ElectroHarmonix

1
Meris are well-known for
their innovative, great-
sounding, DSP-based
effects boxes. The Enzo is no
exception, with the clue in the title
of “Multi-Voice Instrument
Synthesiser”. The fi rst thing you’ll
notice is the astounding pitch-
tracking capabilities. Throw anything
at it, and it copes – and that’s before
you realise it’s also capable of
tracking polyphonic material. As well
as working like a conventional
monosynth-style pedal, it can create
polyphonic and arpeggiated material
from its dual-oscillator synth section.
Add a bunch of fi lter modes, stereo
output, and a delay with modulation,
and you have the makings of an
exceptional pedal. The only
signifi cant downside here is price.
meris.us
VerDICt 9.5
2
Electro-Harmonix need no
intro in the guitar pedal
world. As the name
suggests, the Mono Synth can only
sense monophonic playing. Once
detected, the pitch info is used to
drive one of the 11 selectable synth
types. One or two parameters for
each can be edited using the
onboard CTRL knob and external
expression input. There are decent
sounds in the Mono Synth, but you
have to adapt your playing style to
avoid odd glitches.
ehx.com
VerDICt 7.0
3
Robert Keeley is a boutique
pedal designer, known for
colourful designs with a
great sound. The Synth-1 styling
nods to early Roland Juno synths,
with functionality kept to a bare
minimum. This box is strictly
monophonic, so when thrown some
chords, things get unpredictable.
However, if you stick to single notes,
the Synth-1 will deliver a serious
dose of retro synth fuzz. Though you
can tailor the sound using the
Waveform Selector, Filter and Attack
controls, the options are fairly
limited. However, for bombastic
fatness, volume swells and ’70s-ish
synth lines, it is a lot of fun.
robertkeeley.com
VerDICt 8.1
4
The Pigtronix Mothership
V2 claims to have ‘the
world’s fastest tracking
circuit’, but this is hard to prove
without resorting to the lab. It did
work well, though this is of the more
conventional monophonic style of
synth pedal. Via the use of
dual-concentric controls, there’s
quite a bit you can do to change the
sound of the underlying 3-voice
analogue synth. However, it does
take time to dial-in effective tones,
and the range still feels limited. That
said, if you’re after classic
monophonic guitar synth tones, the
Mothership delivers – at a price.
pigtronix.com
VerDICt 7.9
5
Boss (and parent Roland),
have a long history in guitar
synthesis. The SY-1 distills
much of this heritage into a classic
Boss compact pedal format. There
are 121 sounds broken down into 11
categories, covering everything from
leads, pads, strings, organs and
basses, to bell sound effects and
sequenced patterns. There is limited
editing via the Depth and Tone/Rate
knobs but, like the Enzo, the SY-1
can track polyphonically (reliably), as
well as offering real-time control via
the expression pedal jack.
boss.info
VerDICt 9.1
BANG FOR YOUR BUCK The Boss SY-1 offers a wide
range of polyphonic tones in small footprint. Quick to
use and lots of fun.
FM VerDICt
TOP DOG The Meris Enzo is innovative, with a wide
tonal palette, and amazing polyphonic pitch tracking.
If price is no object, this is one to try.
5
4
Boss SY-1
£179
Pigtronix
Mothership V2
£299
Guitar Synth Pedals | Grouptest
101
FMU349.rev_grouptest.indd 101 04/09/2019 16:57