The Voodoo Vibe is our latest evolution of the famous Uni-vibe guitar effects unit as used by Jimi and Robin Trower.The Uni-Vibe was originally designed for electronic organs to replicate the rotary speaker effect of a Leslie unit and made by a Japanese company in the 60's. The units best-known user was of course Jimi who used the Uni-Vibe at Woodstock and it's underwater sound is identified on such tracks as 'Machine Gun'. The Supervibe was the next evolution and this rack-mounted unit and incorporated the modifications that I had developed for Jimi plus some further updates. The Supervibe's enthusiasts have included Stevie Ray Vaughan and Robin Trower. The Voodoo-Vibe goes much further in expanding the basic good filter sound of the original but with a host of new features that make the Voodoo-Vibe today's choice of player such as Page and Clapton. These new features and of course the fact that the unit includes a TREMOLO function together with the usual Chorus and Vibrato. The Voodoo-Vibe is housed in a deep rectangular die cast enclosure is totally analogue in operation featuring none of the nasty zipper type noise and graininess associated with the digital variety of devices that simulate chorus and phasing effects. The guitar tone is maintained throughout the range of effects, which capture all the subtleties of playing technique even as the signal decays away.
Electronically the Voodoo-Vibe is totally analogue in operation with Class A discrete circuitry for all the audio stages and has a signal to noise ratio of over 120dB which is 12dB better than a compact disc. The circuitry produces warm, full, but still transparent tones and is also much less prone to background noises than the original Uni-Vibe. It also has dual low impedance outputs, which allow parallel path processing and the ability to drive long cable lengths without high frequency loss or level change. The dual outputs are also active in the Bypass mode. On the top of the box are seven controls with "chicken head" knobs. The Function control offers a choice of chorus, vibrato and tremolo. Speed is firstly set by the Range control giving three sine waves and three triangle wave speed ranges: slow, medium and fast. The precise speed being adjusted by the Fine control. Then we have the Intensity control which sets the level of effect and Output, which determines the output. Symmetry controls the ratio of the rise time to the fall time of the modulation signal being used. For example when using slower speeds you can make the sound build up slowly and cut off quickly creating a helicopter type "woof-woof-woof" sound. Bias is most effective in the chorus mode and enables the filter to be centred on different frequencies, emphasising either the bass or treble frequencies within the sweep. Also if the Intensity or amount of modulation is reduced to a minimum the Bias has the effect of providing new different phase type sounds. The Bias control when used in the Tremolo mode can make the modulation very chopped sounding and is usually accompanied with a variation of Symmetry producing some very unique tremolo effects. Speed can also be controlled from an external volume pedal that is plugged into the two jack sockets on the back. Powering is from either a single 9 Volt battery or mains adapted power supply (not included). Extensive internal filtering assures quiet and correct operation with commercial adapters. The on/off switch is a top quality rugged USA footswitch and the status LED clearly visible.
The Voodoo-Vibe has many advantages over the original without sacrificing none of the originals good points but eliminating the many short comings and lack of flexibility. The added features have received acclaim from those that have used of tested the device. It truly provides sounds and areas of experimentation that were previously unavailable so it makes sense if you are adventurous to dip into the modern aspects of analogue modulation.
EXTERNAL POWER ADAPTER / SUPPLY : An external AC adapter (not supplied) can be used and access is through a standard DC power jack ( 2.1mm centre pin ) situated next to the jack sockets. Internal onboard filtering ensures that optimum low noise performance is maintained and diode protection provides peace of mind in case of polarity setting mistakes. Connection protocol:It uses the standard negative centre pin connection protocol used by many leading manufacturers.
Specifications: 9 volt DC. Regulated output is recommended. Current rating: 50mA or more.
; "Roger Mayer Voodoo Vibe Plus Pedal")
