Old Blood Noise Endeavors has expanded its BL series of guitar effects pedals with the BL-52 Phase Repeater and the BL Series Custom Color range which offers all four pedals in the series in a variety of finish options.
The BL Series, recognisable for their three-knob and slider-equipped enclosures, now comprises the BL-52, the BL-44 Reverse, BL-37 Reverb and BL-82 Chorus – but on first impressions we’d say the BL-52 is the weirdest of the bunch, a pedal that exists outside the usual categories. Phaser repetition is unique to OBNE. It will be interesting to see where retailers decide to file it.
In the pedal cabinet, maybe it’ll just be splayed across the phaser and reverb pedal sections. That’s the sort of sonic territory it occupies.
“It lives between phaser and reverb, sounding almost like a room constantly changing in size and materials, with a clear repeat one moment and a diffuse repeat the next,” says OBNE. “The Clock slider allows this sound to move quickly and with fidelity, or slowly and darkly, undulating underneath the player.”
A slider on a stompbox is always a red flag that things are gonna get weird. This one is a Clock control that offers fast repeats at one extreme, and “long trailing diffuse delays”. Pretty exotic.
The Feedback knob can add a little extra length to the decay. Mix adjusts the wet/dry blend while Volume adjusts the output level. The pedal is equipped with a soft-touch footswitch, is true bypass, and takes 9V from a pedalboard power supply.
As to the BL Series Custom Color pedals, well, take a look at the pics above for an idea these can look like. Colour options include Salmon, Blue, Purple, Pink and Black. Choose from Black, Cream, Purple, Mustard Yellow, Mint Green and Gray knobs. All of these pedals are priced $179. And they are available now.
The BL-52 Phase Repeater – which truth be told makes it sound like a weapon from a ‘50s sci-fi – comes hot on the heels of one of Old Blood Noise Endeavors’ craziest releases yet, the Beam Splitter.
Oh, yeah, it’s a distortion pedal, but with 13 knobs on the enclosure you know it’s not your common or garden variety drive pedal. In short, the Beam Splitter takes the signal from your electric guitar, makes three copies, and lets you add distortion and delay to taste. “Strange filters, flangers, lo-fi vibratos, and trailing slap-back echoes” read the tasting notes from OBNE HQ. Wild.
For more details, head over to Old Blood Noise Endeavors.
