Each time Walrus Audio announces a new pedal, guitarists around the globe, including myself, get instantly curious and excited. This past winter at NAMM, they debuted a couple of pedals that looked VERY interesting, and we’ve got one of those for you today. The Bellwether Analog Delay produces warm, vintage, analog delay sounds with ease, and offers a bunch of modern options as well, in order to make it extremely customizable to suit your musical needs in any given situation.
There are a lot of controls here, as you can plainly see, but once you get them down, the Bellwether is fairly easy to navigate, and getting a good tone quickly becomes a cinch. A Tap Division selection knob starts us off, with the options being quarter notes, eighth notes, dotted eighth notes and triplets, and these all work in conjunction with either the Time control or the Tap Tempo function. Speaking of Time, this allows you to adjust the overall delay time, and with a range that goes all the way to 1000ms, you’re sure to find plenty of delay for whatever type of music you play. Repeats increases how many times the delay echoes, while Tone balances the highs and lows, but only affects the delayed signal, leaving your original guitar tone in tact. Our final knob on the top row is Level, which lets you how much of the Bellwether’s output you want mixed in with your dry signal.
The next section we’re going to check out is the modulation, or Analog Chorus Engine, aspect of the Bellwether. This fantastic-sounding option lets you blend in as much or as little modulation to your delays as you’d like, giving the repeats that vintage chorus sound, and filling the room with lush, warm, analog delay. This is controlled by the Mod On/Off switch, and controlled by the Depth (amount of modulation) and Rate (speed of the LFO wave). The Analog Chorus Engine really opens this pedal up, and the exploration and sonic possibilities become instantly endless. The Bellwether also features stereo outputs, an Effects Loop to add another effect to the repeats via a TRS-Y cable, and an Expression pedal output to control either the Time or the Repeats, selectable via a toggle switch as well.
Conjuring up sounds and tones reminiscent of the old Maxon AD999 or Boss DM-2 delays, the Bellwether Analog Delay gives those machines a real run for their money, and with the assorted options, bells and whistles available here, you just might be swapping out a pedal or two on your board after this baby arrives in the mail. Thanks once again to Colt and all at Walrus Audio for being so generous with us, and letting us review the fantastic pedals they continue to put out, year after year. We’re always impressed by their innovation and exploration, and cannot wait to see what they produce next, so make sure you go to their website and see their entire lineup!
Submitted by Mike B, Website
Demo Rock pedalboard by West Coast Pedalboard
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