After recently taking a crack at the Element Analog Spring Reverb tank bundle, we were excited to toss another pedal from our favorite French gear maker onto our demo table. The Anasounds Ages Harmonic Tremolo is a monster of a pedal, in compact form, with hidden options, HUGE waves of sound and a fantastic quality build. We’ve had the privilege to review a lot of Anasounds pedals, and we’re stoked to bring you another one today.
Harmonic tremolos have a certain sound, making them unique and unlike a standard tremolo effect. The motion they produce is somewhat livelier, adding a hypnotic edge and thickness to your tone. The control section for the Ages is fairly straightforward, but there are some mysterious secondary controls lurking beneath the surface. Out sets the output level, adding up to +6dB of boost without any additional saturation if you wish. Depth sets the effect’s intensity, while Tone allows you to change the cut frequency, for either a darker or brighter harmonic tremolo. There’s a Subdivision rotary selector, featuring four positions:
First position: doubles the tempo you’ve set before
Second position: leaves the tempo at the speed you tap before
Third position: divides by 2 the tempo
Fourth position: divides by 3 the tempo
There’s also the Attaque toggle, a 3-position switch to set the envelope detector:
Up: the attack changes the tempo of the tremolo
Middle: changes nothing
Down: the attack changes the depth of the tremolo
Want to take it even further? Then hold down the Bypass switch until it turns blue to access Trimpot Mode…here, the Tone control becomes Envelop (yes, spelled like that), which acts as an Attack detector. Depth also becomes Threshold, which sets the input level of the detector. You can also choose from Sinus, Triangle and Square waveforms via the toggle and subdivisions rotary switch here in Trimpot mode. This opens up the Ages for precise tweakability, extending its overall range and tonal depth.
WAIT! There are also two internal trimpots you can adjust, too! Two Bias pots precisely set the linearity of the LFO (not recommended to play with), while two Gain pots allow you to adjust saturation for Treble and Bass, respectively. All of these parameters come into play to make the Anasounds Ages Harmonic Tremolo a real stand-out in this realm, and one unique tremolo that we just can’t seem to put down. Congrats to Alexandre and the Anasounds crew on another marvelous creation – be sure to check out their website for more info and more effects, and please check out our demo video below to see and hear all the ins and outs of this great pedal!
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