Effects trailblazer Eventide Audio has just unveiled what it calls the “next-generation multi-effects pedal.”

Building on the legacy of the H9, Eventide’s new H90 Harmonizer boasts 62 effect algorithms as well as hundreds of program combinations curated with a variety of instruments and genres in mind.

Sporting an intuitive user interface, the Eventide H90 features a comprehensive I/O layout and adaptable routing options. A handy built-in tuner is also included.

Descending from the firm’s flagship H9000 Harmonizer, the pedalboard-compatible H90 features powerful ARM-based architecture that enables “never heard before” effects.

"The H90 is the culmination of years of creative input from the team at Eventide as well as our inspiring users,” commented Russell Wedelich, VP of Development and Director of Signal Processing at Eventide.

“We're excited about the music (and cool new DSP math!) made possible with this next level of DSP power, and even more excited to hear the music our customers will make."

Fans of the H9 Max can still look forward to using all 52 of those popular algorithms, though they have been enriched with features previously only available on the dot9 pedals and plug-ins.

The H90 offers ten additional state-of-the-art algorithms, including fast-tracking, warble-free Polyphonic Pitch Shifting courtesy of Eventide’s SIFT (Spectral Instantaneous Frequency Tracking) technology.

Seven of these new algorithms include:

• Polyphony – Pitch shift chords with ease using SIFT technology. Create rising or sinking chorus and crystals-type effects. Use Freeze to generate pad textures
• Prism Shift – Generate three voices from a single chord whose intervals are separated, staggered, and pitch-shifted to create four arpeggio types spanning up to three octaves
• Even-Vibe – Authentic Uni-Vibe emulation reimagined in stereo with envelope followers
• Head Space – Vintage four-head Tape Delay with classic and modern creative tone shaping controls for grit, spatiality, and character
• Bouquet Delay – Bucket Brigade Delay (BBD) with modulation, LoFi, and Modern flavors; includes Pitch jump and Self-oscillation performance functions
• Wormhole – A mega-sized hyper-modulated reverb with pitch warping performance
• Weedwacker – Two-stage, serial overdrive reminiscent of a famous green pedal

A further three algorithms are derived from Eventide's acclaimed rackmount processors, namely:

• Instant Phaser – Authentic emulation of the world's first studio Phaser from 1971 (as used on Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir")
• Instant Flanger – Authentic emulation of the world's first studio Flanger heard on countless hit records
• SP2016 Reverb – The legendary Room, Stereo Room, and Hi-density plate from the original studio rackmount

Visit Eventide for more information.

When it comes to effects, acoustic-electric players generally fall into three categories: purists who eschew them, dabblers who are open to possibilities and gear heads who are into full-on processing. 

If you use effects at all, it’s important that you apply quality sounds artistically and judiciously. The primary acoustic guitar effects are chorus, delay and reverb, and while many modern acoustic amps offer them onboard, we’ll focus on pedals here and look at amps next time. 

Get your effects in order

Chorus can add depth and sparkle. Put the chorus first (after compression or gain) following the cardinal rule of modulation before time-based effects. A nice tight chorus applied at a generous depth can provide a decent approximation of a 12-string. 

Add the upper element of an octave pedal to make it more convincing. A wider chorus will add a watery texture, but don’t slather on so much chorus that the dry glory of the wood gets lost in a flood. Delay and reverb are time-based effects and are ideal for adding ambiance. 

Think of delay as extra hits of a particular sound. Put the pedal after modulation effects and before reverb, with its potentially long tail. Reverb is the last in line as it puts everything in a new space that can be as small as a room or as huge as a stadium. Put acoustic effects in an effects loop if one is available on the amp or D.I. pedal to keep the tone as tidy as possible. 

Stir it up

Mixing up effects keeps tone interesting over the course of a gig. Take the chorus away for some songs, and change the rate and depth for others.

Consider using two reverb pedals the way acoustic solo act Christie Lenée does, with one set short and another long so she can quickly click them on or off rather than interrupt the show to tweak a single unit. Use two reverbs individually for different types of tunes, or together for a more prominent overall effect. Uilizing a short reverb provided by the amp in conjunction with a lush, spacious pedal reverb for slower songs can also work well. 

Customizing delay tempos to tunes is crucial. A delay with tap tempo capability is awesome for live applications when it’s not practical to bend down and adjust timing.

Express Yourself

Extension and expression pedals are a live processor’s best buddies. Many pedals feature extended I/O for connecting a tap/toggle footpedal that can control delay tempo or chorus rate. Expression pedals can expand capability tremendously and allow unique real-time control of everything from chorus depth to reverb size or rate of decay on a delay.

This is where effects processing becomes an art form. And in live art, real-time expression is everything. Pro pedalboards are often configured with expression and extension foot controllers prominent, and with effects set up to let the foot controllers take precedence for performance.

The actual pedals are frequently housed in a rack or cabinet sitting side stage. A volume pedal is simply a dedicated expression pedal, and it’s always a good idea to have one handy to home in on overall level for a particular part, or back off quickly in the case of a random feedback attack.

On the modern market

Myriad modern modulation and time-based effects are expanding horizons immensely for the acoustic effects enthusiast. Eventide’s MicroPitch Delay blurs the line between the two camps, earning an Editors’ Pick in the July issue of Guitar Player.

Editor-in-chief Christopher Scapelliti reviewed Earthquaker’s new Astral Destiny and noted, “Earthquaker Devices has made uncommon reverbs a specialty of its extensive pedal line.” Strymon is another such manufacturer embraced by acoustic gurus such as Kaki King for expansive pedals such as the BigSky reverb. King now swears by her laptop rig based on Apple’s MainStage software, and we’re certainly entering an era when that won’t be at all weird. 

There is another trend toward pedals designed specifically with the acoustic player in mind. L.R. Baggs entered the effects pedal arena in 2018 with the Align Series, and its Reverb and Delay pedals earned Editors’ Pick Awards.

Fender introduced the stage-friendly Acoustic Preverb preamp and reverb pedal last fall and is developing an entire acoustic-oriented range. Meanwhile, Universal Audio introduced its UAFX pedals, designed to bring studio-quality ambiance and modulation to the stage.

It’s obvious that there has never been a better time to get into acoustic-electric effects. As we emerge from the pandemic and move into a new era of performance, take the opportunity to explore how they can spice up your live tone.

Further reading...

• Part 1: Get Yourself Ready to Return to the Stage
• Part 2: Understanding Acoustic Preamps, D.I.s and Digital Enhancers
• Part 3: How to Apply Compression and Overdrive to Acoustic Signals
• Part 4: Acoustic Effects
• Part 5: Understanding Acoustic Amps

"Growing up, I had the feeling that my dad was coming from a different place than other guitarists,” Dweezil Zappa says. “He seemed to mock the guitar hero idea in his physical movements onstage, and he expanded the possibilities of what soloing could be.”

Dweezil honors his father, Frank Zappa, by continuing to explore and expand the notion of what an electric guitar solo can be and digging into tone like an archeologist. He’s always building knowledge based on uncovered and recovered wisdom and utilizing the latest technology to “move the project forward.” That was obvious with his 2011 album, Live in the Moment, and it’s in evidence again on Live in the Moment II (Fantom), his brilliantly executed and flawlessly documented 2018 follow-up.

Both albums consist of material culled from his Zappa Plays Zappa tours, on which he performed renditions of Frank’s music using a stellar core band he curated himself. To that end, Dweezil has drawn inspiration from Shut Up ’n Play Yer Guitar, Frank’s seminal ’80s album that developed into a trio of records consisting mostly of live guitar solos.

“I love the tones, the playing, the spaces replete with feedback and all of the transitions,” Dweezil says of Frank’s Shut Up ’n Play project. “It represents total freedom of expression and showcases the unique circumstances that helped inspire those improvised moments. Making a collection of them is the real concept behind Shut Up ’n Play Yer Guitar and my Live in the Moment records. That type of record could be perceived as gratuitous, but I view it as a way to capture a lifelong journey, showing the snapshots of what took place along the way.”

Dweezil retired the Zappa Plays Zappa moniker in favor of using his own name, but he continues to revitalize his father’s music faithfully with an outstanding ensemble of relatively young musicians. Those shows are one way Frank’s music remains vital years after his death.

GP caught up with the guitarist shortly after he completed 2018’s Choice Cuts tour. Dweezil sat down to talk about the making of Live in the Moment II, offer insights into his father’s approach to soloing and share some deep details about how he recreates Frank’s classic tones onstage.

Frank had such a distinctive approach to soloing. Explain the art of the guitar solo as it pertains to Zappa world.

My dad didn’t subscribe to the pre-composed solo approach. He preferred playing live in the studio, and when playing live he loved to be inspired in the moment to spontaneously compose onstage. He described his playing as making “air sculptures.” Since sound waves move air molecules, he said that he was imagining shapes while playing.

Nowadays you can actually see what frequencies look like. I’ve Googled videos of grains of sand on metal shaker plates that reshape themselves when exposed to different frequencies. The patterns are fascinating and beautiful. It’s startling to realize that everywhere we go the sounds around us are creating invisible frequency tapestries, and we are walking right through them.

What’s your interpretation of his “air sculptures” concept?

It’s another way of saying that my dad was in “the zone,” that perfect place where music flows through you and you’re not impeding the process. He was the best I have ever seen at listening and reacting to the music in real time and seemingly never repeating himself or falling back on pre-composed ideas or licks.

It requires intense listening and takes some training to free your mind of technical thoughts, licks or really any distractions, allowing yourself to tune in to your surroundings and just react. It’s the coolest thing when you witness any musician enter that space. Only great things happen as a result.

And of course Shut Up ’n Play Yer Guitar is a great example of that philosophy. How exactly did Frank put it together?

He extracted performances from live concerts over a lengthy period of time from several different tours with different bands and different gear. Making things sound uniform wasn’t really a mandate for him. He used interstitial musical snippets as palate cleansers in between tracks to help with the transitions. That was brilliantly executed and helped keep the energy flowing.

His guitar tones changed frequently from tour to tour. From the mid ’70s through the early ’80s he used a guitar rig he referred to as Ma Bell. It featured a complex system that allowed for amp and effects switching as well as presets, long before anyone else had that capability. I remember him saying he spent close to $30,000 dollars to develop it. That would be like $300,000 now! It also had three amps and two D.I.s, for a grand total of five individual tracks needed to capture his guitar sound. With only 24 tracks available on the tape machine, submixing was a necessity.

The amp configuration he used most featured a 100-watt Marshall Super Lead, a Vox Super Beatle and a Mesa/Boogie combo amp, with effects that included the MicMix Dynaflanger, Eventide H949 Harmonizer, MXR delays, a dbx 160 stereo compressor and an Electro-Harmonix Big Muff.

His guitars had preamps that brought them up to line level and made it possible to easily integrate rack-mounted studio gear into his system. In the studio he would sometimes re-amp the guitar audio, sending it through a few guitar speaker cabinets in the live room. He would use different microphones, but rarely would I see any Shure SM57s. He preferred the Sennheiser MD 421 and a Neumann U67 along with an AKG C 24 for the ambience. The inclusion of a clean compressed D.I. sound was the real secret weapon. It added dimension and clarity within his overdriven sounds, as well as immediacy to the transient information.

What about Shut Up most inspired you to apply the concept yourself?

I was always in awe of my dad’s rhythmic and harmonic variety. He had a tremendous vocabulary, and he created such unique guitar tones. The Dynaflanger tone is my all-time favorite. It’s essentially a time-modulated sound that reacts to the envelope threshold being manipulated by the player. It creates an amazingly realistic double without the predictability of an LFO. It’s like a living thing that reacts to what you’re doing. It’s so cool! That tone has been one of the hardest to replicate, but it has also inspired me to play things I would never play otherwise. It’s a big part of Shut Up ’n Play Yer Guitar as well as my Live in the Moment records.

Can you describe how you’re taking advantage of cutting-edge live-recording technology?

From a technical standpoint, the equipment we use to capture the sound and shape it for the audience has never been better. We use the Waves Audio eMotion LV1 system because of its insane flexibility and creative options.

Nerd alert! We can recreate signal chains down to the DNA level. For example, if I know that my dad used an API console, a dbx 160 compressor and a Pultec EQ when tracking a certain part, we can use the software emulation in real time to process that same part live onstage. That can be done for every instrument and every song with seamless snapshot changes during the show. We’re able to get so close to the original sonic fingerprints. It’s quite impressive.

The Waves system improves our ability to deliver great live sound and gives me instant access to stereo mixes that sound like finished records.

You were an early adopter of Fractal Audio rack units. Can you describe how that changed the game for your rig?

I switched from tube amps to Fractals 10 years ago because the sound quality and flexibility is unmatched. They facilitate the layered sounds I’m seeking. I actually have three different rigs in different sizes. For a few tracks on Live in the Moment II, I used the nano rig, which is a Fractal AX8 self-contained processor and switching unit. It has a custom GoochFX analog fuzz, an Eventide H9 Harmonizer and a volume pedal, and it all fits in a Pelican case that easily travels in any overhead bin, so I use it to save costs on European tours. It can replicate 60 to 70 percent of the sounds from my big rig with sufficient layers of detail.

My medium-sized rig can replicate 70 to 80 percent of the big rig, which is the size of a refrigerator. Both are quad setups with two autonomous Axe-Fx II Preamp/FX Processors feeding two pairs of powered full-range P.A. speakers. I usually prefer the wide pair for modulated sounds and the interior set for direct sounds.

Each machine has an array of effects that can be activated via footswitch or MIDI preset autonomously in front, as well as H9s in the effects loops. The two machines also have an array of effects that will hit the input of both machines at once, including the wah. Those are only available as on-the-fly color changes, and I use them often. They are mostly different flavors of fuzz or overdrive.

Why do you still employ tons of pedals and rack effects when you have such processing power with the Fractals?

I hear that question a lot. Realistically, the Fractals can do everything, but they rely on a set of algorithms that determine the sound character, so I like to mix it up and have more colors, especially when it comes to fuzz. Analog pedals also have their own feel, and the subtleties of that feel can be integral to my playing ability and phrasing. Sometimes the perception of feel plays an even more important role than the sound itself.

I mostly use the Marshall, Fender and Hook amplifier models in the Fractal for the core sounds. The speaker IRs [impulse responses] are probably the most important elements of any Fractal preset. More than anything, they shape the personality of the raw amp tones.

Can you site some tonal references from Live in the Moment II?

“five-five-FIVE” starts my record, just as it did the original Shut Up ’n Play Yer Guitar album. I used the nano rig for that song, so I was a bit limited, but I was able to evoke the sonic spirit that sets the proper mood.

I used the medium rig on “Watermelon in Easter Hay” to dial in a pretty accurate emulation of the original album sound on Joe’s Garage. I used a Strat with custom McNelly pickups and a Trem King vibrato system on that track. The reverb comes from the H9 and is based on the Eventide Omnipressor. It auto-swells the reverb after the note is played and helps create that beautiful space. The distorted lead has the subtle version of the Dynaflanger and a slow phaser, just like the original.

One of my other favorite tones on the record is the gritty fuzz on “Badass Pony.” That comes from the “Montana” solo section.

Putting together a pedalboard is daunting for a lot of players. Can you share some insights you’ve gained from putting together your own rigs?

The main challenge is always how pedals react with different guitars, other pedals and amp sources. If you need to play multiple guitars during a show, you don’t want to be changing knobs around on pedals to compensate for the different guitar outputs. It’s always important to find fuzz and overdrive pedals that don’t drop the output level when engaged and add character or boost functionality to your sound. Some pedals only sound good on an already distorted amp, while others can drive a clean channel nicely.

Obviously, you have to spend time finding things that work together and give you character and functionality. I typically prefer the drive sound from amps versus pedals. I do like fuzz pedals that allow you to tune the bias. I think of it as tuning the transient response or the front edge of the note.

Experiment with dynamics and how the pedal reacts. I like to have variation between how notes will bloom on either side of my stereo sound. In any case, it’s all a matter of finding the right tools for the job. If you only need five sounds, obviously your pedalboard will be much easier to put together. In my case, a two-and-a-half hour show may need as many as 50 different sounds mapped out in preset banks.

What are your main touring guitars, and what else is on Live in the Moment II?

I mainly use modified versions of the Gibson Frank Zappa “Roxy” SG. On this last tour I had my main guitar, which has a Fishman Powerbridge piezo installed as well as a Sustainiac pickup. I also had an even more customized version of that guitar with those features plus a neck that Echopark Guitars customized to be half fretless: The low strings are fretted and the high strings are fretless. My third guitar was a stock “Roxy” SG that I played mainly for the out-of-phase sound that it makes.

Certain material requires a Stratocaster, and there’s plenty of it on Live in the Moment II. “It’s in the Key of E,” “Tom’s Banana Experiment,” “What’s That Hose For?,” “Prelude in E Retrograde” and “Watermelon in Easter Hay” are all Strat songs. I love the fuzz sound that kicks in on “It’s in the Key of E.” It has the best representation of the note bloom variation I described. It also has some Dynaflanger, of course.

On “What’s That Hose For?” the tone that sounds like an Octavia is actually coming from the McNelly pickup combo. It’s the neck and bridge out of phase, but somehow it has a strong octave fundamental. You can hear the direct clean sound blended in as well.

Can you share harmonic insights about “five-five-FIVE”?

I play around with some of the same tonalities my dad favored. It’s basically G minor, but I sometimes play a six-note scale off of G that goes: 1 b2 3 4 b6 6. I also use C melodic minor. The song is based on different permutations of five [it is in 5/8 + 5/8 + 5/4 meters], which gives it an exotic sound.

About two-and-a-half minutes into the tune, it sounds as if you’re using the fretless SG.

I’m actually playing my main SG, but at that point I am utilizing the same sliding techniques I employ on the fretless guitar. I’ve been incorporating a lot of slides into my playing, as well as an approach where you bend from underneath the target note up to pitch. It has a slide-guitar kind of sound.

Can you detail how the endless sustain of the Sustainiac pickup fits into your playing?

The Sustainiac inspires a different type of melodic phrasing. It enables me to slide around and have notes bloom in different ways. The way that my rig allows me to select different fuzzes on each side of the stereo field helps. The Sustainiac offers a lot of vibrato variations as well. Sometimes it can even sound like a theremin, especially with the fretless guitar.

The Eastern sounds you make are especially cool. What are your inspirations?

I love the sound of microtonal instruments. On my Via Zammata’ record [from 2015], I played the oud and a Godin Glissentar [11-string fretless electro-acoustic guitar]. I’m inspired by a variety of Eastern styles, including Indian, Turkish, Arabic and Bulgarian music. I even recorded some music by the Bulgarian Women’s Choir on this album.

The two tunes I chose have resonated with me ever since my dad took me to one of their concerts. I orchestrated them for guitar in a way that also pays homage to one of my guitar heroes, Brian May. They have a lot of overdubs. Those are the only pieces that are not live. Even the transitions between songs come from different moments on tour over the years. There are lot of duck calls! If you listen carefully you might hear a duck call version of the Superman movie theme.

“The Road Less Traveled” and “Take a Left at Peru” are awesome takes of solos from “Inca Roads.” Frank also put multiple versions of “Inca Roads” solos on Shut Up ’n Play Yer Guitar.

“Inca Roads” is at the top of my list of favorite songs. The structure and the intervallic melody lines draw me in. Each performance is unique because of the improvisational sections. The two vamps on Shut Up ’n Play Yer Guitar feature some of my dad’s best guitar playing and tones. I can’t get enough of that Stratocaster sound with the Dynaflanger.

The two solos I include from “Inca Roads” have a touch of the Dynaflanger as a nod to the original album version [from One Size Fits All], which has an envelope follower. That vamp always inspires a slow build, and I try to make my solos a musical conversation with the band. It’s based on two chords, C and D. Major-triad stuff sounds great, as does A Dorian. I usually stick with that tonality.

The closer, “Watermelon in Easter Hay,” is deeply striking, just like the original. What it is about that tune that takes the soul to another plane?

That is by far the most emotional solo my dad ever played. The way he phrased the melody is so idiosyncratic and takes advantage of his rhythmic mastery. It’s very difficult to capture anything close. I worked hard to recreate the tones he used and play many of the landmark phrases, adding my own embellishments within context to the song.

For me, the penultimate emotional moment of the melody is the placement of the first note with that crying clean tone. I believe it’s the #11 working off of an A root. It has a beautiful resolution to E major. My dad favored Lydian mode in his writing and playing, and I love the Lydian sound as well, because it’s beautiful and can be moody, too.

What are you working on in the recording studio and otherwise?

I’m working on live albums, DVD releases and new music of my own. It’s been so long since I’ve been able to focus on my own writing. One day, I’d like to have my own studio and become a mad scientist. It would be great fun to have a space in which to operate musically like my dad did, doing – as he put it – “Anything at any time, for any reason at all.”

Browse Dweezil Zappa records here.

For decades, engineers have used micro-pitch shifting to create detuned delays, chorusing, modulation, and stereo widening. The effect began in the mid-1970s as an untended consequence of the then-new Eventide H910 Harmonizer, whose clocking mechanism would flicker between two pitch ratios. 

By placing two units in parallel, studio engineers found they could use the anomaly to achieve a rich stereo spread. The H910’s successor, the H949, had improved clocking and used techniques to produce more precise deviations in pitch, helping further establish micro-pitch shifting as a production tool.  

Eventide has now made the effect available in the MicroPitch Delay pedal, and it’s a remarkably versatile tool. In essence, it’s a stereo delay with controls to independently adjust pitch for the left and right channels, as well as pitch modulation capabilities courtesy of a low-frequency oscillator (LFO) and an envelope that responds dynamically to your playing. 

Like other pedals in Eventide’s lineup, its controls have dual functions, which you can toggle between with a button on the panel’s upper right. 

The six knobs’ primary functions are mix (dry/wet), pitch A (adjusts left-channel pitch from zero to +50 cents), pitch B (adjusts right-channel pitch from zero to -50 cents), depth (amount and intensity of modulation from the LFO or envelope), rate/sens (LFO rate and envelope sensitivity), and pitch mix (adjusts the ratio of the A and B pitches).

Their secondary functions are, respectively, tone (adjusts the effect’s EQ), delay A and delay B (sets each channel’s delay time), mod (selects from three types of modulation), feedback (creates pitch rise and fall effects), and output level.

The unit has foot switches for Tap/Preset, which is used to set the tempo and scroll through the five onboard presets, and Active/Bypass, which in Preset mode is used to load a selected preset. 

Above them, an LED button on the left toggles the Active/Bypass switch between Latching and Momentary modes, while an LED button on the right toggles between Tap and Tempo modes. Finally, there’s an LED ladder to indicate which of the five presets is active.

The pedal’s rear panel has a TS/TRS input for mono and stereo sources, left and right outputs, and an expression pedal input that can be configured for an expression pedal, a pedal with aux switch, triple aux switch, or MIDI over TRS.

There’s also a mini USB jack for connecting to Eventide’s Device Manager (for software updates and preset management), an I/O level switch to select between guitar and line level (for use with effects loops, DAWs and keyboards), and a jack for the included nine-volt power supply.

As you would expect from Eventide, the quality of the effects is outstanding. The little red box is awesome for delay, chorus, and doubling effects, but that of course is just the tip of this iceberg.

As mentioned above, the secondary mod parameter lets you choose from three types of pitch modulation: via LFO, via envelope to raise pitch, and via envelope to lower pitch.

These last two methods are great for creating dynamically responsive pitch shifts (think Tony Visconti’s creative use of the H910 on David Bowie’s Low to create a pitch-descending snare drum).

It’s also terrific for creating syrupy chorus and ascending and descending delays via picking dynamics. For even wilder effects, you can map any combination of parameters to an expression pedal and control them in real time.

For that matter, I found the MicroPitch Delay is at its core a fantastic “always-on” sonic enhancer in my signal chain. With a bit of delay and modulation, I created a perfect vibe that added lushness and ambience to my guitar tone. It’s richly deserving of our Editors’ Pick Award.

Specifications

• PRICE: $279 street  
• CONTROLS: Mix/tone, pitch A/delay A, pitch B/delay B, depth/mod, rate/sens/feedback, pitch mix/out level 
• SWITCHES: Secondary/primary parameter selector, active button/LED, tap button/LED, Active/Bypass and Tap/Preset foot switches I/O In (mono/stereo), out 1 and 2, expression, mini USB and 9-volt DC power input 
• EXTRAS: USB cable, 9-volt DC power supply 
• DESIGNED: Little Ferry, NJ  
• BUILT: China 
• CONTACT: Eventide Audio

Last September, Eventide kicked off its new dot9 series of pedals with the fantastic Blackhole reverb unit. Now, the company has expanded the line with another new stompbox, the MicroPitch delay.

The MicroPitch Delay houses the company's popular algorithm of the same name – as featured on its H910, H949, and H3000 Harmonizer processors – in a standalone stompbox. It features two pitch-shifters that can be adjusted using “fine-resolution” de-tuning, delay, and modulation – including new positive and negative envelope modulation sources.

The MicroPitch can store up to 127 presets, while five presets can be loaded at the user's feet via the pedal's onboard latching/momentary Active footswitch. Presets can be loaded onto the pedal via the Eventide Device Manager for Mac/Windows or by MIDI.

The pedal's aux switches can be assigned to preset navigation or tap tempo, while any combination of parameters are mappable to expression pedals.

In terms of bypass options, there's buffered, relay, DSP+FX, or kill dry, while MIDI capability is available via USB or TRS.

The Eventide MicroPitch Delay pedal can be pre-ordered now for $279.

For more info on the pedal, stop by eventideaudio.com.

Most reverb pedals shine when creating small-to-large spaces, but they don’t give you much at the extremes, where the imagined space is cramped or, conversely, infinite. For that kind of sonic sculpting, I’ve often turned to Eventide’s Blackhole reverb plug-in, a favorite in my DAW. 

It’s a classic reverb from Eventide’s rackmount DSP4000 processor that’s capable of cathedral-type ambiences, tightly gated and pre-delayed reverbs, and even freeze effects. 

Until now, performing guitarists could get Blackhole as an algorithm in Eventide’s powerhouse H9 stomp box, but the new Blackhole pedal puts this amazing reverb into its own sleek and compact box, with a full complement of control and switches, making it the perfect addition to your pedalboard.  

Like all Eventide pedals. Blackhole lets you fine-tune every aspect of your sound. The controls include mix, to set the dry/wet level, and five others that have primary and secondary functions, selectable with the toggle near the upper right corner. And these are not your standard reverb parameters.

For example, gravity affects the reverb’s decay, making it longer as you turn it clockwise, and reversing it as you move counterclockwise to create decays that swell from the void, while the size knob adjusts the reverb from ridiculously small to astonishingly immense.

There are also controls to boost and cut the effect’s lo and hi EQ, and the secondary modes let you introduce modulation to create hyperrealistic (or totally whacked-out) reverbs, add up to 2,000 msecs of predelay, and adjust the filters’ Q, or resonance. In primary mode, this last control is the feedback knob, which determines how much of the reverb signal is fed back into the circuit.

Turning the knob clockwise takes you to two reverb modes: Infinite, which layers new sounds on top of a suspended reverb, and Freeze, which holds the effect in stasis, allowing you to play over it.

Freeze is Blackhole’s standout effect, so it’s great that you can instantly access this mode with the right-side foot switch. This switch also doubles as the selector for Blackhole’s five user-adjustable presets (you can load up to 127 presets via USB with the Eventide Device Manager for Mac or PC). The left foot switch activates and bypasses the pedal and is used to load whatever preset you’ve selected.

Even the two status LEDs serve dual functions for saving presets and toggling the action of the Active foot switch, making the compact panel very user friendly. Blackhole accepts mono and stereo signals on TS and TRS plugs, respectively, has mono/stereo outs and a level switch for use with guitar or line-level devices and effects loops – a nice feature we’d like to see on more pedals.

The expression input accepts pedals, auxiliary switches or TRS MIDI, and an expression pedal can be used to change any grouping of knob parameters in one gesture. There’s also a mini USB for software updates or to send MIDI over USB, and an input for a nine-volt center-negative adaptor.

As for its sound, there is plenty of extreme fun to be had, from vast, warbling vertigo-inducing effects to harshly gated reverbs and eerie ambiences that bloom forth like spectral voices.

One of my favorite creations was a long-tail reverb that trilled wildly off-pitch, like a drunken Leslie speaker. But Blackhole is also capable of subtle, musically pleasing effects, including lush hall reverbs with lingering harmonic tails, and tight chorusing ’verbs that add a bit of angelic shimmer to your sound.

It was also great fun to freeze the effect and use it as a bed for some out-of-this-world improvising. All in all, Blackhole can be an inspiring and useful addition to your effects arsenal, whether you want your tone closer to home or over the event horizon.

Specifications

• PRICE: $279 street
• CONTROLS: Mix, gravity/delay, feedback/Q (resonance), size/mod depth, lo EQ/mod rate, hi EQ/output level. Active button/LED, Freeze button/LED. Foot switches for active/bypass and freeze/preset. Rear panel: mono/stereo input selector, guitar/line level selector
• I/O: In, out 1 and 2, expression, mini USB and 9-volt DC power input
• CONTACT: Eventide

First introduced in January for the company's H9 Harmonizer multi-effects pedal, Eventide is now releasing its TriceraChorus effect as a plug-in for Windows, Mac OS X and iOS.

Inspired by the classic tri-choruses and stompbox choruses of the '70s and early '80s, the plugin combines bucket brigade delay-style tri-chorusing with micro-pitch detuning.

It packs three chorus voices – Left, Center and Right – and three chorus modes –Chorus, Chorale and Swirl – and a three-phase LFO that allows users to create movement across the stereo field.

The TriceraChorus features Eventide's Ribbon function, which lets users sweep the plugin's processing between two separate settings of any combination of controls, while its GUI offers automated control of parameters including Delay, Tone, Depth and Detune. 

Users can switch between settings using the plugin's Hotswitch function, and settings can also be saved per preset.

The Eventide TriceraChorus plugin for Windows and macOS is available now at a special discounted price of $39 until November 10, after which its price will be $99. It supports VST, AAX and AU plugin protocols. 

The iOS version of the TriceraChorus works either as a standalone app or as an Audio Unit v3 plugin, and is available now for $14.99.

For more info on the plugin, stop by eventide.com.

Eventide has unveiled its new Blackhole reverb pedal.

Based around the popular Blackhole algorithm featured in the company’s H9000, this pedal comes loaded with five presets, but users can also create their own. In total, Blackhole can load as many as 127 presets via MIDI, which are also accessible in the preset list on Eventide's Device Manager app.

Additionally, five presets can be loaded at the user's feet via the pedal's latching/momentary dual-action Active Footswitch.

Blackhole also features two types of "infinite" reverb - accessed by the pedal's Freeze Footswitch. “Infinite mode” continuously layers new sound on top of a suspended reverb, while “Freeze mode” holds the effect steady, allowing musicians to play over the reverb tail.  

Modulation is built into the structure of Blackhole's reverb itself, and can be used to smooth out rougher edges of more extreme settings, or for tone-shaping purposes. 

The pedal's Catch-up mode helps dial in a sound when toggling between presets and parameters, while tone can be altered with Lo, Hi and Q (resonance) controls. Blackhole also comes with a Gravity control, which can custom-tailor the reverb tail in two realms – normal or inverse decay – to "create interesting swells or suck the dry signal back into the reverb tail."

The pedal's PreDelay control can offset the onset of the reverb, while any combination of parameters - according to Eventide - can be mapped to an expression pedal.

Elsewhere on the Blackhole, there's a rear-panel Guitar/Line Level switch - which allows impedance matching with guitars, synths, FX loops or DAW interfaces - an Aux switch that can be used for Tap Tempo, and a triple Aux switch for preset changing.

The pedal also offers buffered, relay, DSP+FX and kill/dry bypass options, with MIDI capability also available over TRS or USB.

The Eventide Blackhole reverb pedal is available now for $279.

For more info on the pedal, stop by eventideaudio.com.

Eventide has unveiled its new PowerMINI, PowerMINI EXP and PowerMAX rev 2 pedalboard power supplies.

PowerMINI, true to its name, is a compact isolated power supply for smaller pedalboards. It provides two outputs rated at 9VDC/660 mA, plus two outputs switchable to 9, 12, 15 or 18VDC at up to 660mA, and weighs in at .5 pounds, while measuring one inch high.

It can be used on its own or as an expander for the PowerMAX via a 24VDC aux input. The PowerMINI also includes seven flex cables and an inline external AC power adaptor. It is usable worldwide.

The PowerMINI EXP is the expander kit for the PowerMAX rev 2. It's identical to the PowerMINI in every respect other than the low-profile inline external AC power adapter, which it lacks. It does, however, include a 24VDC Link cable for direct connection to the PowerMAX rev 2. 

The PowerMINI EXP can be used stand-alone, as an expander kit for the PowerMAX rev 2 via the 24VDC aux link, or for low-current analog pedals using the supplied cables on the original PowerMAX.

It can also be powered from any power adaptor rated from 9-24VDC, and its expansion kit includes seven flex cables for feeding pedals, plus the 24VDC Link cable to directly connect to the PowerMAX rev 2.

Weighing in at one pound and measuring one inch high, the PowerMAX rev 2 adds a dedicated, isolated 24VDC auxiliary output to the original PowerMAX.

Each outlet has an individual LED status indicator, and a three-color LED true power meter gives a visual representation of how much power is being used in total.

It packs 42W of power, and can power up to seven high-current pedals via three outputs of 9VDC/660mA and four outputs switchable to 9, 12, 15 or 18VDC at up to 660mA. A 24VDC AUX output to feed a PowerMINI expander and a USB output to power a smartphone or tablet also come standard.

The Eventide PowerMINI, PowerMINI EXP and PowerMAX rev 2 are each available now for $129, $109 and $209, respectively.

For more info on the power supplies, visit eventideaudio.com.

Eventide has unveiled its new Crystals plugin for Mac, PC and iOS.

A plugin version of the H3000 Harmonizer effect, which combines twin reverse pitch shifters with reverse delays and reverb, Crystals features two reverse granular delays that can be manipulated by length and pitch.

The plugin's Ribbon function allows users to sweep the effect between two different settings of any combination of controls. The plugin also features a number of available presets, for easy configuration of parameters.

The plugin's Flex function shifts both voices up one octave, while its Mix Lock function keeps the wet-dry mix constant while presets are being auditioned. The plugin also features reverb with up to 100 seconds of decay.

The Eventide Crystals plugin is available from now through July 5 for $39, with the price increasing to $99 thereafter. The iOS version is available from now through June 14 for $9.99, with the price increasing to $14.99 thereafter. For Mac and PC, it's available as a VST, AAX, and AU plug-in.

For more info on the plugin, point your browser to eventideaudio.com.

Eventide has debuted its new MicroPitch Dual Voice Pitch Shifter plug-in.

The latest of the company's H9 series plug-ins, the MicroPitch is a pitch shifter that provides effects ranging from "subtle tone fattening to dramatic slap-back effects via longer delays."

Available for Mac and PC, the plug-in features two voices of pitch shifting, a classic stereo-spreading effect and the aforementioned long-delay-induced slapback effects. The two voices of pitch shifting are unison to -50 cents and unison to +50 cents, each with up to 2 seconds of delay.

Control-wise, tone, pitch mix, mod depth, rate and feedback are adjustable, while presets based on classic MicroPitch sounds (the effect dates back to the '70s) are also available.

The plug-in's Ribbon function allows users to “play” an effect in real time, and offers them the ability to morph back and forth between settings of their choice.

Desktop users can plug in a MIDI keyboard and control the Ribbon via a mod wheel, while the plug-in also supports VST, AAX and AU plugin protocols for compatibility with DAWs.

The Eventide MicroPitch Dual Voice Pitch Shifter plug-in is available now at a special discount of $39 until May 31. After that the plug-in will be available for $99.

For more info on the plug-in, stop by eventideaudio.com.