I originally referred to this as a Trem-Fuzz, which is not exactly correct - it has the most amazing and versatile 3 x 3 mode Fuzz, supplemented by a secondary Chopper Circuit - a sort of signal slicer / stutter which with Speed at peak levels delivers Drone and kind of Ring Mod tones - which you then can tune into a particular note / frequency with the Fine-Tune control. The 2nd channel cannot be engaged independently - as it has to chop the fuzz signal to produce an output.

The main left-...

This has been in the works for a while - where I’n delighted to report that I’ve finally got my hands on these exceptional Black, White and Gold Hangman fx pedals - which sound as beautifully richly detailed as they look. These are exactly the type of full-flavour extended range pedals that I so love!

There’s at least one more that I have my eye on - the Tyrannosaur MegaDriver which I will look to pick up next time around. In fact Hangman fx has a new pedal out next month - that I should be...

I’m a huge fan of the power and prowess of the Polyend Step Drum Machine - which I’ve owned for a few months now. Polyend is obviously on something of a roll at the moment - with its newest product coming out so hot on the heels of the Step release.

There’s only an ’Effects List’ so far - which I’ve transcribed into the visual and below - and without the Manual I can’t fully gauge exactly what we have here.

In essence we seem to have a library of 125 stereo effects which can be assigned...

There’s an incredibly rich mix here of no less than 38 killer Modulations, Utilities and Pitch-Shifters - no one does rundowns quite like me! I always dive in at the deep end of things - and give you maximum expansive scope!

There are several here that I don’t have yet, in fact some hat I’m somewhat unlikely to ever have - for reasons of rig compatibility, size and overall sensibilities, practicalities, and preferences!

These 19 are still to be acquired or eventually overlooked :

2024 has been quite the monumental year for me as regards Modulations - with several of my all-time favourite varieties having been added to the reference collection this year, some very recently - including the slightly older Krozz Airborn and Strymon Lex V2 - which I could have gotten in sooner, alongside 3 killer modulations that were released this year :

Modulations added to the Reference Collection in 2024 :

• 2024 : Chorus : PastFX Kurt’s Cologne Small Clone Multi-Era Analog Chorus -

So Fractal Audio Systems has thrown its hat in the ring with its first non-modelling device / unit - the VP4 Virtual Pedalboard Multi-FX Processor - which is quite a departure for the brand.

It’s obviously gunning for Line 6 and Eventide in particular, but also looking to knock out Boss and Strymon Workstation pedals. It has several of its own advantages, but with a number of caveats too. Overall it’s well priced for what it delivers - but for my own preferences it’s still somewhat over-...

I have always liked the look of the Walrus Audio Mako Series of MI Multi-Modulator, D1 Delay, R1 Reverb and ASC1 Amp Cab and Sim. And feel that these latest changes have really propelled some of these to the top of their respective categories - particularly in terms of Compact Enclosure Editions!

The new control interface is actually remarkably simple and intuitive - the knobs above each of the 3 screen segments allow you to click through different ’pages’ or screen of options - where you ...

As promised - this turned out to be quite a big month - we had 5 substantial pedal rundowns - where I hope you appreciate the time and effort put into those - they take a very long time to compile and write up! :

• Reference Collection World Odyssey [25]
• 32 Favourite Compact MIAB Distortions
• Fuzz Pedal Olympics [25]
• 32 Favourite Compact Rat Style Distortions
• Drunk Beaver 15 Favourites

I attended just one show this month - but it was a great one - the #2 Alternative Guitar Show @ Hackney...

We’re steadily seeing the Boss 20-Series pedals being replaced now, and the VE-20 is the latest to get a very significant upgrade. The new VE-22 moves things on pretty massively and completely revamps and enhances the form factor, switches, knobs and overall control interface - with 3 core switches now in place of the former 2 - and really smart dedicated controls for each of the core functions - all served by a highly visibly and usable LED screen.

If you’re a singer or vocal performer of ...