Magnetic Effects' Christian Livingstone Delivers Signature 4-Stage OTA Analog Phaser to commemorate his Band - The Datsuns' Recent 'Eye to Eye' Album Release
I’ve long been fan of Christian Livingstone’s Magnetic Effects - his Fuzzes in particular, and with my acquisition of this Eye to Eye Phaser, my total is up to 8 - including the celebrated White Atom and Solar Bender Fuzzes, also Black Moon, Buzzer, Buzzkill, Dual Drive, and Lonely Robot.
I’ve always felt that Chris’s pedals are beautifully put together and very reasonably priced. I’ve had some exposure to his band The Datsuns - and I’m totally blown away by the new album - which is fantastic fuzz-laden blistering, visceral delight. Really superbly produced with lots of fantastic fuzz tones and lovely musical detailing often by accompanying keyboard or smartly applied effect. Really tight and exciting driven tones. Everything about the album is superb - and I don’t usually reference band music on this site in this way - besides commemoratively - so that’s how much it has impacted me. In fact I was thinking I really did not need another phaser - but then the music spurred me into action!
As with all of Christian's Pedals - the Eye to Eye doesn't necessarily follow conventions and does some interesting things of its own as do most of his circuits. I've already claimed 2021 to be the 'Year of the Phaser' where I've added 4 Phasers to the collection this year - while we are only just half-way through the calendar. I have another Phaser all ready to roll which I can't mention quite yet - keep your eyes peeled for the 13th of August! So besides this latest Eye to Eye Phaser - I have picked up the Flower Pedals Castilleja and of course Thorpy's all-conquering Pulse Doppler.
The Eye to Eye has 6 smart controls (with tiny legends it has to be said!) - Regen/Resonance, Speed RATE / Range : Higher / LFO Off / Lower, Speed, Level, Dry>Wet Mix, Frequency Sweep.
The REGEN control produces a more mellow, subtle phase at lower settings and, at higher settings it adds a more pronounced and resonant phase effect.
The SPEED control has a wide speed Range which is extended further via the three way RATE toggle switch (Speed RANGE) which selects the overall speed range of modulation. The middle switch position disables the LFO to enable the Eye To Eye to act as a stationary filter.
The LEVEL control allows you to compensate for any perceived volume difference that can occur when using a phaser. It also allows for a boost in output level for solos.
The versatile control set includes a Dry > Wet MIX control which changes the ratio of dry to wet signal. This allows the pedal to blend between dry, phased and vibrato settings. At minimum, you will hear only the dry signal. Set it to noon for equal parts dry and wet, the traditional Phaser setting, and set it to maximum for 100% wet - resulting in pitch vibrato.
Finally, the range of frequencies the phase sweeps through is controlled by the SWEEP control. Set low for a narrow range and a less dramatic effect, or higher for a wider range resulting in a more pronounced phaser effect.
There are sound samples on the Featured Website Page. While on this occasions I prefer to refer to 4 of the blistering tracks off the Eye to Eye album - as follows :
Final Thoughts
I will likely try to follow up with Christian to find out exactly which of his pedals he used on this new album - on a track-by-track basis - as they all sound fantastic - it's always good to find out what gear is being used this successfully. I will of course do a follow-up article if it turns out Chris has some time for me!
I've been after an early version of the Double Feature too for quite some time - the early compact edition with 4 controls and dual footswitches - obviously much preferring the compact format to the later BB-size enclosure. I will likely ask Christian about that to when and if I get through to him.
What about you - are you inspired to get this phaser - or are you all phased out for the year already?
Oh and the Eye to Eye Phaser is available for a limited time, and is priced at just £139 - you can get one from the Magnetic Effects Webstore.
If you're interested in the album I recommend you check out The Datsuns' Eye to Eye Bandcamp Page.
