police became famous for 40 years ago. Today’s pedals is a fantastic recreation of one of the most important pieces to that puzzle, the Electro-Harmonix Electric...
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The folks at Pigtronix have always put out wildly innovative, sonically-pleasing and sometimes futuristic effects, that are always surrounded by questions like, “Who makes that pedal?” or “How did you get that sound?” The purple piece of gear we’ve got today for you to check out and listen to is their newest creation, one that works wonders in both the guitar and bass worlds (and other, too, we’re...
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Today’s guest review comes to us from Jimi Dymond – you can find him on Instagram and with his band Rotten Foxes on Facebook and Bandcamp. Thanks again, Jimi! What can I say? I’m not a fancy man. Technology eludes me, I’m 28 and write on my smartphone with one index finger like a banged up old mum. But there’s one thing I do know about certain types of technology, bass pedals for example. I’ve gone through a lot of...
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Equalization effects pedals tend to get lost in the chatter, what with so many interesting noisemakers available today. They are, however, an important piece to many rigs, and today’s pedal takes it up to a new level in terms of usability and EQ options for your tone. The PA-1QG (there’s also the PA-1QB for bass) from pedal innovators Free The Tone has been specifically designed for your guitar setup, integrating the combo...
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It’s been a little while since we’ve anything in the shop for our friends at Anasounds, but today we’ve got the first of three pedals from their stellar lineup to chat about and demo. A good phaser can add that special something that maybe you didn’t know you needed in your rig, or can be take you on a beautiful, space-infused journey, depending on what you need it for. The Phase Lag is an organic, analog...
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We’ve been getting down and dirty the last few weeks with some incredible distortion pedals, and we’re gonna keep that trend going again today, if you don’t mind. “Good-sounding distortion” and “affordable” don’t always go well together, but today’s pedal just might change your opinion about that. The Flextortion from ModTone Effects is a supreme distortion, featuring enough range...
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Who doesn’t love a good bit of ambience in their music? Well, lots of folks, probably, but for those of us that dig it, today’s pedal is going to blow your mind. The Astronaut V.2 from Shift Line is a multiverb space reverb unit, with numerous program algorithms to choose from and tones that stretch beyond the far reaches of outer space. A space-saver without a large manual to try and decipher, this plug and play beauty is...
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Today’s featured effect not only showcases some incredible sonic prowess from the designers, it also gives a nod to one of our favorite television shows EVER. For those of you who marveled in ‘Stranger Things’ like most of the rest of the world, you’ll surely recognize the name Demogorgon, the moniker given to this insane pedal. Blending in elements of fuzz, tremolo and reverb, this beastly monster sounds...
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You all have fun at NAMM last week(end)? Well, we’ve got one of the premiere effects from the show for you RIGHT NOW! Continually pushing the musical envelope is what it’s all about these days, especially in the crowded effects pedal market. Colt and the squad at Walrus Audio seem to be keeping themselves up near the lead in this crazy race, and with today’s pedal, they just might take the lead. The Fathom is a...
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Although we’re not the fastest or most technical of players around here, we sure can appreciate a good heavy metal tune, and the pedal we’re going to look at today is capable of providing the tones needed for speed, thrash, glam, black, death and other metal genres with ease. Robert and the kids at Keeley Electronics have covered just about all the bases when it comes to effects, and the Filaments High Gain Distortion is...
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Dario Darnell/Youngr London/UK www.youngrmusic.com How long have you been a musician? How did you get into it in the first place? I started when I was around 10/11 years old. My dad is also a musician, so it’s always been in the family. Then he forced me to have piano lessons and told me I’d thank him when I’m older! Now I’m thanking him that I’m Youngr (#dadjokes). He also gave me my middle name –...
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After being able to check out the revered White Pedal from Jext Telez, we were excited to see what dirty effect they had for us this go-round – color us impressed again. The Buzz Tone is a germanium fuzz that also has trace elements of overdrive packed right in, for an all-encompassing tonal spectrum of sounds. The easy controls hide a wide dimension of tones, and the secret weapon here really pushes the envelope on what a...
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While everyone is always out to find a great deal, there don’t seem to be a ton of decent options for low-priced gear that sounds great in the world of effects pedals. That all changed when we plugged in today’s featured pedal and went for a funky, delay-filled ride down the rabbit hole. The Time Force from NUX is a multi modulation digital delay, with a ton of different echo modes and fun around every delay-infused...
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We’ve all had a pedal, effects or vintage sound-making machine that has peaked our curiosity for years, but have never had the ways or means to acquire said piece of gear. One of the most famous of these is undoubtedly the Echoplex EP-3 from Maestro, a warm echo machine full of tasty modulated delays, and one responsible for many of the classic and iconic recorded tones ever put down on tape. These units, however, are...
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Johnny Balmer Location Chicago, IL Together, with my wife Victoria, we operate Alchemy Audio www.alchemy-audio.com How long have you been a musician? How did you get into it in the first place? I’ve been playing electric guitar since I was 14. Victoria has played bass for a couple of years. Who have been some of your major musical influences, past or present? I was a metal kid in the 80’s. Therefore, when I started playing guitar, it...
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After getting the chance to review and demo the M-1 Ram’s Head Fuzz from Buffalo FX, we were looking forward to something a little milder from them, as the M-1 was a real powerhouse (in only the best of ways, mind you). They responded with the Carrera Overdrive, a low-to-mid gain boostable dirt pedal that was designed for clean and edge-of-breakup types of tones. Combining an easy-to-use control layout with impressive circuitry...
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As it turns out, our first foray into the world of effects pedals from Bogner Amplification is a good one. The Burnley Distortion features a simple control setup, transformer design by one of the most famous audio pioneers in the business and an LED that reacts to your playing. What else could you possibly need from a slick, purple, monster of a dirt pedal? You’re correct: nothing. Assembled with a 100% analog circuit, the...
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2-in-1 pedals are fairly badass, and always welcome into the musical fold around here. Every once in a while, however, we get to check out the rare and even more fun THREE-in-1 pedal, one of which has graced us with its presence today. The High Tide from M.D. Effects is a chorus, reverb and delay all mixed together, with a boatload of options for tweaking this sonic beauty to fit literally any musical situation you may come across...
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The Earth Drive from Sarno Music Solutions was one of the best drives we had the pleasure of reviewing lately, so we were equally stoked to check out its big brother, the Solar Flare Distortion. Featuring another user-friendly control section and a whole slew of killer tones to drive your amp, this second offering from Sarno lived up to expectations, and then some. Get ready to blast some eardrums and rock some faces, this is the...
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After checking out the new Getaway Driver from our friends at Orange Amps a couple months ago, we were excited to plug in the Fur Coat, another new effect in their lineup. This monster is a vintage fuzz loosely based on the Foxx Tone Machine, with an added octave option, for full tonal control and all the dirt you can handle. User-friendly controls and aesthetically intriguing artwork make this one fuzz that’s sure to...
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Ambient reverb pedals have been all the rage over the last few years, and today’s featured pedal stands right up there with the best of them. The Mercury Seven were the first group of American astronauts to be chosen to go to space, way back in 1959, and the Mercury7 Reverb pays homage to their journey into the unknown. An options-laden reverb pedal that sends you high into the atmosphere, with no real knowledge of if...
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Michael Vickery Gilbert, Arizona Vick Audio VickAudio.com How long have you been a musician? How did you get into it in the first place? I got a late start when it comes to guitar but I have been playing for almost 25 years. I started as a musician by taking piano lesson when I was a kid. I took lesson for about 4 years but it never really clicked with me. I think piano teacher have a tendency to try to make kids classic pianists...
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Overdrive effects are, let’s face it, everywhere, and in order to stand out from the crowd, you’ve got to do something pretty special. The crew over at Bomes Electric has done just that with today’s featured pedal, the Sir-Gains-A-Lot, a dual preset boost overdrive that sings with amp-pushing flash and gorgeous sustain. Extremely user-friendly and a cinch to program, this pedal is perfect for the beginning of any...
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Delay is pretty much our favorite effect around here, from a slight slap back to an endless echo through space and time, and today’s function-filled pedal takes us on a journey that covers just about all the bases you need in the delay world. The Andromeda from Seymour Duncan is labeled as a dynamic digital delay, but there are wonderful analog aspects present here, too, plus some modulation, MIDI stuff and more. A real...
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