Looking into tremolo, have no idea what I want

[Glyph]

Just as a purely speculative thing, I'm considering picking up a tremolo for my board. This is like the one type of effect I really don't know anything about. I'd like something versatile, warm and analog, able to do James Mercer-y Shins shimmer and Tom Morello weirdness, but beyond that, any brands or models or whatever are beyond my knowledge. Price is also a bit of an issue: I'd love a Goatkeeper but there is no way I can spend that much money on pedals right now. I'd like to keep the price around the $100 mark. The Malekko Trem seems pretty nice (and small and cheap, too), but I've read conflicting things about its versatility with regard to experimental noisy stuff.

What tremolo pedal would you recommend?

[htsamurai]

your avatar is a Bidoof. As such whatever trem you end up with will be amazing

[Monkeyboard]

The Iron Ether Cygnet is loaded with features (8 or so waveshapes, tap-tempo etc.) and can be picked up used for 100-150$. A decent cheapo to consider is a Dano Cool Cat Trem. For 30-40$ you'll get something that'll do Mercery tremolo (I have no clue what he uses. AFAIK he does recording tricks with ceiling fans and such as well on some tracks) although I don't think it does choppy experimental things very well.

Another one to check out is a small pedal company called F5 I think someone is selling their tap tempo tremolo in the B/S/T for around a 100$

[Eric!]

Also, there's a Seymour Duncan Shape Shifter

[DarkAxel]

viewtopic.php?f=44&t=14675 PM if interested, we can work something out about the price

edit: sorry, it probably just got traded

[Glyph]

I found a Boss TR-2 on HC used for retardedly cheap. Does anyone have any experience with that one?

[Mudfuzz]

I found a Boss TR-2 on HC used for retardedly cheap. Does anyone have any experience with that one?

Yeah, I have one. it is a good trem all in all but if you want the most out of it sound wise you have to mod it, I did the R9 mod to mine and the volume drop went away and it is less noisy, it took like 2 min to do.

[Glyph]

I found a Boss TR-2 on HC used for retardedly cheap. Does anyone have any experience with that one?

Yeah, I have one. it is a good trem all in all but if you want the most out of it sound wise you have to mod it, I did the R9 mod to mine and the volume drop went away and it is less noisy, it took like 2 min to do.

I just read into that and it seems like the best option. And if later on I decide I want a Cygnet or a Goatkeeper or whatever, I suppose I can always upgrade.

[Mudfuzz]

True. They arn't bad though, I gigged with mine for a few years. It has a good square wave for simple pulse synth sounds too, Octave > trem > filter can give you some sick sounds

[modernage]

True. They arn't bad though, I gigged with mine for a few years. It has a good square wave for simple pulse synth sounds too, Octave > trem > filter can give you some sick sounds

I agree. The TR-2 was the first trem I had ever bought, and it stayed as my main trem for years until I upgraded to an Empress Trem. Hands down the best tremolo you can get for that kind of money. I never had volume drop issues with mine luckily. But even if yours does, like Mudfuzz says, it's as simple as snipping a resistor. No electronics/diy experience needed... only reading skills.

[Bellyheart]

Lovepedals baby face trem

[echobaseone]

Though there was no way it was gonna replace my Boss PN-2, I had an EHX Pulsar (the die cast one) and I would say it would be a great one for covering all the bases. Not perfectly by any means, but you can get one for @$50 or so. Running it in stereo is a TON of fun.

[Glyph]

Oh man, I just decided I really want an Earthquaker Hummingbird II. More than twice as much as the used Boss TR-2 I found, but it looks so so rad.

[Rygot]

Yeah I was going to suggest the hummingbird...

I have a dano trem, one of the best things they make imo, it doesnt get nearly as choppy or extreme as the the hummingbird though, for smooth trem it is just fine.

[one bad monkey]

The EHX Stereo Pulsar is a good mainstream trem. I used one for the past year and it really solidified the need for a trem on any board I use.

The Black Cat Mini Trem is kind of nice; has the standard trem settings, but offers a boost and tone knob, as well as a speed stomp, allowing for double-time speed on the fly. This one's getting a lot of use in my rehearsals and shows right now.

The good Dr. Scientist seems to have the holy grail of trems coming out sometime soon also. Very curious and excited to see what that one will bring.