Product: Memphis Tremolo Modulator
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted
09/09/2008
at
11:44pm
by
Mark Zanandrea
Ease of Use
:
8
Very simple to use. Two knobs- Speed and Depth. It's one of the oldies, so you have to take the back plate off to access the battery. On the plus side, it doesn't have much of a draw, so you don't have to change batteries to often.
Sound Quality
:
8
A nice, bright, clean tremolo with a triangle wave. Speed goes from far too slow to spastic. Depth goes from all the way off to subtle to choppy off and on. When switched on, the pedal adds a treble and volume boost. It gives the tremolo a nice shimmer, and with the depth all the way down it's almost like a British treble boost. I've found it's great for boosting tube amps, and bad for solid state amps (too harsh).
It's true bypass (as in- take out the battery and you still get your signal when the pedal is off).
It's also hand soldered. Funny how these cheap old effects employed all the manufacturing techniques that expensive boutique pedals boast about now.
I'd give it a 10, but if you don't like the treble boost, you won't like the pedal. It's probably easy enough to mod, though.
Reliability
:
10
Very sturdy in it's simplicity. It's got to be at least thirty years old and it works like it's new. Probably last another thirty years.
Customer Support
:
No Opinion
Forget it.
Overall Rating
:
10
I've played old style rock, psych and folk rock for over 20 years. This pedal works well for those styles. Works perfectly as a trem and/or boost with my old Fender tube amp. Less inspiring as a boost with my Randall solid state.
It would be nice to have a volume control, but then, tone and wave shape controls would be nice, too. And then we'd be talking about a whole different beast.
For a sturdy, simple, vintage tremolo pedal, this is a keeper.
It shouldn't be expensive, but knowing ebay, it probably will be.
