Carl Martin Classic Chorus

      Chorus is notorious for washing your sound out quicker than Superman on laundry day. But thanks to a Level control that calls zero position unity gain (there is a god), your chorus is going to be heard with the Classic Chorus ($180 retail/$126 street). The mono Classic Chorus also sports a footswitchable Vibrato mode that can be added to the pedal’s chorus effect, but not turned on independently. A Rate knob controls the Vibrato’s speed, while the Chorus side sports Speed and Depth controls along with the aforementioned Level knob. Two footswitches mean more control but also a bigger footprint—the Classic Chorus ain’t no skinny-minnie. But the more I played it, the less I cared about its size. This thing sounds good. Not only because its milkshake-thick modulation sounds as if it could be spooned out of the speakers, but also because a severe volume boost is available if you need it. It has enough range to push the effect over a loud mix, as well as punish the front-end of your amp with enough signal to create a frenzy of overdrive. Or you can dial in a subtle wash, and slam your amp—those are the tones I dug. Kicking on the Vibrato doesn’t really add a ton of sonic zaniness, but rather, it adds a subtle extra layer of rippling modulation. I found myself setting the Chorus side’s Speed control low, then for a faux-Leslie effect, I set the Vibrato’s Rate control high and kicked it in accordingly. The Classic Chorus is no joke. With a ton of rich, high-quality, utterly musical sounds, it may even make a non-chorus dude a believer.

Carl Martin Classic Chorus
Kudos Thick analog chorus and a volume boost to die for.
Concerns None.
Contact Carl Martin, (973)-772-3333; carlmartin.com

Editor’s Pick Award.