2 THORPYFX CHAIN HOME £199

ORIGIN: UK TYPE: Tremolo/ boost pedal FEATURES: True bypass, battery access via 4x hex bolts CONTROLS: Tone, Depth, Boost, Rate, bypass footswitch CONNECTIONS: Standard input, standard output POWER: 9V battery or 9V DC adaptor (not supplied) DIMENSIONS: 70 (w) x 145 (d) x 60mm (h) ThorpyFX www.thorpyfx.com

To date,ThorpyFX’s pedals have all been about various aspects of dirt, but the Chain Home – the first in founder Adrian Thorpe’s ‘Reimagined Series’ – offers a modulation effect, namely tremolo, and a specific type of tremolo at that. The pedal is based on the old Vox Repeat Percussion effect, but here we have a much expanded speed range via its Rate knob.

A sawtooth waveform gives the pedal a very distinctive choppy percussive attack, which, with the Depth knob cranked, can give you an on/off sequencer effect, but can also add an otherworldly shimmer to your sound when set more subtly, all with a Tone knob that can beef things up or make it lean. A Boost knob ensures the effect level doesn’t drop when engaged, but with unity gain at eight o’clock, it offers plenty of scope for upping the volume and really driving your amp. If you turn the trem Depth to minimum, you can use the pedal as a pure booster, with or without tonal shift, something it does superbly. [TC]