The Russian Big Muff from Electro-Harmonix is about as classic a distortion/fuzz sound as you’re going to find in the effects pedal world, but sometimes, you may find yourself wanting more options than its 3-knob configuration will allow. Enter D-Sound Effects and their Orion Distortion Fuzz. Utilizing a six-parameter control section, and using modern, sophisticated circuitry and build techniques, this pedal is a Russian Big...
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There’s no shortage of amazing effects coming out of the Keeley Electronics camp, as they have been for close to 2 decades now, and we always love it when something new comes through the office. While the past couple of years have seen bigger, more option-filled pedals like the Dark Side, Aria, Super Mod Workstation and more, sometimes you just need a killer overdrive pedal to get you in the right mood, and spark some creativity...
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Preamp and buffer pedals seem to get swept under the rug these days a bit, in part due to the incredible modulation, delay and drive pedals seemingly coming out every other week. However, these pedals are an absolutely essential part of any rig, and today’s pedal harkens back to a classic circuit and tone that has yet to be almost exactly replicated – until now. The Epoch Pre EP3 Preamp Buffer from Catalinbread emulates...
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If you happened to have seen our Klone Wars series on YouTube, you may very well be aware of an excellent Klon-inspired beast called the Pegasus Overdrive. Based on the original Golden Professional edition of the Klon, this beaut made by Caline produces some gorgeous vintage-style overdrive and boost sounds, it brings everything we all love about that famous mythical pedal and offers it in an affordable and still true-to-form effects...
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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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The first two pedals we took a crack at from Hochstrasser Electronics, the Disco Terrapin Envelope Filter and the Helping Friendly Box Overdrive Compressor, were absolute gems, two pedals we instantly fell in love with and have been experimenting with ever since. Today, we get to investigate a third pedal of theirs, the Transmogriphaser, a dual channel, OTA (Operational Transconductance Amplifier), 4-stage phaser that conjures up Pink...
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There are times when we receive a box in the mail here at the office, open it up and just say “WOW.” Today’s pedal did exactly that to us, in an awesome and slightly unnerving way. The Schumann PLL Analog Harmonizer from FTelettronica Pedals is an absolute beast, full of more options than any pedal probably should have, sending your signal into the far reaches of space and beyond. Taking the input, turning it into a...
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The opening Dm chord of “Shakedown Street” is familiar to all Deadheads, and to a good chunk of non-Deadheads as well, whether they like it or not. That whole song, as well as several other Dead tunes, Stevie Wonder songs, Frank Zappa licks, Bootsy bass lines and more, would not be possible without the storied Mu-Tron III™ Envelope Filter effect. Today, we’ve got the next great incarnation of this pedal, in smaller...
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There’s something about a really rad distortion pedal that just sounds right when you engage it and crank up a good amp. It’s hard to describe, but you know it when you hear it, whether it’s at your band’s practice or on a recording or when you’re the member of an audience at a show – you can just feel that the sound and tone fit perfectly with the music. The aptly-named Distortion pedal from...
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Maverick. Goose. Fast jets. Bogeys. The weird volleyball scene. What’s not to love about the classically-cheesy movie “Top Gun?” Well, today’s pedal is a high-flying-themed effect, taking your tone and blasting it into the stratosphere. The Danger Zone from WingManFX is an analog tremolo and phaser in one, with each channel independent of each other, with a ton of options to propel you up, up and away…....
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Michelangelo. Obviously, he was a fairly famous artist in the 1500s, and was also arguably the coolest of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the 1980’s and 90’s. Today, however, his name adorns an effects pedal, one coming straight from his home country of Italy, and one that sculpts your tone and paints vivid images of sonic waterfalls in your mind. The Michelangelo Overdrive Plus from Dophix is an overdrive and boost...
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Peanut Butter and Jelly. Hall & Oates. Burgers and Beer. Delay and Reverb. Some things were just meant to be paired together, and the latter two on this list are featured in today’s pedal. The Atlantic from NuX is a combo delay/reverb effect, with each side featuring 3 classic takes on sounds from decades past. With tap tempo, shimmer and a few other options, this is a pedal that can take up just a little space on your...
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The effects that have come out from Deep Space Devices since their inception have been one bang-bang after another, starting with the Red Ghost and Golem Distortions, and continuing with today’s featured pedal. The Trigonaut is an overdrive….but also so, so, so much more. According to the DSD website, “by utilizing its cosmic power, regeneration capabilities, and time-traveling technology, the Trigonaut is now...
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The small, powerful, one-button effects pedals from Henretta Engineering have been some of our favorites over the years, but we also like it when they combine a couple of ’em into one slightly larger enclosure. Recently, we saw the power of the Lake Effect, which combined their Bluebird Fuzz and Crimson Tremolo, as well as the Planetarium, which paired up the Moody Blue Reverb and Golden Years Phaser. Today, we bring you another...
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We love pedals here at Pedal of the Day, obviously, but we also love Baseball, specifically our beloved Milwaukee Brewers. Through a series of conversations with Patrick from Garland FX, we were able to customize today’s pedal to honor our favorite club with custom tweed and knob colors, making it not only a killer-sounding effect, but one that is now near and dear to our hearts. The HTX Active Combo Drive is an EQ, Boost and...
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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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Innovation is at the forefront for all of the effects pedals coming out from Chase Bliss Audio, and has been since they began. We’re going to dive right in to their latest tasty concoction, a 2-channel micro looper, delay and reverb pedal that breaks all the boundaries that they’ve already broken, and then some more. A collaborative effect with the crews from Drolo FX and Old Blood Noise Endeavors, MOOD is really gonna...
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We love a good overdrive here at Pedal of the Day, and one that is both based on and sounds like an amplifier is right up our alley. Today’s featured pedal takes on a fairly specific and (to us) extremely nostalgic sound – the one coming from Slash and the classic Marshall 2555SL Jubilee 100W amp. With attention to detail, both sonic and aesthetic, rivaling the original head, the Jubilee Silver Overdrive from Alexander...
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We’ve had a slew of affordable pedals coming through the shop lately, and have been pretty impressed with what they have to offer. One of these companies is Caline, and we’re going to take a look at their CP-36 Big Dipper Pitch Shifter today. A tiny pedal with a bunch of options, this is a nice way to get introduced to the world of pitch shifting, and at an unbeatable price for players of all skill levels. Bringing both...
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We love it when we discover a new pedal company, one that we were previously unaware of that just blows us away right off the bat. The crew at D-Sound Effects did just that with today’s impressive dirt pedal, the Fisherman High-Gain Distortion. This multi-faceted beast gives you a nice range of tonal options to choose from, letting you create a solid drive sound from the ground up. Let’s check it out! The Fisherman is a...
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Well, it’s that time again: we get to check out another incredible, studio-quality compressor in a pedal from our friends over at FEA Labs. We’ve been privileged to peruse the DB-CL Dual Band Compressor Limiter and the DE-CL Dual Engine Compressor Limiter (as well as the killer Photon Fuzz II), and today we get to investigate the Opti-FET Compressor. This effect was designed with both audiophile and studio quality features...
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If you dig effects pedals, there’s a pretty good chance you’ve heard, seen and/or played something from Mantic Effects. If you have ears, there’s also a good chance you’ve come across an artist named Jack White….many, many times, some probably without you even knowing it. Jack’s record label Third Man Records and Mantic have teamed up for today’s featured pedal, the Flex TMR PLL Monophonic...
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“Wait a minute, Doc. Ah…are you telling me you built a time machine…out of a DeLorean?” Thus begins one of the greatest time-travel adventures ever to be created for the big screen, Back to the Future. Not only is this a personal favorite here at Pedal of the Day, but to millions of movie-goers across the globe. You may be asking yourself, “Why is a pedal review talking about a 30+ year-old movie starring...
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A few years back, we reviewed and demoed a pedal called the DynaMorph™, a crazy fuzz-filter-synth thing that blew our minds, from the creators over at Totally Wycked Audio (TWA) and Godlyke Distributing Inc. Recently, they’ve released another effect along the same lines, a younger brother, per se, to the DynaMorph™ – today, we’d like to explore the MM-01 MiniMorph™ Dynamic Waveshaper with you. An envelope-dependent...
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Ask anyone who loves pedals about some of the most innovative effects to come out in the last couple years, and you’ll hear the name Meris time and time again. Continually innovating the industry with their option-laden, size-friendly and sonically adventurous pedals, they always seem to be at the forefront of the conversation. We’re gearing up to take a look at their latest today, a quirky, pitch-shifting delay pedal...
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The 10 Series of effects pedal from Ibanez (also called the “Power Series”), created in the 80’s, features some of the most underrated and loved pedals of all time. We’re going to talk about one of these 10 effects that doesn’t get talked about nearly enough: the MT10 Mostortion. This mosfet drive has become pretty rare, and when you can find one, they’re fairly spendy, which is perhaps why...
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WE LOVE PHISH. Said it, not sorry, deal. Now that you know that, know this: we were SUPER excited to have a Helping Friendly Box Overdrive Compressor from Hochstrasser Electronics appear on our doorstep, and here’s why. This particular pedal harkens after the setup that Trey Anastasio from Phish used for many years (and still does occasionally), where two differently-gained Tubescreamers were followed by the famous Ross...
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While we’ve heard about the ODR-1 Overdrive from Nobels for years now, it’s not the most widely-known drive out there, but is apparently a staple of the Nashville sound, and has been for a while. This green beast falls into an overdrive category somewhere between the Klon and the Tube Screamer, with similar controls, but a voice all its own. Recently, the Nobels crew released the ODR-Mini, a smaller version of this classic...
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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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Let’s be honest: ring modulators are just not for everyone. However, for those of us that love innovation, chaotic noise and aggressively distorted sounds, you can’t go wrong when in this genre of effects. The original Gonkulator from DOD was released in the 90’s, and has become somewhat of a cultish, sought-after pedal, which usually leads to becoming overpriced and difficult to obtain. Luckily, for a little while...
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When we started doing our YouTube series “The Klone Wars”, we had a number of klones on our list that we wanted to include, and today’s pedals was one of those. The Gladiator Overdrive from AD Pedals is based on that certain mystical pedal that few of us can afford, but with a little more grit and dirt to it. Get ready to get shot down in a blaze of glory with this one, people – it’s a rocker! The range...
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Here’s the rub: we really dig us some pedals from Adventure Audio. If for nothing else than being rabid Stranger Things fans, the Demogorgon Fuzz Tremolo Reverb was one of our favorite pedals pretty much EVER, and the Dream Reaper Fuzz Mod Machine was no slouch itself. That said, we were of course super-stoked to check out the Glacial Zenith II, an overdrive, EQ and boost all wrapped into one pedal, with a myriad of order and...
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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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It’s a real treat to stumble across and discover new pedal companies that might not be in the major spotlight, as we love to review and demo effects from a wide spectrum. The little guys are making some incredible effects pedals, and we’ve got another builder today to showcase that flies under the radar, but has some great gear to offer. The Sunn Model T Overdrive from Kenny B Pedals in Winnipeg, Canada, is based on the...
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We’ve always loved the simplicity of the majority of lineup from Henretta Engineering, but were pretty excited for today’s 2-in-1 pedal. In collaboration with Chicago Music Exchange, the Lake Effect combines Henretta’s Bluebird Fuzz and Crimson Tremolo into one enclosure, and adds a couple of options as well. Taking two great effects and smashing them into one box is usually a pretty great plan, and this one was...
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If you’ve had the chance to check out our series “The Klone Wars” on YouTube, you may have noticed a pedal called the Pegasus from a company called Caline. This overdrive not only holds its own against some of the more well-known klones out there, it also proves that you don’t have to be expensive to sound fantastic. Today, we’ve got another budget-friendly effect from Caline, this time in the form of a...
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The first couple of pedals we had the chance to review from Haunted Labs (the Dark Aura Reverb and the Paranormal Fuzz) really knocked us out, combining stunning visuals with even better tones, both all-intriguing packages of sound and optical glory, in pedalboard-friendly sizes. This time around, they’ve teamed up with the spooky crew over at Coffin to bring us all the Frost Bite Fuzz, Coffin’s first new pedal in over 10...
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Eventide has been releasing some of the most incredible stompboxes we’ve seen over the last decade, including the ModFactor, Space Reverb, PitchFactor and the incredible H9, to name a few. With such a wide array of multi-function effects, what would they focus on next? The answer comes to us in gorgeous fashion in The Rose, producing a modulated delay that hones in on tones that embrace the analog/digital hybrid world, with a...
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Loophole Pedals thrives on their ability to navigate the unique tones these delay produce and add useful, thoughtful and exciting mods to them, turning an already great pedal into an exquisite one. Today we’re going to check out the Electro-Harmonix POG2 Polyphonic Octave Generator, and see what a few simple mods can do to really open up this marvelous effect. Here’s what Loophole Pedals did to our lovely POG2: Footswitch Upgrade Mod:...
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The effects that have previously come from Dr. Scientist have always had a little bit of a learning curve, so we expected the same when today’s pedal arrived….but WOW! The Atmosphere Reverb is an absolute sonic mammoth, covering the bases of just about every single reverb mode, sound and option you could want, with a couple of other things thrown in for good measure. It even has a colorful display screen, MIDI and the...
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Mmmmmmmmmmm….Plexi. Those classic Marshall amplifier tones that have been recorded for over 50 years just put a smile on all of our faces, don’t they? However….that exact sound is not the easiest to dial in or obtain, with out-of-production gear, soaring prices for the vintage amps and problematic parts and repair make up a few of the reasons why this tone is so cherished, and so hard to come by. Enter the...
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Delay is probably our favorite type of effect here at Pedal of the Day, and it’s always interesting to see the different ways companies come up with to produce echo sounds. Some are straightforward, some come with 1,000 different options, and some, like the Cusack Music TME, are a nice mix of bold tones and easy controls. This blue-green little gem packs a punch into a small enclosure, sporting just 3 control knobs and one...
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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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The effects that have come out of the Red Panda camp since their inception have been radical, unpredictable, exciting and pretty much game-changing for this industry. Their latest adventure into the sonic unknown gives us a tape delay like no other we’ve heard – time stretching, pitch shifting, loop sampling and intelligent randomization are the names of the game here, people. The Tensor is a wildly entertaining,...
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When we think of the most popular places that effects pedals are created, Birzgale, Latvia, somehow always ends up at the top of our list….wait, what? It’s true: while possibly not the most POPULAR spot in the world for pedals, Jānis.lv Effect Pedals are pumping out some incredible gear, all handmade and sounding fantastic. We got a chance to check out their Miesnieks Overdrive Distortion, were truly surprised at how...
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Compression can be some players’ best friend, while others scoff at the mention of using such an effect. We love it, and have always wanted to get our hands on today’s pedal to see what the hubbub is all about. While there are many clones and variations out there, there’s nothing quite like a Ross Compressor. The original pedals, made in the 1970’s, are fairly difficult to come by, and if you can find one,...
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The Beatles. Whether you dig ’em or not, there’s no denying their influence on music since they came on the scene in the early 1960’s. Today we get to check out a pedal that captures their spirit and sound, complete with artwork by an iconic illustrator and sounds from one of the rarest amps of all time. The Dr. Robert from Aclam is an overdrive preamp that encapsulates the sounds from the Vox UL730 amplifier, a...
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We love a good synthesizer pedal when they come through the shop, and we love the effects that Robert and the crew at Keeley Electronics put out, so the combination of both of these was a welcome announcement. The goal was to create a synth sound that took you from unnatural fuzz noises to pseudo-harmonic, random glitchy counterpoint, and boy, did they ever succeed. The Synth-1 Reverse Attack Fuzz Wave Generator lets you create...
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The pedals we’ve seen coming out of the Strymon camp for years now have been nothing short of impressive, game-changing and true masterpieces where the future direction of the effects industry is concerned. Their latest arrived with the usual hype and was met with, as far as we can tell, an immediate thumb’s up type of response, which is now to be expected. We finally got our hands on one, and are excited to delve into the...
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We did a review of the Double Barrel Overdrive from JHS Pedals back in 2014, when we were first getting started, and have come full circle to be able to check out the newest model of this fine dual overdrive. This famous box now incorporates the newest versions of the separate pedals it houses, giving it an overall upgrade to the individual sides, as well as the whole pedal. You know what this is, you’ve probably played or owned...
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