Effects Bay

Since, I’ve been on a slight modulation kick.. from chorus to flangers lately, I thought I’d bring up the MXR M152 Micro Flanger. DunlopUSA just put out a new demo video of this, and figured it would be a good time to post it here on EffectsBay.com! Side note, the MXR M152 Micro Flanger won the Guitar Player Magazine Editors’ pick in the August 2010 issue.

First, here are the details of the pedal:

Based on the benchmark sounds of the MXR M117 Flanger, the MXR Micro Flanger guitar pedal features many of the same flanging effects of its big brother, but in a smaller and more convenient size. Originally released in the ’80s, this faithful recreation features the same 2 critical controls—a Speed knob to control the rate of cycling, and a Regeneration knob to manage the overall intensity—and stays true to its 100% analog bucket brigade technology for the ultimate in warm and organic tone. The MXR Micro Flanger pedal has been updated with a true bypass switch so you don’t lose any tone during bypass. Go from jet plane like sweeps to cool outer space type effects with the MXR Micro Flanger guitar effect pedal.

The MXR Micro Flanger pedal can be powered by one 9V battery (accessed by removing the effect pedal’s bottom plate), a Dunlop DC810DC brick, or MC403 Power system (sold separately).

MXR M152 Micro Flanger Guitar Effects Pedal Features:

* True bypass with LED
* Rate knob
* Regeneration knob
* Footswitch for on/bypass
* All-analog circuitry with bucket brigade technology for warm analog tone

Here is the video demo by jimdunlopusa:

You can pick up the MXR M152 Micro Flanger for $89.99 at Musician’s Friend. At the time of this post, Musician’s Friend also includes a Dunlop ECD-003 Barrel 9-volt adapter for free with this purchase.

Remember, if you like reading about these pedals and seeing videos reviews from others, please subscribe to the RSS feed and get notified via email when there are new postings!

Popularity: 3%

I missed it, but the other night Interpol was on Letterman, but with the magic of YouTube, I was able to view it. Interpol played ‘Barricade’, a single that is currently on iTunes and off of their upcoming self titled new album (I can’t wait). I have to say I really dig these guys. I definitely have a thing for the baritone vocal style (ala Joy Division, National, etc).

Here is the video (provided by davegrohlsfreshpots,but I think TheAudioPerv.com captured it?)

I noticed Paul Banks (the singer/guitarist) was riding a Pedaltrain 2 pedal board, it got me thinking about gear. From this performance, I was unable to see what pedals were there, but I did find a photo on flickr (http://www.flickr.com/photos/lavid/4130457946/ lavid has some other great shots of other artists, too!) of Paul with a decent shot of the pedal board. The photo was taken (or at least uploaded)  on 11/23/2009, so it’s fairly recent.

Based off of this shot, I see the following:

Electro-Harmonix POG2 Polyphonic Octave Generator
Blackstar HT Series HT-DUAL Tube Distortion
Boss DS-1 Distortion? (bottom row, second from left)
WayHuge Aqua Puss
Boss TU-2 Tuner
MXR M-401 Boost Pedal (top row, left) – not sure.. possible carbon copy?

If you have any more information, please comment below.

Popularity: 5%

Today’s pedal line is from Ben Hutcherson. If you have a pedal line (doesn’t have to be in a board) for your rig, please email me a photo, bio, description of pedals and routing to Every Friday I’ll showcase a pedal line submission. Make sure you include any links to your band or music page.

From L to R:

Top Row: Boss DD3, Eventide Pitchfactor, Barber Dirty Bomb

Bottom Row: EHX Stereo Memory with Hazarai, Whirlwind ABY, Catalinbread Pareidolia Harmonic Mesmerizer, Korg Pitchblack, Dunlop 95q wah, Morley Little Alligator volume pedal (EffectsBay note.. I see a MXR Carbon Copy Delay on that bottom row)

All of this is housed on a Pedal Pad XL.

I run two rigs live in my psychadelic doom/sludge band Galaxicon (www.myspace.com/galaxicon, http://listn.to/galaxicon). Rig A (Sunn Beta Bass Lead into a Vader 4×12) comes from the SMMH into the amp, while rig B (Engl Straight 100) has the DD3 in the signal path. I have the settings cranked on the DD3 for a long delay with lots of repeats for transition parts where a note (or feedback) will repeat on Rig B while I am playing on Rig A. Yes, lots of tapdancing happens with this board. And yes, I love delay. The Dirty Bomb satisfied my dirt needs after experimenting with lots of different pedals. It’s an affordable semi-boutique (did I just make that up? Maybe.) pedal with a really neat feature: a switch that controls the mid voicing. Adding that mid boost makes the sound so much fuller, and I love it.

Popularity: 4%

I just received an interesting email from Will Cady of Source Audio. He mentions their blog post today, where they’re trying to get a online jam session going on with Source Audio pedals. Basically, Will built a few tracks on top of a drum track, you can download the extended outro (via SoundCloud). Below is the YouTube video with Will jamming:

Source Audio is encouraging others to download the track and shoot video of themselves playing on top of it. They’ll post the video on their blog and Facebook page. It can be bass, guitar, etc.. just as long as it’s using a Source Audio product. For all the information and to download the track, check out this post!

Here is an example with Bryan Tyler:

This totally sounds like a fun project!

Popularity: 3%

Today I wanted to talk about the Electro-Harmonix Classics Flanger Hoax. This is a ‘flanger’, but it’s like no other flanger pedal I’ve seen (I guess that’s the ‘hoax’ part of the name). It has the ability to have frequency adjustable flanging. There are 2 separate phaser sections and you can have them interact together.  This thing can get crazy, or have a classic flanger effect.

Here is the official description of this pedal:

From shimmering static and active phasing to frequency-adjustable flanging, the Flanger Hoax gives you an exciting new palette of textures to create with. Familiar and advanced modulation controls and 3 outputs (direct, blended, effect) let you create endless variations that will do everything from subtly shade to wildly animate your music.

The Flanger Hoax is made up of 2 separate phaser sections-the Fixed Phaser and Swept Phaser-and their associated delay lines. The Fixed Phaser is similar to a traditional phaser, modulated by a low-frequency sine wave called the Modulator. Each phaser circuit is followed by its own analog delay line, each of which can also be independently swept by the Modulator. Each phaser section can be bypassed to access the delay lines without any phase shift. Feedback control allows you to send the wet output of the pedal or the output of the Swept Phaser back into the phaser circuits. 18V power supply included.

* Controls: BLEND knob: Mixes between the effect and the dry signal. The counter-clockwise position is all-dry, while the clockwise position is all effect. The result of the BLEND Control goes out the BLENDED OUTPUT jack
* DELAY MODE switch: Selects between different phase shift combinations for the modulating waveform that sweeps the Fixed Phaser Delay line and the Swept Phaser Delay.
* FEEDBACK knob: Sets the amount of signal that is fed back into both phase shift circuits. The counter-clocker-clockwise position gives you no feedback; the clockwise position yields maximum feedback.
* OFF toggle switch position: All Feedback is turned off, no matter where the FEEDBACK knob is set.
* RATE knob: Sets the frequency of the sine wave Modulator. The available frequency range is from 0.07 Hz (14 Seconds) to 220 Hz.
* SWPT toggle switch position: In the SWPT Position, the output of the Swept Phaser is fed back into Phaser circuits.
* WET toggler switch position: In the WET position, the wet signal (which is at the EFFECT OUTPUT Jack) is fed back to the phaser circuits.

I found this great video by EHX that shows what this can do:

You can pick up the Electro-Harmonix Classics Flanger Hoax for $209.25 at Musician’s Friend.

Remember, if you like reading about these pedals and seeing videos reviews from others, please subscribe to the RSS feed and get notified via email when there are new postings!

Popularity: 3%

Today, I wanted to talk about the Red Witch Titan delay pedal. Red Witch has been making fantastic pedals for a while now, but I was unfamiliar with the Titan Delay so I wanted to take a closer look. This is a great sounding delay with delay times reaching 800 milliseconds.  It also has a cool modulation loop where the source signal is unaffected but the delay repeats have the effect.

Below is the official description:

The Red Witch Titan delay pedal offer a triumvirate of time tantalizers for you to create an array of truly unique and original delay sounds. Voiced for the ultimate analog-styled sound, the Red Witch Titan provides 3 800m/sec delays.

Red Witch Titan uses a classic analog delay compander to ensure the ultimate recreation of analog-flavored delay, which works hand-in-hand with their more contemporary delay engines.

Add to this a modulation loop on the first delay plus all the other goodies you normally expect from a Red Witch delay, and you’ll be delaying to your heart’s content in no time flat.

D stands for Delay time. Oddly enough this is the control that sets the delay time anywhere up to 800 milliseconds. Set it real short for almost reverby sounds, or real long for psychedelic meanderings.

F stands for Feedback, or regeneration. It basically determines how many repeats the Titan delay gives you get each time you play a note. Set it fully counter-clockwise for only one repeat or set fully clockwise to tip it into out-of-control self oscillation.

M stands for Mix, meaning the blend of wet and dry. Set fully counter clockwise you get the dry (clean, unaffected) signal. Set it fully clockwise and you get a louder delay repeat than the original signal. This control is really important—setting all 3 M controls set the Red Witch Titan to just produce a totally unaffected, clean signal.

Turn up the M control on delay one and you’ll get just delay one. Want to add some of delay 2 to the festivities? Just bring up the M control on Delay 2. Not enough goodness for you? Turn up the M control on delay 3 to bring in the sound of the third delay. Let the good times roll.

A toggle switch sets the Titan delay into parallel mode. In parallel the signal is fed to the front of all 3 delays, then simultaneously processed and the output of all 3 delays is blended together. In series mode the signal is fed to the first delay on the right-hand side then fed into the input of delay 2 then fed to the input of delay 3 and sent to the pedal output. Set the switch to the left for Parallel Mode or to the right for Series Mode. Series Mode has a slightly louder wet signal due to the stacked gain stages.

The bottom sockets on the sides of the Titan delay are for the effects loop. You simply attach the effect of your choice as follows: the Titan right effects loop socket connects to the other pedal’s input socket and the Titan’s left effects loop socket attaches to the other pedal’s output socket.

The shiny chrome footswitch brings the effect into the signal path by clicking this one. Truebypass switching.

Here is a great video by redwitchpedals. This is part one of the demo

Here is part two, and it goes into the modulation loop.

You can pick up the Red Witch Titan Delay for $399.99 at Musician’s Friend.

Remember, if you like reading about these pedals and seeing videos reviews from others, please subscribe to the RSS feed and get notified via email when there are new postings!

Popularity: 3%

I’m super psyched about today’s Free Shirt Wednesday. This week, it’s Fat Tone Guitars! Phil from Fat Tone Guitars has been a friend of EffectsBay.com from the beginning. He sponsored the first EffectsBay.com give away and has offered his support in many ways. I also deal with Phil on a personal level with buying various pieces of gear, and I have to say this, every time.. and I mean every time I call, he answers the phone has time for me. I’m not sure where you’re from, but where I’m from.. that means something.

Fat Tone Guitars has an impressive selection of pedals, amps and guitars. Obviously, I have a thing for the effects…so I spend most of my time in that area. Along with his site, he has a blog, and a active Facebook page. You definitely need to follow Fat Tone Guitars on Twitter and Facebook since he does offer give aways, and you don’t want to miss out on cool free gear.

Physically, Fat Tone Guitars is located in Northbrook, IL, so if you’re in the area you need to stop in. His show room is quite.. awesome.

Now, if you want to be featured on Free Shirt Wednesday.. it’s really quite simple. Send me a shirt, if it’s music related (ie: guitar builder, band, pedal builder, guitar shop, recording studio, etc) I’ll dedicate a blog post about your biz, band, etc. I’ll take a photo with my aging, slightly pudgy mug and post it. Great simple, cheap form of advertising. Still interested? Then check this page for more info

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The following is a guest post by Kevin Ian Common. If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

Hello Kind Readers!

As the only guitarist in The Common Men, I enjoy taking a break during songs and letting the bass and drums take over. I consider my role as the sprinkles on top of a cupcake, if you will.

However, I sometimes like to take simple chords to the next level. I used to spend days learning songs and trying to find new ways to twist the chord changes. This was the easiest way for me to develop my own voice in playing guitar.

The chord progression is from a well-known 80′s song “Under The Milkyway” by The Church. Here are the chords:

low – high EADGBe

Am: X 0 2 2 1 0

A7sus4: X 0 2 0 3 0

Fmaj7: X 3 3 2 1 0

G: 3 2 0 0 3 3

I’ve taken the chords and added my own touch to them. Here are the reworked chords with an explanation of what I did:

Am9: X 0 7 5 0 7

The B natural in this chord add a lovely quality and is the 9th in the A minor scale

A7sus4: X 0 7 7 0 5

While I don’t have the G which would make it a 7th chord, the bass plays the G, which implies the 7th

Fmaj7: X X 7 5 6 0

I just took the chord up to the fifth position and added the open E string to make it a Maj7

G: X X 9 7 8 10

G chord in a different position. The high D gives it a lovely shimmer to it

I have also added the Behringer Echo Machine to a shimmer setting. It’s known as the “U2 Shimmer” and it sounds like a synth pad behind my guitar. I also add a fast delay on top of it.

I love using effects pedals. I think they can really augment a progression. However, a little knowledge of chord functions and a little ingenuity can add a uniqueness to your playing as well!

Thank you for reading!

- Kevin Ian

Kevin Ian runs over 20 pedals. He is quite the tap dancer live on stage! He is currently the frontman/guitarist for The Common Men. You can find them on MySpace, Facebook and Twitter. Please direct questions and comments to

Popularity: 3%

Last week I saw a video by EHX on their brand new pedal called the ‘Freeze‘. This is a pretty interesting pedal where you can grab the signal and hold it in various manners. It’s not a looper but almost as a tone generator of sorts to provide undertone while you’re playing.. just like backing keyboard. There are three modes: fast, slow and latch on how the pedal releases the note. Fast/slow is pretty self explanatory, but latch will hold until you release the footswitch.

Here is the official description of the Electro-Harmonix Freeze:

Capture a frozen moment and turn it into a tonally unique sonic foundation. The Freeze Sound Retainer delivers infinite sustain of any note or chord at the press of a momentary footswitch. Release the footswitch and you are again sample ready. Three selectable decay rates, including a latch mode, guarantee liquid, smooth tonal transitions. Hook the Freeze up with your favorite pedals for a sonic collage that will be unlike anything you have ever heard. It’s like adding an extra musician to the band. Specs: – Real time sample capture with perfect looping – Latch mode for infinite sustain at the touch of a momentary switch – Fast decay mode – Slow decay mode – Latch mode for infinite sustain of sample capture – Smooth tonal transitions between captures – Optional 9.6DC 200 power supply – Handles input gains from pedal boards

Here is a video by EHX. Mike Matthews cracks me up.

You can pick up the Electro-Harmonix Freeze for $118.50 at Amazon.com.

Remember, if you like reading about these pedals and seeing videos reviews from others, please subscribe to the RSS feed and get notified via email when there are new postings!

Popularity: 5%

So I’ve been hearing about this DigiTech 20th anniversary chrome whammy for a while now. In 1990, DigiTech came out with the ‘whammy pedal’ and they’re celebrating that fact with the 20th Anniversary Chrome Whammy. This is a limited edition release of 2000 world wide. Only 1000 are available in the US. They’re all hand numbered. If I was a speculative gear collector with money to burn, I would just buy a few to sell on ebay in a few years.

Here is the official description:

In 1990, the world was treated to the invention of the Whammy Pedal, a pitch-shifting pedal that continues to influence guitar players and has become one of the most sought-after effect pedals in the vintage market.

The 20th Anniversary Chrome Whammy is a limited edition, chrome-plated, hand-numbered, and hand-signed version of the Whammy. The Chrome Whammy guitar pedal will not only add sizzle to any pedalboard, it will become a collectible piece of music gear due to its limited production.

The Whammy often finds its place on a professional’s pedalboard. This is what has made the Whammy a legend. Hit after hit, performance after performance, the Whammy adds to your playing and creates new sounds, feelings, and textures.

The Whammy effect pedal is simple—take your guitar’s sound and pitch shift it using a special algorithm, then control that pitch with an expression pedal. So easy and so expressive that it takes your playing to a new world of quirky squeals, monster dive bombs lower than any whammy bar, and bends that can only be found on other instruments.

DigiTech 20th Anniversary Chrome Whammy Guitar Effects Pedal Features:

* Limited edition run
* Chrome-plated
* Hand-numbered and hand-signed
* 6 Whammy modes including famous 2 Octave Up
* 10 Harmony Bend modes including 2nd Up to 3rd Up simulating pedal steel bends
* Expression pedal controls dive bombs and bends
* Cutting-edge pitch detection engine designed specifically for guitar delivers fast accurate shifting
* MIDI In & Out/Thru to control pitch bends via cc’s
* Includes power supply

You can pick up the DigiTech 20th Anniversary Chrome Whammy for $249.95 at Musician’s Friend.

Popularity: 3%