Meris Ottobit Jr

111
Summer 2017 GuitariSt
Ottobit Jr
Tech Spec
ORIGIN: USA
TYPE: Reverb pedal
FEATURES: Selectable
true bypass (relay) or
analogue buffered
bypass, mono and
stereo operation,
Swell function,
16 internal presets
CONTROLS:
Space Decay, Modulate,
Mix, Lo Frequency, Pitch
Vector, Hi Frequency,
Alt (Hold) switch,
Ultraplate/Cathedral
switch, Swell footswitch,
Bypass footswitch
CONNECTIONS:
Standard input,
standard outputs (L, R),
Exp/MIDI
POWER: Supplied 9V
adaptor
DIMENSIONS: 108 (w)
x 114 (d) x 51 mm (h)
T
he high-end digital reverb pedal such as
a Strymon Big Sky or Eventide Space has
become a much-coveted item for those
wishing to add ambience with a classy sheen to
their ’board – and the Mercury7 is the contribution
from Meris, whose team includes a founder of
Strymon. Derived from the 500-series module of
the same name, and apparently inspired by the
Blade Runner film and its Vangelis soundtrack, it
is designed to deliver extra-long decays and lush
modulated reflections. The pedal offers a choice of
two algorithmic reverbs, Ultraplate and Cathedral,
with a host of sound adjustment features including
pitch and modulation parameters.
Capable of mono and stereo operation, the pedal
has two sets of parameters for each of its six knobs,
the second set accessed by pressing Alt. Mix sets
the reverb against the dry signal, going up to fully
wet so the pedal can be used in effects loops, with
overall reverb time set by the Space Decay knob.
Within the reverb tail, you can set separate decay
values for high- and low-frequency sounds –
useful for adjusting the size of the perceived space.
Modulation with adjustable depth and speed can
be added to the mix to put a sense of movement
into the reverb tail, while the Alt function of the
Hi Frequency knob adds in a cool vibrato effect,
not unlike a rotary speaker, before the reverb.
The most dramatic alteration of sound is via
the Pitch Vector knob, which offers a shift of five
different pitch intervals within the reverb: octave
down, slight pitch up (which can sound like a peal
of bells in the background), slight pitch down,
5th up, or octave up, which delivers the classic
shimmer effect. You can dial up awesome reverb
with many dimensions.
There are 16 internal presets, but you can only
access them with external gear – a four-button
footswitch for the first four or MIDI control for all
of them. However, two cool facilities aid onstage
performance: the second footswitch offers an
automatic swell effect that works like a volume
pedal, fading the sound up at an adjustable speed
and great for pad sounds, while an expression
pedal adds scope for such things as fading the
pitch intervals into your reverb.
VERDICT
If altered ambiences are your thing, this pedal does
a wide range of them incredibly well.
Mercury 7
This digital reverb takes its lead from the sounds of
Blade Runner to join the fray alongside Strymon and co
Words Trevor Curwen Photography Neil Godwin
9
meris
MANUFACTURER
Meris
MODEL
Mercury 7
SOUND NETWORK
020 3008 7530 / www.Meris.us
PRICE
£319
GIT423.peds_meris.indd 111 11/07/2017 16:06