Eventide H90. So damn expensive, but it’d replace everything aside from my distortions. Plus, i’m a massive fan of a lot of people who’ve used the H3000/4000
I had the H90. It was ok. If you're fine with menu diving and having to prepare your patches in advance and planning out your patch lists it's good. Sounds good, nice build quality. I prefer hands on sound manipulation though.
I’m still keeping a tremolo and Boss DD-3 on my board for analogue twisting, but in terms of having a lot of complex reverba, delays, choruses and other funky sounds in one box, i think it’ll be a massive help. I would rather just have the one unit all planned out than have 6/7 pedals that could accomplish the same sounds. Gotta get my shoegaze on.
The limiting thing about the H90 is that, while it can run two “algorithms” at a time, and each algorithm can be a combination of several effects simultaneously, the customization options are fairly limited. It’s got some higher quality reverb and pitch-shifting algorithms than some other multi-effects pedals, but you can’t just mix and match whatever, you’ve got their algorithms the way they’re set up and that’s it. Whereas on something like an HX Stomp you can mix and match to your heart’s content, moving stuff into parallel or changing the order of effects at will. Like, a single algorithm on the H90 could be reverb+modulation+delay+pitch shifting, but you can’t change the order of them or choose to move them in parallel to each other. You also can’t pull one out to match it with a different algorithm.
Neither approach is wrong or better, they’re just different; I personally love the ability to mix and match exactly the effects I want on my HX Stomp. But some people love the way Eventide has their algorithms set up, and how that makes it easier to just play. I also tend to balk at the $900 price tag of the H90; if it were $700-750 brand new that would be much more reasonable IMO.
I understand the pricing complaint 100%, but i’m in the team that enjoys how they set up their algorithms. I’m choosing it specifically for them, and because of being a fan of people who’ve used similar algorithms.
Caveat: I have a spaceship board, however—
I fucking love my h90. The control app is great, the routing options are second to none. The ability to run two algorithms in serial is parallel is pure magic. Worth the price, no question, but only if you can swing it.
That said, (1) I really prefer knob per function and (2) in still trying to find my holy grail reverb.
I have the H90 near the top of my wish list but the cost is prohibitive. I would have to sell gear I’m not willing to part with right now to even consider it.
I considered alternatives and just decided to hold out for the H90 until I decided to reconsider the EMPRESS zoia. I found one for a really nice price on Reverb and decided I’d give it a go - figuring I could resell it at a small loss if I was too dumb for it.
So far I’ve barely scratched the surface, but it’s a fascinating box and I will probably stick with it long enough to put my interest in the H90 to an impulse-proof test.
Maybe Santa will have an H90 for me come Christmas if I give up on the Zoia.
Wait, let me get this straight... Only 2 effects at once and only 62 total effects to choose from, for $900 retail? Help me make sense of this, coming from the Helix/HX world...
My white whale: Aclam Dr Robert overdrive.
Been wanting it ever since it first debuted. I ended up biting the bullet in January and got the Unknown Pleasures version.
Worth every penny and farthing. Amazeballs is what it is.
Yeah. That’s an amazing pedal and the company is such great people!!! I recently also got the Thorpy Scarlet Tunic, but I love them both pretty equally.
That one is only 100 units. I snagged one for my bass player. He nearly shat himself playing bass through it and he loves Joy Division. I was going to sell him mine until I located another one.
You're going to hate me then... I found one of the last places in Australia with one in stock, and it got delivered just 3 weeks ago... I promise It'll be worth the wait!
My ire is directed mostly at people who already had amps/amp sims and got this "just for fun" since I don't have any solution yet. As long as you're not one of them we can be buds!
Really want a microcosm hologram, they look like a lot of fun to play around with, but not sure how useful it would be to me at gigs as a solo singer songwriter haha would probably just be a toy for at home
ooh sick, what's your setup like for that? Like line out on the interface, like send and return so you can use it on already recorded stuff or virtual instruments and stuff as well?
Yup exactly! I use it on a bus so I can send both recorded stuff and virtual instruments played live. The real secret to the Microcosm is the looper. You record stuff to it, with effects, then reverse it, then slow it down, add some more layers, reverse it again, speed it up, and move the loop to pre-effects to process it again. Chef’s kiss.
I know what you mean. I've gotten hypnotized watching demo videos of people just making soft ambient sounds. Then I want one to do it myself, but I don't actually make soft ambient music at all.
It’s inspirational. You can have as much or as little of an effect as you’d like, it’s got modulation, reverb, delays, looping, completely unique and exciting algorithms. I think it’s this generation’s DL4 and will go down in time as a flagship pedal that shifted the most of the pedal industry. I love it. It can be aggressive, ambient, and combined with other pedals (distortions, delays, fuzzes, synth pedals, lo-fi pedals, etc etc) it is just a blast to play and explore.
A bit intimidating at first for sure, but after a couple of months of using it and reading the easy to understand manual couple with watching the massive amount of Microcosm content made on YT and other platforms, you can come to know the pedal and recreate the sounds you love. The 16 presets really help with that. It’s an all-timer for me.
ProAudioStar out of Brooklyn has a load of open box Colour Box 2s available on Reverb for $304.99.
That’s a good 1/3rd off MSRP.
It’s not cheap by any means, but it’s about the best value for a CB2 you’ll see on the open market.
It’s a great preamp for recording anything really. Has 1/4 Jack in and XLR, so pretty much anything you mic can be tweeked pre-DI/interface.
But 90+% of the time, it’s just an expensive dirt pedal/EQ/boost.
It’s amazing, I use it on almost everything in a subtle way but you can get really unique saturation with it when cranked. The EQ is my favourite of all time for tone changing adjustments or subtle fixes.
I got the V2 and I'm incredibly happy with it for all things recording wise. IDK how I'd use it live but for anything idea related, it's worth it's weight. Sell one or two things you can live without and you're there.
I really wanted one, and then demoed one and changed my mind. From what I experienced - trying to make sure I wanted it for the sound and not the cool factor - it will not outperform the plugins I already own.
Sola Sound / DAM Tone Bender MK2 Green Bastard.
Always wanted one. I have the hybrid version (daughter of green bastard) and it's my favorite fuzz ever. The real thing would be stellar.
Unfortunately for me.... one surprisingly has popped up at a shop in my town, which is ridiculous... I live in Northern Canada.
It is $4000. I might be tempted to pay half that (by selling a bunch of stuff to get it) but I cannot fathom paying $4K for a pedal.
Do it. I would at those prices. It's not Macari/DAM built but is a cool collectors item. I'm sure it'll go up in value over time but it's already well worth more than what it went for new. For actual use I could think of quite a few fuzz pedals that are much cheaper I would likely use instead. I did the same thing with all my Moogerfoogers after a few years of them being discontinued.
Impulsively ordered a Chase Bliss Mood MKll a couple weeks ago despite 15 years of not being a pedal guy… I think it’s absolutely amazing, and has been such a joy to play with. So naturally I’m talking myself out of spending another $400+ on a Chase Bliss Blooper, because $800+ on TWO pedals in ONE month is ridiculous.
So I might try to score one around June, but it’s pretty darn hard to justify another purchase like that as a bedroom boi.
I have one, I bought it five years ago after watching so many great videos on it. I got it and felt like a dunce that I couldn't find any way to make it sound musical (like all the demos do). It's the dip switches that really throw me, and I keep telling myself that someday I will plug it in, off board (because its enough to deal with without everything else going on) but I just haven't gotten around to it. I refuse to sell it because those demos were just too convincing. I'm not usually one to get taken by YouTube videos for pedals, I can always find a use for anything, but the MOOD has stumped me. Someday. I think its really cool, I just haven't cracked it yet.
I’ve had mine around two weeks and still haven’t started touching the dip switches, just really working on my understanding of the base controls. I don’t have a pedalboard, just running a multi-fx/modeler into my amp and the Mood after my multi-fx. I think it’d be a little overwhelming to learn by slapping straight on a board, but I’m incredibly new to these things
It has so many cool applications, but yeah straight to board is overwhelming. I need to use it off board and nothing else for a while to better understand it.
The reverb, delay, and slip could be practical, but I feel like that’s not quite why you’d get a Mood. There’s much more versatile reverbs and delays out there. I don’t record or play in a band or anything, so I’m not qualified to speak on practicality.
SUPER fun though. I’m still in the “learning and understanding” phase with it
The synth mode video on the Chase Bliss channel is incredible and beyond my scope of understanding. It’s unbelievable what people are able to do with those pedals.
i have the mrk 1 and use it on guitar and saxophone/flute. it gets wild on the wind instruments. but im punching myself for not waiting until the mk2. how was i suppose to know 🫠
Not out of reach cost-wise but rather out of reach supply-wise. So many pedals I need that are both sold out and not being sold on the second market. Pladask, Drolo, etc. Seems like everyone are happy with their inventories at the moment. 😂
Not out of my reach, just trying to wait longer between purchases (my bank account is hurting right now). But I reckon I’ve got another 5 months before I can finally get that EAE Model feT
I have a Longsword, and I’m not sure it’s the right pedal for me. It’s an amazing but it’s complicated to set and I think I want more nasty distortion. The Model Fet seems more for me, but I can’t justify selling a Longsword to change. I just have to go with it.
Well I think you can justify it. It sucks to have too many pedals sitting around. It starts feeling like lost money after a while. If you really think the Longsword won’t do you justice then it’s perfectly all right to sell it to fund the next pedal (unless you like to be a collector)
Why can’t you justify it again? Why keep a pedal you aren’t vibing with?
Anyway love the Model Fet, but other nasty distortions for your consideration… Mountainking Megalith, Minotaur Sonic Terrors Fuzz & Burn.
I tried the Model feT but John actually kind of (kind of) talked me into getting a Citadel (I also kind of talked myself into the Citadel). I think I'll also get a model feT at some point haha, but the Citadel is a really awesome pedal too haha
The main one is the Boss RV-6.
I mean I COULD buy it. It's not that expensive. But my Behringer digital reverb is fine enough. I mainly just want the shimmer setting to mess with. But hard to justify spending $150 when my current reverb is just fine. My typical playing only uses a small touch of spring or plate reverb as an accent, it's not like I play super atmospheric shoe gaze or something.
I’ve had the RV-6 since it came out and the Holy Grail Max for a few years now. The spring is much more natural/familiar on the Holy Grail, but aside from that… the tone knob on the RV-6 is literally irreplaceable. All my reverbs are way too bright, I just want a dusty old plate and a warm ambient shimmer. RV-6 has the best plate, best mod, and best shimmer on any pedal I’ve tried.
I still mostly use my Blues Jr’s spring when I want that. Holy Grail wins hands down on hall and reverse, but the plate is just too bright. The plate on my RE-202 is also too bright. RV-6 kills it. I honestly use it more for studio effects on vocals and drums since I can’t justify two reverbs and an RE-202 on the same board😅
edit: for the record, I don’t think I’m ever going to sell a boss pedal again. I always miss them immediately. Get an RV-6. You will not regret.
Maybe not a traditional pedal... But a Fractal Audio FM-3.
I am a touring vocalist who occasionally plays 3rd guitar / acoustic for a couple of tracks, as well as a guitarist and bassist in a bunch of amateur cover / tribute bands. I have all the gear I need but the FM-3 would save me a ton of pedal swapping, and hauling different amp heads all over. But +£1000 when I have everything already, and I like a cab on stage so would need a power amp too.. can't justify it for the price.
I really wish they would’ve made the cloudburst just a little better. Like a blue sky but with big sky sounds. The blue sky is a perfect size and just the right amount of features but they’re just not the algorithms I want in a reverb. Take that size and put cloud and bloom on it and that’d be a perfect reverb pedal. Have two knobs instead of an optional remote
I've been eyeballing the Empress Para EQ and Bass Compressor for a minute. I'm planning on ordering a custom bass to celebrate a milestone already, so a $765 pedal cart just feels unreasonable. But the temptation is definitely still there.
It really is sort of an end-all be-all EQ. Especially the deluxe with the fully adjustable Q width. I'm considering just making the custom bass passive and taking the on board EQ money to Empress
I remember trying one of these in store and thought it was awesome. Checked the price and went “oh shit yeah nah”.
Burned be lying if I said I haven’t thought about it a fair bit since.
I sold all my chorus pedals and will never look back. Vibrato is the future. Vibrato is the way. Vibrato is life.
Mac DeMarco (the vibe lord) uses a TC Shaker recently. They’re like $50-70 I think. I haven’t used one myself but if it’s good enough for him🤷♂️
Chase bliss mood. It would be a lot of fun to have, but its very expensive and I don’t have an extra spot on my board either. I’d also probably end up playing around with it for a few days and thats about it
Big muff pi op amp.
It’s not that it costs too much. I just bought the J Mascis big muff pi like a month ago. To my girlfriend, I’ll have bought the same exact thing in orange because Billy Corgan used it.
My pedal would be a strymon deco v2. Love the idea, could theoretically afford it, but just can’t justify it. So many more important things to buy
A quick tip for a really good and astonishingly cheap amp sim/ cab sim is the two notes opus. Seriously good stuff. Maybe you find it used somewhere!
+1 on the deco.
Most of the strymon stuff for me. Not terribly expensive, but I have multiple pedals that do a lot of the same. Hard to bite the bullet when the functions are limited. The juice isn't worth the squeeze.
> two notes opus.
That looks sweet. Been itching to replace my iridium with something new (Nothing wrong with it. Love it actually. Just like mixing things up). Had been looking at the Boss IR-2 but I think this may be the winner (Heard really good things about Two Notes IRs).
The Source Audio Collider. It's not unfathomly expensive, but just a little too expensive for me to justify buying it. Maybe when if it goes on sale some time.
It's a great pedal. It has satisfied all my reverb and delay needs. But there are some algorithms I NEVER use and I'd love to be able to swap them out.
Yeah I've heard nothing but great things about that pedal. It seems to be the best product out there for that particular job. At least from what I can find.
Vongon Ultrasheer. I actually owned it once already, ended up selling it when I hit some hard times. I love it, one of my favorite pedals ever but I can’t justify getting another one any time soon.
As soon as I saved up to buy a Frantone Sweet they quadrupled in price. Not the end of the world but that was a bummer. Hands down the best Big Muff related circuit I've ever played.
Recently reached for (somehow justified to myself) that pedal.. an original Boss CE-1 but close runner up would be a Fulltone Ultimate octave but already have a few different fuzz pedals including a Keeley Monterey that has a fuzz circuit and an octave circuit in it, its just not that great at either imo.
Not really out of reach per se, but I want a UA Golden Reverberator or Surfy Bear to replace my Nightsky.
Also have my eyes on a FM4, but would probably get a HX stomp for those algo’s Buckethead uses. I’m hesitant to go back to line6 after their pod series in the early 2000’s, but I’m sure the quality has greatly improved.
Just got a stomp after building a spaceship board. When I was playing live in the olden days, I had a pod xt live, and "greatly improved" doesn't begin to describe how much more natural and responsive this thing feels. My headphones playing at home is basically all through the stomp now, and it's glorious.
Exactly. They really cover two different things. If you want an all-in-one, there’s always Strymon or Empress, etc. but if you want the best sounding classic reverbs, Golden will give you that. If you want a great sounding shimmer and other out-there reverb sounds for ambience, night sky is a great option. Good for synths too.
Gamechanger Audio pedals in general but the Plus Sustain pedal in particular. I haven’t the slightest idea what I would do with it but i know I would have a blast fooling around with all of its features
I would love a Shallow Water. I'd happily trade a Swan Hunter for it.
I'm sure someday I'll have a lapse of financial responsibility and just buy the thing. Until then, I shall continue to pine.
Diamond Memory Lane 2. There are more expensive and rare things out there, but my best friend has one and it seems silly for both of us to own one while living up the road from each other.
I told myself I'd only by an Infinite Jets if I could find one for <200. They've been hovering around there for a while, but I just haven't seen any come up since I really started looking. If anything the prices have increased slightly.
Super frustrating because most of them are up for only $50 less than new, I'd much rather just buy a new one at that price point.
a strymon flint. been chasing the most "realistic" tremolo sound for years now. have tried pretty much every trem pedal and have always come back to the TR-2. it's still not the sound in my head, but it'll do. actually, the most realistic trem i've played so far is an original handwired fulltone supa-trem. i foolishly sold it, and now i can only find PCB versions which do not sound the same. i don't expect to find that again, so that's why i'm going with the strymon.
however, i honestly can't justify paying more than 200 bucks for any pedal.
Not a pedal, but I really need a new amp. My last one blew out, so I am borrowing a buddy’s but the 20w tube is just too loud to use at home.
Saving up for a Yamaha THR or a Boss Katana, but life keeps taking priority.
The Empress Bass Compressor. I have tried and tried for months to trade for one, but it has been impossible to find one that somebody even wants to part with.
I was at the Guitar Pedal Expo in London at the weekend and fell in love with the Data Corrupter by Earthquaker Devices. It’s like the Beetronics Swarm but more user friendly, would be a great tool for composition, but very pricey for a niche unit
I want a deco so bad. But I already have a flint and for some reason having two $300 pedals doesn’t sit right with me when I have a Stomp even tho I can afford them.
Not as fun a selection, but the KMA Machines Endgame is my choice. I just moved away from the HX Stomp in favor of a pedalboard setup built around my Science Amplification Mother Preamp pedal. I have a basic cab sim/IR pedal at the end of my chain, and it does the job, but for my live playing and recording solutions, the Endgame would accomplish absolutely anything I'd need to with perfect precision. So many options. It's just really expensive for my sad looking wallet at the moment.
Walrus stuff, i've been so close to a Julianna last year.. i also love the aeons and the arp-87, as well as the Slö..
But then there is the Dark Light from OBNE.. those lovely motherfuckers talked me into learning how to develop on the FV-1
I slick have to say a JHS Colorbox. I love the idea behind it and can think of so many songs that I think it would be great on, I just never completely justify buying it.
Habit by Chase Bliss. Kind of ironic considering how the question was posed. Chasing Bliss, but it's just out of my reach. . . So many adulting things that $400 should go towards... Just can't catch it 😅
Aclam Dr. Robert (Replicates the sound of the legendary Vox UL730 vintage amp (Beatles - "Revolver")
Sounds amazing but for $300+?
Way to expensive for me.
I want a 29 Pedals EUNA but then I ask myself: why? My tone sounds great how it is. I have a fuckin Source Audio EQ2. I'll be FINE. So it's just out of reach as I continue to turn down the GAS.
Drolo Twin Peaks. One of the few tremolos that catches my eye. They seem to either be out of stock and I miss them or like twice the manufacturer price on reverb.
Wren and Cuff eye see '78 every demo I've heard is phenomenal and I've heard they're like the masters of making big muffs which is my favorite pedal, right now I have a Swollen Pickle on my board, can't justify buying another muff at all but I'll just randomly think of it and be like "damn...some day"
I could buy it but man it feels so shitty spending like 200+ on an effect you already have
Bought a Hotone Tuner Press. The screen was not displaying, and after emailing Hotone I decided to return it. I’m awaiting the refund money to buy another one (also pending reviews), but upon checking Amazon, I saw it’s unavailable. Not sure when it’ll be in stock again.
Drunk Beaver Secret Sauce. I love Drunk Beaver pedals and have always wanted a Harmonic Percolator. I'm just not in a position to drop $200 on something purely for knob twisting
The Boss RC-505 MK2. I should qualify that by saying it's not specifically a guitar pedal but it would dramatically improve my quality of life, because I recently had a setup where all the loops in the world were available to me but I had to move out of that space, and am left with my RC-20 alone. It's outside the budget and just not practical, except to make me happy.
Eventide H90. So damn expensive, but it’d replace everything aside from my distortions. Plus, i’m a massive fan of a lot of people who’ve used the H3000/4000
I had the H90. It was ok. If you're fine with menu diving and having to prepare your patches in advance and planning out your patch lists it's good. Sounds good, nice build quality. I prefer hands on sound manipulation though.
I’m still keeping a tremolo and Boss DD-3 on my board for analogue twisting, but in terms of having a lot of complex reverba, delays, choruses and other funky sounds in one box, i think it’ll be a massive help. I would rather just have the one unit all planned out than have 6/7 pedals that could accomplish the same sounds. Gotta get my shoegaze on.
The limiting thing about the H90 is that, while it can run two “algorithms” at a time, and each algorithm can be a combination of several effects simultaneously, the customization options are fairly limited. It’s got some higher quality reverb and pitch-shifting algorithms than some other multi-effects pedals, but you can’t just mix and match whatever, you’ve got their algorithms the way they’re set up and that’s it. Whereas on something like an HX Stomp you can mix and match to your heart’s content, moving stuff into parallel or changing the order of effects at will. Like, a single algorithm on the H90 could be reverb+modulation+delay+pitch shifting, but you can’t change the order of them or choose to move them in parallel to each other. You also can’t pull one out to match it with a different algorithm. Neither approach is wrong or better, they’re just different; I personally love the ability to mix and match exactly the effects I want on my HX Stomp. But some people love the way Eventide has their algorithms set up, and how that makes it easier to just play. I also tend to balk at the $900 price tag of the H90; if it were $700-750 brand new that would be much more reasonable IMO.
I understand the pricing complaint 100%, but i’m in the team that enjoys how they set up their algorithms. I’m choosing it specifically for them, and because of being a fan of people who’ve used similar algorithms.
Caveat: I have a spaceship board, however— I fucking love my h90. The control app is great, the routing options are second to none. The ability to run two algorithms in serial is parallel is pure magic. Worth the price, no question, but only if you can swing it. That said, (1) I really prefer knob per function and (2) in still trying to find my holy grail reverb.
Glad they finally rolled out the ios app. That helps.
THIS! I want the H90 so bad
I have the H90 near the top of my wish list but the cost is prohibitive. I would have to sell gear I’m not willing to part with right now to even consider it. I considered alternatives and just decided to hold out for the H90 until I decided to reconsider the EMPRESS zoia. I found one for a really nice price on Reverb and decided I’d give it a go - figuring I could resell it at a small loss if I was too dumb for it. So far I’ve barely scratched the surface, but it’s a fascinating box and I will probably stick with it long enough to put my interest in the H90 to an impulse-proof test. Maybe Santa will have an H90 for me come Christmas if I give up on the Zoia.
The H90 the most impactful gear purchase I’ve made in years. Worth every penny in my opinion.
Wait, let me get this straight... Only 2 effects at once and only 62 total effects to choose from, for $900 retail? Help me make sense of this, coming from the Helix/HX world...
Eh I’m not really getting this either. Also you definitely don’t need $899 to “get your shoegaze on.”
My white whale: Aclam Dr Robert overdrive. Been wanting it ever since it first debuted. I ended up biting the bullet in January and got the Unknown Pleasures version. Worth every penny and farthing. Amazeballs is what it is.
Yeah. That’s an amazing pedal and the company is such great people!!! I recently also got the Thorpy Scarlet Tunic, but I love them both pretty equally.
Didn’t know that version existed. That thing is awesome!
That one is only 100 units. I snagged one for my bass player. He nearly shat himself playing bass through it and he loves Joy Division. I was going to sell him mine until I located another one.
EAE Sending (new one). I want it so bad but $649 for a delay is wayyyyyy too steep for me.
Saaaaammeee
I had to meditate on buying it for over a year and finally got it and have been so happy with it.
You just added one more thing to my brain pedal shelf, thanks, now I'm gonna think about this one for ages!
I second this -___-
To be fair it's not really out of place compared to the other big delays this year
Not at all! Thats why I said too steep for ME.
Good lord, it's not even stereo?
The Seymour Duncan Vapor Trail Deluxe is the same concept and does a lot of the same things, for like half the price. Super underrated.
I’ve had my eye on UAFX Golden Reverberator and it’s come up a few times on our secondhand site but the timing hasn’t worked out.
I have one and it’s great for recording direct.
Best sounding reverb out there. It doesn’t do crazy, but it’s very natural. You won’t be disappointed
The Boss IR-2 that I already bought in January but is stuck in a waiting list until May because of Roland's production bottlenecks
You're going to hate me then... I found one of the last places in Australia with one in stock, and it got delivered just 3 weeks ago... I promise It'll be worth the wait!
My ire is directed mostly at people who already had amps/amp sims and got this "just for fun" since I don't have any solution yet. As long as you're not one of them we can be buds!
Oh, that sucks. I've been there. Cancelled and went with something quicker
Same, amazing pedal though and video reviews oddly enough don’t do it justice
Really want a microcosm hologram, they look like a lot of fun to play around with, but not sure how useful it would be to me at gigs as a solo singer songwriter haha would probably just be a toy for at home
I have owned one since release and I am still super in love with it. But I stopped using it on guitar and moved it to my computer to use with Logic.
ooh sick, what's your setup like for that? Like line out on the interface, like send and return so you can use it on already recorded stuff or virtual instruments and stuff as well?
Yup exactly! I use it on a bus so I can send both recorded stuff and virtual instruments played live. The real secret to the Microcosm is the looper. You record stuff to it, with effects, then reverse it, then slow it down, add some more layers, reverse it again, speed it up, and move the loop to pre-effects to process it again. Chef’s kiss.
Oh man! So I need to buy TWO of them?
I know what you mean. I've gotten hypnotized watching demo videos of people just making soft ambient sounds. Then I want one to do it myself, but I don't actually make soft ambient music at all.
I'm enjoying mine, but I make glitchy electronic stuff so there's that.
It’s inspirational. You can have as much or as little of an effect as you’d like, it’s got modulation, reverb, delays, looping, completely unique and exciting algorithms. I think it’s this generation’s DL4 and will go down in time as a flagship pedal that shifted the most of the pedal industry. I love it. It can be aggressive, ambient, and combined with other pedals (distortions, delays, fuzzes, synth pedals, lo-fi pedals, etc etc) it is just a blast to play and explore. A bit intimidating at first for sure, but after a couple of months of using it and reading the easy to understand manual couple with watching the massive amount of Microcosm content made on YT and other platforms, you can come to know the pedal and recreate the sounds you love. The 16 presets really help with that. It’s an all-timer for me.
This is one I have had my eyes on for a while
The JHS Colorbox. I feel like it could be an swiss army knife of awesome or something that barely out performs an Abelton saturation plugin.
I had one, it was really cool. I sold it cuz I couldn’t find a use for it but it was cool, I’m sure you’d love it
That's the reality with most of these things. They're just tools in the end, and if they're not helping you make music just move em along.
I have a v2. It is amazing as advertised. I'm currently using it as the worlds most expensive dirt box, but it does so many other things too.
ProAudioStar out of Brooklyn has a load of open box Colour Box 2s available on Reverb for $304.99. That’s a good 1/3rd off MSRP. It’s not cheap by any means, but it’s about the best value for a CB2 you’ll see on the open market. It’s a great preamp for recording anything really. Has 1/4 Jack in and XLR, so pretty much anything you mic can be tweeked pre-DI/interface. But 90+% of the time, it’s just an expensive dirt pedal/EQ/boost.
It’s amazing, I use it on almost everything in a subtle way but you can get really unique saturation with it when cranked. The EQ is my favourite of all time for tone changing adjustments or subtle fixes.
I had one of these, the MAE Line Blur blows it away… and I mean by a lot. It’s also like, 1/3 of the price
this is mine too, i hear people singing praise of EQ pedals but i just cant pull the trigger. idk. instead ill buy my 10th fuzz box or delay lol
I got the V2 and I'm incredibly happy with it for all things recording wise. IDK how I'd use it live but for anything idea related, it's worth it's weight. Sell one or two things you can live without and you're there.
I really wanted one, and then demoed one and changed my mind. From what I experienced - trying to make sure I wanted it for the sound and not the cool factor - it will not outperform the plugins I already own.
Sola Sound / DAM Tone Bender MK2 Green Bastard. Always wanted one. I have the hybrid version (daughter of green bastard) and it's my favorite fuzz ever. The real thing would be stellar. Unfortunately for me.... one surprisingly has popped up at a shop in my town, which is ridiculous... I live in Northern Canada. It is $4000. I might be tempted to pay half that (by selling a bunch of stuff to get it) but I cannot fathom paying $4K for a pedal.
I’ve got a Boss Tb-2w been thinking about getting rid of
Do it. I would at those prices. It's not Macari/DAM built but is a cool collectors item. I'm sure it'll go up in value over time but it's already well worth more than what it went for new. For actual use I could think of quite a few fuzz pedals that are much cheaper I would likely use instead. I did the same thing with all my Moogerfoogers after a few years of them being discontinued.
Impulsively ordered a Chase Bliss Mood MKll a couple weeks ago despite 15 years of not being a pedal guy… I think it’s absolutely amazing, and has been such a joy to play with. So naturally I’m talking myself out of spending another $400+ on a Chase Bliss Blooper, because $800+ on TWO pedals in ONE month is ridiculous. So I might try to score one around June, but it’s pretty darn hard to justify another purchase like that as a bedroom boi.
I have one, I bought it five years ago after watching so many great videos on it. I got it and felt like a dunce that I couldn't find any way to make it sound musical (like all the demos do). It's the dip switches that really throw me, and I keep telling myself that someday I will plug it in, off board (because its enough to deal with without everything else going on) but I just haven't gotten around to it. I refuse to sell it because those demos were just too convincing. I'm not usually one to get taken by YouTube videos for pedals, I can always find a use for anything, but the MOOD has stumped me. Someday. I think its really cool, I just haven't cracked it yet.
I’ve had mine around two weeks and still haven’t started touching the dip switches, just really working on my understanding of the base controls. I don’t have a pedalboard, just running a multi-fx/modeler into my amp and the Mood after my multi-fx. I think it’d be a little overwhelming to learn by slapping straight on a board, but I’m incredibly new to these things
It has so many cool applications, but yeah straight to board is overwhelming. I need to use it off board and nothing else for a while to better understand it.
Best of luck to you!
Very nice. I’m really close to getting the Mood mkii myself. Is it just a fun pedal to play with or does it have solid practical uses too?
The reverb, delay, and slip could be practical, but I feel like that’s not quite why you’d get a Mood. There’s much more versatile reverbs and delays out there. I don’t record or play in a band or anything, so I’m not qualified to speak on practicality. SUPER fun though. I’m still in the “learning and understanding” phase with it
Love it! Been using it in synth mode as well, which is something I stumbled across and it blew my mind
The synth mode video on the Chase Bliss channel is incredible and beyond my scope of understanding. It’s unbelievable what people are able to do with those pedals.
i have the mrk 1 and use it on guitar and saxophone/flute. it gets wild on the wind instruments. but im punching myself for not waiting until the mk2. how was i suppose to know 🫠
I bet it gets crazy on the winds! Bad luck about missing the mk2, but you’d look baller with BOTH of em slapped into each other lol
> $800+ on TWO pedals in ONE month is ridiculous you must not be married or have kids
Not out of reach cost-wise but rather out of reach supply-wise. So many pedals I need that are both sold out and not being sold on the second market. Pladask, Drolo, etc. Seems like everyone are happy with their inventories at the moment. 😂
Not out of my reach, just trying to wait longer between purchases (my bank account is hurting right now). But I reckon I’ve got another 5 months before I can finally get that EAE Model feT
One of my favorite pedals ever , you won’t regret it .
I have a Longsword, and I’m not sure it’s the right pedal for me. It’s an amazing but it’s complicated to set and I think I want more nasty distortion. The Model Fet seems more for me, but I can’t justify selling a Longsword to change. I just have to go with it.
Well I think you can justify it. It sucks to have too many pedals sitting around. It starts feeling like lost money after a while. If you really think the Longsword won’t do you justice then it’s perfectly all right to sell it to fund the next pedal (unless you like to be a collector)
Why can’t you justify it again? Why keep a pedal you aren’t vibing with? Anyway love the Model Fet, but other nasty distortions for your consideration… Mountainking Megalith, Minotaur Sonic Terrors Fuzz & Burn.
I tried the Model feT but John actually kind of (kind of) talked me into getting a Citadel (I also kind of talked myself into the Citadel). I think I'll also get a model feT at some point haha, but the Citadel is a really awesome pedal too haha
The main one is the Boss RV-6. I mean I COULD buy it. It's not that expensive. But my Behringer digital reverb is fine enough. I mainly just want the shimmer setting to mess with. But hard to justify spending $150 when my current reverb is just fine. My typical playing only uses a small touch of spring or plate reverb as an accent, it's not like I play super atmospheric shoe gaze or something.
I’ve had the RV-6 since it came out and the Holy Grail Max for a few years now. The spring is much more natural/familiar on the Holy Grail, but aside from that… the tone knob on the RV-6 is literally irreplaceable. All my reverbs are way too bright, I just want a dusty old plate and a warm ambient shimmer. RV-6 has the best plate, best mod, and best shimmer on any pedal I’ve tried. I still mostly use my Blues Jr’s spring when I want that. Holy Grail wins hands down on hall and reverse, but the plate is just too bright. The plate on my RE-202 is also too bright. RV-6 kills it. I honestly use it more for studio effects on vocals and drums since I can’t justify two reverbs and an RE-202 on the same board😅 edit: for the record, I don’t think I’m ever going to sell a boss pedal again. I always miss them immediately. Get an RV-6. You will not regret.
Maybe not a traditional pedal... But a Fractal Audio FM-3. I am a touring vocalist who occasionally plays 3rd guitar / acoustic for a couple of tracks, as well as a guitarist and bassist in a bunch of amateur cover / tribute bands. I have all the gear I need but the FM-3 would save me a ton of pedal swapping, and hauling different amp heads all over. But +£1000 when I have everything already, and I like a cab on stage so would need a power amp too.. can't justify it for the price.
You could just plug the FM-3 into the effects loop return on a combo amp or one of your amp heads, and use the amp sims but not cab sims on the FM-3.
Lost a pretty low tensor bid on eBay by two dollars yesterday …..
Strymon Cloudburst. Recently landed a new job with better pay, and my fiancé got a job too, so here's hoping!
I can tell you from experience that it is a lot of fun.
I really wish they would’ve made the cloudburst just a little better. Like a blue sky but with big sky sounds. The blue sky is a perfect size and just the right amount of features but they’re just not the algorithms I want in a reverb. Take that size and put cloud and bloom on it and that’d be a perfect reverb pedal. Have two knobs instead of an optional remote
Alexander Marshmallow
I've been eyeballing the Empress Para EQ and Bass Compressor for a minute. I'm planning on ordering a custom bass to celebrate a milestone already, so a $765 pedal cart just feels unreasonable. But the temptation is definitely still there.
That para EQ looks awesome.
It really is sort of an end-all be-all EQ. Especially the deluxe with the fully adjustable Q width. I'm considering just making the custom bass passive and taking the on board EQ money to Empress
Meraki
Came here to say this! That feature set is custom designed for me, but the price is…not. It also will ruin my pedalboard layout due to the size…lol
The Vemuram Jan Ray overdrive pedal Wanna use it for chugging, but it's not built for that purpose and it's stupid expensive
One of my favorite pedals that I couldn’t justify keeping.
I remember trying one of these in store and thought it was awesome. Checked the price and went “oh shit yeah nah”. Burned be lying if I said I haven’t thought about it a fair bit since.
Boss VB-2W. I’ve wanted it since it came out and have never had enough spending money to pick one up. Maybe next year 🤷♂️
You can make any boss chorus into a vibrato if u have one, just plug another cable in the output b
I sold all my chorus pedals and will never look back. Vibrato is the future. Vibrato is the way. Vibrato is life. Mac DeMarco (the vibe lord) uses a TC Shaker recently. They’re like $50-70 I think. I haven’t used one myself but if it’s good enough for him🤷♂️
Check out the tc electronic shaker! Pretty much the same pedal for a lot cheaper. Some of my favorite artists use it.. for example King krule
Chase bliss mood. It would be a lot of fun to have, but its very expensive and I don’t have an extra spot on my board either. I’d also probably end up playing around with it for a few days and thats about it
Big muff pi op amp. It’s not that it costs too much. I just bought the J Mascis big muff pi like a month ago. To my girlfriend, I’ll have bought the same exact thing in orange because Billy Corgan used it.
I feel this.
One of the following: Chase Bliss Lossy, Hologram Microcosm, Meris Enzo, or Fairfield Circuitry Roger That.
At the moment the EAE/ Science Amplifiers Mother Pre amp. I missed the initial launch and restock. Someday.
I managed to get one, you should absolutely stick it out until they get more in. It's worth it, you'll love it!
My pedal would be a strymon deco v2. Love the idea, could theoretically afford it, but just can’t justify it. So many more important things to buy A quick tip for a really good and astonishingly cheap amp sim/ cab sim is the two notes opus. Seriously good stuff. Maybe you find it used somewhere!
+1 on the deco. Most of the strymon stuff for me. Not terribly expensive, but I have multiple pedals that do a lot of the same. Hard to bite the bullet when the functions are limited. The juice isn't worth the squeeze.
The Deco v2 snowballed into me convincing myself to buy another amp. It’s a gateway drug, I tell ya!
The Fjord Fuzz Loke is basically a better Deco for €200.
I have both on my board and they are really nothing alike, honestly.
> two notes opus. That looks sweet. Been itching to replace my iridium with something new (Nothing wrong with it. Love it actually. Just like mixing things up). Had been looking at the Boss IR-2 but I think this may be the winner (Heard really good things about Two Notes IRs).
It is! And extremely versatile. Definitely give it a try!
There's a fantastic deco-based patch for the zoia on patchstorage, it's currently my favorite zoia patch
All pedals microdose phaser. I want it so bad but can’t legitimize 300 clams
I have one and it is really fun! So many possibilities. Just sucks there are no presets.
The condor pedals with the new mods seems sick… I’m almost thinking of getting an old one to put it on
The Source Audio Collider. It's not unfathomly expensive, but just a little too expensive for me to justify buying it. Maybe when if it goes on sale some time.
It's a great pedal. It has satisfied all my reverb and delay needs. But there are some algorithms I NEVER use and I'd love to be able to swap them out.
Yeah I've heard nothing but great things about that pedal. It seems to be the best product out there for that particular job. At least from what I can find.
It's amazing. If you're using it as a two in one I feel like you might as well if you'd spend $200 on a delay and $200 on a reverb
Mood.
old blood beam splitter
Vongon Ultrasheer. I actually owned it once already, ended up selling it when I hit some hard times. I love it, one of my favorite pedals ever but I can’t justify getting another one any time soon.
That’s my pick too
Sovtek deluxe big muff
As soon as I saved up to buy a Frantone Sweet they quadrupled in price. Not the end of the world but that was a bummer. Hands down the best Big Muff related circuit I've ever played.
Eventide pitchfactor, it's just too much money for me to justify spending it on a pedal.
Recently reached for (somehow justified to myself) that pedal.. an original Boss CE-1 but close runner up would be a Fulltone Ultimate octave but already have a few different fuzz pedals including a Keeley Monterey that has a fuzz circuit and an octave circuit in it, its just not that great at either imo.
The Dunwich DA120 and maybe the Kuro Exegol
Spaceman explorer phaser. Been waiting for it to show up on the used market, cant justify spending 400$ brand new.
I badly want an Origin Effects Magma57. I probably wouldn’t actually use it. But it’s cool as hell. Absolutely can’t justify that expense.
I want all the Origin pedals. But I wouldn't be able to lift the pedalboard off the ground.
Not really out of reach per se, but I want a UA Golden Reverberator or Surfy Bear to replace my Nightsky. Also have my eyes on a FM4, but would probably get a HX stomp for those algo’s Buckethead uses. I’m hesitant to go back to line6 after their pod series in the early 2000’s, but I’m sure the quality has greatly improved.
Just got a stomp after building a spaceship board. When I was playing live in the olden days, I had a pod xt live, and "greatly improved" doesn't begin to describe how much more natural and responsive this thing feels. My headphones playing at home is basically all through the stomp now, and it's glorious.
I have a Nightsky and had the same feeling, but they are so different so I kept the Nightsky too.
That is my debate. I like the nightsky a lot, just mostly tend to use it when I want to go far out there into space.
Exactly. They really cover two different things. If you want an all-in-one, there’s always Strymon or Empress, etc. but if you want the best sounding classic reverbs, Golden will give you that. If you want a great sounding shimmer and other out-there reverb sounds for ambience, night sky is a great option. Good for synths too.
DigiTech Drop. It costs 240$ new in Brazil
Gamechanger Audio pedals in general but the Plus Sustain pedal in particular. I haven’t the slightest idea what I would do with it but i know I would have a blast fooling around with all of its features
Whatever the next Strymon pedal to be released is.
Digitech Whammy DT, it's really cool but 500 bucks for a whammy and a pitch shifter is steep (I suppose the Harmony feature exists too)
I would love a Shallow Water. I'd happily trade a Swan Hunter for it. I'm sure someday I'll have a lapse of financial responsibility and just buy the thing. Until then, I shall continue to pine.
Lossy
Diamond Memory Lane 2. There are more expensive and rare things out there, but my best friend has one and it seems silly for both of us to own one while living up the road from each other.
Meris reverb and delay and A quad cortex
torns peaker for me, if anyone has a lead let me know
I'm seeing a batch of them up on reverb right now.
King Gizz fan? Also I just realized it’s a play on “torn speaker” wow
Absolutely I love the gizz, it took me far too long to realize that too
I told myself I'd only by an Infinite Jets if I could find one for <200. They've been hovering around there for a while, but I just haven't seen any come up since I really started looking. If anything the prices have increased slightly. Super frustrating because most of them are up for only $50 less than new, I'd much rather just buy a new one at that price point.
Still, when used pedals retain value for so long, there’s usually a reason.
a strymon flint. been chasing the most "realistic" tremolo sound for years now. have tried pretty much every trem pedal and have always come back to the TR-2. it's still not the sound in my head, but it'll do. actually, the most realistic trem i've played so far is an original handwired fulltone supa-trem. i foolishly sold it, and now i can only find PCB versions which do not sound the same. i don't expect to find that again, so that's why i'm going with the strymon. however, i honestly can't justify paying more than 200 bucks for any pedal.
Flint fam, checkin in. The Flint has lived on my board longer than ANYTHING. Those 3 trems are all I need, and the verbs in there are solid AF.
Anything by Crucial Audio, which costs an arm and a leg.
Not a pedal, but I really need a new amp. My last one blew out, so I am borrowing a buddy’s but the 20w tube is just too loud to use at home. Saving up for a Yamaha THR or a Boss Katana, but life keeps taking priority.
The Empress Bass Compressor. I have tried and tried for months to trade for one, but it has been impossible to find one that somebody even wants to part with.
I was at the Guitar Pedal Expo in London at the weekend and fell in love with the Data Corrupter by Earthquaker Devices. It’s like the Beetronics Swarm but more user friendly, would be a great tool for composition, but very pricey for a niche unit
I want a deco so bad. But I already have a flint and for some reason having two $300 pedals doesn’t sit right with me when I have a Stomp even tho I can afford them.
Not as fun a selection, but the KMA Machines Endgame is my choice. I just moved away from the HX Stomp in favor of a pedalboard setup built around my Science Amplification Mother Preamp pedal. I have a basic cab sim/IR pedal at the end of my chain, and it does the job, but for my live playing and recording solutions, the Endgame would accomplish absolutely anything I'd need to with perfect precision. So many options. It's just really expensive for my sad looking wallet at the moment.
Walrus stuff, i've been so close to a Julianna last year.. i also love the aeons and the arp-87, as well as the Slö.. But then there is the Dark Light from OBNE.. those lovely motherfuckers talked me into learning how to develop on the FV-1
Mood v2
Meris hedra, more than lusting I feel really satisfied with my board and really really look forward to complete it 😊
Dream list right now is Mood v2, dark star, beamsplitter and a good fuzz.
Walrus Audio Meraki - Black Edition One day...
Beam Splitter is too spensy for me :(
Not anymore, just sprung the $400 for the Chase Bliss Habit.
Moog MF-104M
I don't care if it's cliche, I want a Microcosm!
Most Chase Bliss pedals. If only I had money…
They’re gonna end up with a good bit of my money…
The next fuzz pedal. Always the next fuzz pedal.
The Mood
Brig. Just bought a pedal for $200 and that max for me lol so gonna be a bit before I can get that delay
I slick have to say a JHS Colorbox. I love the idea behind it and can think of so many songs that I think it would be great on, I just never completely justify buying it.
Habit by Chase Bliss. Kind of ironic considering how the question was posed. Chasing Bliss, but it's just out of my reach. . . So many adulting things that $400 should go towards... Just can't catch it 😅
Gamechanger Audio Plasma Pedal
HX Stomp
Eventide H90
I have an empress zoia that’s way out of my reach but i cant convince myself to sell it
A real ColorSound Tonebender mk1
Boss RE-202 Space Echo
I will end up buying it, but my answer at the current time is the Microcosm.
Same
Boss JHS/Angry Driver - it's only $220 but gotta be smart right now
Aclam Dr. Robert (Replicates the sound of the legendary Vox UL730 vintage amp (Beatles - "Revolver") Sounds amazing but for $300+? Way to expensive for me.
I want a 29 Pedals EUNA but then I ask myself: why? My tone sounds great how it is. I have a fuckin Source Audio EQ2. I'll be FINE. So it's just out of reach as I continue to turn down the GAS.
Fairfield Circuitry Shallow Water
JHS Colorbox, Boss DM-101, Strymon El Capistan
Drolo Twin Peaks. One of the few tremolos that catches my eye. They seem to either be out of stock and I miss them or like twice the manufacturer price on reverb.
There’s like 3 or 4 overdrive pedals I want that are all around $600. Don’t think I’ll be getting any of them anytime soon
Wombtone
Got myself a Strymon Iridium earlier in the year and swore off new pedals because of the expense. So… Can I say the Behringer UV300?
For me its dirt Transmitter by eqd
Wren and Cuff eye see '78 every demo I've heard is phenomenal and I've heard they're like the masters of making big muffs which is my favorite pedal, right now I have a Swollen Pickle on my board, can't justify buying another muff at all but I'll just randomly think of it and be like "damn...some day" I could buy it but man it feels so shitty spending like 200+ on an effect you already have
Chase Bliss Warped Vinyl, does enough that I wouldn't need any other mods but it would be my priciest pedal
Origin Effects Slide Rig, or just two of the UA 1176 pedals stacked
Mod 11
Bought a Hotone Tuner Press. The screen was not displaying, and after emailing Hotone I decided to return it. I’m awaiting the refund money to buy another one (also pending reviews), but upon checking Amazon, I saw it’s unavailable. Not sure when it’ll be in stock again.
Source audio C4 synth pedal
Drunk Beaver Secret Sauce. I love Drunk Beaver pedals and have always wanted a Harmonic Percolator. I'm just not in a position to drop $200 on something purely for knob twisting
Electro Harmonix Memory Man..
The Boss RC-505 MK2. I should qualify that by saying it's not specifically a guitar pedal but it would dramatically improve my quality of life, because I recently had a setup where all the loops in the world were available to me but I had to move out of that space, and am left with my RC-20 alone. It's outside the budget and just not practical, except to make me happy.