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Introduction to the intriguing new and innovative Los Angeles Pedal Brand - Hangman fx

Best of BrandsBoostBoost and OverdriveDigital DelayDistortionDriveDual-DriveFuzzFuzz-Drive and FuzzstortionHangman fxModulationMulti-FXOctave FuzzOddball DelayOverdriveTape DelayTremolo+-
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These Hangman fx pedals have been doing the rounds somewhat of late - both Emily Hopkins and the Superfunawesomehappytime chaps received bumper care package of these fairly recently. And Intheblue’s Shane Diiorio and Mike Hermans have at least one apiece.

 

I do hope Guitar Pedal X can be more involved at the front of these sorts of brand launch events. I mustn’t grumble really - I do get included in many a release schedule, and plenty gets sent my way - but weirdly I still feel like I’m missing out a lot of the time - particularly when I’m missing out on a brand like Hangman fx! 

 

Generally I don’t suffer FOMA, but I do sometimes feel left out on the pedal release front - even with all those many brands I already serve (350+)! In fact some of those even forget about me from time-to-time too - and I don’t even get the press-release or advance announcement!

 

When I first caught sight of this brand, it reminded me a little of Matthews Effects - with those kind of intricate / detailed sort of Victorian Science / Device / Blueprint aesthetics - with even a hint of steampunk in places. While the use of liberal gold accents (instead of say brass) - including logo plates,  knobs and washers - serves to further elevate the aesthetic of this brand. The slightly ’busy’ nature of those pedals’ graphics  makes them a little tricky to ’read’ at times. And so I feel the need to fully decipher them here - where with other brands - viewers might more easily be able to ascertain what’s going on from merely glancing at the surface of the pedal - while there’s a lot more going on here - inside and out.

 

These are mostly dual-channel / dual function style pedals - so there is a degree of inherent complexity in places, and where the often dense graphics can get in the way of legibility and clarity. I do find there to be a solid logic though in how these pedals and their control topologies are laid out - which is always a good thing.

 

There are some pedals out there that are just a little too idiosyncratic for their own good - while that’s certainly not the case here. Generally I really love what I’m seeing!

 

Judging from Instagram - Hangman fx first entered the fray in early June of this year. Hangman fx is Orange County native Paul J Meredith - of course since moved to and established in LA. Paul is a longstanding musician - very keen on exploring different musical soundscapes. His pedals combine musicality and artistry in a pretty striking format all-round

 

In fact Paul reminds me a little of Oliver Ackerman from Death By Audio, and Daniel Thornhill from Fjord Fuzz - all 3 are artist / performers in their own right - and develop their pedals to a large degree to help expand their own musical horizons.

 

Paul mentions that all his pedals are dual-natured, multifunctional and versatile. What I see is several highly unique and innovative circuits - distinct enough to be their own thing. Hangman FX has certainly made a very strong first impression, and particularly on me!

 

And Paul is obviously a man with an eye for detail - as there are little details to be found everywhere - including Meteor and Dinosaur Fragments within those LED Lenses (Note - for the first 100 pedals only!).

 

These pedals are fully artisan hand-wired and assembled is Los Angeles within a tight network of local artists and component suppliers. Paul is definitely off to a really strong start here, and I look forward to seeing where he ventures next - definitely a major new ’voice’ in the pedal landscape.

 

Readers will know that I love extended range compact pedals with dual-footswitches - so all of those pedals are right up my street as such. I generally favour stereo immersion for my spatial effects / delays / reverbs / rotary emulators. While the Meteoric Echo Monster is also highly intriguing even for my stereo sensibilites. And the two Micro pedals - in particular the light-sensitive Luma Express are a really neat and practical touch.

 

I will definitely be coming for those compacts (possibly more!) - hopefully some kind of deal can be struck - indeed that’s how I largely operate. I’m sage enough to know that not everyone will necessarily want to collaborate with me, while I do typically have an exceptionally high hit rate. I would definitely like to get my hands on some of these Hangman fx. We just need to see how open to collaboration Paul is!

 

Pricing-wise the 2 Micro pedal are at $30 and $80 (Luma Express), while the compacts are $220 / $240, and the Meteoric Echo Machine is at $270. Deliveries to mainland USA are mostly free - while obviously there will be more challenges in shipping to me in London! The standard pedals are in black or white and gold, while there is an aptly named ’Pinkman’ Editions Range - with a $50 premium - where all of that goes to Paul’s chosen charity - St Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital - what a lovely gesture - especially if you love bright fuchsia pink! The gold accents and graphics are the same - just the underlying enclosure paint job is quite a different hue!

 

Note that there’s a lot of added smarts with these pedals too - which I can’t necessarily cover in an overview of this nature - that will have to wait for more in-depth individual hands-on reviews. Where you can feel the action for instance of the Meteoric Echo Monster - where 3 of its knobs have dynamic Press functions - where for the Level knob you trigger Oscillation, Repeats triggers a Freeze Mode, and you can Tap the Speed knob for Tap Tempo - really really smart. Pretty much all of these pedals have further internal dip-switches and trimmers for additional options and refinements.

 

Here follow the individual summaries for each pedal (with pertinent demos) - Paul has chosen his collaborators smartly :

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The Atomic World Ender - Octave Fuzz + Chopper Tremolo / Pro - $240

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Controls - FUZZ } Fuzz Output, EQ Range [H]igh / L=[L]ow / [M]ids, Tone (Dark>Bright), Clipping : LED / None / MOSFET, Gain, Mode [OCT]ave Fuzz / [G]ated Fuzz / [NG] Non-Gated, Fuzz Footswitch; CHOPPER TREMOLO } Tremolo Speed,  Fine Tune (for Speed / Drone),  Tremolo Depth, Chopper Tremolo Footswitch.

 

Side Ports - Expression, Remote Switch Port can target either footswitch courtesy of internal dip-switch.

 

Essentially a 3-Mode Fuzz - Octave / Gated / Non Gated - with EQ and Clipping Options, alongside a hyper choppy 'Chopper' Tremolo - which renders Drone sounds at peak oscillation - with both elements independently activated via separate footswitches - a really cool Octave-Trem-Drone-Fuzz in short!

 

Paul advocates liberal use of the Tremolo at warp speeds : "The chopper in the atomic world ender chops so fast it becomes a drone note which is pretty cool and fun and can get reallyyy doomy and heavy."


Lord GermFet Dual Channel Triple Germanium Transistor + JFET Overdrive (≈Fetzer Valve) - $240

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Controls - GERMANIUM SIDE } Output, Gain, Tone (Hi-Cut), Voting : [L]ow / [H]igh / [Vint]age, Germanium Drive Footwitch; JFET SIDE (Fetzer Valve+) } Output, Gain, Presence : Twangy / Thick & Bold, JFET Drive Footswitch; ORDER : GERMANIUM <> JFET.

Side Port - Remote Switch Port can target either footswitch courtesy of internal dip-switch.

 

A fantastic proper dual channel overdrive with an expansive 3-Germanium-Transistor Fuzzy-Drive on the left Chanel, and an expressive JFET (Fetzer Valve style) overdrive on the right hand side. 

 

Paul further adds : "The germanium side of the Lord GermFet is more of an overdrive but it can be pushed into fuzz, and the JFET side is a modified fetzer valve so a little more gain and body than a regular stock fetzer."


The Tyrannosaur MegaDriver Overdrive / Fuzzstortion with 2 switchable Gain Stages - $220

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Controls - Roar (Gain / Volume - Middle Gain Stage), Growl (Gain - Early Gain Stage), Meat (Bass Boost), Gain (End Gain Stage - Lowers Gain), Gated (Textured Gated Boost), Growl 2 (2nd Footswtichable Gain Level), Drive Engage Footswitch, Growl 2 Second Gain Setting.

 

Side Port - Growl 2 Remote mostly, but can target either footswitch via internal dip-switch.

 

An intriguing Multi-Gain-Staging pedal where you have smart granular control over the key Gain Stages to effect a wide variety of different gain textures and tones. Like a full stacking chain of pedals - but all in one box!


Meteoric Echo Monster Dual Modulation / Delay / Chorus / Vibrato / Boost / Noise-Maker - $270

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Controls - Level [Oscillation], Repeats [Freeze], Time (between Delay Repeats), Voice (Tone of Repeats), Boost, Waveforms : Ramp Up / Ramp Down / Square / Triangle / Sine / Lumps / Stepped / Random , Depth (Primary Modulation), Speed [Tap] (Primary Modulation), Dry Kill : Wet / Off, Depth (Secondary Modulation), Speed (Secondary Modulation), Moment (Trails On/Off), Primary Modulation Depth / Intensity : Medium / Low / High, Auto Latching/Momentary Left Footswitch for Non-Trail Delays, Auto Latching/Momentary Right Footswitch for Trail Delays.

 

Side Ports : Expression, Insert Loop / External Footswitch Remote.

 

Note also that 3 of the knobs have secondary dynamic press functions - where you can step on those to activate Oscillation from Level knob, Freeze Function form Repeats knob, and Tap Tempo off Speed knob - really smart functionality! Also the External / Remote Port also doubles as an insert loop - you will of course need a 1/8" end cable or adapter for that.

 

The Meteoric Echo Monster is a single delay line but dual modulation, analog-voiced DSP type presumably - where a highly expansive control topology delivers all kinds of Wild Delay and Tape-Delay-Style Modulation sounds, Mono only, but incredibly versatile - with a Bolder Primary Voicing, and Subtler Secondary Voicing!

 

Paul loves to drive up the Primary Modulation : "The primary modulation can get CRAZY high depth to do wild with pitch bending madness!"

 

There is so much going on with this delay hat it super appeals to my maximalist pedal nature - even though it's mono. Most probably the star of the show here - while I of course really love those compacts! So much to love!


The Luma Express Light Sensitive Expression Pedal - $80

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Controls - Mode : Light-Sensitive / Manual (Knob), Resistance (degree / speed of onset), Rotary Multi-Purpose Knob to set and refine Range / Levels / Resistance.

 

A really cool Light-Sensitive Expression Pedal - which can also be operated manual via the knob provided. And you can control the 'Resistance' or speed of onset to enhance the experience for the relevant pedal attached.


The Switch Box Remote Switcher Pedal - $30

Part of a current trend where home-players like having the two footswitches relatively close together - but where live / gigging musicians tend to prefer more of a separation between the footswitches - hence a lot of builders are including remote switch jacks / ports on their pedals - to give that option! In the case of Hangman fx each of those connected pedals has an internal dip-switch - which allows you to target either of the 2 footswitches.


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Stefan Karlsson
Posted by Stefan Karlsson
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