For many players, Strymon has been the go-to company for reverb pedals with its largely conventional Blue Sky and the later Big Sky, which offered more esoteric ‘altered’ reverbs alongside the standard options. The next pedal in that Sky series ventures far deeper into that rabbit hole of altered reverbs and otherworldly ambiances. Defined by Strymon as a “Time-Warped Reverberator”, the NightSky offers real-time continuous control over a whole host of parameters affecting the reverb.
At first glance, the NightSky may seem to have a formidable amount of knobs and switches, but it’s not as daunting as it looks. Having everything on the clear and logically sectioned front panel means that there are no menus to dive into (there are some secondary parameters such as pre-delay, but these are easily manageable), and you get onboard presets so all that creative knob-tweaking can be safely stored away and not lost. 16 presets can be saved and accessed directly from the buttons on the front of the pedal, and there’s access to 300 via MIDI.
SOUNDS
The starting point here is the choice of three basic reverb textures: Sparse, a set of delay taps; Dense, which is like a plate reverb; and Diffuse, a large ambient reverb. While a knob setting decay length is pretty straightforward, the Size/Pitch knob not only adjusts the perceived size of the reverberant space but also simultaneously changes the pitch – either completely smoothly or quantized to a variety of musical scales. There are low-cut and high-cut filters to shape the boundaries of reverb EQ and comprehensive modulation that can be applied to one of three targets – reverb, pitch or filter.
Denne historien er fra February 2021-utgaven av Guitarist.
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Denne historien er fra February 2021-utgaven av Guitarist.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
BASIC INSTINCTS
The sophisticated range of Swedish-designed guitars made by .strandberg* has lured thousands of players over to the headless side. But the company's new stripped-back Boden Essential model is its strongest play yet for the hearts and minds of mainstream players
Second String
As PRS's more affordable USA-made S2 line moves into its second decade, the series gets a revamp with - at last - USA-made pickups and electronics. What took so long?
PABLO VAN DE POEL
When a band from The Netherlands describes themselves as 'raw, psychedelic Southern rock', it may take a little cognitive processing to work out what that might mean. One listen to DeWolff, however, and you will be duly transported to the 60s for some fuzzed-out rock 'n' roll
THE BERNIE MARSDEN COLLECTION
With a fabulous collection of the late Bernie Marsden's guitars, amps and other highly collectable music gear going under the auctioneer's hammer on 11 June, we were thrilled to have the chance of a sneak preview
LENNY KRAVITZ
Some 35 years since the release of his debut LP, for his 12th record, Blue Electric Light, Lenny Kravitz is back again with equal doses of vigour and vibes, using vintage guitars and the purest valve amps
GEORGE VJESTICA
You may not know him at first glance, but the work of Stoke-on-Trent native George Vjestica has probably impacted some of your favourite albums and movies
DICKEY BETTS
Emerging from the shadow of Duane to write signature hit Ramblin' Man, the Allman Brothers guitarist was a hard-living pioneer of Southern rock
NICK GUPPY
It is with great sadness that we report the passing of our highly valued amplifier guru, who died suddenly in April
Lucky Break
Alex Bishop blends old wood with new in an attempt to fix a severely damaged guitar headstock
Tones Behind The Tracks
Cedric Burnside learnt at the knee of his fabled grandfather, but his latest album is a hill country blues masterclass on his own terms