Looking for a pedal that is hard to describe

[DaveLawrence]

I have been looking for a synth sounding pedal to give my tone the right lifeless, uncaring edge for years now. Like the noise of a running circular saw left on a wet floor. A faint and subtle metallic buzz and warbling in the background that makes your blood run cold.

I have tried the Robot Factory White Russian, and think that particular kind of clipping is what I am looking for as it sounds mechanical without sounding "fake." I liked how it had this kind of warm, "best of" Muff tone. Unfortunately, like all Muffs, it falls apart with chords and is as transparent as the screen you are looking at right now. Then I started thinking that the stacking of my current overdrives is enough to get that kind of clipping so going down that road will lead nowhere.


Basically I guess I am looking for an always-on, transparent pedal with a metallic edge that has some very subtle modulation underneath. Must play nice with overdrives. HAS to be crystal clear with chords, even ones with lots of open notes; that is an absolute requirement.

Anyone know of a pedal to fit this bill? Any filter or synth box is cool. Throw whatever you've got at me. Something preferably easy to find used though.

[Tristan]

One thing that gets into my mind that also works on chords is a Sample Rate Reducer / Bit Crusher:
Dr Scientist BitQuest
Hexe Electronics Bitcrusher III
Iron Ether FrantaBit
Lateral Sound Bit
Malekko Bit
Mooer Lo-Fi Machine
WMD Geiger Counter

[sylnau]

Iron ether FrantaBit
Fairfield Circuitry Randy's Revange

[Uncle Grandfather]

Infanem Analog Harmony Synth
OTO Biscuit

[DaveLawrence]

One thing that gets into my mind that also works on chords is a Sample Rate Reducer / Bit Crusher:
Malekko Bit
Mooer Lo-Fi Machine

I think these two are what I am looking for. Especially the Bit, but I can find that precisely nowhere online.

GC sells the Moorer though.


Any more, maybe more on the modulation side as I think I have the lo-fi, metallic part of my request sorted. Really like these tiny pedals though.

[sylnau]

Maybe the Catalinbread Heliotrope

[DaveLawrence]

One thing that gets into my mind that also works on chords is a Sample Rate Reducer / Bit Crusher:
Malekko Bit
Mooer Lo-Fi Machine

I think these two are what I am looking for. Especially the Bit, but I can find that precisely nowhere online.

GC sells the Moorer though.


Any more, maybe more on the modulation side as I think I have the lo-fi, metallic part of my request sorted. Really like these tiny pedals though.

The more I look at the clips of these pedals the more I realize that I don't actually know how well they operate for what I need. They all play very strange single note stuff with the bit nonsense at full.

They are playing to the pedals' weirdness while I am more interested in practical applications of it. Oh well.

[Tristan]

Maybe try this video, is there some stuff in here that you'd like to do?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgV01YbGr_Y

[skullservant]

Montreal Assembly Wrong Side of Uranus is a great bit crusher if you can find one

[DaveLawrence]

Maybe try this video, is there some stuff in here that you'd like to do?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgV01YbGr_Y

Lord no. I really don't think these "bit crushers" are for me. Someone said they can handle chords but they sound less stable than Muffs.

I need something incredibly transparent and can handle full 6-string chords. I want that lo-fi sizzle squarely in the background. I still want to hear my guitar's tone.

Maybe bit crushers can actually do what I want, but only one video I have seen kind of does (prymaxe vintage's video for the Mooer Lofi has like a 5 second bit where he turns the mix knob down and gets this nice sound behind his clean tone).


I may just have to suck it up and get a blending pedal.

[Uncle Grandfather]

I need something incredibly transparent and can handle full 6-string chords. I want that lo-fi sizzle squarely in the background. I still want to hear my guitar's tone.

OTO biscuit

[Chankgeez]

Try using more than one pedal to accomplish this.

[Tristan]

Well, quite a few of these bit crusher type pedals have a mix knob so you can mix your original guitar sound in.
I think you're more looking for the sample rate reduction side than the bit crusher side and then with a good deal of your original guitar sound blended in, that's the way I use my bit crushers quite often as well.

[sylnau]

I need something incredibly transparent and can handle full 6-string chords. I want that lo-fi sizzle squarely in the background. I still want to hear my guitar's tone.

Fairfield Circuitry Randy's Revenge > your OD of choice (in my case, Mid-Fi Overdrive or Liquid Gain Hydra).
Randy have a mix knob so you can get it in the background... sound awesome.

[DaveLawrence]

Not looking to spend much here. OTO Biscuit is $600 and Randy's Revenge is $300. That is a lot for something I will be running on low.