Gamechanger Audio, in collaboration with Fender, has announced that their Bigsby pitch shifting effects pedal is now available.
Here’s what they have to say about it:
“The unique spring-loaded foot-pedal design opens up a world of new strumming patterns and bend combinations, allowing beautiful lap-steel and slide-inspired licks that cannot be achieved with traditional tremolo systems.
The BIGSBY Pedal is always “on” – the only thing you need to do to activate it is to step on the foot-pedal. The algorithm ensures that transitions between the dry and wet (pitched) signals are as smooth as possible, enabling you to seamlessly incorporate pitch-bends into complex picking patterns and lead and melodic lines.”
Overview Video:
Additional Features:
- EXP OUT: This allows you to use the BIGSBY as a unique spring-loaded Expression Controller with fully adjustable Depth, Rate and Offset controls – for modulating any expression parameters of other pedals and effects units (via a TRS 1/4” jack cable).
- FSW IN: The BIGSBY Pedal’s FSW IN connector is compatible with all standard momentary or toggle type footswitches with a TS (Tip/Sleeve) 1/4” jack (normally closed or normally open). You can also use a dual-latching footswitch with a TRS jack – in this case, only one side of the footswitch will work. Pressing the footswitch will activate Latch mode. When latched, the BIGSBY will hold a constant interval determined by the current position of the Depth knob – this way, you don’t have to hold down the BIGSBY Pedal for long phrases. When in Latch mode, you can still use the BIGSBY’s foot-pedal to make momentary dives and detune effects up to two semitones. Pressing the opposite side of the foot-pedal will flip the pitch shift direction.
- MIDI IN (3.5mm type B connector): This allows you to control all functions of the BIGSBY Pedal via CC messages and create and
save presets onto ten preset slots, syncing the Rate parameter to a specific tempo (with subdivisions), and more.
Pricing and Availability:
The Gamechanger Audio Bigsby Pitch Shifting Pedal is available now for $379 USD.
really cool but pricey
They made a Digitech Whammy, but changed the physical design? Beats Behringer somewhat then…
Are whammy bars not sufficient?
Perhaps if they were confident of the quality of their pitch shift they wouldn’t hide it behind so much spring reverb.
Whammy bars don’t have a wet/dry blend.
They can’t (as far as I know) be set to very precise ranges.
They can’t be used on an existing instrument without replacing the bridge — like maybe on a mandolin or a 5-string headless piccolo bass.
Yea, and floating bridges making tuning a pain in the ass. This does open doors for people with decked bridges. Perhaps one or two fewer guitars you need to bring.
In the demo, I kind of missed the slop of the real whammy.
Beautiful pedal, great sounds, thoughtfully functional, fantastic design. Congrats to my friends at GameChanger!
The design of the spring-loaded control is clever. Brings the world of the pitch bend to the foot pedal.
If someone already has a pitch shifter with MIDI control, then one could rig some of this functionality. Hint: expression pedal plus rubber bands. However, the clever way this has integrated bend up and bend down looks very robust and would not be easy to replicate.
I wonder what the playing experience is like when using this in a situation where you can clearly hear the sound of the strings acoustically? The recording or the audience only gets the bended sound, but you get both. Could be a little disconcerting, or not.
Meh. Functionally, just another variation on the Whammy, of which there are already several out on the market.
But that gimmicky pedal shape is a disaster waiting to happen. Just try using that thing live on a dark stage, when your foot isn’t directly over it and the pedal slips out from under the side of your shoe. Guitar pitch progress goes ‘boink’!
Or, worse yet, your foot misses the pedal entirely because you’re concentrating on your playing and not the position of this thin little bar that was designed by the marketing department and not actual functional engineers.
Yeah… pass.
The “heel down” bar seems reasonable, but I agree– less-than-ideal. The “toe down” (bend up?) is weirdly awkward.
I guess the upside is if someone wanted to customize the shape of that metal whammy bar, they could fashion one and replace or augment it.
For that price, it should have gone through more honest and rigorous prototyping testing. A critical user could say, well I like the look but it needs improvement.
Try Virtual Jeff
I wanna hear a Rhodes played through it…