At the 2017 Summer NAMM Show, Gamechanger Audio introduced the PLUS Pedal, a new effects pedal that brings piano-style sustain to electric guitars and other instruments.
The PLUS Pedal lets you create new types of arrangements, like playing lead lines on top of sustained chords, combining up to 5 different sounds to build multi-layered drones or just using the WET only mode to give your instrument a new character.
Here are several videos, demonstrating the pedal with a variety of instruments:
Features:
- Full spectrum of sustain controls – 4 knobs (Blend, Sustain, Rise, Tail) allow to modify all parameters of the sustain tones
- Multiple layers allow stacking up to 5 notes or chords simultaneously.
- Unique design – a brilliant combination of a guitar stomp-box and piano’s damper pedal. The steel case will make sure it lasts, and the classy look will make it fit on any stage, from café guitarist to rock band to jazz trio.
- Two Outputs will allow you to use the PLUS with a two amplifier setup or split your effects chain.
- Revolutionary FX Loop allows you to link the PLUS Pedal with any other effects unit and use it to modify the Wet or the Dry signal separately.
How does it work?
The PLUS Pedal works as a sort of “Smart Looper” that only catches the second half of each note or chord you play and samples that short snippet of sound into a seamless, continuous loop.
This method is responsive to any playing style – letting you create continuous layers of sustain, incorporating vibrato, bends, harmonics, trills and other dynamic playing techniques. You can also use a whammy bar, play with a slide or experiment with amp feedback or noises – the PLUS Pedal will capture the tonal nuances and turn them into a continuous sound.’
Pricing and Availability
The PLUS Pedal is available for pre order for US $279, with an expected shipping date of late July, 2017.
I like it!
That’s an awesome idea actually, I don’t need one but I hope it sells well for their original idea.
Its not their original idea, the EHX Freeze and the Superego did it a few years before them, and there are many granular plugins that achieved a similar effect even before that. That said the implementation is interesting and I would like to get one, but I would wait until the new Superego+ will be officially announced and demoed before making any moves.
erm those things are not really the same as this device.
“samples short snippet of sound into a seamless, continuous loop”
“letting you create continuous layers of sustain”
How is that not similar to granular effects like the Freeze or the Superego? I have been following this pedal since its been announced over a year ago, but this is the first time I read about it having a pressure sensitive switch. I don’t see any mention about this on their website. Where did you read about that? What kind of effects does the pressure adds?
it´s based on the same working principle, but it´s not the same.
it is the first sostenuto pedal, the ehx is not a sostenuto pedal and it definitely sounds different as well.
A sostuneto being “a musical passage to be played in a sustained and prolonged manner”, how is the EHX not a sostenuto pedal when it does exactly this? This takes a really short sample (grain), and it repeats it infinitely in a seamless way. What is different about this one besides the attack and decay knobs? (which by the way the Superego+ also has in the leaked photo). It certainly uses a different algorithm which aims to sound natural, but there are people using the Superego in the same way the Plus is being used in these videos here.
This might be cool for those people that have Hohner Pianets or clavs too.
Very interesting, but the Freeze and Superego by Electro Harmonix were actually the first pedals to achieve something like this.
pressure sensitive pedal is not the same as a footswitch.
I didn’t say it was absolutely the same, but to claim that it’s the first pedal of it’s kind is quite a bold statement.
Finally something new someone is thinking new ways
Keep on!!!
Look beautiful, pedal action sounded a bit noisy in the cello demo, but love the concept.
This could be quite useful even for synth players as it’s actually a sostenuto pedal (like the middle pedal on some pianos): it only sustains currently playing notes, not new notes you play on top). It takes a little getting used to as you have to press the pedal at a different time to when you’d press a normal sustain pedal (i.e.: after you’ve played the notes).
YES! They should referred to it as a sostenuto pedal.
Pretty sure the marketing dept nixed that!
Really beautiful device. Has anybody tried it yet? I have just one doubt: Piano sustain pedals aren’t designed for standing musicians. Could be fatiguing to press the pedal down during a gig.
Pressing a foot pedal while standing might also be considered less work than walking though
I was expecting a kind of “piano reverb” (i.e., convolution/IR) and not a freeze pedal.
I like that you can set the decay (sustain?) time.
This effect can be achieved with some reverbs– where activating the pedal turns on both input and output to the reverb, and lifting the pedal turns both input and output off. But it has to ramp them on/off or it’s too abrupt. Kurzweil has this, and my Lexicon MPX-1 can do this. It’s not the same as looping out the sound, but it’s still a pretty satisfying effect.
Very nice idea and product, I hope there is a market to sustain it!
Yes – otherwise, they shouldn’t try to pedal it!
Man, that’s awful…..
curious how the sound compares to the freeze or superego – I have the superego and use it to do sustains like this all the time –
The real question is does it work on a Rhodes? Because my Superego doesn’t.
You mean, doesn’t work at all, is it glitchy?
Thanks
do you mean auto triggering – because if you are manually stacking with it it should work fine – the auto trigger I have had weirdness with but I don’t use it with the auto setting anymore for the most part..
I tried both settings and I couldn’t get it to hold a note. I have a mark II and it’s not terribly loud, so I thought if I used a pre-amp boost pedal it might work, but I don’t have one. Maybe I’ll try with Fuzz or something.
that’s so weird – I only have issues with the auto, so far every other sound source I have used works with the layering and the momentary hold. You might want to try compression or a buffer rather than a boost since a boost mainly boosts a range like a mid booster whereas the compression will raise the volume and the buffer will raise the overall signal.
Great product videos! That trombone player is outstanding.
sample and hold that is. is n’t it?