Xploration • Curation • Recommendation
Freqscene Effects' Slow Life massively evolves and enhances the Boss SG-1 Slow Gear circuit, for the lushest of sweet shimmery swells
I have a number of swell pedals in my collection already - mostly EHX types at several different sizes. I had intended to get in an SG-1 - it’s one of only 2 key Boss Modulations I don’t yet have - the other is the PN-2 Tremolo/Pan - perhaps Wade can work his magic on that circuit too!
A lot of the earliest Boss circuits are a little overly simple and typically not fully granular and not with the most robust of output profiles - the PH-1 for instance is wholly put in the shade by the PH-1R, and PH-2 models. For the SG-1 - those pedals are particularly rare these days, and ridiculously pricey too - and most of them are also in somewhat poor condition - so it doesn’t really make that much logical sense to try to hunt down one of those.
The Freqscene Slow Life retains everything that made the SG-1 so great, and then enhances and improves it - which gives it more range, and makes it easier to dial it in.
The 2 core controls are very much front and centre of operations - the Attack and Sensitivity knobs - and they still require a degree of delicacy - particularly the Sensitivity knob.
For me - I set the Swell Attack first, and then slowly roll back the Sensitivity control in somewhat safe-cracker fashion (micro-movements) - until you can audibly hear a change to the timbre - you need to dial that control in very precisely to give you the right sort of texture.
To help you achieve this you have the Diode Compression Knob, and Attack Range - with the latter serving as an extension / refinement to the Swell Attack, and the Diode Compression being a significant enhancer - which adds more gain and body to the swell. For that control you get those similar timbre transition spots per the Sensitivity - as you sweep the dial - which let you know you’ve hit a magical spot. Too much compression and you loose some of the nuance of the timbre and texture - but just the right amount enhances the output - and makes it somewhat louder and more pronounced - where the final Volume Attenuation control comes into effect - where you refine the output further - to lessen the impact of the Compression - in terms of the resulting loudness!
Controls - Attack (Swell Attack(, Compress (Diode Compression), Sensi (Sensitivity), Range (Attack Range / Refinement), Volume (Volume Attenuation).
The are several perfect settings and tones to be found here - depending on what slope of Swell you want, and one of my favourite settings achieved to date is as follows :
Attack @ 3 o'c, Sensi @ circa 9 o'c (dial by ear!), Compress @ Noon, Range @ circa 10 o'c, Volume @ 12:30 o'c.
Those settings sound wonderfully lush and expressive - but still with that SG-1 subtle shimmery brilliance. At times you get fairly subtle output curves - but they sound consistently mellifluous. And the Slow Life pairs beautifully with its Koldwave sibling - also Phasers and Flangers in particular, and slightly more textured / characterful reverbs.
The EHX swell pedals are typically a little more pronounced in their output, and more violin and cello-like in their timbre and tone - but don't have that shimmery sweetness of the vintage SG-1 circuit - which is entirely retained by this Slow Life.
For some this will often be a little too subtle of an effect - but if you get it just right and pair it with appropriately shimmery / fluttery modulations and reverbs it sounds utterly glorious!
I really like the delicacy of this effects - while several others will look to combine it with a variety of gain pedals for a noisier output. For me swells are more on the ambient side of things typically - though you can of course deploy the Slow Life any way you wish!
The Slow Life is alas currently out of stock - waiting on the next batch to land on the Freqscene Effects Webstore - where it normally retails for $159 - it's well worth the wait!
I look forward to seeing Wade's take on the PN-2 at some stage in the not too distant future :) !
Demos
