Not way back I unequivocally declared Meris’ Mercury X (9/10, WIRED Recommends) the perfect reverb pedal you should buy. The very day that assessment went reside, Strymon, one of many pioneers of high-end boutique guitar pedals, introduced the BigSky MX, an replace to its legendary BigSky reverb.
To name the replace huge could be an understatement. Whereas it nonetheless seems just like the BigSky in case you squint, and also you’ll discover many acquainted reverb algorithms on its entrance panel, the MX is an virtually ground-up reimagining of what the BigSky may be. And whereas I’m not about to say that Strymon has already usurped Meris, I can not say there’s a definitive “finest” reverb pedal. For those who’re available in the market for both, you are in for a deal with.
Into the Weeds
The BigSky MX is a selected breed of impact that may flip off gamers preferring their guitar pedals to simply have a few knobs and one or two foot switches. The piles of presets, the display, and the intensive array of knobs may appear too advanced for some at first, however a part of the great thing about the BigSky MX is how easy it’s to make use of.
{Photograph}: Terrence O’Brien
You’ll be able to scroll via presets utilizing both the Worth knob within the high proper or by utilizing the foot switches. And in case you simply wish to begin from scratch, there’s a knob within the high left that selects from the 12 reverb engines. The row of seven knobs under that management all of your most essential parameters: Decay, Pre-Delay, Tone, Mod, and Combine. Then two knobs labeled Param 1 and Param 2 are engine dependent. For instance, on Spring setting, param 1 controls the quantity of low finish within the reverb, whereas in Shimmer it controls the pitch of echo one.
Some parameters aren’t accessible immediately from the font panel. For example, if you wish to change the voicing of the Shimmer reverb from the hi-fi MX model to the basic mannequin, it’s good to faucet the Worth knob to open the parameter menu. However the variety of hidden parameters normally isn’t overwhelming. Some engines solely have three or 4 parameters to regulate in whole. And, in case you resolve you’d fairly have management of the 2 parameters at present hidden away within the menu, you possibly can swap them.
For the reason that variety of issues to cope with is streamlined, it ought to take solely an hour or so to determine the fundamentals of the BigSky MX. It might take a couple of days or perhaps a few weeks to really grasp all of its subtleties, however even in case you’re averse to menu diving, it’s best to really feel fairly comfy by the tip of day one.
What is going to take probably the most time is just familiarizing your self with all of the obtainable reverb choices at your disposal. Even in case you ignore the IR (impulse response) engine, which gives virtually infinite selection by itself, there’s quite a bit to work with. There are 12 reverb engines that vary from easy, natural-sounding Room and Spring algorithms to the ethereal Cloud and glitchy Nonlinear choices.
Nice for At all times-On Efficiency
The place I feel the BigSky MX is at its finest is at its finest is on the smaller, extra refined finish of the reverb spectrum. That’s to not say it may possibly’t do epic otherworldly weirdness, nevertheless it’s the much less flashy stuff the place it actually shines. The Room reverb is the sort of mild ambiance that you might merely depart on 100%. At decrease settings you won’t even consciously discover the reverb, however you’d know if it was abruptly turned off.
The Spring, Corridor and Chamber reverb choices are a bit extra apparent and may attain absurd depths when cranked, however nonetheless they’re typically pure sounding and don’t scream “Hey, take a look at this loopy reverb!”
