Tremolo Pedal Round Up

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Guitarist october 2015
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TREMoLo Round-up
Wampler’s Latitude Deluxe (£217),
released last year, is a fully featured
tremolo that includes tap tempo with four
subdivisions, a choice of three waveforms,
and adjustable Attack and Space for fi ne
tuning of the wave shape. That’s a pretty
comprehensive feature set, but if you
are looking for something less complex,
the newly minted Latitude Standard
takes the Fender-inspired portion of the
sound from the Deluxe and puts it in a
more compact pedalboard-friendly form.
There’s a no-brainer user interface that
gives you access to standard depth and
speed controls and a variable output that
offers a slight boost to ensure your sound’s
prominence in the mix. A pulsing red LED
always show the tremolo speed, even in
bypass, while a bright blue LED lets you
know the effect is active.
Sound-wise, it’s Fender-style tremolo
all the way with a rounded sine wave
instead of a choppier character, so it’s
a pedal for traditionalists rather than
experimentalists who would be better to
check out the Deluxe.
[TC]
VERDICT Easy-to-use amp-style tremolo with
adjustable output – a practical pedalboard option
VERDICT If you’re looking for vintage-amp tremolo,
simply delivered, this could be your pedal
ORIGIN: USA
TYPE: Tremolo pedal
FEATURES:
True bypass
CONTROLS: Speed,
Depth, Level, Bypass
footswitch
CONNECTIONS:
Standard input,
standard output
POWER: 9V adaptor
(not supplied)
DIMENSIONS: 63 (W) x
114 (D) x 57mm (H)
First Line Distribution
01626 853876
wamplerpedals.com
Certainly the coolest looking of the pedals
collected in this round-up with its surf
green chassis and cream chickenhead
knobs, the Surf Trem is also the most basic
of the pedals on test with just amp-style
depth and speed control.
Now, while the Surf Trem – which is part
of Denmark-based Carl Martin’s Vintage
Series – has been around for a few years
in a couple of different-shaped enclosures,
this particular unit is a newly released
revision of the pedal that, alongside the
standard red LED on/off indicator, adds a
second bright blue LED that pulses in time
with the speed of the tremolo, whether
bypassed or not, leaving you in no doubt as
to the trem speed.
The circuitry of the pedal is taken from
the company’s TremO’vibe tremolo and
vibrato pedal, and offers a rich, warm
and rounded tremolo. The sound is
reminiscent of Fender-style bias tremolo,
and while there’s no volume knob, when
the effect is kicked in there’s no loss of
level, instead a distinct boost to give the
sound presence.
[TC]
ORIGIN: China
TYPE: Tremolo pedal
FEATURES:
Semi-true bypass
CONTROLS: Depth,
Speed, Bypass
footswitch
CONNECTIONS:
Standard input,
standard output
POWER: 9V battery
or 9V adaptor
(not supplied)
DIMENSIONS:
120 (W) x 95 (D)
x 56mm (H)
First Line
Distribution
01626 853876
www.carlmartin.com
CARL MARTIN
SuRF TREM
£89
WAMPLER LATITudE
STAndARd
£159
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GIT399.peds_trem.indd 138 9/4/15 2:01 PM