Trace Elliot SM7EQ

I found that this EQ was impossible to get a good clean sound out of. The input gain stage is very artificial sounding and there is no true bypass. The presets are the typical scooped mids, which is not my sound. The manual is OK, I guess, and it does work and all, but I was not able to get my sound out of it.

I tried this with single coils, humbuckers, tube amps, solid state, POD's, you name it, and still could not get what I wanted. Now, if you are a shredder, this may be an OK unit, but it just sounded farty to me. The EQ does work, although it is geared more for bass, but I gave up and sold it. The guy who bought it loves it for his Rickenbacker 12 string, so go figure. I just think an EQ should be pretty transparent sounding.

This thing is really built solidly. The jacks are the tightest I've seen. The only thing that keeps me from giving it a ten in this category is that it takes a lot of juice (2 9 volt batteries) to power the gain, so a wall wart might be a good idea, however inconvenient.

Gibson might stand behind this unit in the US. Might not. Don't know because I ditched it before needing any help. But I wouldn't worry too much because it is very solid.

I play lots of different styles of music, but nothing really loud. I like to start with a clean sound and add some reverb, maybe some chorus, for a jazzy tone with lots of mids. I've been playing for 30 years and have lots of nice guitars and amps. I wanted a simple EQ that was pretty transparent, and this ain't it. It's a case of more is less--the gain stage adds a crappy sound to the chain that detracts from the EQ part and is just not for me. Others seem to like it fine, so just try it before buying it (or be able to return it). I read the other reviews here before buying and while they may be sincere, my experience was very different. Judge for yourself.

This is sooooo easy to get a good sound out of this. It has two eq sections in it. One is a preset eq that you have two choices to choose from, and the choice of not using it and the 7 band eq with the choice of not using it. The manual explains everything and is written for the technically challenged. Very easy to use, but an eq pedal should be easy to use.

I am using this with a stingray and a nemesis 210 combo. It is very quiet, but I never crank the highs...I would imagine some hiss would come through then but I don't do that. It's got two eq sections on this one pedal. The first has you choosing from two preset eq settings. One is the trace tone and the other is the less drastic tone. I use the less drastic tone and love it. It is perfect to my ears. The other eq section is a 7 band eq. I use it to boost my signal and run all the sliders just a little above 0. I use it to get more volume for solos and louder parts of songs. So for me, this is a 2 in 1 pedal.

I think this thing is built very well. It is all metal and very solid. The buttons are very solid and the inputs are almost too solid, it's kinda hard to get a cable in and out at first. The knobs are solid, but not incredibly solid, I wouldn't step on them. Overall very very solid pedal...

NON EXISTENT, Trace dropped the effect line when Gibson bought them out...no dice

This is the EQ pedal for Bass IMO. I hate parametrics and really appreciate user-friendliness and that is here. If it were lost, I would have to buy it again...no doubt. I love everything about this pedal and would recomend buying it, even though the line isn't still being made. If you find one in good shape and need some eq, get one...you'll love it.

Nice features in the seperate pre-shape and graphic footswitches. Mostly keep it on the shallow-v pre shape #1 for and boost the mids with the graphic for solo's. This is really ment as a bass Eq, but works just as good for guitar. The only thing is that lower freqencies for bass are the mid's on guitar. Since Trace got bought out by Gibson most stores that have a stock of any pedals are clearing them out dirt cheap. They listed for high $100's new, I got this one with the 18volt power supply for $60. Great buy if you can get this deal, just make sure to get the power supply or else you need two batteries for this thing. The unit is a little big, so make sure you have room on your pedal board for it.

I play a new Jap strat and Hammer Mirage > SD-1, EQ, Chorus > '72 traymor Custom Reverb. The amp only has passive bass and treble controls w/ 1 channel so I needed something to bost into the amp. Works great. Works great for bass, its not really meant for guitar like I use it so the freqencies are a little off, but you get use to it, thats the main reason behind the 9 rating. Works great with my rig, no problems once you balence your input and output. The 18volt headroom helps out wonders, there is so much more this pedal can push rather than boss or dod.

Well, there is no more Trace Eliot line, and I really don't think gibson's going to give much help. Its in a good metal case, big, but good, solid footswitches, and sturdy feel to the sliders. I really don't think this pedal will give me to much trouble.

Like I said, Gibson is not going to care about you.

Love it, Great price for great gear. All of Traces prices at the store are down, so I may end up picking up the Compressor and Chorus later. For The price I payed, I'd do it again rather than get the "Budget Standard" Boss pedals.

Very simple pedal. However you need to play with it for a little bit to get you best EQ sounds out of it.

This thing sounds AWESOME!!! Best EQ I have ever used--BY FAR!!!!

Seems pretty darn dependable, but I guess you could break it if you kicked it around too much. I use it LIVE and do not bring any back-up
So far -- no problems at all.

I dont know but I have heard they are pretty cool to deal with.

I play mostly Rock and this unit does the job very well. I do not know of anything else I'd replace it with, so I would try to get another one of these, but I dont think they make 'em anymore. I love what a chunk of metal this is--made to outlast me. The only gripe I have about it is that it takes 2 batteries to run it instead of only one (so I give it a 9 instead of a 10 overall), but the other EQs I have seen look funky compared to this so what the heck, I'll buy the extra battery. This baby simplifies my EQ needs and gives me utlra-control to help my sound come out just right. I will never sell it---and I will probably never have to replace it. Its definately a keeper!!!!

This pedal is extremely easy to use. There is nothing tricky about it. Very straightforward. You do not need to read the manual at all.

This pedal gives better EQ control than any I have ever tried or owned. It has input gain control which is very cool. And it has a Pre-Shape control with 2 options. Pre-shape 1 adds a boost at both the low end (50Hz) and the high end (2-5kHz) as well as a cut at the mid-zone (400Hz). Very classic sound!! Pre-shape 2 is more like a rock-type of EQ with a wider bandwidth boost at the low end, less of a mid-cut and a slight boost at the high end. This is less extreme than the Pre-shape 1. These 2 option make this EQ pedal killer IMHO and can be used with or without the EQ main function being turned on. Way cool!!!!

Built like a friggin' tank. Yes I would definately gig with it and with no fear. This is obviously made for pros who need dependable gear. Way heavier-duty than most EQ pedals out there.

Never dealt with them. Don't think I will ever need to either.

I play everything from Ambient to Screeming Rock to Jazz. This pedal fits my needs for all of it. I would not be without one. If I lost it I would immediately get another one. It is a heavy pedal so it adds to my travelin' bulk but hey-- its solid gear!! I've been playing for over 30 years and this pedal is really one of the best values I have ever come across. I wish they were all made like this.