Empress Tremolo & Dr.Scientist Reverberator

[Merelington]

I'm looking to buy these two pedals but they are hard to come by used. So before I spend $500 for both of them new I wanted to see what you guys had to say about them.

Empress Tremolo
I'm pretty set on this tremolo as it has the tap tempo, rhythm, & ramping options as well as being true-bypass.

However, does it handle a clean AND distorted sound well? And how choppy can the square wave get?

This one will be replacing my Dunlop TS-1 Tremolo which has a great choppy square wave.

Dr.Scientist Reverberator
This will be replacing my amps limited reverb. How well does it handle the clean & distorted sounds?

Frazz Dazzler
A cool/different fuzz I'de like to get my hands on but can't seem to find it for sale anywhere.

*Anything you guys can tell me about these pedals (or if you have suggestions for other similar ones)...would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[HBob]

I have the Empress and it's all good. Great sounds, features, layout - everything. Can get very choppy. Very synth-like sounds with the patterns and a distorted guitar. I don't think you'll regret getting one. I got mine from ToneFactor.com.

 

[Merelington]

Thanks for the link. They're $20 less than where I was going to buy one.

I heard the low end can sometimes sound undefined. Is that true at all? (If so, to what extent)?

 

[hbentley]

I have been though alot of reverbs....the RRR is great. I owned it, sold it for the TC Nova, then sold the nova to get another RRR. It's a great verb. It should definitely float your boat as long as you aren't after a spring sound (which it doesn't do).

 

[Merelington]

PERFECT!!! The RRR it is then (i've heard nothing but great things). I'm actually getting a reverb pedal because I don't like the spring reverb on my fender twin...and b/c there are more tweakable settings in pedal format.

 

[gururyan]

Yeah, the RRR is just an amazing reverb pedal. I've been soooo happy with mine from day one.

 

[theinteriorleag]

I've got both of these pedals on my board, and they aren't leaving. The trem can't get as choppy as say the earthquaker hummingbird, but it comes fairly close. No problems with the sound clean or distorted. Same for the RRR. I like a real saturated thick fuzz with it and the mix fairly high for some textural, ambient stuff.

They are both worth paying the full new price for.

 

[mad dog]

The RRR is a very cool pedal. I ended up trading it, as I had spring alternatives I played more. Still, the RRR has some interesting and pleasing reverb sounds, also a certain added presence -- not quite a boost, but something extra -- when you use it at higher volumes. It worked very well live for me. Flexible, loved having a level knob and two reverb length settings. I should have kept it.

 

[Merelington]

Thanks for easing my mind guys. The second I get payed at the end of the week i'm definitely getting the reverberator. May have to hold out on the empress until my next paycheck (unless I hear more great things and simply can't resist).

 

[mad dog]

I had a HG before the RRR. The HG did have a good sound. Added a bit of extra presence, similar to what I hear from a Premier Reverb unit. However, that sound was outweighed by the hiss, the crappy construction, the unriliability of it. At least for me. Turned out the HG sound (at least to me) was not so good that I missed it much. Ended up with real spring reverbs, which beat it by a mile. The RRR does not soup up the tone as did the HG. But it does add a subtle drive -- it's own kind of warmth -- especially at higher volume levels. I would not call it sterile so much as open or uncolored. That's why the volume/level knob is so useful. Aside from volume, it adds a little extra something to the sound.

Having used both live many times, the RRR wins big in that department IMHO. It's quiet, and it cooperates especially well with delay (a necessity for me.) My overall tone was much better -- certainly less noisy -- using the RRR. YMMV of course.

 

[hbentley]

well put

I had a HG before the RRR. The HG did have a good sound. Added a bit of extra presence, similar to what I hear from a Premier Reverb unit. However, that sound was outweighed by the hiss, the crappy construction, the unriliability of it. At least for me. Turned out the HG sound (at least to me) was not so good that I missed it much. Ended up with real spring reverbs, which beat it by a mile. The RRR does not soup up the tone as did the HG. But it does add a subtle drive -- it's own kind of warmth -- especially at higher volume levels. I would not call it sterile so much as open or uncolored. That's why the volume/level knob is so useful. Aside from volume, it adds a little extra something to the sound.

Having used both live many times, the RRR wins big in that department IMHO. It's quiet, and it cooperates especially well with delay (a necessity for me.) My overall tone was much better -- certainly less noisy -- using the RRR. YMMV of course.

 

[Merelington]

Bump...added the Frazz Dazzler to the list..any thoughts?

 

[EMS4HIM]

I would for sure invest in the empress. It is hands down the best tremolo pedal out there. (IMHO) It is very transparent tone wise and the tap tempo feature with the mode selector switch makes it very versatile. I think you would find it is WAY better than your dunlop. The guys are right - the low end is great and it can certainly get choppy. For being a "handmade" pedal in Canada, the price isn't all that bad. Not to mention the tempo LED stays on even while the pedal is bypassed. Pretty nice feature.

 

[staplek]

+1 for the RRR. I'm very happy with mine.