Psionic Audio Triad Review

[minjason]

I finally got my Psionic Audio Triad in the mail last Friday, and let me just say that it was well worth the wait. Lyle builds an exceptional pedal that can really take any rig to the next level. There are a lot of ways you can use this pedal (which you can find on his website), but here's how I've been using mine over the last week.

Stage 1 - preamp boost. single knob with a lot of gain on tap. I leave this stage on all the time. Not only can you use it to maintain a balanced volume for guitar changes, you can also use it to boost levels for a clean part. You get a very transparent boost that just pushes your amp and tightens up your tone overall without adding anything extra.

Stage 2 - series/parallel loop. this is where I plug in my Boss DD-20. Using the parallel option allows me to run my clean signal along side the delayed signal rather than running my signal through the delay. So even if my amp is running hot, the delay signal NEVER gets muddy. I can set my delay level on the DD-20 at 100% wet and use the effect send knob on the Triad to blend in as much or as little delay as i want. This is by far my favorite feature of the triad.

Stage 3 - Boost. Two knobs here for volume and tone. I can kick this in for solos and roll back my tone just a hair to avoid a harsh top end. The tone knob really gives you the versatility that is lacking on many other clean boosts I've played. The boost is pristine and does not color your tone at all if you don't want it to...just gives you more of the goods and nothing else. You should expect to see all of my clean boost pedals in the emporium any day now

I know it's still early to make any assumptions, but I really think this is a mainstay on my board. Big thanks to Lyle for making a superb pedal!

[LavaMan]

Lyle does good work. He builds my Lava Flow A/B/Y and has just done a fantastic job with it. Demo'd the Lava Flow over and over again at Summer NAMM and worked like a charm.

[nibus]

I too love the Triad. It's a great tool in many respects, but the best part is the preamp that is based off the Korg SDD-3000 delay. Excellent sounding boost, and it has more clean headroom than any other boost I would dare say.

[oil]

The Triad is a fantastic tool. It is an essential part of my sound and my rig. Great preamp, parallel loop for digital effects (keeping dry analogue) and boost with tone control. Highly recommend it.

[tapeup]

What are all of you players using with your Triad ampwise? It works best with lower-wattage amps is what I've heard. Is this correct? Thanks!

[oil]

AC15 TBRX (Korg reissue)

[Lyle Caldwell]

Originally Posted by tapeup

What are all of you players using with your Triad ampwise? It works best with lower-wattage amps is what I've heard. Is this correct? Thanks!

Not so much lower wattage, but it does work especially well with cathode-bias amps (which tend to be 30W and below), and with single channel vintage amps without a ton of headroom (think Plexi).

Not recommended for a JC-120. Seriously, the "sound" of the Triad is really the sound of the Triad interacting with an already interesting sounding tube amplifier, particularly those with some "grunt" coming from the power section.

[Oddlogic]

STOP this !!

I got mine on order, and these threads are making me SO darn eager to start using it.
Shipping more Triads soon Lyle ?

[nibus]

I use mine with an AC30CC2 and a Fender DeVille 2x12. I have to be careful with the DeVille though, because it has so much clean headroom if my solo boost on the Triad is too high, faces start peeling off.

[tapeup]

Originally Posted by Lyle Caldwell

Not so much lower wattage, but it does work especially well with cathode-bias amps (which tend to be 30W and below), and with single channel vintage amps without a ton of headroom (think Plexi).

Not recommended for a JC-120. Seriously, the "sound" of the Triad is really the sound of the Triad interacting with an already interesting sounding tube amplifier, particularly those with some "grunt" coming from the power section.

Okay thanks very much for the input Lyle! So a Triad would probably work well with my old Deluxe Reverb(is this cathode-bias?) or AC30, and Plexi-style KJL Dirty Thirty, but probably not so well with a Twin or Super Reverb? Thanks!

[Lyle Caldwell]

Originally Posted by tapeup

Okay thanks very much for the input Lyle! So a Triad would probably work well with my old Deluxe Reverb(is this cathode-bias?) or AC30, and Plexi-style KJL Dirty Thirty, but probably not so well with a Twin or Super Reverb? Thanks!

Deluxe Reverbs are fixed bias, as is your KJL and the Twin and the Super Reverb.

But the Triad reacts especially well with amps that either have lower headroom or that breakup relatively early, so the boost from the Triad results in more gain but not a huge volume increase.

So it would work well with all those amps, though it would be more of a clean boost with the Twin, as Twin Reverbs have more headroom than Super Reverbs and a lot more headroom than a Deluxe Reverb.

My site has clips of the Triad in conjunction with Plexi style amps and also with an old '65 Vibrolux - very similar preamp to the Super Reverb. Of the amps on my site, only the AC30 and the Tweed Deluxe are cathode-biased.

[tapeup]

Originally Posted by Lyle Caldwell

Deluxe Reverbs are fixed bias, as is your KJL and the Twin and the Super Reverb.

But the Triad reacts especially well with amps that either have lower headroom or that breakup relatively early, so the boost from the Triad results in more gain but not a huge volume increase.

So it would work well with all those amps, though it would be more of a clean boost with the Twin, as Twin Reverbs have more headroom than Super Reverbs and a lot more headroom than a Deluxe Reverb.

My site has clips of the Triad in conjunction with Plexi style amps and also with an old '65 Vibrolux - very similar preamp to the Super Reverb. Of the amps on my site, only the AC30 and the Tweed Deluxe are cathode-biased.

Awesome Lyle, thanks for the information! I'll check out those sound clips for sure, so I can get a better feel for the Triad.

[Stressfest]

Yay, a Triad thread!! Let me hop on the band wagon here... An absolutely awesome pedal!! It's truely the most toneful of all preamp based pedals i've tried and owned. A real swiss army knife for the kit, wouldn't be without mine.

Awesome stuff Lyle!! :AOK

[troykennedy]

The triad is really great with the badger 18. I love the way the third boost pushes the front of that amp. very cool.