HM-2 Capsule Collection Goes to 11!

Controls - Level, Lows - Color Mix - Highs, Distortion, Mode : Standard / Custom.
 
This has been featured a lot on this site this year both on its own, and as part of the Waza Craft Capsule / Collection / Selection. I feel this is an improvement over the original in every area - and the dimed-out Standard Mode is every bit as viscerally exciting as it ever was - the very epitome of that Swedish Death Metal / Chainsaw Distortion sound. The Custom Mode adds more range to each of the 4 knobs and beefs things up further - where I titled my chosen preset there as 'Doom Thunder' - an incredible Bass-Heavy Wall of Sound for my preferences. Every proper HM-2 fan should have one of these at the core of their collection - without it your HM-2 Capsule just isn't fully representative! This is still a fantastic option for this sound - despite so many extended-range alternatives.

Controls - Low, Mid, High, Level, Focus (Twin Peak Shift), Gain.
 
Dmitry Trofimov's take on the circuit has been in the collection for quite a few years now. It has a very clever mix of controls - including full 3-band EQ, and a Twin Peaks Focus / EQ-Shift knob which allows you to move the Twin Peaks Distortion Profile up and down the frequency scale - whether to accentuate it further or temper it somewhat. This is a really smart take on the genre and remains as a somewhat underground option based largely on how difficult these are to get hold of, as Dmitry makes them in fairly unfrequent small batches - well worth snagging one though if you're lucky enough to come across it on Reverb.com!

Controls - Frequency Low, Frequency Mid, Frequency High, Low, Mid, High, Volume, Distortion.
 
This is funnily enough the more compact pedalboard-friendly version of the Chaotic Evil Ned - where the limited-edition original was around 3 times the length and with 3 further knobs - which allowed you to set Resonance also per each of the 3 frequency bands - for a total of 11 controls. The PBF CEN does without those 3 knobs and shaves off 2/3rds of its former length! I tried hard to persuade Patrick Emmons to make another batch of the Black and Orange varieties - in the end though I had to snap up a pristine second-hand one off Reverb.com - very timely indeed. Having full 3-band Parametric EQ for the HM-2 is undeniably cool.

Controls - Gain, Distortion, Clean (Blend), Low, Mid, High, Low Freq, Mid Freq, Clean Blend Post/Pre.
 
It wasn't just my waiting for an Abominable PBF CEN to become available again - which was instrumental in delaying the original roundup article - I was also waiting for a demo of this excellent new HM-2 variety by relative newcomer Tim Nowak. In fact I've acquired two of his pedals recently - this one, and his forthcoming Thunderclap V3 which is essentially a Bass-player's Rat style circuit married to a Clean Preamp (Still waiting for the demo on that one!). It was fortunate that I held out - as the demo went live just the day before my initial publication! This has the most controls of all these compact versions featured - with no less than 9 - comprised of 6 knobs and 3 toggle-switches. The first switch of which 'Low Freq' allows you to select between 60 and 100Hz, then the Mid Freq is 250 or 500Hz, and the final switch sets where the Clean Blend comes in the circuit - Pre or Post gain stage. Each of the frequency bands is an active EQ with ±15 dB of boost/cut. Note also that the High frequency control boosts and cuts at 1.2kHz. This is another really smart execution of the circuit with really refined controls. The added bonus here is that great artwork and symmetrical arrangement, and the fact that the Demon's eyes light up! The demo really shows how versatile this particular variant is - with so many great tones onboard - besides the typical dimed-out Swedish Death Metal signature. This pedal is well worth seeking out - and I'm delighted to have snagged one from the very first batch!

Controls - Volume, Terror (Gain), Highs, High Mids, Low Mids, Lows, 4 x Frequency trim-pots and 3-way Mode dip-switches.
 
Even with its new larger and more feature-heavy Guardian of the Wurm sibling (as below), the Wurm / WurHM is still very much a valid choice with its 4-Band EQ, and internal trim-pots which deliver 4-Band Parametric EQ essentially. It's obviously significantly more compact than its sibling - which makes it more versatile and easily placeable within a pedalboard or pedal-chain. Moreover you get 3 different voicing modes - an Authentic Replication, Enrico's Evolved Take on the signature profile, and a combination of the both. This has always been one of the finest HM-2 options out there - and is really in a different category to the super-sized Guardian of the Wurm and Klirrton Grindstein. Depending on how my rig - pedal-chain is set up - I may well have the CBA Preamp MKII back in its main slot - which means I cannot deploy the largest HM-2 variants - and where the mid-size box is the maximum that the pedal-chain can otherwise accommodate. I am so happy I landed the limited edition WurHM - and even though it does now sit somewhat in the shadow of its larger Guardian of the Wurm sibling - it will still remain the more practical go-to choice for many players.

Controls - Level, Silicon/Germanium Clipping, Gain, Presence, High, Low, Mid, Clean Mix, Vintage Footswitch, Modern Footswitch.
 
Many, and I among them, consider Joe Anastasio's Lone Wolf Audio Left Hand Wrath another total essential within this genre. I believe it's about the longest-lived clone, or at least the most celebrated these many years, and has graced various formats and configurations. Most players' favourite is this BB-size edition with now 7 standard knobs - where the earlier editions did not have the central Clean Mix knob. There are some really smart controls here which give you clipping options and Vintage and Modern playback modes selectable via the two footswitches. This pedal has changed format so many times, and in fact there was another new design on the drawing board just after I acquired this one. I still largely feel that no HM-2 collection is complete without one of these - while there are some detractors out there that don't seem to appreciate Joe's efforts quite enough. For me this is for sure another classic of this genre.

Controls - Treble, High-Mids, Midrange Boost/Cut, Bass, Volume, Clean Blend, Mid Frequency, Gain.
 
I've fast become friends with Brooks Blackhawk in my recent explorations of his range of killer gain pedals. He specialises in really textured, chunky, sludgy high gain fuzzes and distortions and I've acquired 8 of his already (including the Heimdall and Sauron most recently). As is my way I explore deep within a builder's range and look to pick up all the most pertinent and key signature varieties - of which Brooks has a lot! This is a suitably full-on take of the HM-2 format - in his usual highly visually appealing tribal / runic style - where he hand-engraves all those designs with a customised version of Dremel type tool. Style wise this is a mix of Native American Symbolism and Viking Runes - which obviously appeals enormously to my ancestry - or at least the Icelandic half. I had long intended to get stuck into Brooks' pedals - but had other commitment and priorities to see to first - it's been really exciting exploring the range so far and I already have my next to Blackhawk's lined up for early next year - the Uruk-hai and Valkyrie. The Heimdall is another really superb take on the HM-2 format - and it's incredibly easy to dial in and shape.

Controls - V for Volume, F for Mid Frequency, Trident for Gain, 3-way Mid EQ-Shift Toggle, T for Treble, M for Mids Cut/Boost, B for Bass, Right Footswitch is On/Bypass, Left is HM-2 Mode Engage (additive only).

This is one of my favourite High Gain Pedals of all-time - just Brutally hard hitting - with incredible versatility, punch, saturation and sizzle. Probably has the most Sizzle on tap of any of my high gain pedal - it virtually crackles with electricity - like a lighting storm! This is not actually a specific HM-2 type pedal - but where there is a killer HM-2 Option / Voicing / EQ - accessed via switching the EQ Shift Toggle Up, and hitting the left-hand HM-2 EQ Footswitch. Mids Frequency needs to be adjusted for the lower Twin Peak, and Treble pretty much maxed out, with Bass dropped back a touch. It's quite a different version of HM-2 to the Heimdall - but every bit as visceral and joyful to deploy. The EQ-Shift Toggle-switch plus HM-2 Tone Profile Footswitch - give you essentially 6 different EQ / gain structures - where you need to set the dials very specifically to get the best HM-2 tones - I really like both the Heimdall and Sauron, and can't decide which of those two I prefer for those particular tones - currently I'm enjoying deploying both - each has its advantages - some will no doubt prefer the added Clean Blend and High-Mids controls of the Heimdall - while I really like the fact that with the Sauron that there are so many different types of brute force distortion onboard. Note that there are still no YouTube demos for the Sauron yet.

Controls - Gain, Low, Lo-Mid, Hi-Mid, High, Gate, Clip Diode : Asymmetrical / Silicon, EQ Style : HMII / Both / KMA, Master (Volume), Low Freq, Lo-Mid Freq, Hi-Mid Freq, High Freq, (Clean) Blend, Internal : Distortion Level, Clean Volume, Gate Response, Trigger Source, Input Filter.
 
It's great to see that Germany is responsible for the two most monster extended-range HM-2 pedals - which each has a very distinct approach to enhanced shaping of that celebrated Twin Peaks Distortion. The KMA Guardian of the Wurm - approaches it from the supreme Tone-Shaping angle - providing fully externalised and surface accessible 4-Band Parametric EQ - with added Clean Blend, and Dynamic input and side-chain trigger Noise Gate. It gets you to the same sorts of incredible textural results as the former singular reigning champ - the Kilrton Grindstein - while it achieves it by an entirely different means. I really love both approaches here. In terms of versatility and variability there is very little than can compete with the Guardian of the Wurm and its 14 exterior controls, 2 internal trimmers, and 3 dip-switches. You can simply go places here that you cannot acheive anywhere else and you have an incredible tone-shaping environment to get the exact tone and texture of Swedish Chainsaw per your own exacting demands. I love the artwork on this and all the features - of course I wish it could be smaller, and I may have preferred it in vertical orientation as the width / girth of a pedal will always be the major limiting factor in pedalboard / pedal-chain placement. Overall this is the ultimate take on the HM-2 with easily the most granular of tone-shaping controls!

Controls - Chainsaw : Midcut, Grind, High, Universal : Boost, (Channel) Mix, Master (Volume), Phase (Inversion), BottomShaker : Gain, Bass, Treble, Internal :Send Level, Return Level, Chainsaw Level, Boost On/Off.
 
This was the original super-size champ, and is the dearest in this selection. This was my first proper big box HM-2 and I really love its approach to ultimate texture generation - using two highly complementary gain channels - where one delivers the Twin Peaks Chainsaw distortion, while the Bottomshaker Preamp balances that with some considerable low-end heft. Essentially you set each channel to your preferences, and then blend to taste. Even though this has just 10 controls compared to the Guardian Of the Wurm's 14 and more expansive EQ, the Grindstein never the less delivers just as impressively textured a distortion in its own way. Both approaches here are brilliant, and really work. This pedal for sure has a big footprint - in fact same size as the Guardian of the Wurm pretty much - just in a slightly better orientation, and therefore with more lateral compatibility. From my perspective there really is very little difference in how impressive the results of this are versus the Guardian of the Wurm - they both deliver exceptionally richly detailed distortions - where some players may very likely prefer one approach to the other. While for me both these approaches work superbly and deliver similarly high-end results. You will need to decide for yourself whether you prefer the Guardian to the Grindstein as I'm declaring them pretty much equals at the very top of the HM-2 tree - in terms of their extended feature sets and granularity. Of course most of you won't need both like me - while I feel I need to own both varieties to have a fully representative HM-2 Capsule Collection!