Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by øøøøøøø » Tue Oct 19, 2021 11:39 am

For guitar signal path, for me the ones I love are:

6G15 (mine is a '64 that I've had for many years now)
Onboard black- or silver-panel Fender amp reverb.

For anything non-spring, I usually don't look toward anything I can place in the guitar signal path. If it's an algorithmic digital reverb, plate, chamber, etc. that I want, I'd almost always rather send the post-mic signal to that device.

I almost never use anything but completely dry or spring reverb in live performance.

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by shoule79 » Tue Oct 19, 2021 1:04 pm

I've always used a ton of reverb, but it used to mostly be from my amps or outboard gear recording. About 10 -12 years ago I got more into using reverb to create space, as opposed to delays. This led to owning/trying lots of pedals.

My first reverb love was my 69 Twin Reverb. I measure all spring reverbs against that amp. I stupidly sold it figuring, any other old Fender would sound the same, right?

I'm not going to go too far into my amp history, because we'd be here a long time. My current amps with reverb are detailed below:

70's Princeton Reverb - Decent reverb, but gets washy, almost feedbacky if I turn it up too much. Also goes from subtle to too much rather quickly on the dial.

Vox AC15 - I had to put a Mod tank in there immediately, the built in reverb was borderline useless. Decent now, but not Fender Reverb.

Mesa Express 5:50 - This is a weird reverb, it almost sounds like it sits behind the signal. Pairs well with gain, and is almost plate like for a spring reverb. Still not the Fender sound though.

Roland Jazz Chorus 77 - Its okay, can get a bit drippy. A bit metallic sounding, almost like the reverb in a Space Echo

Pedal/Rack wise:

EHX Cathedral - Jumped on this early, had it before I sold the twin. Loved it at first, but eventually found it harsh and metallic sounding. Still love its reverse though.

Alesis Quadraverb - A few months after I got the Cathedral I found one of these on Kijiji. It killed the Cathedral for me, it was what I wanted a reverb to sound like for the big ambient blooms. Eventually moved it on because it was hard to incorporate in my non-midi setup, and couldn't be in front of the amps without a ton of noise.

Boss RV-3 - Got in a trade, didn't think i'd like it but it did the lofi 90's rack thing well enough. Liked it a lot more than the Cathedral, and it made up my mind to branch out beyond the Cathedral for pedal reverb.

Boss RV-5 - Wanted to hear what all the modulate fuss was about, and Sune from the Raveonetted raved about the spring in a couple of interviews I read. Liked modulate, did not like its spring, with the random splashes.

Boss RV-6 - Here we go, this was a solid reverb pedal, if not the most sexy one in the world. Managed to find one that likely fell off the back of a truck after they were first released. I sold the Cathedral almost immediately after taking this one home because the reverbs were all better and it took up less space.

Death By Audio Reverberation Machine - Saw the Pedalzone demo on Youtube and had to have it. My first Belton brick, didn't disappoint. Its on my board sometimes, off others. I like it for a dirty, non classic surf sound, as well as the speakers blowing up sounds.

Walrus Fathom - Good modulated reverbs, but I wish the rate was a knob instead of a switch. Bought to replace the RV-6, but ended up keeping both. Recommended if you need a good plate or hall.

Yamaha FX500 - Somewhere in here I got one of these for Slowdive reasons. I didn't find the reverbs to be very strong, but still dug it.

Neunaber Stereo Wet - If i could only have one reverb algorithm it would probably be the Wet. Usually on my board, and makes its way back on when its off, kinda like the Rat of reverb pedals.

Keeley Loomer - Bought because I couldn't justify keeping the FX500 for patches 39 and 40, and hadn't had a reverse reverb in a long time. It does those well, in all their lofi goodness. The hall reverb is Yamaha hall, and i've never been a fan.

Boss RE-20 Space Echo - I've used it for its reverb in a pinch when I wanted to save space, but not where this thing shines. Its a spring sound and emulates the original fairly well.

Strymon Flint - My board staple. Its not my favorite reverb pedal, or tremolo pedal, but it does both well, and has a preset. I usually live on the hall, which is my favorite reverb sound after the Wet. I've used the spring for surf and other spring sound genres before, it does okay. I find it drips a bit if you put a drive pedal on with a bit of breakup in front of it.

Mosky Spring Reverb - I wanted to have a small pedal to put on a board to cover spring sounds, and it does that well. Its close to the Reverberation Machine's bright setting, when the gain is all the way off. Not bad for $40.


That's it. Kind of gross when I realize I still have all but 3 of the units above. I may have a problem. I'm still on the lookout for another Fender amp with a better sounding tank than the Princeton. That is likely my next reverb purchase.

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by tune_link » Thu Oct 21, 2021 4:17 am

TC Hall of Fame - first reverb pedal I owned, really liked the modulated reverb on it and nothing else really. Used it for years for the mod setting before finally moving it along.

Boss RV 6 - I saw a few posts on this in the Boss thread. It definitely wasn't the worst verb pedal I ever owned but nothing really stood out to me except it does have a nice shimmer mode if you like that....I don't really dig shimmer verb and rarely use it so this had to go.

Walrus Fathom - I'll echo what shoule79 said about it. It has a really nice plate verb and a really nice hall verb. The modulation definitely would be better served by a knob rather than a switch which seems to go from "not quite enough modulation" to "too much mod really." I absolutely adored the sustain feature on this and looked for it in other pedals after selling this (more on that below).

EQD Dispatch Master - This does a thing and does it really well. I understand why people really like it. Seems like just a really good clean hall verb with a good digital delay and just a hint of modulation. I kinda moved on this quickly because it didn't have enough features for me but I can easily see buying another one at some point.

Mr Black Supermoon - Bought this because I love modulated reverb and that's kind of the one trick of this thing. It sounded okay, I could never get it dialed in exactly how I wanted it. It seemed noisy and didn't take my fuzzes too well sitting at the end of the chain. I don't know if I should have tried running it in front of them instead or not. I hesitate to completely hate on this because maybe I just got a bum one but it didn't stay on my board very long. It has a few other versions and I am curious how they sound in comparison.

Strymon BlueSky - Very good for both the room and plate settings. The shimmer setting on this is weak but (see above) I don't really fuck with shimmer verbs much anyway. The spring setting is also not too good. I did appreciate the ability to create a favorite setting and then using the fav footswitch go back and forth between reverbs with shorter and longer decay times at will. The dedicated low and high damping was a nice feature in comparison to the Fathom's single knob damping. However I think the Fathom is better for what I like than the BlueSky but that didn't stop me from continuing on with Strymon again for verb.

EQD Avalanche Run - The reverb on this is more of a nice feature added to a delay in comparison to how the Dispatch Master is more of a reverb with delay as a bonus feature. So far this has one neat reverse delays setting I can't live without but I'm thinking of getting a Timeline and we're not really going deep into delays in this thread. The reverb is a nice clean hall verb I think. Def loses the hint of modulation in the Dispatch Master from what I can tell.

Strymong Big Sky - This is what I have on my board currently. I like that it has an absolute ton of features and many different/weirder reverb modes. I pretty much never use the shimmer setting on it. I feel like it gets a bad rap by association of the whole church crowd latching on to this as like the one reverb they use for "worship music" ....
I LOVE the reverse reverb patches I've created in it using the nonlinear engine, the magneto one is super cool and can do space echo type reverb, the bloom and cloud engines are absolutely beautiful and lush. It seems to be able to dial in a better spring reverb than the BlueSky but I'm not a big spring user anyway and I play through a Twin Reverb which already has a very lovely spring reverb in the amp. Good hall and plate reverbs, plate is really similar maybe identical to the lovely one in the BlueSky. I also really dig that you can program an EHX Freeze function into any of the verbs for the most part OR if you don't want to do that you can add an infinite sustain ability kinda like what's in the Walrus Fathom to each individual verb patch if you want. I still think the Fathom's sustain switch may be cleaner and have a better/longer/slower ramp up into it than the one here but I'm new to the Big Sky and I think I might be able to just dial it in to be cleaner with a slower build if I wanted to do that.

I *think* this is all the reverbs I've owned so far. I'm predominately a shoegazer so always looking for things that can do the whole Slowdive soft focus or MBV reverse style verbs. I've always wanted to try the Death By Audio Rooms and Reverberation Machines though. DBA has a good track record with me in that even the pedals of theirs I no longer own, I really understood and liked what they did even if they didn't end up being for me. The Fuzz War and Echo Dream are likely never leaving my board so I trust that the Rooms or RM would be delightful.

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by fuzzjunkie » Thu Oct 21, 2021 8:17 am

I still think the Fathom's sustain switch may be cleaner and have a better/longer/slower ramp up into it than the one here but I'm new to the Big Sky and I think I might be able to just dial it in to be cleaner with a slower build if I wanted to do that.
On my Eventide Space you can attach an expression pedal to that parameter and control the ramp up with your foot. It also has a “freeze” infinite reverb function on 9 of the 13 reverb engines. The reverb can be frozen while any delay or modulation continues independently.

Not sure if the Big Sky is capable of any of that or if you have an expression pedal?

The one reverb style I never got into was the Belton brick. I suppose I can achieve something close to pseudo-reverb with one of my analog delays, but it sounds weird to me.

I know it allows independent builders a chance to offer a reverb pedal or two in their catalog, but not particularly a fan of the sound. I think I might prefer the old Fender Dimension units with oil can or magnetic wires.

I remember when rack echo and reverb units were $1000+ and people would point to their Space Echoes and Fender spring reverbs and say they sounded better at less than half the price. Wow, that script has been flipped!

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by Shadoweclipse13 » Thu Oct 21, 2021 12:22 pm

For many years, I avoided reverb pedals after reading some article where the person was talking that "you should never use reverb pedals as reverb, but only if you're using it as an effect", but once I heard the old PGS video where Andy was demoing a Mr. Black Supermoon Chrome, I knew it was a sound I had to have. I always had a reverb For many years, I avoided reverb pedals after reading some article where the person was talking that "you should never use reverb pedals as reverb, but only if you're using it as an effect, but once I heard the old PGS video where Andy was demoing a Mr. Black Supermoon Chrome, I knew it was a sound I had to have. I always had a reverb tank in my first amp (Peavey Classic 50/212), and by the time I got my Delta Blues (and then more recently my Princeton Reverb), I already had reverb pedals. Like most of you guys it seems, I tend to like both spring and ethereal, spacy reverbs, for different reasons and uses.

Having had a few amps that have it, I would say that though the reverb tanks in my Peaveys sounded good, nothing beats the Princeton for built-in tank reverb (at least from what I've played). But pedal-wise, I've had a few over the years.

Strymon Blue Sky
I think it was my first pedal reverb. I loved the sounds Pete was getting from some of his early demos, but it quickly lost its luster for me, starting something in me where I don't usually care for DSP-based reverb or delay pedals. Don't have anymore.

Red Panda Context I had both a V1 and a V2. I loved the V1 for a few years, and only sold it to get a V2. Unfortunately, as good as it sounded, the V2 I had had an issue (almost like an infinite feedback when I tried to engage the delay in certain delay modes, notably spring), and when I tried the firmware update, it never worked again. It could've been my issue on that part, but those issues kind of turned me off to it. Don't have either anymore.

Wampler Reflection I bought this for my bass board, and it sounds cool, but isn't quite my style. Still have.

Caroline Meteore This is now my main guitar board reverb. Like everything else made my Caroline, fantastic reverb. I use it for simple spring and for spacy sounds too. It would take something REALLY good to get me to replace it. Still have.

EQD Afterneath I wanted something specifically for crazy spacy stuff. I'm an unapologetic EQD fanboy, and this one is a lot of fun. Still have.

Mooer Shimverb Pro I don't know if I owned it, or had one shipped to me accidentally, but I didn't love it and sent it back. I loved the size and form factor, but the sounds were very hit or miss. Don't have anymore.

EQD Levitation Bought this to be my crazy spacy reverb (before I bought the Afterneath) and it was really cool, but wasn't really my flavor. I eventually sold it.

I've also got a few pedals that are technically an echo/delay that get washy enough that I use them for reverb or mood. Or they are kind of between an echo and a reverb.

EQD Space Spiral I was looking to get a 3rd delay, and for something crazy, and this thing delivers. The delay with the modulation off sounds good, but the modulation does something special. I usually have the modulation rate maxed out, and if you play a note or chord and hold it, the modulation seems to speed up after the attack decays. Still have it!

EQD Ghost Echo My most recent reverb-ish delay. Very cool take on a spring reverb meets echo. I haven't delved very deep yet, but I don't see getting rid of it.

EQD Avalanche Run My first EQD bummer for me, which started me seeing the trend of not liking DSP-based reverb and delays. Very cool features and form-factor, but I just couldn't get on with it.
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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by Sauerkraut » Fri Oct 22, 2021 12:23 am

High time someone mentioned the Digitech Polara; it does all the classic reverbs really well and then some fun extra stuff. I compared it to a 6G15 klone a friend built and its spring reverb holds up surprisingly well, it’s a very convincing spring sound, with plenty of drip in reserve. The only thing the 6G15 has on it (and many other reverb pedals) is the tone knob. Catalinbread’s spring reverb pedal probably gets a bit closer to the real sound, but then it doesn’t have any of the other reverbs the Polara offers.

Otherwise, I don’t have that much experience with reverb pedals - the Keeley Caverns’ reverb is okay, but has absolutely nothing to do with spring reverb, the Boss RE-20 reverb is as dull as what it imitates, the Boss RV-500 is great but just too much for me; it’s a computer, not a pedal.

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by soggy mittens » Fri Oct 22, 2021 3:05 am

Went through a few different verbs but when I heard the cathedral I was sold, found my verb, it has a unique tone and you all know it love it or hate it it just sounds right for what I want verb to do. It doesn't drip enough that is the only thing I'd change. The oceans 12 can drip but the whole pedal lacks that same mojo that the cathedral has, sounds more noticeably digital and the freeze can't be pumped the same way that the cathedral does, that really pissed me off. Still a great pedal tho for what it is. Total EHX verb fan girl right here.. not that I've tried them all but for me being in its price range it's what I work with. B]

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by MC5tooge » Sat Oct 23, 2021 6:56 am

Surfysonic wrote:
Sun Oct 17, 2021 8:58 am
There's a killer instrumental band from Denmark - Tremolo Beer Gut that plays really cool, dark, instrumental surf/spy/'60s movie soundtrack tones. The Deluxe Plus pedal gets me to get that Tremolo Beer Gut vibe. If you are a fan of a variety of reverb, this darker reverb (plus fantastic tremolo), I can't recommend this pedal enough. It may not be drippy surf, but it does cool reverb nonetheless.
Slight derail - check out Tremolo Beer Gut's music. I was fortunate to see them live in 2018 at the Surf Guitar 101 convention in LA. Killer band live, too.
Nice to see TBG getting a mention here. They kind of single-handedly kept the surf sound alive in Denmark for the last 20 years.
Living in Denmark I am fortunate enough to potentially be able to see TBG more often than most - but they haven't played anywhere near me in the last 5 years. I hope that situation can change next year.
They're awesome.
If you like them, then also check out the Courettes (Danish/Brazilian husband/wife duo - wife formerly bassist in Autoramas - formed in Aalborg). Will be seeing them near their hometown in a few weeks.

Re. the actual topic of Reverb - I'm really happy with the tank on my late 70s JC120 amp and I keep my board pretty minimal - so invested in the TC Electronics Plethora X5 which has insane possibilities. I usually run the JC120 in stereo with an AC30. Will be investing in a Surfy Bear though - just can't decide which one to go for - metal or compact.

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by Surfysonic » Sat Oct 23, 2021 10:28 am

MC5tooge wrote:
Sat Oct 23, 2021 6:56 am
Surfysonic wrote:
Sun Oct 17, 2021 8:58 am
There's a killer instrumental band from Denmark - Tremolo Beer Gut that plays really cool, dark, instrumental surf/spy/'60s movie soundtrack tones. The Deluxe Plus pedal gets me to get that Tremolo Beer Gut vibe. If you are a fan of a variety of reverb, this darker reverb (plus fantastic tremolo), I can't recommend this pedal enough. It may not be drippy surf, but it does cool reverb nonetheless.
Slight derail - check out Tremolo Beer Gut's music. I was fortunate to see them live in 2018 at the Surf Guitar 101 convention in LA. Killer band live, too.
Nice to see TBG getting a mention here. They kind of single-handedly kept the surf sound alive in Denmark for the last 20 years.
Living in Denmark I am fortunate enough to potentially be able to see TBG more often than most - but they haven't played anywhere near me in the last 5 years. I hope that situation can change next year.
They're awesome.
If you like them, then also check out the Courettes (Danish/Brazilian husband/wife duo - wife formerly bassist in Autoramas - formed in Aalborg). Will be seeing them near their hometown in a few weeks.

Re. the actual topic of Reverb - I'm really happy with the tank on my late 70s JC120 amp and I keep my board pretty minimal - so invested in the TC Electronics Plethora X5 which has insane possibilities. I usually run the JC120 in stereo with an AC30. Will be investing in a Surfy Bear though - just can't decide which one to go for - metal or compact.
Very cool! It was great meeting TBG at the SG101 Convention. I play their albums probably once a week at least, especially while working on my guitar mod projects. I'll definitely check out the Courettes, thanks!

Re: SurfyBear - either will do the job - I tend to use my Compact more often than my Classic. I'd get the Metal but I can't really justify it...just like I'd love to get the brown and black tolex versions of the Classic - just because I dig them aesthetically as well as sonically.
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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by zenarcade » Wed Nov 17, 2021 11:39 am

I have a big sky on my pedalboard. For what i'm doing it's total overkill. Also barely use my pedalboard anyway.. Right now i'm trying to record a few songs on my own (in an apartment) and use a reactive load box and the vintage verb plugin from valhalla in the DAW that is just killer

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by Maggieo » Wed Nov 17, 2021 2:14 pm

Caroline Meteore This is now my main guitar board reverb. Like everything else made my Caroline, fantastic reverb. I use it for simple spring and for spacy sounds too. It would take something REALLY good to get me to replace it. Still have.
It's pretty fantastic, as is the Fender Tre-Verb.
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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by jthomas » Wed Nov 17, 2021 4:47 pm

I have a Flint and it's fine. I'm not a cork sniffer. That said I don't like the harmonic tremolo on the Flint. I really want one of these. (Dr. Balls mentioned it above).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-W9VWG_gOE

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by Dr Tony Balls » Thu Nov 18, 2021 7:36 am

jthomas wrote:
Wed Nov 17, 2021 4:47 pm
I have a Flint and it's fine. I'm not a cork sniffer. That said I don't like the harmonic tremolo on the Flint. I really want one of these. (Dr. Balls mentioned it above).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-W9VWG_gOE
Shit, after hearing that demo now *I* wanna build one.
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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by fever606 » Thu Nov 18, 2021 2:08 pm

This showed up recently (and was just dropped off with Pete Cage for a once-over)...

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90s reissue of the Series 2000 Reverb Unit. Should be.... good.

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Re: Talkin' Reverrrrrb...

Post by Maggieo » Thu Nov 18, 2021 3:58 pm

Oh, almost forgot my Sole-Mate:

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