Charybdis Chorus/Vibrato

Description

Charybdis is a boutique fully analog chorus/vibrato pedal that uses a real bucket brigade delay chip to achieve its warm and wide modulation sound. Just like the mythical Greek sea monster created the pulsing tide of the oceans, our Charybdis creates a pulsing sea of modulation with plenty of depth to sink even the driest of guitar tones.

Each Charybdis utilizes an authentic NOS MN3007 BBD or the Xvive MN3007 equivalent (if NOS is unavailable). We’ve tried a number of “work-alikes” and can confirm the Xvive chip achieves the same warm and lush sound that all of the “fake” chips are lacking.

We love this chorus circuit for its rich and warm sound. It has a unique wave form that shifts slightly between a triangle/sine shape depending on how the depth/rate controls are set.

Types: Charybdis features two modulation types, Chorus and Vibrato.

“Chorus” is a modulation effect that is achieved by taking the dry guitar signal, delaying it ever so slightly, and modulating the speed at which the signal is played back using an LFO wave, giving you a pitch drift effect. This is called the “wet” signal. The wet signal is combined with the dry signal to achieve the widening effect that we know as chorus.

“Vibrato” removes the dry signal from the output, which isolates the wet signal, and in turn bypasses the mix control. The vibrato is great for adding a little bit of subtle variation and width in double tracked guitars, simulating a warbling tape head or vinyl record, or can be used as a dramatic effect that is sure to leave you seasick.

Modes: Charybdis features two distinct modes that alter the LFO wave.

“Classic” mode is your standard rising and falling sine/triangle wave shape. This setting is what will give you the sound you hear in your head when you think “classic analog chorus”.

We added a unique wave mode that we called “Warp” mode. It creates a time-warping effect by replacing the classic triangle wave with a square-like wave that swings the delay time back and forth quite dramatically. When the wet signal is swung out of time it creates a pitch shifting sound similar to adjusting the delay time on an old analog delay pedal. It is a wild and interesting sound that we felt needed to be in the final design. When “Warp” mode is enabled, the Depth knob is bypassed, and set to a default setting to prevent the warp mode from getting out of control.

Controls:

The “Rate” control adjusts the speed of the pitch modulation. It has a wide rage from slow to fast, and everything in between.

The “Depth” control provides a smooth and wide range of pitch modulation, from a subtle “falling” wave shape, to a deep and drastic wave shape.

The “Mix” control allows you to dial in the amount of the wet signal, from subtle “almost off” chorus, to where the wet signal is slightly louder than the dry signal. We experimented with a variety of different resistor networks, pots, and tapers and found the perfect recipe for a smooth mix adjustment that doesn’t take any of the magic away from the wet signal and doesn’t affect the dry signal at all.

Features:

• Powder-coated enclosure with UV printed graphics

• 100% Analog Bucket Brigade Circuitry

• Assembled and wired by hand

• High quality and long lasting components

• True Bypass

• Low-noise