2022 February Pedal-Chain Update - Episode II - Mercurial Suspense

2 absolute killer multi- and dual-drives. The DSM & Humboldt is probably the most versatile analog gain machine yet - those smart controls and voicing onboard take you through all the key celebrated overdrives and distortions - also with a couple of usable fuzz voicings when gain is cranked.

The Demiurge Teras is not dissimilar to the recent Matthews Effects The Broker - only even more granular and versatile - but not with the ability to switch order. Instead this follows the King Tone Duellist very closely - with those 3 voicing options per side, we also have the Body control from the Soloist on the SRV TS808 side, and an internal Soft / Hard Clipping switch utilising cool S1588’s and Bat283’s clipping diodes.

Both of these are incredible really - thank you to Joseph Maxwell for building me a Teras - I feel very privileged - it was by all accounts a really tricky and fiddly circuit to build - in those close confines. Some version of that may eventually see the light of day as a production model - but for now these are too complicated really to be made satisfactorily easily!

• Demiurge Teras Dual Drive (Compact Duellist Clone with Soloist Mod)
  
• DSM & Humboldt Silver Linings Drive / Preamp Engine

If you're usually a fan of the JCM800 sound - but wanted a little more out of that format - then the Frost Giant AOR is the perfect pedal for you. Something like a tuned up hot-rotted JCM800 with more of everything onboard. A great two-channel distortion for sure which is incredibly shapable and powerful.

• Frost Giant Electronics Architect of Reality Dual Channel Preamp Snowblind Edition

2 of the most potent and versatile Fuzz pedals you could ever wish to encounter - one of them is aptly called the All-Bender, while the other one could easily be called the All-Muff - essentially one has you covered for the Big Muff genre, and the other has you covered for Tone Benders - where each gives you the widest range of tones - which represent the whole range of those two formats.

• KMA Machines Chief Disruptor Fuzz / Distortion
• Tampco Pedals All-Bender MultiFuzz Unit

PastFX's excellent MN3002 Chorus is a wonderfully nuanced modulation that brilliantly replicates that authentic original Boss CE-1 tone. To have all that vintage classic goodness in such a compact enclosure is simply a marvel! :

• PastFx MN3002 Chorus Ensemble Mini

11 slots  are impacted for February - featuring 5 brand new pedals on #4, #5, #16, #20 and #26, one brand new to me on #33 - same legends as usual - Green NEW denotes brand new, Yellow NEW denotes slightly older pedal - but new to me / the rig.

As promised - a lot of favourites have returned for this month - the Condor, Modded Blues Driver, Kondo, Room #40 and N5+3D Gold. Some of these slots had further rotations - which I will cover of via the details as is customary :

So slots #4, #5, #10, #11, #12, #16, #20, #23, #24, #26, and #33 are all changed for February.

So the All-Pedal Macrodose Envelope Filter arrived right at the end of January - which meant it didn't get fully established until February - where it's been in rotation the whole month now. As many commentators note - this pedal has a huge variety of sounds onboard, but because of its inherent expansive nature it's not always the easiest to dial in. Some due diligence and perseverance will reward those who have the patience for it - while others might find it a lilt complex and fiddly to operate. I've had a full month of exploration and only really scratched the surface - you definitely need to allow time to get the most out of this pedal.

This was another pedal which arrived just in time for the end of the month - meaning that before the Tampco All-Bender Multifuzz Unit landed - the Menatone Law Bender was back on Multi-Bender duties. There may be another further surprise release in March - which will complete that set! These are obviously some of the most formidable wide-ranging Tone Benders ever made!

At one stage I thought that since I had the bigger and grander Automatone Preamp MKII - that I really did not need the Condor, While the Condor has quite a different core engine (vs Benson Preamp of the Automatone) - and I really like it as an overdrive - it has excellent clarity and texture - and with all those added functions you can turn it to all manner of tasks - even though it's mostly just another overdrive flavour for me!

No surprises that my favourite ever overdrive - the Keely Freak Fuzz Modded Boss BD-2 Blues Driver is back in circulation. Will be interesting to see how it holds up against a slew of stellar incoming pedals over the next month - including the Greuter Natural Selection, CKK Honey Drive, and Missing Link Audio HotLanta Dual Drive - one of those may just pip my all-time favourite - we'll find out relatively soon!

Another perennial favourite back on duty here - the magnificent Demon Pedals Kondo-Shifuku - though which has had to share the slot with Joseph 'Demiurge' Maxwell's Teras Dual Drive - a superb compact take on the King Tone Duellist - currently only made for less than a handful of friends. It is not likely to go into full production - so it's not featured on the main visual. Fantastic to have it in the collection - and I really look forward to comparing it to the 2022. / V3 Duellist which should be landing on these shores any week now.

The DSM & Humboldt Silver Linings Drive / Preamp has to be the most capable analog drive pedal of this type. It has an incredibly range of flavours, tones and texture on board - from the most elegant transparent low gain overdrive to the most blistering distortion and fuzz. It has a genius control topology - but you still need to be careful with those dials as you can all too easily overload the circuit which produces some very odd tones indeed. If handled with care - this could be near enough every drive voice you need in the single pedal.

I have no shortage of Multi-Muff or All-Muff units even with the TX Pedals Animalizzer and Toneczar OTP key amongst those - the new BAT Priestess is of course amazing - and we can add KMA's Chief Disruptor Fuzz / Distortion to that number. I still feel the Animalizzer is the king of this format - while each of these has its own strengths and own beautifully textures and tones. The Chief Disruptor's EQ section with Clean Blend is genius - while those. tiny knobs cannot be easily controlled by toes! Unlike some others of this elite group - which I can adjust more easily on-the-fly. The Chief Disruptor definitely is the whole package - and has one of the most arresting artworks this year - rich with hidden meanings!

Another favourite back in the fold - the Tsakalis Audio Works Room #40 MIAB - while slots #23 and #24 have been heavily in rotation with some March's forthcoming pedals - which will be revealed soon. The Room #40 is still the most comprehensive Marshall coverage in a compact enclosure!

Another slot in heavy rotation while it does not really belong to the Sinvertek N5+ 3D Gold - which has to be the most formidable and shapeable of compact Distortion pedals. It sounds every bit as amazing as you're led to believe!

This was one that got away from me last year - while I'm so happy I got one of the all-white Snowblind Edition ones. This is based on the late 80's into 90's Laney Advanced Overdrive Response Amp - which was their hot-rodded take on the Marshall JCM800 - with all manner of additional boost settings which were activated by pulling out a number of the Amp knobs. On the pedal those are rendered via toggle switches - making this an incredible extended range JCM800 able to reach all manner of territories that the original cannot not. A really great sounding and articular dual channel distortion!

An exceptional take on the original Boss CE-1 Chorus & Vibrato - featuring the same Mojo parts - including the MN3002 Matsushita BBD Chip. Just an extraordinarily  nuanced and beautiful sounding Stereo Chorus,