Voodoo Lab Proctavia

Level, and Boost (fuzz), no problem there.

I'm using this on bass to achieve a brassmaster like sound. This unit is extremely high passing, so you NEED a blendable effects loop to use it for bass. Produces very nice fuzz for bass with good sustain.(Am. Jazz -> SWR head /Eden Cabs) Very interesting but subtle harmonics when playing higher and/or lighter. With blendable effects loop it is easy to acheive a Beastie Boys Gratitude sound. Oh yeah, it sounds good on my guitar too.(mex. tele -> vox cambridge reverb)

sturdy construction. no problems so far, and i got it used.

By itself it would get a 0 as a bass effect. In a blendable effects loop or as a guitar effect 8.

very easy to get good sounds, everybody mentions Jimi and Srv, but don't forget Trower. when i say easy,,you must have control over your picking attack, and a good idea of what level of octavia sound/chaos you want, and set your volume/boost level appropriatly. more on sounds below, I got sounds of my guitar heroes rather quickly.

Jap 80's Fender strat (e-series 22 fret)going into: Coron Equalizer/Prooctavia/Keeley mod ts-9(on all the time/Prescription Vibe unit/80's thomas wah w/tdk inductor/Nobels od/aria ad10 delay/ibanez fl10 swellflanger/ibanez sc10 stereo chorus, going to: Peavey classic 50 w/celestion vintage 30's. Powered by voodoo labs pedal power. Immediately found "Purple Haze" solo, I'm a big Trower fan, put the Boost up all the way, and you got "Long Misty Days". Hey, the Volume will have to be set to your personal taste, everybody's rig reacts in their own way, so far I hover around 12 o'clock on the volume, and if I want more octavia, 9-12 o'clock on the Boost, more fuzz, 12-5 o'clock on the Boost. I think Trower went more to the fuzz side, as on "most" of his recordings the Octavia effect is more subtle. But check out Robin Trower Live "I can't wait much longer" the 2nd solo, he's wailing with the Octavia engaged. I don't know that solo yet (if ever)but this pedal can do that. But Jimi freaks should be happy (as I am) "Tax Free", a lot of the songs on "Axis Bold as Love", are easily obtainable (the sound. This pedal plays well with my other pedals, no extra noises/hums, nice sturdy case, sure beats the larger bulkier original, and all the other copykats. Yes, as mentioned in other posts, to personal taste you probably would roll off tone/volume for more "octavia" effect. You also put this effect in a separate loop combined with an equalizer with the "highs" on the equalizer lowered substantially, and the other sliders lowered a little more than usual so when you kick this loop in, you don't have to mess with your guitars tone/volume knobs.
This effect requires higher volume if you have no other "overdrives/fuzzes/equalizers" your chain, in order for this to have "balls/tone and/or react in a fitting manner", or at lower volumes you must have "overdrives/fuzzes/equalizers" to push the amp/effect for proper "balls/tone" (not pushed/too low volumes all fuzzes/octavias can sound like "farty bees")(it also likes my aria delay, just a pinch) oh yeah, for the price it's a no-brainer, I got the older one with no led, I don't care about led's, is it better than the newer ones with led's? I don't know, I'm pretty sure led's won't make it better. Is that enough info for now? Can I go back to playing? ROck on!

don't need a back up with this,

na

I've had Tychobrahe clones that worked ok, but with no adapters, flimsy larger cases, again this gets the sound/effect i want. If it was lost/stolen, I would be on E--y instantly to find another. Hell yes it helps me make music, or at least annoy my neighbors!

If you don't know what to expect this can be a VERY frustrating pedal. Luckily I had done some research before hand & had an idea of what to expect. It's not a plug & play kind of pedal. It takes a little experimentation to find the sweet spots. It is VERY dynamic & the effect you get is COMPLETELY reliant on how you set it up & play through it. The manual states that you must learn to play it like a new instrument. This is no exageration. It seems to need to be placed first in the signal chain. Although I've found that it works in all PU positions it is at it'smost extreme in the neck position. It also works better when the tone is rolled off. Volume is another factor. You MUST roll back the guitars volume in order for the octave effect to come alive. Finally it reacts to your picking dynamics like nothing else. The lighter you pick the more the octave comes out. By experimenting with all those factors you can go anywhere from straight ahead germanium fuzz, to Jimi's "Who Knows" octavia, to bizzare sci-fi bleeps & metallic pings. It's AWSOME.

Just got it yesterday & couldn't stop playing with it. Played from @ 3pm until @ 2am just because there's so many sounds to discover I couldn't stop.

I'm playing it through: Mid '80s Fender stratocaster with Fralin Blues Specials & a Dean flying V with Duncan '59s > Proctavia > '80s era Dunlop Crybaby > Roger Mayer Axis Fuzz > Fender Pro Junior & a Gallien Krueger 250 ML. That's the set-up from last night. I have a '77 Marshall JMP 50watt head the I run through a 4x12 cabinet also. The head is in the shop, but I can't wait to hear it through the Marshall & I'll update the review when I can because the Proctavia definately reacts with a tube amp better than a solid state amp.

It is dead silent when not in use. The only time it's noisy is when it's up full pushing the Axis Fuzz, also full up, to get some TREMENDOUS, controllable, screaming, harmonic feedback. But I guess that's to be expected. It's much better than I expected.

I've only had it for a day, but it seems pretty rugged. Only time will tell.

Haven't had to deal with them.

I can't imagine how I can say that $81 is a fantastic value for a guitar pedal, but I am. Even at full price,if you really need an octavia you should, at least consider, the proctavia.

I've been playing for the last 20 years, but haven't really gotten into effects until the past few years. Used to use a bunch of DOD things back in the High-Schoolish era, but once I got the Marshall that was it. Guitar > wah > Marshall. Now I guess that I have an idea of what sounds I want I what I can get with just my guitar/amp I'm getting into pedals.

Does it help me make music? Hmmm...that's an interesting question. There are so many sounds in this little bit that I'm a bit overwhelmed right now. I feel like until I use it enough to get it out of my system I'm going to be overusing/abusing it's sounds.

Would I buy it again? Probably.

Super easy to get a great sound from this pedal.

The sound quality is very good. I use only U.S. made guitars into a Mesa Mark IIIB amp. I use a Dunlop DC Brick to power all my effects. This pedal gets a great Hendrix ghost octave tone. The problem with this pedal is that if you try to power it up with all your other pedals on a loop, it will not work. It will cause all your other effects to power down. I contacted Voodoo Lab to see if the problem could be fixed, and I was told to buy a Voodoo Lab power supply. Thanks for nothing! I sold it on Ebay!

Seems well made.

Completely useless, they couldn't care less!

If it dosen't work with my other pedals, it's an overpriced paperweight!

You need to experiment a bit to get the exact combination of drive and level. It will also change from guitar to guitar so be prepared to figure that out as well. Not too hard to do, just takes a bit of time.

Again, takes a bit of time to set this up just right. But when you do it will give you a very unique sound. Works best for single notes rather than chords.

It is obvious that these pedals are high quality units.

They are very friendly and helpful. Answer their emails very promptly too.

If you are looking for a great Octavia sound in a much more dependable and affordable package this is it. As with all Voodoo Lab products-high quality, reasonable prices, great sound. What more do you want ?

This is the most complex 2 knob pedal I've ever used. Like the documentation says you have to learn to play it like a new instrument. THIS IS NOT A BAD THING! There are many sounds in this little box. I find that sometimes I get the most extreme sounds from my neck pickup with the guitars volume at about 5-6. This thing rocks! The range of tones is endless and if that adds some complexity SO BE IT!

It's true bypass so it does not effect anything when unplugged, and when it use it does not cause any hum at all. As far as how the effect sounds, it sounds exactly as it should. A way out there effect for those willing to invest the time into learning it.

It's been a solid unit. The jacks are solidered right to the circut board. At least they are secured to the chasis so it's not just the board supporting them. Looks like the same situation with the switch, but I'm not worried about it.

Called to ask a couple questions before I bought it. Had a little hold time before getting someone to talk to, but not bad at all. They were friendly and knowledgeable.

I use this pedal for singing, long, sustained notes. It works like a champ. I compared this against the fulltone octafuzz before purchasing. The Voodoo Lab box seemed more musical to me, while the Fulltone seemed more "out-there". I do wish it had the option of turning the octave feature off like the Fulltone Octafuzz, and I think it would be better if the jacks and switch were not connected to the circuit board directly. Overall, this pedal is a good value.

Pretty easy for me, two knobs is'nt rocket science.

This pedal or even effect in general is awesome if you can play it well....if you are sloppy on either hand then your going to get a big splat of garbage. I play Fender Strats, pedal setup in order is V.L.Proctavia>TS-9(on all the time)>V.L.Micro Vibe>V.L.Trem>VOX Clyde reissue(all powered by a V.L.Pedal Power Supply 2)....To a Fender Hot Rod Deville 212. I love my sound, my setup is very quiet. This effect when used correctly can be very vicious for the SRV and Hendrix sounds.

I bought it used and have never had a problem.

I have delt with them regarding my power supply(no problems just needed more cables)and they were great, very helpful.

I play SRV, Buddy Guy, Hendrix, Rory Gallagher....I only use this pedal for a few diferent songs but I definetly would get another if it were lost or stolen. I think it's a great effect.

Its not difficult to use. It gets a 7 because is needs an isolated power supply, which is an extra $10.

Fender Roudhouse=>EHX OCtave Multiplexer=>Dunlop Crybaby=>Boss Xtortion=>Voodoo Labs Proctavia=>Ibanez Phase Modulator=>Guyatone SV2=>Cheap-ass Squire Amp

I can get a NIN "Into the Void" sound, and also a decent Missy Eliot "One Minute Man" and "Work It" sound.

It also does a great replication of old Hendrix sounds. It get a 10 'cause you will get what you pay for.

Steel construction. about as rugged as a Boss.

I play experimental. This is a decent tool to do that with. I've played my ass off for 4.5 years -play by ear. I might get a trem if it were stolen, I dunno. You get what pay for, but Voodoo labs does not stress the need for an external power supply so its gets a 9

2 Knobs: 1 for volume, 1 for boost. The footswitch on mine does not have a very natural click, but overall it is pretty easy. Gotta spend some time to play around with the knobs to get the sound you want

My setup is a 1997 Fender Stratocaster Deluxe Plus w/ Rio Grande pickups -> Teese RMC-3 -> Voodoo Lab Proctavia -> Roger Mayer Crossroads -> Fender Vibrolux & Marshall JCM 900 w/powerbrake. I find that this is a very quiet effect, and of course is true bypass. I bought it back in the day when my gear was not as good when I was in my hendrix craze, but I recently pulled it out of the closet. One thing that really impresses me is how sensitive it is to your picking. Especially when playing on a clean amp. It can be real soft, or VERY loud. I find that when playing clean, you have to really play the effect, and to sound good it takes some right handed skill. Kinda like when you get your first wah, you can play it, but it takes a while to get it down good. When playing through the Marshall (or a re-issue fuzzface in my old days) you can really crank it. It adds a very harmoniccy (not real word) texture to your sound, and get real crazy. I play barefoot, and sometimes change the knobs with my feet when I play

Only Problem was that my boost knob came off. But big deal, I just put it back on. It has been a solid performer for me for quite a while

I dunno

I play blues/rock/funk/boogie/whatever and this product definately helps me get different tones every now and then. It is not a critical part of my setup, but I kick it on every now and then for a little extra something. I would like to try out a Zvex Octane sometime, He has some really crazy products. All in all, if you are looking for an octavia, the proctavia should definately be looked at.

It is impossible to get a bad sound out of this box

I play a standard strat with a vox wah and a Ibanez smash box.
I put this through a twin reverb. Very noisy, but in a very, very, very good way

this thing is bomb proof, not a problem yet, very well made

never had to talk to voodoo lab

I bought this because I am a big fan of hendrix. And it has sattisfied be completely, also, with the smash box, make and lead sound like kirk hammet.