Glitch Pedal Guitar

CatalinbreadCopilot FXDelayDigital DelayDigital ReverbDrolo EffectsDwarfcraftEnvelope Filter and Auto WahGlitchGranular DelayHexe EffectsHexe Guitar ElectronicsLooperMalekko Heavy IndustryModulationModulation WorkstationMontreal AssemblyMWFXOddball DelayOddball ModulationPitchPitch-ShiftingPladask ElektriskRecovery EffectsRed Panda LabReverbRing ModulationSlicer and StutterSpacey ReverbThe King of GearTKOGUtility+ -

I’m sort of getting to full saturation point with drive, distortion and fuzz pedals - with my ’2018 Year of Fuzz’ coming to a close it’s time to direct my attentions slightly further afield and in new directions. I’ve always had an interest in sort of randomised textural effects - which means that my next significant area of interest will be that roughly defined by the category of ’Glitch’.

Most of the featured devices here are different types of micro sampler / granular (textural) looper - meaning samples of just a few seconds and less - which can be further cut up, reduced, stretched, ’mangled’ and the like for interesting punctuated playback variations. The pedals that I focus on can mostly / roughly be grouped into 4 sub-categories although some do a mix of all and more still:

Alexander Pedals Neo Series Syntax Error Glitch Midi Guitar Effects Pedal

Many of these use very commonly available chips like the Spin Semiconductor FV-1 Reverb Chip or PT2399 Delay Chip - both of those have a sample buffer at the heart of their operation - to which various other effects and modulations can be applied. There are a number of pedals here that I’ve featured before, and they range from single variable mode through triple mode - to as many as 32 possibly algorithms as in the case of the Pladask Elektrisk Form 2.

For taxonomy reason I’ve decided to exclude bitcrusher types - which my good friends at Delicious Audio though include in their 20 Glitch Pedal Overview. There is some degree of overlap here, and if you haven’t checked out their excellent roundup I recommend you read that first. My selections are always more personal / curated affairs where I only pick those pedals which appeal directly to me, and fit within my specific parameters and criteria - I could conceivably own all of the featured ones as I don’t recommend anything I don’t personally like to a degree, although there are some here which I am more likely to get than others.

The pedal here that’s been on my wishlist the longest is the Montreal Assembly Count to Five Granular Delay, followed by MWFX’s Judder - other pedals I’ve also featured before on this blog include the Alexander Syntax Error, Catalinbread Csidman, Dwarfcraft Grazer, Hexe reVOLVER, King of Gear Mini Glitch, and Red Panda Particle and Tensor - so I’ve had my eye on many of these for a while. In fact the only one I’ve acquired to date is likely the simplest one here - the rather cool Mini Glitch - I will not doubt add a few more in 2019.

The Best Glitch, Stutter And Granular Pedals In 2023

I really like the look of he reVOLVER, but it’s in incredibly limited supply and really quite pricey - I also rather like the look of the Drolo Molecular Disruptor V3 which I have seen popping up on many a pedalboard, and the rather difficult to get Pladask Elektrisk Form 2. Recovery Effects also makes some really cool Glitchy effects, and we must not overlook Malekko’s Charlie Foxtrot or Copilot FX’s possibly now discontinued Simulcast - there are a few still available on Reverb.com.

A lot of these pedals are highly quirky, and some are inherently complex to operate - and much like my Empress EchoSystem - need a manual or guide-sheet handy - so you know how to apply the relevant parameters per algorithm. So funnily those pedals here that appeal to me the most are largely at either end of the spectrum - either the simplest or the most complex.

I still feel that the ’Glitch’ genre is rather in its infancy, and some more capable pedals with more useful displays and controls will evolve over time - which allow you to sample, chop up, re-arrange and texturise in every conceivably manner - individually and in combination - those will appear over the next couple of years or so.

Tkog Mini Glitch Rare Guitar Pedal, Hobbies & Toys, Music & Media, Music Accessories On Carousell

This was one of the first NEO Series pedals from Alexander, and I believe I initially included this in my Ring Modulator overview as it does have that flavour amongst its 4 modes. In fact the Syntax error covers a lot of 'Glitch' ground as you can see by its included modes.

There are 4 dial controls - Sample, Code, Mix, Tweak, and 2 have alternative parameters accessed via Alt button, as usual we also have 4 presets onboard for a really neat compact glitch pedal. I foolishly keep overlooking this one - but it's a pretty cool introduction to some of the key varieties of Glitch. Definitely one to consider.

This one has been featured in the 12 Unique and Unusual Guitar Effects, as well as mentioned in a couple of my delay overviews. It's a really cool and unique randomized CD playback skipping / stutter delay effect - with delay time of up to 725ms, and with % dry 'Mix', 'Feedback' control, 'Cuts' for buffer memory length (degree of sample length) and and 'Latch' for relative time of sample buffer playback up to 100% vs non-skipping sample state.

Pause For These Soothing Ambient Loops Made By An Acoustic Guitar And The Microcosm Effects Pedal (video)

This really has just a single variable mode and is one of the simpler pedals on offer here. As odd delays go - I much prefer Catalinbread's other slightly odd Bicycle Delay - and would choose other pedals which have a skipping style effect within their wider bank of algorithms.

Copilot is based in the Dominican Republic and has a pretty sizeable range of effects including this Glitch/Stutter pedal. It features 3 toggle switches - immediate playback or after sample recording, whole or part of sample via rate control, recorded playback or variable playback via 'Playback' (pitch) control.

The 4 dials are - Playback, Dry (%), Volume, Rate, and there are 2 footswtiches - one for bypass/record and the other for loop/stutter mode selection. This is another pretty neat and rather simple glitch pedal which I can see myself acquiring if the price is right. Since the time I started writing this up there are just a couple now available - it's not quite at the top of my list of acquisitions but I will snap one up if the price is right.

The King Of Gear ;

And then onto one of the more complex ones - I've seen these pedals appearing with increasing frequency on a number of player's pedalboards and often wondered what they were. They are actually made by David Rolo (DRolo) of Belgium and are in fact Multi-Effects pedals with 2 swappable modules which make up 2 banks of 8 algorithms / modes each. Meaning that you have the possibility of 16 different modes.

Currently there are 33 different Algorithms available - which you need to advise David on which ones you want when you buy. You can re-program the existing modules or order further ones - but you would typically need to send them back to David for this - so you need to do some serious due diligence in advance of purchase - to ensure you get the Algorithms best suited to what you need.

You also get 9 dials - smplrt (Sample Rate), fdbk (Feedback), wet, dry, parameters ps, p0, p1, p2 per mode, then 0-7 mode dial, bank 1-2 switch and trails on/off switch - along with ByPass and Parameters Footswitches. Of course each mode will use the parameters differently.

Catalinbread Csidman Glitch Delay**sold

There are of course slightly more vanilla algorithms on offer too - but I would need the addition of a 3rd bank / module for those really. This pedal is currently sold out as they are manufactured in very small batches - so much like with many of these - you need to be subscribed via email and social media and quick to put in an order when a new batch becomes available. These are also prone to variations and updates. I really rather want one of these - I'm not sure whether I would need both this and the Form 2 even though they do have sort of different algorithms - having both would be something else actually!

This is David Rolo's other sort of Glitch pedal - a collaboration between David and Kent Sommer (aka UglyCasanova) - actually a micro sampler/looper with multiple modes and the sample size controlled by tap-tempo.

When compared to the Molecular Disruptor - this is much the simpler proposition, albeit David has discontinued this current version with a note to say that he's working on a new edition - so will be interesting to see whether we get more banks etc. For now you get 4 dials - two smaller up top - Dry and Wet, then two larger ones - Control and Mode, with twin footswtiches - Function and ByPass respectively. The above video gives an excellent demonstration of this pedal's 8 modes:

Of The Very Best Glitch Effects Pedals

I'm not sure you would want both this and the Molecular Disruptor above as there is some degree of overlap here - I guess it depends whether you want a more complex or simpler pedal. As a 'Tweaker' I would go for

Posted by zodaries14

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