Over the last couple of years, we’ve had a blast testing out and investigating the affordable lineup of effects coming from CNZ Audio. Delving into delays and echoes, overdrives, octaves and even a phaser, there was always one pedal that we had out eyes on specifically, and we’re bringing it to you today. The SMD-10 Mod Station traps a ton of different effects into one tiny enclosure, then unleashes them unto the world one...
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The pulsing, audio ebb-and-flowing, peaks and valleys sounds of Vibrato are some of our favorites in the world. Whether it’s coming from a modern day effects pedal or from the circuit of a vintage amplifier, it’s hard to beat adding that type of effect into any signal chain and being the least bit disappointed. Today’s pedal, the SurfyVibe from Surfy Industries, brings a vintage sound into our modern world, keeping...
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In today’s world that has become just fantastically filled with the most options-laden, powerful, hip, trendy and mind-blowing effects pedals on the planet, sometimes it’s hard to remember a day when everything moved a little slower, things were a bit easier and every pedal didn’t cost a ton of money or have a manual the size of a phone book…..for those of us who remember phone books. A prime example of these...
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The sound of the Uni-Vibe® effect is really specific, and completely unmistakable. Made famous by Jimi Hendrix, Robin Trower, David Gilmour and many more, this swirling, pulsing phaser-infused vibrato chorus effect has been heard on countless classic recording over the decades, and adds a bit of depth and dimension to any music it happens to come into contact with. Today, we’re going to look at one of the now-most-famous...
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Happy Holidays, everyone! As we approach the close of 2019, we’d like to take a look at a new and truly unique piece of gear, one that has been much anticipated in the effects world. As we all know, multi-effects pedals can be really, really good…and sometimes, they’re really, really bad. Thankfully, today’s pedal falls squarely into the former category, as an options-filled modulation machine that will blow...
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What’s better than an absolutely GIANT effects box laying at your feet? Well, maybe some other things, but it’s still pretty cool. From the short but distinguished list of these beasts, we bring you a somewhat underdog in a world of Memory Men and Guitar Synthesizers: the VM1 Vintage Time Machine Delay Echo Chorus Vibrato from Behringer. An analog delay with a few tricks up its sleeve, this powerhouse is big, bad, and...
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Today’s pedal is an awesomely odd one to approach, as it is really 10 pedals in one. The Console from ELTA Music uses a series of interchangeable sound cartridges, each with its own set of three modes, to produce a wide array of tones and auditory revelations that will alter your approach to creating music. We are going to review and demo all 10 of these cartridges eventually, and the next one is our series is the Vibe Rotary...
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We had heard about the Align Series of pedals from L.R. Baggs, so we were more than excited to do some more acoustic pedal demos, starting with the Delay that we checked out a couple weeks back. Next up is today’s featured effect, the Align Chorus, which seeks to enhance the overall sound of your acoustic instrument, without drowning it in a sea of chorus. Easy to use and a true tone booster, let’s see what this guy is...
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For all the crazy things and innovative effects that EarthQuaker Devices have created over the years, the Chorus effect might be the least wacky of them all. However, in typical EQD fashion, they take a semi-normal modulation pedal and flip is upside down, spin it right ’round and come up with a new version (#3) that is absolutely the best one yet. The Sea Machine is a chorus pedal, yes, but an over-the-top modulating machine...
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Do we like Modulation effects here at Pedal of the Day? Yes. What about Delay? Check. Reverb? Of course. What about all of them in one pedal, one that fits into the palm of your hand and costs less than 100 bucks? Sign us up!! Today’s pedal is all of these things and more – the CRL-1 Coral Modulation Delay Reverb from Valeton is small, affordable and boasts a slew of sounds you might not expect would fit into an enclosure...
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At first glance, the JUNE-60 Chorus pedal from TC Electronic appears to be a piece of gear send back in time from the future. In fact, it represents the PAST, as it is a faithful recreation of the lush chorus circuit found in the legendary Roland Juno-60 Synthesizer. Upon seeing pictures of this vintage machine, you can easily see where the inspiration and aesthetics for the JUNE-60 came from. Paying homage to a classic polyphonic...
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After we had the opportunity to check out the first of two new releases from Dwarfcraft Devices last month, we couldn’t wait to see what the second one was all about. While the Treeverb is a reverb pedal with different modes, the Body Mod is three separate effects in one, combining Chorus, Flange and Octave tones for a plethora of exciting and experimental musical exploration. Plus, since it’s coming from Dwarfcraft, you...
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The wonderful world of multi-effects has had quite a resurgence in the last couple of years, with bigger, more powerful machines that actually sound incredible being put on the market. With all of these fantastic sounds and options available, there’s also been a considerable price hike in these effects units, too, making it hard for those on a lower budget to even be able to test them out, to see if it’s a good fit for...
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The next pedal in our “Walrus Week”, which features the three newest pedals from our pals at Walrus Audio, is a phaser. Now, we LOVE phasers, and modulation in general, here at Pedal of the Day, and were super-stoked when we saw the announcement about the Lillian Multi-Stage Analog Phaser. This gorgeous-sounding, pulsating, whirling effect boasts differing phase stage selection, a unique Blend knob and intense,...
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Multi-effect pedals can be hit or miss, as far as options, sound quality and ease of use are concerned. The Slate Stereo Effect from Neunaber Audio Effects is a definite HIT, cramming a ton of tonal candy and functionality into one regular-sized pedal. Complete with software editing on your computer and gorgeous tones coming from every genre programmed into its circuit board, this multi-tasker keeps your sound fresh and your mind...
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There’s no mistaking the bright red glory that comes with every single effects pedal we see from Sioux Guitars, which should make it no surprise that the bright red beauty we’re checking out today comes straight from Sioux City, Iowa, as well. The Flood of ’53 is aptly named after a huge rainfall that hit and flooded the town those many decades ago, and just like the big waves and ripples through the city, this...
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It’s Day Two of our “Deadbeat Week” here at Pedal of the Day, and brings with it the first of three “Station” effects pedals we’re going to check out. Modulation is always a good time, no matter what type of rig you have or what music you play, so cramming 11 unique modulating effects into one pedal sounds like a pretty rad idea to us. The Modulation Station combines Tremolo, Vibrato, Chorus,...
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We here at Pedal of the Day have been fortunate to be able to review and demo many pedals from our friend Eric at Hungry Robot Pedals, which makes us even more excited about today’s featured effect. Having checked out the original Moby Dick Delay, we were excited to see what changes and improvements awaited us in V2 – well, let’s just say that our expectations were exceeded. Aside from the obvious smaller enclosure,...
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The Uni-Vibe is an iconic effect, whether coming from Hendrix and Band of Gypsy’s “Machine Gun,” Robin Trower’s “Bridge of Sighs” or multiple tracks from “Dark Side of the Moon” from Pink Floyd, you’ve heard it before many times, and chances are you dig it. Today’s pedal seeks to re-create those iconic effects units of the past, with a couple new enhancements as well. The...
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Jumping into the now-insane world of pedal creation is a daunting task: where to begin, how to solder, what makes a pedal function, etc… Luckily, for anyone who wants to take the plunge, there are companies like MOD Kits DIY, who offer pedal-building kits with different difficulty levels that come with easy to use instructions and use point to point wiring. We’re going to take a look at one of their kits today – The...
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Happy 4/20, kiddos! We’ve got a pedal today that seeks to build upon an already existing design, giving you two different sounding but equally incredible pedals to choose from (who are we kidding, you’ll probably buy both). The original Warped Vinyl Analog Vibrato Chorus from Chase Bliss Audio was a monster modulation pedal in its own right, as was the subsequent MkII version, which took things up a notch. Their new...
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The crew at Malekko Heavy Industry have always been up near the forefront of companies creating effects pedals that defy logic, expand minds and throw all caution to the wind. Today’s achievement holds nothing back, either, producing a slew of unorthodox and unusual sounds, twisting and warping your brain as you step into another dimension of time and space. The Thicken does thicken your tone, it’s true, but it does so...
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The wonderful world of modulated effects opens huge doors into other levels of musical consciousness, whether it be via flanger, phaser, or something like the pedal we’ve got for you today: chorus. Our friends at Big Joe Stomp Box Company have created a gorgeous, simple yet robust and invigorating chorus effect, one that allows you to mimic your favorite sounds, ranging from the 70’s to the 00’s and beyond. The B-305...
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The folks over in Japan at Free The Tone don’t mess around with their effects, always taking things up a notch from where we all think they might level off, surprising and delighting us along the way. Their TA-1H Tri Avatar Multi-Dimensional Chorus pedal continues this tradition by unleashing an absolute mammoth of a chorus pedal, full of all the modern, vintage, classic and yet-undiscovered sounds you could imagine, and then a...
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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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Having been fans of Ryan Adams’ music for years, we were pretty stoked about his collaboration with JHS Pedals and PaxAm Records in the form of today’s featured effect, the VCR (Volume-Chorus-Reverb). Inspired by 80’s guitar heroes and Ryan’s signature sound, this pedal takes three effects, crams them into one box and gives you a ton of combination options for adding slight nuances of sound or bold, fat tonal...
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Over the years, we’ve reviewed some awesome pedals from our Canadian friends Fairfield Circuitry, and today we get to do it once more. The Shallow Water is a K-Field Modulator pedal, one that mixes in elements of chorus, flanger, vibrato and more, to form a distinctly exclusive new type of effect. Built using simulation mathematics and old tape echo flavors, this hard-to-classify pedal is right up our alley. A Rate control...
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Getting pedals that come through the shop without a distinct label as to what they are or what they can do is always intriguing, and our featured pedal for today baffled us until we had the chance to plug it in. The Instant Lo-Fi Junky from ZVEX Effects is a compressor, chorus, vibrato and more, an sound experimenter’s dream in a small, pedalboard-friendly enclosure, with controls that are basic, but create a wide palette of...
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Continuing their status as one of the top-of-the-heap companies in the effects pedal world, Keeley Electronics introduced some multi-effects boxes to the world last year, and we’re lucky enough to have one of them to check out today. The Super Mod Workstation covers more ground than it probably needs to, or should be able, which is definitely NOT a bad thing. With more effects and parameter settings than you’ll know what...
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After we brought you our review of the first pedal in the Animals Pedal lineup, the Rust Rod Fuzz, we now bring you the second out of five total pedals. The Car Crush is a Chorus and Vibrato pedal, an excellent modulation device that gives you the ability to span different musical eras and decades with ease. Tap into your inner Jimi with the click of a button, create sounds from the Summer of Love and even morph your sound to fit...
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A good chorus pedal can really add depth and dimension to your tone, while a not-so-good one can make you sound a bit cheesy and thin. Today’s featured pedal falls squarely into the former description, providing a warm, lush effect for both emulating guitar heroes of past decades and creating new and exciting modern sounds. The Anadime ADC-4 Chorus is the latest version of this pedal from our pals at Providence, and brings a...
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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 pedal is a fantastic example of everything a 2-in-1 pedal should be, especially when it combines two great genres of effects together. The Vader (as we assume is its proper name) is a one-off custom pedal built by VFE Pedals, and it joins together their Blueprint Delay and Choral Reef Chorus effects. While these have both been discontinued, having them together in one pedal is a real marvel, and the rarity of it and the...
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Sometimes, a knob or two are all you need to create big, fat tones to incorporate into your sound. Today’s featured pedal comes to us from Sioux Guitars, and has that exact tonal mentality. The K-D Chorus has a simple, two-knob setup, but within those dials are a vast, sweeping expanse of sound for us all to enjoy. Two controls make up the K-D Chorus’ parameter section – Depth and Rate. The Depth knob adjusts the...
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Pedals like the one we’ve got for you today are always a blast to review, as they seem so futuristic and uncommon, even though they were first released decades ago. With a ton of knobs, footswitches and jacks, the UE 305 is a multi effect for the ages, combining three excellent pedals from Ibanez’s golden age of effects into one HUGE enclosure (no joke, this thing is massive). Let’s just dive right in and see what...
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Pedals that can perform more than one function or contain more than one effect are always welcome with open arms (and ears) here at Pedal of the Day. Today’s featured pedal, the Martini™ Dual Analog Chorus Vibrato from Tortuga Effects, features two incredible-sounding effects rolled into one smooth box, with differing sounds and tones for days. If you love a good vibrato sound or adding some chorus to your tone, this might just...
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Sometimes, you don’t actually have to spend a ton of cash to get a great-sounding pedal…no, seriously! Today’s featured pedal, the Mind Bender Vibrato/Chorus from BBE Sound proves that fact over and over again, combining monetary efficiency with some excellent tones that are sure to make you and your amp happy. Let’s take a gander at this blue beauty, shall we? The controls are nice and easy to use on the Mind...
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The first couple of pedals from McCaffrey Audio that we reviewed, the Zero to Sixty Drive and Green Vodka Muff Fuzz, were just plain awesome, and we couldn’t wait to see what their next creation was going to be. Taking a turn towards the unexpected, they have now released the Run Rabbit Run, which is their take on a Vibrato-type pedal, but with so much more going on than you’d think. Designed to give you that classic...
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Today’s guest review comes to us from Max F. – find him on SoundCloud (@MaxFaith)! While octave pedals are available in a variety of configurations it’s hard to find units that operate in the desired octave range and track well enough to be useful and musical. Enter the Walrus Audio Luminary Quad Octave Generator. The fine people at Walrus have designed this pedal to work in the lower and higher octave ranges with some of the finest...
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Today’s guest review comes to us from Scott W. – find him on Instagram (@honey.power) and Facebook (Scott Willems) and say Hi! The CE-5 Chorus Ensemble is another solid modulation pedal from Boss, packed in the typical Boss housing painted a very satisfying baby blue. It features four knobs: level, rate, depth, and filter – the filter being a dual concentric pot for separate filtering of your bass and treble. A problem I have...
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We’ve got another classic pedal reproduction for you all today, and one that unequivocally and faithfully reproduces the sound, feel and vibe (pun intended) of the original units, with all the modern amenities we’re all always seeking out. The Vibe-Bro from Shin-Ei is an updated version of the classic Uni-Vibe machine, made famous for forty years by the likes of Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmour, Robin Trower and countless...
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Today’s guest review comes to us from Andrew L. – find him on Instagram (@andrew.s.lingrell) and say Hi! Pedalboards can get full quickly. And real estate on a pedal board is valuable. Sometimes however you’ll find yourself wanting many different sounds but you only have limited empty space on your board. What to do, what to do…BUY A SLATE. The Slate is a stereo ‘blank slate’ pedal by Neunaber. Stay...
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Having access to two different pedals in the same box, and sometimes the ability to combine them together to make one super-powered effect, is one of the greatest things ever in the effects world. Today’s pedal from our friends halfway around the world, Red Witch Pedals, does exactly that, but also features a ton of options, sounds and quirks that make it a truly special modulation pedal. May we present to you the Medusa...
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Chorus is a great effect, when used in the right context. I suppose the same could be said about any other effect, but chorus really seems to have a special following of haters, while other players consider it a crucial part of their signature sound. As with most pedals from EarthQuaker Devices, the Sea Machine is not a traditional chorus effect, but instead another gorgeous re-imagining of a classic effect with those very special EQD...
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Today’s guest review comes to us from Michael W. – find him on Instagram (@mwiegand77), Twitter (@mwiegand), Facebook (MichaelWiegand) and on his band’s Facebook page (A Greyscale). When you hear the name “Warped Vinyl,” you’re transported to a thrift store record bin. All the records you find in there are dusty, scratched, sunbaked; they’ve seen better days. But you buy one because it’s...
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Around here, we get pretty excited whenever the crew over at Walrus Audio unleashes a new pedal release on the world, as we have reviewed just about all of their pedals, and they just keep getting better and better. This time around, they’ve gone to modulation town, with a wicked mash up of chorus and vibrato, but with some new options for ultimate tweakability and customization not seen too often in a pedal of this nature. From...
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Multi-effects pedals can be tricky to write reviews about, as there is so much going on, and so many different options to choose from that it makes it hard to narrow the writing down and focus on a few things to discuss in detail. Such is the case with today’s featured pedal, the M5 Stompbox Modeler from Line 6 – and if the regular functionality of this pedal wasn’t overwhelming enough, this model has been modded by...
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Sometimes, your guitar tone just needs a bit of….something. Most times, it’s hard to figure out what that special addition to your rig might be, but sometimes it just reveals itself with the push of a bypass switch. The Blue Hippo MkII Analog Chorus from Way Huge Electronics is exactly one of these additions, a pedal that gives your tone a sparkle and gives you playing a much-appreciated kick in the pants. Not much to the...
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When talking about the greatest chorus effects pedals to ever grace the planet, you always hear about the CE-2 from Boss, arguably the best one ever made. I own one and it is fantastic, no bones about it, but it’s little brother sometimes gets overlooked in the mix. The CE-3 might not carry all the prestige of the CE-2, but it has some great tones, as well as a couple tricks up it’s sleeve that you can’t get with...
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