Phasers are rad, plain and simple. There are those that might disagree, but they’re radically incorrect. But phasers that run in stereo?? Well, it just doesn’t get any better than that, as evidenced by today’s pedal, the Mr. Black Twin Lazers Dual Phase Modulator. Inspired by the long standing king of dual phase-shifters, this is true-stereo phase shifting at its finest. The Twin Lazers features two fully-independent...
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A lot of the pedals we review and demo have a ton of buttons, toggles and footswitches, and are able to produce more sounds than you could possible use at once. While we love those effects and all they are capable of, it’s nice to sit back with a really great-sounding, 3-knob overdrive and just plain rock out. The BB-74x Blues Breaker Overdrive from Mr. Black allowed us to do just that, conjuring up classic 60’s amp tones...
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Another day, another delay….and why not? They’re only the most fun effects out there, and we’ll review and demo ’em as long as companies keep making ’em! Speaking of making exceptional pedals, today’s gem comes to us from Mr. Black, longtime maker of intriguing devices and inspiring tone machines, and this one is no exception. The SS-850 is a solid state echo chamber delay unit, featuring a retro...
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It’s no secret: WE LOVE DELAY. Old, new, analog, digital – bring it on. There’s a special place in our instrumental hearts for a good tape echo, though, and the Tapex 2 from Mr. Black Pedals is a top-notch inspirational charged delay that echoes (see what we did there?) the echoes of some classic players, songs and tones. A Stereophonic Tape Echo, this silver machine glistens and drips with analog sound, with a ton...
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Mr. Black has outdone himself again with this pedal, the Downward Spiral. I would like to classify this pedal as ambient delay: instead of the typical echo you would naturally hear, the Downward Spiral takes the note and reproduces it in a lower octave that you can make basically never end. This pedal comes with 3 different knobs on the top, Level, Regen, Time. We’ll start with the Regen knob – this knob allows you to...
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Distortion pedals are a finicky bunch – what sounds great to one player might sound like garbage to another. As with most pedals, personal preference always comes into play. But what if there was a distortion pedal that let you know it was focusing on high-gain tones, then gave you a slew of options to achieve your perfect sound? Well, the DSM & Humboldt Electronics Black Clouds High-Gain Distortion translates a clear...
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The fine folks at Flamma Innovation are back at it, releasing FIVE new pedals, all of which we’re going to take a look at here at Pedal of the Day. This week, after looking at the FC17 Analog Delay and FC18 Clean Boost, we’ve got the FC19 Black Distortion, a simple but wide-ranging distortion effect that takes your tone to the next level. You might not expect sounds as huge as these to come out of something this small, but...
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The first round of Dept. 10 pedals released by Blackstar Amplification (Boost, Dual Drive, Dual Distortion) were full of options, HUGE tones and exquisite build quality. Those effects focused on boost, overdrive and distortion elements, showing how you could really push your amp and shape your tone with ease. The latest release from Blackstar sees them switching focus now to the actual AMP aspect of the chain, bringing you the...
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The final pedal in the Dept. 10 Series of valve pedals from Blackstar Amplification is the Dual Distortion, a bold, black beauty that takes high gain action up a notch. A formidable-sounding valve distortion and world-class recording preamp, this one features 3 Crunch/Overdrive voices alongside the clean channel, Blackstar’s patented ISF control, low latency USB, XLR out and Dept. 10’s proprietary Cab Rig simulator technology....
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Our journey through the Dept. 10 Series of valve pedals from Blackstar Amplification continues today, as we take a gander at the Dual Drive. This one is touted as “the best valve drive pedal you will ever own and a world-class valve recording preamp”, and they’re not too far off. Featuring 3 Crunch/Overdrive voices alongside the clean channel, Blackstar’s patented ISF control, low latency USB, XLR out and Dept....
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Our friends at Blackstar Amplification recently released a group of three valve-powered effects known as the Dept. 10 Series. We’re bringing you in-depth coverage and demos over the next three days, starting with today’s pedal, the aptly-titled Boost. Referred to as the “ultimate high voltage valve boost pedal”, this one sports not only signal boosting abilities, but a wonderful EQ section as well. And...
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Seemingly out of nowhere, Discomfort Designs has become one of our favorite pedal companies of late. Creating loud, weird and exciting effects, these guys are pushing the levels of noise creation to new heights. Their latest, the Neon Black Fuzz Booster, combines two odd circuits and makes them into one powerhouse of a pedal. In your face, bold, screechy and fantastic, let’s check it out… The left side of the Neon Black is...
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We’ve had a couple of pedals from Discomfort Designs come through the shop recently, and they just keep getting better. Today’s machine, the Black Tooth Doom Octave Distorter, sounds as mean as its name might suggest…and then some. Not for the weak, faint-of-heart or tender-eared, this crushing black beauty is all geared up to rip some speakers and melt some faces… The Black Tooth is a high gain, hard-clipping...
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What is a Rotophaser, exactly? Part rotary speaker, part phaser, all modulation and a ton of fun, that’s what it is. Classically, you’d look to units like a Fender Vibratone, the MTI Rotophaser and, of course, the Leslie rotating speaker cabinets to get some of these sounds. Today, however, we’ve got a modern machine that combines all that you love about this sound and those vintage units into a pedalboard-friendly...
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We’ve always dug the simplicity and straightforwardness of the one-stomp pedals from Henretta Engineering, and are excited to bring you another one today. The Black Hole is an all-analog chorus effect pedal that will add shimmer, dimension, fullness and character to your sound. Chorus has been an extremely popular effect since its introduction to the guitar effect pedal market in the late 70’s. A wide range of sounds, from...
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A good, loud, ripping fuzz is the perfect way to get the weekend going, and we’ve got a great one for you guys today. Over the years, we’ve been fortunate to check out the majority of the lineup from our friends at Vick Audio, including one of the first pedals we ever reviewed, the Fuzz Box, as well as the Violet Ram’s Head, V1 Triangle and 1861 fuzzes. Continuing that tradition, we present the Black Russian Fuzz....
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Like all Eventide pedals, Blackhole allows players to fine-tune every aspect of the effect. With its new user-friendly, intuitive interface, just about anyone can shoot for the moon and land beyond the known universe. A historic element of Eventide’s sound, the Blackhole algorithm was introduced in Eventide’s DSP4000 Ultra-Harmonizer® hardware processor and now opens a host of possibilities on a pedalboard. With Blackhole, the...
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Sometimes, pedals come through our office that are fairly loud. Sometimes, we get pedals that are REALLY loud. Today’s pedal might just be the loudest one we’ve ever encountered, and let us tell you, loud doesn’t even really begin to describe it. The Black Drone Wasp from Jext Telez is an absolute monster of a fuzz, and, while it can get extremely high in the volume department, it never gets shrill or too...
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Innovation, inspiration and next-level thinking have become key aspects of the effects pedal industry. With a HUGE wave of companies popping up over the last number of years, you really need to have your gear stand out from the rest to avoid being sucked into the abyss of oversaturation that can present itself. Today’s pedal is not just three different effects in one, it is a complete work of art. The Black Hole Symmetry from...
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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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The first time we ever heard about the Black Cat Vibe, it was doing research on the rig of Trey Anastasio, who used to keep the original half unit in his on-stage rack (known then as the Custom Audio Electronics Black Cat Vibe). Since those particular units were pretty rare and pretty expensive, we never got to fully appreciate and play with the sound we came to know and love. Recently, however, we acquired the newer pedal version of...
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Today’s little piece of overdriven glory comes to us from a long ways away – Voronezh, Russia, to be exact. The crew at Blacksoil FX sent their first creation across the pond for us to check out, and what arrived was the excellent Alpha Centauri Overdrive. This little silver bad boy is based on the legendary Klon schematic, so the controls are a cinch to understand, but there’s also an added bonus feature to mix...
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In our experience, when a company only makes ONE pedal, and that pedal is extremely popular among those players who actually know about it, it tends to be pretty damn rad. Such is the case with today’s pedal, the Mosfet Overdrive from Blackstone Appliances. A 2-in-1 of sorts, this overdrive will give you all the boost, crunch and distortion you can handle…provided you have a screwdriver or Leatherman nearby to adjust its...
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At first glance, the Fix’d Fuzz Deluxe from Blackout Effectors looks as though it might be a little tricky and complicated, with its vast array of knobs and switches. Turns out, it is, but in the best possible way. With all of these adjustable options, this brilliant fuzz truly allows the user to dial in a wide range of distorted and fuzzy sounds, and will take you from a simple, basic fuzz to sonic dementia that you may well...
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Nick and the crew at Greer Amps have been putting out some incredible dirt pedals over the last few years, but with today’s pedal, they’re veered a bit off course into the world of delay, which I (and other fans of theirs) couldn’t be happier about. The Black Tiger Delay Device is a relatively simple delay, but has great tone, like all Greer pedals, and provides the perfect amount of tone-enhancement to make your rig...
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I bought the Blackeye Effects Gold Pine Overdrive pedal on a blind buy, there was not any demos or anything. All I knew that it was a low gain version of the White Pine. This pedal did not disappoint. It is awesome. It has three controls on it; gain, volume, and presence. The Gain knob. It does what any gain knob does, but what I love about this pedal is that the controls are not sensitive so you can really dial in the tones you like....
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We’ve got another VIDEO review for you today: The Doc Music Station Blackie Distortion! ProCo mojo with a twist! Si or Ge, either way you want it! Check them out HERE, and don’t forget to subscribe to Kyle’s channel after you watch the video! Click ‘PLAY’ and enjoy the show! Submitted by Kyle
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The Blackeye Effects MVP (Mighty Volume Pedal) is no longer in production, but is still worth entioning and reviewing. If you are lucky, you will still find one floating around. This pedal is a compact, Wah enclosure-sized volume pedal that looks stunning on any board. One of the great things about this pedal is that it does not use a string! No more broken strings! It came stock with a blue LED underneath, with the famous Blackeye...
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The White Pine Overdrive from Blackeye Effects is a low to mid gain overdrive that goes from a sparkling clean boost to a gained out fuzz with the turn of a knob. For the price, you will be hard pressed to find a better drive that can cover more ground or look as stunning on a board than this pedal. This pedal has three tweakable knobs: gain, volume, and presence. The gain and volume knobs work together to creating nearly any...
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The Blackeye Effects Palmetto is a great boost/light overdrive pedal. It only has two controls, Gain and Volume, but that is all you need. The Palmetto is true bypass and there are many great settings on this pedal. And for under $100 new, you can’t pass it up. Let’s review a few of my favorite settings. With the gain backed down and the volume up, the Palmetto will make your clean tone full and shimmering, giving you a...
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For musicians who love their guitar and amp’s tone. The Pharaoh pedal, while its roots and DNA are classic fuzz, has a few twists. The Black Arts Toneworks Pharaoh has a wide range of clipping and tonal options. From a cleanish boost, to a light OD, all the way to saturated fuzz. It sounds clear and natural, strong and bold. Your guitar sound isn’t high jacked, and your amp’s tone is not destroyed. The Pharaoh utilizes a dual tone...
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Today’s guest review comes to us from Dominick F. – you can find him here on Twitter. Thanks again, man! The Meris Polymoon is an incredible delay pedal based off of old Rack unit modules. With relative ease create lush reverb sounds or even syncopated rhythmic trails. With up to 1200ms of delay with or without tap tempo and premium analog JFET inputs, this beast offers crisp and clean high quality audio. Onto some of the controls:...
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There are a lot of effects pedals out there shrouded in mystery – vintage units that have little public info about them, pedals only made for a short time, or reclusive builders who keep their secrets, well, secret. The HP-1 Harmonic Percolator is most definitely one of these pedals, a weird fuzzy distortion creation that creates an extremely unique sound. The effect we’re looking at today is a Harmonic Percolator Clone,...
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Pedal with lots of knobs and switches are fun, plain and simple. Today’s effect has that in droves, bringing usually hidden or unaccessible features right to your fingertips. The CFH Pedals Sculptor+ Fuzz is no ordinary dirt machine, and once we run through what it can do, and you hear how it sounds, you’ll understand just what we mean… The CFH Pedals Sculptor+ Fuzz combines elements of the Fuzz Face and the Muff...
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We’ve been trying to collaborate with Don Poniz for the last few years, and we’re finally making it a reality today! Presenting the Power Contol Unit, a massive silicon/germanium overdrive with a simple control section and a huge range of sounds on tap. The note that came with the pedal said, “Worth the wait, trust me, Mike!” and after playing this pedal, I believe that to be a very true statement… From...
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Although today’s gear is not a pedal, it is a very useful piece of equipment here at PotD headquarters. The String Swing SW5RL-K Multi-Guitar Wall Rack has been an instant gamechanger, organizing my guitars in a neat, orderly and aesthetically pleasing way. If your collection of instruments is starting to grow and grow, this might be just the thing you’re looking for… The most convenient guitar display package on the...
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Today, we continue our journey of the exploration of the Ampworx Series of preamp pedals from our friends at TC Electronic. We’re looking at all six effects in the series (so far), starting with their three latest releases, and moving through the previous three, over the last several weeks. Let’s wrap things up today with the Combo Deluxe 65′ Preamp, a pedal that faithfully recreates the sound of a 1965 Blackface...
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We’re switching things up a little bit today, bring you some amplifier flavor from an excellent local North Carolina company. Come along as we take a look at not one but TWO amazing amps from Port City Amplification: the 30W Grandville Rhett Shull Signature and the 20W Merino Combo. Our pal Carl Perkins was kind enough to lend both of these amps and a killer cabinet to us to check out, and we fell in love instantly with these...
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Today, we continue our journey of the exploration of the Ampworx Series of preamp pedals from our friends at TC Electronic. We’re looking at all six effects in the series (so far), starting with their three latest releases, and moving through the previous three, over the last several weeks. Let’s keep it going today with the JIMS 45 Preamp, a beast that faithfully recreates the sound of a 1965 Marshall JTM45 tube amp, for...
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Today, we continue our journey of the exploration of the Ampworx Series of preamp pedals from our friends at TC Electronic. We’re looking at all six effects in the series (so far), with their three latest releases, and moving through the previous three, over the coming weeks. Let’s keep it going with the JIMS 800 Preamp, a beast that faithfully recreates a modified Marshall JCM800 tube amp, and pays gorgeous tribute to...
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Today, we continue our journey of the exploration of the Ampworx Series of preamp pedals from our friends at TC Electronic. We’re looking at all six effects in the series (so far), with their three latest releases, and moving through the previous three, over the coming weeks. Let’s keep it going with the V550 Preamp, a monster that emulates the legendary 5150 High-Gain amp, embodying a charismatic sonic profile reminiscent...
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(This article comes from our friends at GuitarTricks.com – check out their site for tons of guitar-related tips and tricks!!) The History of the Flanger By Shawn Leonhardt for Guitar Tricks and 30 Day Singer, the original platform for online guitar lessons. The Flanger guitar pedal has an interesting background that involves both science and a lot of luck! Like many guitar and music effects it stems from early experiments with...
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Today, we begin our journey of the exploration of the Ampworx Series of preamp pedals from our friends at TC Electronic. We’re going to look at all six effects in the series (so far), starting with their three latest releases, and moving through the previous three, over the coming weeks. Let’s begin with the Dual Wreck Preamp, a monster that emulates the classic Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier amp, utilizing component-based...
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Every version of the Ampero family of Amp Modelers and Effects Processors from our friends at Hotone Audio has come our way, and we’re exctied as always to bring you the latest version today. The Ampero MINI takes everything you know and love about these units and squishes them into a small, compact enclosure, perfect for any pedalboard or tabletop rig. And since there’s no compromise in sound quality or endless IRs,...
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We’ve tried a couple of pedals from the crew at Surfy Industries, and were wicked impressed to say the least. The SurfyVibe and SurfyBear brought modulation and reverb into focus, respectively, and now Surfy has a new pedal that ties everything together: the SurfyFuzz. With 2 modes and some intriguing parameter controls, this is not an ordinary dirt machine…not in the least. When Surfy Industries decided to develop a FUZZ,...
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We really loved the first four effects in JHS Pedals’ “Legends of Fuzz” series: the Bender, the Crimson, the Smiley and the Supreme. They’ve added a few more since, and we’re going to take a look at the Berkeley 1973 California today. With just two simple controls and a Mode switch, you can easily dial in vintage fuzz sounds with this black beauty… Grab a Berkeley 1973 California at Sweetwater:...
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(This article comes from our friends at GuitarTricks.com – check out their site for tons of guitar-related tips and tricks!!) Top Ten Iconic Guitar Pedal Effects Moments By Shawn Leonhardt for Guitar Tricks and 30 Day Singer, the original platform for online guitar lessons. There are so many guitar pedal moments to choose in songs, especially in hits starting in the 1980’s. Once pedals increased in popularity they became mixed...
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We’ve got an oldie but a goodie for you all today, coming in the form of the Nebula Phaser from Mojo Hand FX. This subtle beauty first came to us way back in 2014, and over the years we’ve had 2 or three different versions, finally settling on this black sparkled model. This phaser pedal is not a clone of the famous 2-stage vintage phaser, but rather a phaser pedal created to be the most user-friendly form for modern...
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Every effect we’ve investigated from Studio Daydream Handmade Pedals has been high-quality, both in build and sound, and we’re always ready for more gear from these guys. Today, we’re looking at the latest version of their JRM-OD Overdrive, V5.0, which is based on amp sounds from the 1960’s blackface period. The 2-band EQ and custom 3 mode switching of the clip diodes can be used to create a wide range of...
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It’s New Release Day from our pals over at Walrus Audio, and by now you know there’s a good chance it’s going to be something special… well, you’re correct. Picking up where the Lore Reverse Soundscape Generator left off, the Fable Granular Soundscape Generator is a sampler/delay pedal spewing forth glitchiness, pitch shifting, time stretching, reverse sounds and much, much more. Step into this wild sonic...
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