Effects Bay

I’ve been pretty excited about Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi as soon as I heard about it. Basically, in a nut shell, this is a new Big Muff, using the Germanium transistor (vs. silicon). Apparently EHX found a stash of NOS Germanium transistors and are putting them to use. This Big Muff Pi is a little different since there are two modes. There is a overdrive section and a distortion section, and the sections can be used to cascade into each other. You would get two pedals for the price of one. The Overdrive section is basically the EHX Germanium OD pedal.

Here is the official description:

The Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi overdrive and distortiuon pedal is a classic 1960′s overdrive based around a hand-selected germanium transistor. To get the best results from the E-H Germanium 4, just set aside some time to practice in a quiet room—just you, your amp, and the Germaium OD. The interaction of each control will reward you with many different flavors of exceptional vintage overdrive.

In addition to a Gain control, the Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 overdrive lets you control Bias for attack and the circuit volts for that sweet spot found when a battery’s voltage dips.

The Gain control adjusts the amount of input signal that is fed to the Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4. The more the knob is rotated the harder the germanium transistor and drive components are hit. The Bias control adjusts the current gain that is sent to the Germanium transistor. It works together with the Voltage control to attain the over all tone. The bias control works specifically with the Germanium transistor. The Volts knob controls the amount of voltage that is applied to the Germanium OD. Set at full, 9V is applied. When set at minimum, 3V is applied. By limiting the voltage a number of interesting saturations can be set up for variations in tone.

A footswitch turns true bypass on or off.

The Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 runs off of a 9V battery or you can connect a 9VDC adapter capable of delivering at least 100mA to the 9V power jack. The optional 9V power supply from Electro-Harmonix is 9.6DC-200BI (same as used by Boss and Ibanez) 9.6 Volts DC 200mA. The AC power adapter must have a barrel connector with center negative. The battery may be left in or taken out when using an adapter.

Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find some really good demos. I did find this one, but the amp/effect sounds a little off.. not sure. Video looks great though. The video is by mikemattdemo:

You can pick up the Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi for $99.75 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: 2%

Ok, metal dudes, this one is for you. It seems like I get asked often what pedals have a good metal tone. I usually recommend the MXR Fullbore metal pedal, but this one is definitely another option. The EHX Micro Metal Muff. This pedal definitely has the metal tone.. plus the demo video below really demonstrates that.

Here is the official description:

The Electro-Harmonix Micro Metal Muff Distortion Pedal is everything you love about the classic Metal Muff in a small, die-cast aluminum package with simplified controls. 15db boost and cut around a carefully selected mid frequency guarantees huge scoop possibilities. Selectable top boost ranges. 9V DC power jack, small and compact so it won’t take up valuable space on your pedalboard.

The Micro Metal Muff provides an awesome array of alloys ranging from slithering mercury to molten slag, lead belly to blast furnace dross. Push your pedal to the metal.

Here is a demo by EHX:

You can pick up the Electro-Harmonix XO Micro Metal Muff for only $66.75 at Musician’s Friend.

Remember, if you like reading about 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 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%

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%

A few months ago, I wrote a community question asking what the best delay pedal is out there today. There were tons of responses and great suggestions on what people thought about a great delay pedal. Yesterday, @BooDooPerson let me know (via Twitter) about a great video his friend shot at Taylor Barefoot’s studio. This video is a great little boutique delay shootout of some awesome pedals. Two different riffs, with similar settings. Same guitar (1959 Strat) same amp, same mic so you can really hear the differences.

Below are the pedals in the shootout:

• Moog MF-104
• Empress Superdelay Vintage Modified
• Dr. Scientist Sunny Day Delay
• Way Huge Aqua Puss
• MXR M169 Carbon Copy
• Toneczar Echoczar
• EHX Deluxe Memory Man Reissue
• Diamond Memory Lane
• Hughes and Kettner Replex
• Roland SRE-555

Here is the video by Tibbon.. great stuff. Hope you enjoy!

Let me know your thoughts on this! Post your comments below.

Popularity: 4%

Yesterday I posted a video about Adrian Belew’s rig/equipment, and one of the pedals he uses is the Electro-Harmonix Graphic Fuzz, so I wanted to take a closer look today. Basically, we have a fuzz pedal with a graphic equalizer built right in. This is great to get heavy scooped tones… or give yourself a mid bump for leads, etc. The graphic EQ is nice to really find the frequency you’re looking for. You can also disengage the distortion and use it as a straight equalizer. Additionally there is a envelope response which adjusts and responds to your pick attack.

Here is the official description of the pedal:

For the true tonal alchemist, the Electro-Harmonix Graphic Fuzz XO is a unique distortion pedal with 6-band EQ, sensitive to the dynamics of your playing. Sliders for Overdrive, Sustain, and Volume further its array of tones. Use the Graphic Fuzz guitar pedal solely as an EQ or switch on the distortion for total sound sculpting.

I found a great video with Peter Stroud by EHX:

You can pick up the Electro-Harmonix Graphic Fuzz XO Fuzz pedal for $149.70 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%

Back in the early to mid 1990s I was sorta obsessed with King Crimson. Loved the Discipline album featuring Robert Fripp, Adrian Belew, Tony Levin and Bill Bruford. Amazing stuff…. and WAY ahead of it’s time. This particular is my favorite with Adrian (not the biggest Adrian fan), but I saw that EHX posted a blog mentioning a video featuring Adrian talking about his gear. Thought it might be interesting  for EffectsBay.com guitar/bass nerds as well.

It’s an ancient video, and Adrian is speaking in a mr-rogers-esque tone, but there is some interesting stuff in there.

Popularity: 2%

A couple of days ago, I brought up the EHX HOG, which was a impressive pedal, and the public response definitely backed that up.  So to follow up with that, I thought it would be cool to talk about the Electro-Harmonix Stereo Polyphase. This multi phase /shift  pedal is also in stereo which is pretty cool as well.

Here is the official description:

The Electro-Harmonix Stereo Polyphase Effects Pedal resurrects the popular Polyphase pedal as part of the Electro-Harmonix XO die-cast series.

Now in stereo and an improved housing, the Stereo Polyphase Effects Pedal features the same features and controls that so many guitarists loved and relied on to crank out lush, otherworldly tones from the original.

Featuring envelope/sweep switch, feedback level, rate, envelope sensitivity, envelope modulation, and modulation rate.

Here is another great video by EHX featuring Dan Miller again:

You can pick up the Electro-Harmonix XO Stereo Polyphase for $192.00 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: 2%

Last week Guitarist970 asked about a alternative to the Electro-Harmonix HOG guitar synth (HOG stands for Harmonic Octave Generator). I wasn’t too familiar with guitar synth type pedals and wanted to take a look.  I was pretty blown away by what this pedal is capable of, and I could really see why people go nuts for this thing.

You can also purchase the HOG Footswitch, which seems like a necessity. It allows you to save/store 6 HOT presets and have them activated by foot controller.

It’s pretty interesting that you can use this for various octave tones, but also for weird droney organ tones. I also found two videos that I would like to present since they both show interesting aspects of this pedal.

First, here is the official HOG description:

Blast off to a whole new universe of sounds with the Electro-Harmonix HOG, a polyphonic guitar synthesizer with NO special pickup required. It gives you complete control of up to 10 interval pitches including fifth and third intervals, glistening filter sweeps, and insane pitch bends. Dedicated filtering and envelope control, with numerous setup options, make the HOG a must-have performance instrument.

The HOG can simultaneously generate multiple octaves and harmonics from your input signal. Whether you play single notes, arpeggios or full chords, the HOG will track every note you play. In addition, the HOG has seven expression modes that enable you to modify your sounds using a standard expression pedal, a MIDI controller, or the expression button on the HOG itself. There is also an amplitude envelope and a 2nd order low-pass filter with resonance. The optional EH foot controller allows you to store and load six presets.

You have control over the HOG’s basic audio circuitry with an input gain slider (with clip LED), a dry output slider, and a bypass switch. Audio I/O includes 1/4″ Hi-Z input, 1/4″ output, and a buffered direct output jack. The voice controls let you access the polyphonic synthesizer section. There are 10 voice sliders on the HOG, each with a white cap with a black line that controls the output volume for its voice. The ten sliders let you generate notes two octaves down, one octave down, the incoming signal, a fifth up, one octave up, an octave up plus a fifth, two octaves up, two octaves up plus a third, three octaves up, and four octaves up. The selectable envelope section controls the amplitude attack or decay of the voices, with separate sliders for the lower five voices and upper five voices.

The Spectral Gate button activates circuitry that emphasizes the loudest frequency or harmonic and reduces the volumes of all other present frequencies and harmonics. The filter frequency slider controls the cutoff or peak frequency of the low pass filter, while the filter resonance slider controls the Q or peak of the filter.

The HOG’s seven different expression modes are selected consecutively by the expression mode switch: bend one octave, bend one step, volume, freeze plus gliss, freeze plus volume, wah-wah, and a filter. There is also an expression reverse mode and you can control the expression modes externally with an expression pedal or modulate any of the expression modes using MIDI pitch bend.

Here is a EHX demo by Dan Miller:

Next is another video by lengthwise11 which goes into some of his various presets.

You can pick up the the Electro-Harmonix Classics HOG Synth for $465.00 at Musician’s Friend. The HOG Footswitch is $111.75.

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 found this interesting video posted by EHX featuring Angus Clark (guitarist of the band DareDevil Squadron) showing some settings of the Electro Harmonix Memory Boy and Memory Toy delay pedals, as well using them in conjunction. Thought you guys would enjoy it:

Popularity: 3%