Sporting a red-sparkle metal enclosure
and shiny gold knobs, the Triskelion
Harmonic Energizer TK-01 ($349 retail)
takes its cue from vintage units such as
the Maestro Parametric Filter and Systech
Harmonic Energizer, allowing you to
boost a particular frequency to the point
of depravity for a plethora of tones ranging
from beautiful to ugly to beautifully
ugly. The TK-01’s simple control layout
sports an Energy control, which dials in
the amount of boost, while Variant Mass
selects the frequency to be boosted and a
Boost button shifts the bandwidth of the
bost to a higher-frequency range. Amplitude
controls the pedal’s overall output
level, and the Engage function shuts off
the TK-01’s gain so the pedal can be used
strictly as an EQ pedal, not a booster.
There is also an expression pedal jack in
case you want to work the TK-01 like a
nitrous-fueled wah pedal.
The TK-01 has a lot of tonal tricks up
its sleeve. Far from being just a freaky
tweez box—think Frank Zappa’s ridiculously
peaked midrange tones on Shut Up
‘n Play Yer Guitar—the TK-01 is also capable
of producing warm, round, “woman”
tones or glassy crystalline textures. Wired
between a Telecaster and a Deluxe Reverb,
the TK-01 did everything from drive the
amp into singing feedback (musical,
on-demand feedback is one of its specialties)
to delivering a searing, yet understated,
“notched wah” tone à la Michael Schenker.
I was also afforded some pummeling lowend
fuzz tones that, when paired with a
Gibson SG and Marshall 50-watt head,
were simply devastating. But once you
start messing with your guitar’s volume
and tone controls, pickup combinations,
and picking attack, the sheer number of
tones the TK-01 delivers is mind-blowing.
Whether you want paper-thin slabs
of single-note splat or funky lo-fi textures
that that sit perfectly in a live or recorded
mix, it just takes a little patience to find
the right combination of settings. The
TK-01 is a killer tone tool for studio or
stage, giving you frequency flavors from
subtle to wild to “WTF?”
Kudos A unique effect that can be as crazy
or as subtle as you want it to be.
Concerns None.
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