ISP Technologies Decimator Noise Reducer

Obviously dead simple, but one must be careful of exactly where to put it. For my use, it's very easy.

My setup is fairly elaborate, so I'll just pare it down to where I put this pedal; I run a boss NS-2 into a 5150, but I don't use the 5150's power section; I pulled the tubes. I run it into a separate power amp, a VHT 2/90/2.

Even with nothing plugged into that 5150 it's enough white noise to calm a neonatal ward, so where I use the Decimator is actually after the preamp of the 5150 - basically like a serial effects loop - so that when I stop playing, you hear NOTHING. I set the threshold so it cuts off when there's no signal through the 5150, and I am extremely happy.

Great for scaring cats.

If it were smaller I'd buy a bunch and make body armor out of them, and if someone tried to shoot me, I'd still gig with it. Bullet deflected.

I got this from Rock Solid Amps in Ft. Lauderdale when I bought an ENGL Powerball. Man, is the fucking guy that owns that place (his house, that is) a cocky used car salesman dick. I've never dealt with ISP, but Rock Solid sucks.

I play tech metal, and for my uses, this is an amazing pedal. I may get a rack version of it, since I need another one for my second signal, but for now, I think this thing is amazing.

Well, it is fairly easy. There is one knob and a foot switch. However, there's a difference in knowing how to kill the noise and knowing how to effectively use this device. Basically, you must decide how much noise reduction to enable and then when to turn it on or off. Obviously, between songs you will want it on. And in some songs you will want to keep it on. But, for some songs that may be gentler, you may want to turn it off. For example, the last time I played, we had a song that I needed to be heavy at my entry point. So I had a somewhat crunchy tone selected with the Decimator turned on. Then once I got through the crunchy part, there was a more mellow part that I needed clean sustain on. So at this point I turned the device off.

Well, this device will certainly kill the noise. But you must be careful not to reduce too much of the sustain in the process. Basically, the more you turn the knob, the less noise and less sustain you get. It's kind of a balancing act that you must perform. I have basically three main tones: Clean, Crunchy, and High gain. So, what I usually do, is set the device so that when I'm not playing but have my Crunchy tone turned on, there is no noise. This allows for a descent amount of sustain on the Crunchy and High gain tones. And then when I play clean, I just simply turn off the device. As far as being transparent, other than eliminating hum and reducing sustain, there is no noticeable tone coloration.

Only had it a couple of weeks. But it looks like it could survive being run over by a semi truck. It is quite heavy, more so than a typical Boss, DOD, etc... stomp box style peddle.

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I bought it from www.humbuckermusic.com And they seem very nice! I'll definitely be shopping with them again! 8-)

This is an vital part of my setup because of the electrically noisy venue I am currently playing in. Also, note that I am running direct from my amp modeler into the PA. So I have no experience on how this effect would work with a real amp. But, I'm sure it would be somewhat similar. Anyway, if it was lost or stolen, I'd probably get another one. I've considered getting another one for handling different amounts of noise reduction depending on which tone I might be using at the time.

Extremely easy to use ... only one knob!

Used some extremely high-gain pedals in front of it, and it quashed the noise completely. Ran the output through some other noiseless pedals into a DAW, and the noise level in the DAW was nearly the same as when the output was totally disconnected from the A/D interface. Pretty amazing. Compared it to an MXR Smart Gate, which also works pretty well, but that unit let through some hiss which was discernable. The Decimator is a lot better. The Decimator also sounds very transparent. Playing solos then stopping fast, it gated very fast and natural, but when letting chords ring, it allowed them to slowly decay. There's no stuttering at all.

Only had it for a little while, but it is built like a tank! Size and shape are like Boss pedals, but it weighs twice as much. The chrome enclosure is hefty and solid.

Spoke with them over the phone, and they answered my questions, were knowledgeable, and very friendly.

This is the best noise reduction unit for someone playing extremely high-gain distortion. It is equally at home in a live situation on a pedalboard (or in an effects loop), or recording direct. Compared to the MXR Smart Gate, it works better, reducing the noise a lot more, while retaining the tone and character of the guitar.

It is veeeeery easy to use.

i tried this deciamtor pedal with Marshall 2000, Bad Cat, THD flexi50 and Little Lanilei, Gisbson lespaul std and a American strat, Fulltone pedal: fulldrive2, fat boost, deja2, cry baby dunlop, kenley compressor, dd5 delay boss...dist pro fulltone...a nd some more pedals, i tried different set ups, including a boost of 27 db in my strat. it works perfect but i had to put the delay next to the amp, bercause the deecimator pedal cut the delay level, not big deal, really. It doesn?t change the timbre or tone of the sound i am using, same sound but i can hear some difference on decay, just a bit, not a big problem. I fully recommend this pedal if you have any kind of boost, over drive and distortion. remember this pedal is designed only to eliminate the noise that comes just from pedals, it doesn?t eliminates noise from amp or ground problems. Great creation!!!!!!!!!

i just called them once, they were very nice. They answered my questions.

i just got it, i used it for 7 hrs, all kinds of set ups and different volumes, it is perfect if you get noise from pedals and or guitar only.

One knob, how much more easy can it get? Turn the knob until there's no noise and that's it.

I'm using Framus Cobra with it's maching cab. (Although it's a very silent amp already, our practise space is so small that I'll have to stand right next to the cab.) Took away all feedback problems. The only noticeable thing is that on the clean channel the chords fade away a bit earlier than without the pedal. Not too soon though.

Had it for about a 1,5 months now. Seems reliable

Answered my emails fast, seemed very friendly.

I play extremely heavy proggressive metal mixed with nightclub style jazz and blues. I've been playing about 10 yrs now. I could say that this is absolutely the best piece of equipment that I have ever bought to my rig. If it got stolen I would instantly buy a new one and then go shoot the thief and take the old one back. I wish they would sell these here in Finland, I had to order it from the UK.

this is a no brainer more or less, class dismissed.....it's that easy.
in a world of information overload this pedal is like a breath of fresh air.

totally transparent, i have tried every noise / gate pedal that's ever come down the pike and this is the only one that REALLY WORKS!!! i've used it pre and post and it is equally effective in both applications. in the studio i have various pre-amps, voodu valve, chameleon, pod pro, roland gx-700, behringer v-amp pro. and a rocktron pro bass and it works well with each unit. i also use small amps in the studio, bedrock 600 1x12 , boogie .22 caliber 1x 12, ampeg g18 1x8 , roland jc55 2x8, a 1965 champ 1x8, marshall studio 15 and a 1974 traynor 1x10. live i use a vintage marshall 100 watt head with a full stack. have been collecting guitars for years and have a wide variety of vintage les pauls, strats, tele's, explorers, v's, dc's, jr's, blues hawks, 335's, ricks, dan armstrong, gretch, brownsville, danno and many more. this pedal shines on every single one in any situation.

this thing is built like my ex-girlfriend and she was built too last!
great potential for a good weapon,it's damn heavy and virtually indestructible. mine has seen serious abuse already and still performs flawlessly. after the bomb falls and the smoke clears the only thing left will be the cockroaches and the isp decimator...go figure.

as stated it's built too last and made to with stand a nuclear blast.
i bet the support people sit around and drink martini's all day becasue they have nothing else to do. i've got an application in now and i'm waiting for a call.

i play all styles from crystal clean to down right tonally offensive and this has proven an effective tool for any application. if it were stolen i couldn't blame the person because i couldn't live with out it and it would be a great addition to their rig. i would go out and buy another even if it was twice the price it's that good!!! i would have to say honestly it's the best $110 i've spent in a LONG TIME!!

Do yourself a favor and get one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

One knob, turn until the noise floor is gone. And then listen whether the decimator cuts the note trail too soon. Try putting it before the distortion pedal if the decimator doesn't work effectively after.

It's amazing. It doesn't affect tone at all. It's like putting an "invisible" noise reducer device. I use the decimator before the distortion pedal. It doesn't work effectively when I put it post distortion or post delay. For some people, it works best when it is used as the last device in chain.

This pedal is heavy. And the chrome silver finish doesn't seem to be a cheap finish. I would definitely use this without a backup.

People at ISP are friendly and informative. Buck himself speaks in a down-to-earth way.

I play hard rock. I bought the ISP decimator to reduce the static noise that presents in my clean and distorted sound. The decimator eliminates 100% of the noise in clean and 95% when the distortion pedal is switched on. I can focus more in getting a better tone and when I solo.

this is the easiest pedal to use in history. it is impossible to make it easier to use.

i use a les paul with EMGs, a XXL head with a lot of distortion, plus a bad monkey for even more distortion. i need a gate. this thing gets rid of the sound without altering the tone. the second best pedal (the one i used to have) IMO is the boss ns-2. it worked great except after a while,i noticed it took a little "balls" out of the punch. not the case with the ISP. decays naturally and doesnt cut sustain. basically, when you are playing, it sounds like its not on at all. thats what you need.

cant really say, only had it a couple a days. it feels like a brick though, and looks sturdy.

well it didnt have any problems, but i did contact buck at ISP before purchasing; SUPER friendly staff. very quick responses (one of them, i believe he actually responded with 2 hours to an email). a pleasure to deal with.

i play metal and hardcore mostly. a perfect match. in fact, the only perfect match ive ever tried. i'd get another in a second. i know this sounds like the review is too glowing, but look at the others; it really is this good!

I've never used a pedal that's so user friendly. Had a good sound within minutes and didn't have to turn the effect up to the highest setting to get a good response.
The manual is straight forward with easy to follow diagrams. Not that you'd need a diagram. It's only got one knob.

The main reason I bought this is that I have two pedals especially that create noise. The brilliant yet "hissy" Line 6 Echo Park and a Seymour Duncan Booster ( on the higher 25db setting! ). I'm playing through a Marshall TSL 602 combo with an Epiphone LP custom. My pedals are the ISP, an Echo Park, Small Clone, Super octave and the Seymour booster.
I find the ISP doesn't colour the tone in anyway and has true bypass. It just wipes out the noise and hiss and the amp sounds like it's in standby mode. Marvellous! Also, there's no clipping of the guitar signal as it fades.

Can't really score this yet as I haven't used it extensively. Still, it's feels solid and is designed similar to Boss pedals. Can't see it going wrong unless I'm careles.

Not had to deal with them yet.

I generally play rock with a touch of celtic and goth in it. It allows me to use more extreme settings and higher gain levels without irritating noise. I've been playing on and off here in London for about 15 years. Currently gigging.
I also have a Gt6 which I've come to hate with a passion.
If the ISP decimator was lost or stolen I would have to replace it!
I compared it to the Boss NS-2. Not as good in my humble opinion, and the MXR pedal which I thought was too expensive at a #135!!!!
Chose this due to the good reviews and availability. Boss delivery times to shops are bad in England. Nowhere in London had an NS-2.
It definitely helps me in making music as noisy hissing pedals can get on your nerves and cut short jamming as it strains my ears.

There is only one knob that controls the threshold from -60db to +10db. Pretty damn easy if you ask me!

I play an EMG-HZ;decimator;Ampeg VH140C;Alesis M-EQ;BBE 462 Sonic Maximizer; Alesis 3630 Noisegate/compressor. Unlike the other noise gates I have used this one did exactly what I needed it to do: eliminate all feedback/noise while allowing notes to sustain and proccess as they should.

The pedal is built even tougher than Boss pedals and looks bad-ass too. Although I just bought it I'm sure that it is a reliable device.

The guys at ISP were super friendly and helpful! I think they should have a wider distribution with the bigger musical instrument retail stores, but perhaps they have their reasons for not working with them.

I play brutal technical death metal and this pedal is absolutly neccissary for this style. My Alesis 3630 just was not cutting it as far as noisegates go. Its so easy to use a chimp could operate it. If I lost this pedal I would most deffinatly buy another one.