Catalinbread Silver Kiss

This is an updated review of the Silver Kiss. I was able to pick up a MKII to compare with my MKI. The main differences between the two are subtle. The MKII seems to be a bit smoother sounding, less raw, and contains a smidgen less top-end fizz than the MKI.

The MKII also gives a neutral drive with the EQ knobs at noon, whereas the MKI did not. The MKII also has a more useful Treble knob (MKI would add treble if the Treble knob was higher than 9 o' clock). Overall, the MKII sounds better but it's still 90% the same pedal as the MKI. I'm adding a point to my previous review for the MKII.

I'm going to end up keeping the MKII, but you really can't go wrong with either version. A versatile, great sounding overdrive that you don't need to get on a waiting list for.

5 knobs, which is a lot for an overdrive pedal (Volume, Gain, Treble/Mid/Bass EQ), but it's much easier to dial in than you might think. The EQ controls are very intuitive, as well as interactive. The Volume and Gain knobs should be pretty self-explanatory to anyone with half a brain. The only reason I knocked off a point is because adjusting one of the EQ knobs will also force you to adjust the overall volume of the pedal. It would be nice if the EQ circuit somehow didn't affect the volume, but I'm not complaining too much because this pedal sounds AWESOME.

Now, don't be confused. I did, in fact, say that this pedal sounds AWESOME. And it does. Then why the '7' sound quality rating, you ask? I mean, the manufacturer's claims REALLY ARE true. The Silver Kiss IS a glassy, open, clear-sounding overdrive that responds great to your picking dynamics. It IS amp-like. It's the best overdrive pedal I've owned to date. It's also a nice clean boost, and the EQ controls are very useful. Stacks well with other dirt pedals too.

So why the '7' in sound quality? Well, the Silver Kiss MKI (the early version, which I have) seems to have a sort of 'buzzy', or 'fizzy', quality to the high end. If you've ever played a stock BOSS BD-2 Blues Driver, you know what I'm talking about. It kind of 'sits on top of' the guitar's tone, if that makes any sense. An 'artifact' sort of sound. Some people may like it, but the buzz/fizz is not my cup of tea (in an overdrive, anyway). However, I'm still giving a 7 because the base overdrive tone of the Silver Kiss is BEAUTIFUL. It's hard to get a bad sound out of this pedal (aside from the buzzy artifact sound). Without the buzz/fizz, sound quality is easily a 10.

NOTE: The MKII version of the Silver Kiss supposedly has less of the buzz/fizz going on and is a smoother sounding overdrive. I am definitely going to get my hands on one of those, because on paper, that sounds like exactly what I want from this pedal.

Seems to be built very solid. I would only have a backup in case somebody stole it or I lost it (which would make my very sad/pissed)

I've yet to deal with Nicholas but I've heard he's a great guy. It seems like he's very on top of things with regards to upgrading the Silver Kiss MKIs and what not. Good warranty on his pedals too.

I mostly play indie/classic rock. This pedal covers all the overdrive territory I need.

Aside from the fizzy quality I described above, I love the sound of this pedal. If the Silver Kiss MKII doesn't have the fizzy quality, I don't think I will ever want another overdrive pedal. Ever.

I will post another review of the MKII eventually, but until then, the MKI will do very nicely.

Ok, it's not hard to use, but it has many more eq options. The treb, mid and bass knob really work. So you might have to tweak a little here and there especially if you switch amps much. 5 knobs, so you also have a volume and gain knob. The small footprint of this pedal is also a bonus considering it has 5 knobs!

It's a fantastic overdrive pedal. Very versatile and clear. It does have it's own personality, it's not colorless, but that's a good thing in my opinion. I don't hear any of the fizziness that the last review heard. It's a very new pedal, in fact mine is prototype #93. So there might be some small differences in the early pedals. Still mine sounds great with my Budda SD30 and my Trace Elliot Velocette. I like stacking it with my Fulldrive II. It does a nice job of pushing a slightly overdriven amp into bliss. I've used it with single coils and humbuckers and it work fine with both. Haven't noticed it preferring either.

Catalinbread has a great reputation for customer service so I don't see any future problems that can't be worked out, IF any occur.

Catalinbread has a great customer service rep from what I've seen. I purchased this pedal directly from the company and the service was great! Quick shipping and prompt replies to questions.

I play and write original poprock music. I also perform the solos in our songs, so this pedal has been used for rythem and leads. It does both very well. It also plays nicely with your guitars volume knob. Roll it off and clean it up. Sweet! I would get another one if it was lost, although I'd be sad that I didn't have a prototype anymore. It is a part of my live and recording sound now. I'm very glad to have it. There are lots of great overdrive pedals out there and this is one of them.

This is actually quite simple. Gain, Volume, and instead of a tone pot, there are controls for bass, mids, and treble. These three EQ pots allow for "powerful tone shaping," as some people like to say. It's not hard to get a usable sound out of this pedal, but the EQ knobs do require more tweaking than usual (just a little, really). I had an earlier model # <20, and I also had the unit updated by Nic. There was no manual, but you probably don't need one if you know about Catalinbread or the Silver Kiss.

Set-up: Strat with Tom Anderson pups > Carvin Legacy.

There was quite a bit of hype over this pedal on various forums, so I decided to try one out myself. My first impression of the pre-updated version was, "Wow, this is really of fizzy." There were a lot of metallic and frothy qualities to this pedal that reminded me a lot of an infamous black boss pedal. I tried to dial out the metallic edge in the sound, but could not do anything about it, so when I heard about Nic's update, which addressed the fizz issue among others, I sent it in.

I didn't wait too long to find the Silver Kiss back in my mailbox, so I plugged it back in, and gave it another test run. Unfortunately, the fizz was still there, only to a lesser degree. Everything that came out of this pedal just sounded very unnatural and...i gotta stop using this word: metallic. It's like when you'd expect a sweet overdriven tone like butter, but instead you get strips of aluminum foil in your butter. Sure, it's smooth, but I just couldn't stand the fizzyness of the pedal (I gotta stop using that word too), even when I messed with the pots a lot.

Needless to say, I'm disappointed, not at Catalinbread, but the fact that this pedal received a butt-load of hype and turned out to be lack-luster in my opinion. I have a friend that swears by Catalinbread, especially the SCOD and Semaphore, so I have no doubt that Catalinbread makes great stuff, but I'm not impressed by the Silver Kiss.

Sure, It's built solidly. Did I mention it was gorgeous too?

Nic was helpful with the update. All my emails were replied to, so I have no complaints in this area.

I like to play pop-rock and the blues. I occasionally help out with my church's music as well. I've been playing for six years now, and I have owned various overdrive and distortion pedals along the way. I've owned cheap ODs to >$200 ODs, and I have to honestly say that what works best for me is the Barber Direct Drive (check that out sometime). Overall, I was disappointed by this pedal, but from the reviews that I have seen on several forums, it seems to work well for other people. I guess you should check it out for yourself when Nic begins to distribute the SK officially. I'll give an overall rating of 7, since this is a great value for an overdrive built by a very respectable boutique manufacturer, it's just that the Barber Direct Drive, to my fingers and ears, plays and sounds so much better and for the same price range.

Being a member of TGP and HCEF, I've been privy to information about this pedal. At this time, I'd say there are probably about 25-30 of them out there now. I'm surprised this is the first review. I hope more are to come, but I'm guessing the majority of these are being sold to other members of TGP and HCEF, which is resulting in most of the "reviews" being posted at thos forums. This is to help anyone who might have seen this pedal for sale on eBay (or other places) and wondered about it.

This is a great little box. Wonderfully versatile! I have found a half dozen or so settings on this thing, that all sound different, that I really dig! This pedal takes a little longer to dial in that most others, but that's also where it shines. The "EQ" section of this pedal is what sets it apart. You have the customary VOLUME and GAIN knobs, but you're also treated to BASS, MID and TREB knobs, so you can customize your tone with the pedal. The EQ section is very interactive, so adjusting the BASS knob will have some effect on what you can do with the MID knob, etc etc. The GAIN has alot of range, and completely off you can tweak the EQ and make a great booster out of the Silver Kiss. This rating gets an 8 because it will take a little more time dialing in the EQ section that just one TONE knob. But the payback is much greater control over the tone.

Currently running either a DiMarzio Vintage Blues loaded Stratocaster, or a Jim Donahue custom made Double Edge, DiMarzio BREED loaded superstrat INTO - Teese RMC6- Strobostomp- RetroMan UberVibe- SILVER KISS- Cusack Tap-a-Whirl- Line6 EchoPark. That all goes into a Bogner Shiva 6L6 1x12 Combo.
The Silver Kiss, as you can see, is my only OD on the board at this time. I will try others, but the SK will remain. I'm mostly using it with the GAIN below noon, in various positions, to obtain a great "verge-of-breakup" tone. From that setting I can easily dime the MID knob with my strat and be into SRV/Hendrix teritory convincingly. With the humbuckers I can turn the GAIN almost completely down and get some great pick dynamic grind on the Shiva clean channel. I also use the SK on the Shiva gain channel, as its a great solo booster. All frequencies can be boosted with the EQ section. So in my rig, there's never a loss of bass normally assocciated with TS-type pedals. Make no mistake the Silver Kiss is NOT a TS clone. The GAIN knob has great taper and range and lives in the Marshall area for tones. THE DECAY ON THE DISTORTION IS THE MOST NATURAL I"VE EVER HEARD IN A PEDAL. No pop, pop, fizz, fuzz, cut off, whatever you want to call it. The Silver Kiss is very amplike is this regard. Its packed in a small box, neatly wired inside and features a switchable Op-Amp (I think stock is the TL072), so you can even further tweak the pedal for your personal setup.

Visit www.catalinbread.com for more offerings from Nicholas.
I've owned the Super Chile, Teaser Stallion, SuperCharged Overdrive and Semaphore tremolo, at one time or another. I do go through lots of stompboxes, trying various new flavors and such, but the Silver Kiss will be staying for quite a long time. I'm considering picking up another one, not as a backup (wait until you see the inside of these), but to add to my board to have two setups on the Silver Kiss ready to go at all times. Even labelled a proto (mine is #11, nice white finish), the Silver Kiss has no shortcuts from the inside wiring to the outside graphics and finish. Top Notch!

Nicholas always replies quickly to my emails. His shipping of the pedal was very prompt. He visits the above mentioned Forums and will go out of his way to help his customers. As the Silver Kiss was released as a proto, Nicholas has shared the fact that the circuit has been tweaked a little along the way, and has offered to bring any of the protos "up-to-date" at what sounded like little or no charge to the customers. Another reason to buy boutique pedals made by real people you can communicate directly with.

Great overdrive pedal for a lot of uses. For reference, I can get into the tones that other great pedals like the TIM, Eternity, Keeley TS9 (Baked or Mod Plus) and Fulldrive can give. But the Silver Kiss still has a voice all its own. I'm really happy I picked up this pedal, as I find myself using it more and more.
As close to perfect as I could hope a pedal to be. I'd like to start a petition to encourage Nicholas to make some double-Silver Kiss units! :)