infiniteposse
06-13-2012, 12:47 AM
So my Flint arrived today and I had a little time to do some basic playing with it this evening and I thought I'd throw up a synopsis.
I'll say ahead of time, I love this company. That might make me a fanboy, but so be it. I'm an audio engineer and I work with lots of digital audio technologies and I think that the way they've synthesized this type of technology and programming with the pedal form-factor is remarkable. I don't personally care if the models are 100% accurate, I just personally find that the boxes are all musical, easy to operate and, most importantly for me, sound great on records. Clients figure out how to get what they need out of them in minutes and we get on with making music.
So the Flint... The first impression I had was a little odd, actually. I plugged it in and it had defaulted to reverb-->trem, which isn't something I'm accustomed to hearing. Once I switched which fed which, I was in much more familiar territory.
I decided to use my tele (CS 63) for the first time sitting down with it as it's tone is really clear as a bell and spare. The amps I ran it through were my Allen Brown Sugar, followed by my Hayseed 30 (in half-power mode) and then my 53 5B3 Deluxe.
Long story short, the Flint sounds great through all of the amps. My tele through any of these amps has a very clear voice and the thing that immediately struck me was that that voice wasn't at all muddled. The signal path on every Strymon pedal I've used has been pristine and just seems to get out of the way. The Flint was no exception. I played with each of the models in each mode (and combined) and with each one I just kept forgetting there was a pedal in the path. The trem and verb both felt very organic and like it was a part of the amp. I got lost in the sound for quite a while several times during this short run through. I'd bypass the pedal and kind of be amazed that this sound that seemed so integral and a part of the amp could just turn off at the push of a button.
Quick run down on the models:
Reverbs:
Spring reverb - Sounds like nice spring reverb. The tone knob on the verb side is very powerful and idiot proof. Love it.
EMT plate model (70's) - Nice. More subtle and tad darker than the 80's model. I like the times they chose for the pre-delay this model as well as the 80's model. Not being able to adjust it is a non-issue, unlike my experience with the TC Flashback I demo'd a while back. Easily on par with the UAD EMT 250 plate plug-in, which I like a lot.
Lexicon model (80's) - Nice and lush and *not* super gimmicky, unlike my general experiences with "Ice" algorithms, which I just don't get along with, personally. Infinite settings on this just sound cool. This setting made me think "Unforgettable Fire," Lanois, etc... Just deep and absorbing.
- Note: I like the times Strymon chose for the pre-delay, all around. Not being able to adjust it is a non-issue, unlike my experience with the TC Flashback I demo'd a while back and didn't like because of the very obvious pre-delay I was hearing. Maybe I'm crazy...
Trems:
Harmonic trem (63) - Very cool sound and I can imagine it being useful in a number of contexts. With the intensity down it's not beating you over the head with the "effect," you just get sucked into the overall feel of the trem. As the intensity goes up it throbs really nicely and it's a really nice, deep sound, not unlike my Fulltone Dejavibe. All settings are useful.
Tube trem (65) - Good stuff. Like someone else mentioned in another post, reminds me of my Gibson Falcon trem. Simple, musical and perfect.
Bias trem - Yup. Sound likes what you'd expect. Not my favorite trem in general, but it does what it's supposed to do.
In short, I like it a lot. I think it'll get a lot of use and it's simplicity will make it a winner for use in a studio environment with clients hopping on and off my pedal-board.
It's worth noting that I preemptively sold my BSR in anticipation of the Flint being released right after it was announced. While I liked the BSR better than anything else I had demo'd, it had a degree of tweakability that wasn't necessary for me most of the time and the modulation and ice modes weren't my thing at all. My gut told me the Flint would be more in line with what I like workflow-wise and sonically and I was definitely right. This pedal is "Deadman" in a box, which is sort of my holy-grail for vibey trem and verb sounds.
Another thing I'll mention is that while I very much like the pedal, it's not exactly the same, to my ear, as internal trem and verb. It melds superbly with the guitar and amp and becomes a very cohesive and musical sound, but it's a little cleaner than most amps with on-board trem and verb usually are, IMHO. I've found this also with my Timeline and el Cap and while some might view that as an issue, to me it's just a different kind of sound. Maybe a little more hi-fi. Ultimately though, once I stop listening for that sort of thing, I just get lost in the playing and the musicality of the pedals. It's not something someone will notice in the audience.
That was not the quick review I had intended to write. Hopefully that will answer a few questions for folks out there doing the waiting thing and for those who might be interested in hearing more about it.
I'll say ahead of time, I love this company. That might make me a fanboy, but so be it. I'm an audio engineer and I work with lots of digital audio technologies and I think that the way they've synthesized this type of technology and programming with the pedal form-factor is remarkable. I don't personally care if the models are 100% accurate, I just personally find that the boxes are all musical, easy to operate and, most importantly for me, sound great on records. Clients figure out how to get what they need out of them in minutes and we get on with making music.
So the Flint... The first impression I had was a little odd, actually. I plugged it in and it had defaulted to reverb-->trem, which isn't something I'm accustomed to hearing. Once I switched which fed which, I was in much more familiar territory.
I decided to use my tele (CS 63) for the first time sitting down with it as it's tone is really clear as a bell and spare. The amps I ran it through were my Allen Brown Sugar, followed by my Hayseed 30 (in half-power mode) and then my 53 5B3 Deluxe.
Long story short, the Flint sounds great through all of the amps. My tele through any of these amps has a very clear voice and the thing that immediately struck me was that that voice wasn't at all muddled. The signal path on every Strymon pedal I've used has been pristine and just seems to get out of the way. The Flint was no exception. I played with each of the models in each mode (and combined) and with each one I just kept forgetting there was a pedal in the path. The trem and verb both felt very organic and like it was a part of the amp. I got lost in the sound for quite a while several times during this short run through. I'd bypass the pedal and kind of be amazed that this sound that seemed so integral and a part of the amp could just turn off at the push of a button.
Quick run down on the models:
Reverbs:
Spring reverb - Sounds like nice spring reverb. The tone knob on the verb side is very powerful and idiot proof. Love it.
EMT plate model (70's) - Nice. More subtle and tad darker than the 80's model. I like the times they chose for the pre-delay this model as well as the 80's model. Not being able to adjust it is a non-issue, unlike my experience with the TC Flashback I demo'd a while back. Easily on par with the UAD EMT 250 plate plug-in, which I like a lot.
Lexicon model (80's) - Nice and lush and *not* super gimmicky, unlike my general experiences with "Ice" algorithms, which I just don't get along with, personally. Infinite settings on this just sound cool. This setting made me think "Unforgettable Fire," Lanois, etc... Just deep and absorbing.
- Note: I like the times Strymon chose for the pre-delay, all around. Not being able to adjust it is a non-issue, unlike my experience with the TC Flashback I demo'd a while back and didn't like because of the very obvious pre-delay I was hearing. Maybe I'm crazy...
Trems:
Harmonic trem (63) - Very cool sound and I can imagine it being useful in a number of contexts. With the intensity down it's not beating you over the head with the "effect," you just get sucked into the overall feel of the trem. As the intensity goes up it throbs really nicely and it's a really nice, deep sound, not unlike my Fulltone Dejavibe. All settings are useful.
Tube trem (65) - Good stuff. Like someone else mentioned in another post, reminds me of my Gibson Falcon trem. Simple, musical and perfect.
Bias trem - Yup. Sound likes what you'd expect. Not my favorite trem in general, but it does what it's supposed to do.
In short, I like it a lot. I think it'll get a lot of use and it's simplicity will make it a winner for use in a studio environment with clients hopping on and off my pedal-board.
It's worth noting that I preemptively sold my BSR in anticipation of the Flint being released right after it was announced. While I liked the BSR better than anything else I had demo'd, it had a degree of tweakability that wasn't necessary for me most of the time and the modulation and ice modes weren't my thing at all. My gut told me the Flint would be more in line with what I like workflow-wise and sonically and I was definitely right. This pedal is "Deadman" in a box, which is sort of my holy-grail for vibey trem and verb sounds.
Another thing I'll mention is that while I very much like the pedal, it's not exactly the same, to my ear, as internal trem and verb. It melds superbly with the guitar and amp and becomes a very cohesive and musical sound, but it's a little cleaner than most amps with on-board trem and verb usually are, IMHO. I've found this also with my Timeline and el Cap and while some might view that as an issue, to me it's just a different kind of sound. Maybe a little more hi-fi. Ultimately though, once I stop listening for that sort of thing, I just get lost in the playing and the musicality of the pedals. It's not something someone will notice in the audience.
That was not the quick review I had intended to write. Hopefully that will answer a few questions for folks out there doing the waiting thing and for those who might be interested in hearing more about it.