Dunlop Uni-Vibe

I don't understand all the negativity towards this pedal. The uni-vibe to me should be a staple in every guitar players case. With easy to understand controls and a variety of sounds, it has taken my guitar playing o another level.

I have an assortment of guitars but I normally play a fender strat with gold lace sensor pick ups, with a dunlop crybaby, danelectro daddy-o , and dunlop uni-vibe. I have only had one problem with the uni-vibe the entire time I have had it. I use all of these through a fender blues deville. I am a blues player. And the one thing that I have learned over the years is that you must first gain a knowledge of your abilities, the guitar's strenghts and weaknesses, and the effects that you are using and how they change all of that. I have heard alot of bad things about the univibe and the sound range and quality but for me it has met and exceeded all expectations. The range of the pedal is excellent. On the type of bands that I play with we play alot of muddy waters, howling wolf, hendrix, clapton, and etc. this has been able to give me the warmth for a clapton blues tune and two seconds later the ability to play something rocking like lenny kravitz. The comments that I've read about poor sound quality come from players who don't understand what a pedal is for or just don't know how to play. Period!

I have been playing for 15 yrs. I have bought alot of pedals and this one has lasted 4 yrs without replacement and I use it on all my gigs. It has been serviced once in that time period and if it can hold up to the kind of abuse I give. It can hold up to anything. I have a terrible habit of jumping onto pedals during shows and it hasn't failed yet and I'm sure it probably won't.

I've never had to use customer support.

I play the blues. I could not have dreamed of owning a pedal which allowed me to do so much. In the fifteen yrs, I now have 6 guitars (3 fenders, 3 washburns) and with all of these guitars I use the same three pedals; daddy-O, wah, and univibe. I have used an assortment of different pedals, and don't get me wrong there are some very good pedals out there but I always seem to come back to the same three. I have tried digitech and compared it to the sound of my setup and hated it. It sounds to artifical to me. I found something that works and I'm sticking with it. And in the words of a friend of mind (who by the way has played with B.B. King and George Benson), "if you've got all of those pedals on the floor, where are you gonna dance". I guess what I'm trying to say is for the money and ability of the univibe why do you need anything else. Oh and before I forget, I want everyone else out there who plays guitar to remember that you don't buy the pedal to make sounds or to make your guitar sound better, only you can don that. If you understand how pedals work and how they work together, you will find that the list of pedals that you buy will get smaller and smaller.

This pedal is very simple to use, no probs here but just how important is it to hear and feel that authentic 60's 'crunch' every time you step on the footswitch?

I'm playing a Berketa 'Riff' strat (Aust. custom made guitar) through an assortment of effects pedals, into a Fender Hot Rod Delux 112. I brought Uni-vibe into the effects chain in anticipation of performing some Steve Lukather instruemental pieces and perhaps the odd Hendrix tune. Whilst our band never got around to this material I got to enjoy practising with this unit, exploring its warm thick chorus and rotary speaker effect. This unit definitely has its own strong character - the chorusing rotary speaker effect if used with subtlety is a fabulous way of embellishing a howling sustained guitar solo. But, like a lot of effects that fall into the category of being 'highly distinctive' in character, this is a pedal that just won't get used much in my musical repertoir. Even Lukather himself admits to only its occaisional use, and if anyone would know how to exploit it, it would have to be him - he's a full on effects freak

Well, many of the reviews before me have covered what I am going to say...again. For all its great sound, historical hype, and robust construction, this is one lousy piece of hardware.

The first one I ever tried (in Australia) failed to work - brand new unit; in the shop we all had a shot at trying to get it going but with no success.

I purchased my unit in Singapore, while working in Asia. It worked fine for about 2 months, when the oscillator function died - well not exactly died; I was able to resuscitate it by shaking it around a bit, switching the power on and off a few times, then it would kick in again. This ritual continued for only couple of weeks until it worked no more. On a further trip to Singapore I returned it to the distributor. Surprisingly, they got it going again so I collected it the next day with an accompanying explanation that it was just a loose component that needed 'pushing in', and returned home with this 2kg worth of junk in my arms. Two weeks later it failed again however this time, not even an electric charge (with band members 'standing clear') could revive this dead beast. Again it accompanied me to Singapore where it was handed back to the distributor for repair. As there is no one in South-East Asia that can fix this pedal, and because of its weight, it was sent back to the USA by ship over 6 months ago where it remains, hopefully in the hands of its creator - to be resurected and returned to Singapore some time this century. Is that enough???

Can't say yet - however, any music equipment bought in Asia has got pathetic customer support; it's the nature of the place - it's about selling things, not fixing it - that's why we take the risk and buy gear when we're passing through there - almost no duty; instead of paying the outrageous prices we have to put up with in Australia for this kind of rubbish.

Regrettably I can't give this pedal a good overall rating as reliability of equipment in this business is paramount. There must be a dozen better, more reliable units around than this. Furthermore, I find it hard to justify carrying around such a heavy, unnecessarily large and potentially expensive pedal which is likely to get only occaisional use.

My Uni-vibe purchased in 1999 was actually made ( as I recall) in 1984 according to the inspection stamp on the circuit board when I opened it up. If Jim Dunlop admit to having had recalls, then what help is this when there are possibly thousands of these defective units that have been exported from the US?? We, on the other side of the world, do not want your shitty hardware dumped into our music stores, thanks very much!

As for those people hell-bent on pursuing this unit for its sweet sound and effects, find out from Jim Dunlop what the period of manufacture is during which they identified these potentially faulty units and get the retailer to open up the pedal and check its inspection date. Secondly, make sure you get this pedal at a substantial discount cause I reckon it is more than likely going to end up being used as a door stop. Thirdly, confirm you access to technical support.


Finally, if the manufacturer ever does do something about improving the quality and reliability of the Uni-vibe, let's hope they make the output in stereo, speed up the vibrato, and reduce its size and outrageous weight - what pedal needs to be made of 1mm stainless steel plate? I mean, we're not all burning and smashing our guitars on stage are we??? Can't you hear Hendrix calling from the grave saying 'it was the only groovy pedal they had in the shop at the time man...I was just trying it out for fun...sorry to put you through all this...how was I to know that one day 'retro' was going to be cool'

If this pedal ever finds its way home, I'll cross my fingers and use it - but I have this horrible gut feeling this is one 'boomerang' that aint' never going to come back.

Its pretty strait forward. Controls for Speed, Volume, and Intensity. It has an input, an out, a pedal out for real time pedal control, and a switch for vintage or modern sound. It is not battery powered. It requires its own power supply and use of any other will cause it to malfunction an need repair so be warned.

I use Mesa amps Fender Gibson and PRS guitars with various effects.
As far as noise I dont find the unit particularly noisy. I guess its about average there.

You should know the drill. Jimi (machine Gun), Pink Floyd (Dark side of the moon) they live in this effect. I love this effect. I will say that it is one dimentional in the sense that the only use for it is the Univibe sound and if you dont like it theres nothing else you can do with it but I like it. It doesnt sound like a leslie in particular but has a very distinct and to me a great sound. The UV is defenitly alot more colorfull and thicker than the Rotovibe.

The best sound in my opinion is to set the depth all the way up and the speed all the way down. That gives you the settings for the guitar sound on Dark side of the Moon. If you want Jimi you need the foot controller. It also does a great job of fattening up your sound while being unnoticed. To achieve this set it so the intensity is ALL the way down. The speed wont make a difference becouse you cant here it really but switch the unit off and on and see what just having it on at 0 intesity does for your sound. I cant really call it a chorus sound but it does wonderes for a clean sound when its set like that.

the only difference I can see in the Vintage/Modern switch is the effect is a little deeper and fatter in modern. In vintage its a little more trebely. Vintage does a better job of nailing The Dark Side of the Moon sound. I use it mostly in modern.

The foot controller is cool but I wish the bypass switch was at the top like on the Wah pedals so you press the pedal down and switch it off. On the UV pedal the bypass switch kickes in automatically when you put all the way back. Its a little anoyiong when you wanna play around with slow speeds or set the speed as slow as possible with the pedal and you keep switching it on and off by accident because you leaned back too far.

It deffenitly goes in the Special effects pile and not in the main effects (unless you REALLY love this effect). I was turned on to it by machine Gun. When I had it and started using it it sounded real familiar and then I heard some Floyd and there it was. I was extra happy. I love that floyd DSOTM sound for rythm guitar.

All and all try one out before you buy it becouse like I said, it sounds like a Univibe only and that may not be for everybody. If you want a real feel for the sound in action Dunlop has sample sounds on there website or you can listen to Breath, Breath reprise, and Us And Them from Dark Side or Machine gun to hear the sounds that made it famous.

Ive had a small problem so far. One day it stopped working on me. I talked to several techs I know then I talked to a tech at Dunlop and I think I may have used a power source other than the one provided by accident. This completely disables it from functioning and a repair is necessary to get it working again.

Alot of people talk about problems theyve had with it and its very possible a large percentage of them are caused by this. I think for the money i should get a pedal that isnt so testy but i will admit I didnt heed the manual and all in all it was my fault.

Im giving it a low rating becouse, although I agree it was my fault that this happened, for 300$ I shouldnt have to deal with this business. I also feel very shaky with it when gigging. I feel I have to be very carefull now.

Alot of people complain about the customer service at Dunlop but i have to say so far (Im not done dealing with them as I have just sent it to be repaired today) Im very pleased. I called and talked to a tech who explained what to do and told me he would repair it for free even though I was passed the warrenty by 6 months. He was good to talk to unlike the people some other reviewers got. I may have to post a retraction if the repair takes a LONG time (he told me 4 weeks)or if the job isnt done right but for now I have alot of faith and confidence in Dunlop.

I play ALOT of different kinds of music. Ive been playin for maybe 10 years. If it was lost or stolen Id put off buying it for a while and maybe turn to eBay but I defenitly love this effect and will always use it. Ive been lusting after this sound for a long time but it is a little pricey for what it is. I have to say when all is said and done i probly only use it in 5% of my music but I love the sound of that 5%. Its very specialized so a part has to call for it to justify using it moreso than a Phase or Flanger.

Really easy to use 3 knobs. Manual was lacking. It can be a little hard to get a good sound if you don't have the guitar-amp-pedal knobs set right.

I mainly play a Epiphone Sheraton II through a Fender Blues Deville & an Electar tube 30. I have a THD Hotplate on the Deville. The Chorus part of the pedal adds such a thick sound that is so good if you are into good tone of the past. The Vibrato part of the pedal is fair I am big into string bending and vibrato and string bending just don't go together in my opinion. Hendrix sounds are easy to get, but to get Gov't Mule or Allman brothers is a little harder.

I feel like I could depend on it, but I would not put it in every song because you can't aford a back-up.

I play a lot of blues and progressive blues (Warren Haynes, Gov't Mule,Etc..). I have been playing for 12 years. I would not buy another one if it got stoled. Thats a chunk of change. Tone wise I love it though. I checked out several others that all sounded wimpy. Man this thing is lush.

It simple. three nobes.The manual dosnt say much but it dosnt have to .

Ive got a fender strat and ronland amp. In just a few minetes i was able to get the hendrix sound.

Ive only had it for a week. But it looks like a tank.

havent delt with them.

I play alot of hendrix and it fits right in there. Its great. I love it. It meets my standerds.

Easy to "use" but WAY TOO THICK. The "mix" control manages to always have too much of this great sound in your signal. If it were more subtle, I would use it quite alot. Now--and without the Rotovibe I prefer over this--it gets used maybe once in a set. Given that, it's a breeze to "work."

This efect is beyond the sound of any amp--and I use too many to list, as with guitars. It is the "univibe" sound although mine has too much of it! But then again I'm getting older. The noise that is present is unique and desireable. The tone is great (especially with the "vintage" switch). I still prefer the RotoVibe's sound.

See my review on the RotoVibe and the 48 hours I was able to enjoy it. This unit has been without failure for the three months I've had it and will hopefully hold up--as it will be used as a backup to the RV when I get it fixed. Outer box is a tank.

These guys aren't about chatting. Cut. Dry. Not bad, just down to biz.

I play 70's influenced original modern rock. This effect has a definite place in my sound but needs to be more subtle for my tastes. For the "over the top" crowd, you can't beat it. For the "I just wanna play like Jimmy/Trower/SRV" crowd, well you just have to do it. Me, I want the thickness this pedal offers with the subtlety of a BOSS chorus on like 30% wet--mild, subtle, reinforcing.

Very simple to use.

I play a Heritage hollowbody thru a '65 Twin Reverb. I also use a Roland Space Echo. Sounds good but not functional for the music I play. Too thick for my taste. I think I would rather have a Leslie speaker. Expression pedal controls speed well

This pedal withstood the heat of a fire(not direct flame.) Some of the screws on the bottom are rusted a bit from water being used to put out fire. This pedal is filthy from ashes and debris but it still works fine and so does the adaptor,even though the cord is a bit melted. The only problem is that I have to use the expression pedal to get chorus/tremelo sound. Not sure if it was this way before the fire or not because I have always used the expresson pedal. Good design to be able to withstand the heat that it did.

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I would not buy any Uni-Vibe because I haven't found a setting that fits my music.

Pretty easy, 3 knobs and an expression pedal to slowly roll over until you find what you're looking for, which is a rotary speaker (Leslie) sound.

With a U.S. strat and a Fender tube amp, I "nailed" (and I put that in quotes because I can't nail Hendrix/SRV tones seeing as I am neither SRV nor Hendrix) Little Wing and House Burning Down with the chorus and New Rising Sun with the vibrato. This pedal does a good job capturing some of Jimi's tones, but it can't teach you to play like he did.
The chorus isn't a conventional one at all, it phases even at the lowest speed settings. You get an amazing electric organ like sound, but you really can't be subtle with it. Vibrato is very nice, very subtle and it enhances your tone. Foot-variable speed really helps.
Due to its nature (rotary speaker), the chorus takes a bit of an edge off your hi's, which really affects leads for me.
I give it an 8 in this category because it's a darn cool sound, but not something I can use 30-50% of the time I play.

Read some of these reviews. I'm rather afraid.

Once again, read what other people have said.

You have to ask yourself one question before buying this item: Do I really need a rotary speaker sound? Is that really an essential part of my playing? After owning this for 5 days, I'm returning it because the answer's no. If it were $70, then I can see keeping a pedal I can use on some songs, but for $200 I need something I can incorporate into the blues and funk I mostly play but tame enough I can play in Church without scaring everyone.
Don't get me wrong, this is a damn good pedal at what it does, but my musical needs involve a conventional chours (one that doesn't phase) and tremolo, not vibrato. I'm returning this unit and picking up two boss pedals to do likewise

Very simple to use. Just mess with it and you'll find what settings you like.

Im using my Blue Voodoo Cab with an IbanezRG520 (Thats the metal axe) and yamaha pacifica(strat copy for the blues stuff though i would like a nice american strat balh blah blah. I also use boss phaser and distortion and a dunlop wah and digitech whammy/wah. I can get everything from SRV, Kenny Wayne Shepard, Hendrix and whatnot. Also some kind of korn sounds not that i like them a whole lot.

Well it hasn't broken yet. Seems very reliable too me. A backup? Man the thing was 200 bucks a backup i think not.

This pedal is great for when i start breaking out the hendrix riffs and just about any blues stuff. I love everything about this thing except the price. I haven't tried out any other related products cause i knew this one was great. Id like to hear the DEja Vibe but that costs too much. If you think Hendrix is God you'll buy it just like me.

i bought my first a couple of months ago. the only thing i don't like is the extra wires for the adapter and the control pedal.

i have an old strat i usually play through a Fender deluxe 112. when i use an od pedal and set the intensity on about a third you get that cool rotational speaker effect like kenny wayne shepherd uses and when you turn it on vibrato with the control pedal all the way back you get the coolest sound. with an od edal it is like a bright but not to bright sound. Kenny Wayne i think uses this too. I wouldn't recomend playing lead on the chorus with control pedal of. When it oscilates it gets queit and loud as it does so. It kinda messes up your lead. Pop it back to the vibrato and you got a sweet sound. perfect for rithym and lets you pick out lead notes very cleanly.

very sturdy. i would use the vibrato effect and turn up the pedal volume. Just turn the speed all the way back.

i play blues generally. i kind of throw in a jazz and hendrix style twist. The uni-vibe with the rotational speaker effect is perfect. i would defenitely by it again. The pedal is my main sound. i do wish you could run a by pass with the control pedal plugged in. Pedal is very helpful. You can get more sounds than you think out of this pedal.