EarthQuaker Devices

Notes: The latest EarthQuaker Device actually is the same as the latest Death By Audio device - the TIME SHADOWS II - Subharmonic Multi-Delay Resonator. This new pedal is a joint collaboration that brings their sonic soundscape trips to your melted mind.

With the switch to the left Time Shadow's controls are completely the brainchild of EarthQuaker Devices resident genius Jamie Stillman. Flip the switch to the right, and you enter the head of the madman Oliver Ackermann from Death By Audio barely clutching to reality. Place the switch in the middle and enter a whole new realm of pitch warping delays brought to you by a telepathic mind-meld with a 5th dimensional dream being.

All three sounds are wildly different from each other and yet share a perfectly designed harmony to be completely complementary and suitable for every style and genre of music.

The EarthQuaker Devices side transforms whatever you play into the sound of a jazz space bazooka! It's a pitch morphed fuzz delay filter with so much attitude that you are actually intimidated. It takes the input signal, blows it out with power of digital distortion, blends it with a polyphonic sub octave, feeds it into a delay, then spits it out into a highly resonant envelope controlled lowpass filter.

The Death By Audio side is a multi-delay filter remorphinator that goes from icy shimmers to cosmic space caves of bouncing repeats.

The middle position is an energy beam that brings your earthly transmissions repetitively closer to the heavens while simultaneously diving deep into the hells.

In addition to all this madness we also bring you a user assignable expression jack and 6 preset slots to save and recall your favourite settings!

With these three unearthly delights, you should have everything you need to break brains and destroy monotony!

Notes: The EarthQuaker Devices A/B Box is a simple tiny tool that lets you choose between two of pretty much anything. Because of its completely passive design, there is no circuitry between the input and outputs which means it can be used in both directions. Use it to switch between two amps, switch between two channels on a multi-channel amp, use it as tuner out/mute switch, run a dry path and a wet path or even switch between two instruments!

The time to passively choose is now!

Notes: The Blumes is an overdrive based on the Plumes circuit that is ideal for bass players and all purveyors of low-end. While embodying the key characteristics and features of the Plumes, EQD went ahead and modified this circuit with double the gain and a deeper bass response to retain all the low end.

At lower gain settings, you'll get all of the crunchy tone you love about the original, but once you get above noon on the Gain control, that's where the similarities stop.

This all-analogue tri-mode overdrive with soft clipping carries the torch of the classic screamer circuit but has a voice all its own. And thanks to its +/- power supply it utilizes bipolar power, which gives you more dynamics, clarity, and all the headroom you could ever desire. The end result is a more three-dimensional tone with added clarity that really pushes a nice tube amp over the edge.

And much like the Plumes, this pedal offers three different clipping options for your desired low end face melting needs.

The Blumes features EarthQuaker Devices relay-based "soft touch" Flexi-Switch Technology for both momentary and latching footswitch operation as well as a very low 25mA current draw.

Each and every Blumes is built one-at-a-time by delightful little hands in Akron, Ohio; the charred, black heart in the heart of it all...

Notes: A buffer is an important tool to combat tone loss with long cable runs or in signal chains running lots of true bypass pedals. With its high 1 M ohm input impedance and low 100 ohm output impedance, the EarthQuaker Devices Buffer/Preamp will restore your tonal integrity, to give you back the clear and dynamic signal you deserve and your amp craves.

Want more? Not only will Buffer/Preamp restore high end loss, this device has a little trick up its sleeve that will also give your low end a subtle, yet powerful, little kick for some added dimension. While it is commonplace to add a buffer at the beginning of the signal chain, we find this to best at the end for optimum results. That said, it'll work great anywhere you decide to place it. For best results, make sure the EarthQuaker Devices Buffer/Preamp is placed AFTER any fuzz pedals that typically like to see the guitar at their input.

Notes: Sometimes pedals can change. Parts drift, pots break, transistors go bad. They go to new homes; they get neglected and resold. Sometimes people get in there and try to revive them to their original state and sometimes they just throw whatever is laying around inside and hope it does the trick. In this case, EQD are pretty sure all the above happened to the fuzz pedal that made its way to James Murphy and ended up finding a forever home with LCD Soundsystem.

Chelsea really does have something special. It's heavy without being too heavy, clean but not too clean. A simple set of controls yet it has an expansive array of tones that makes it very versatile on a wide variety of instruments, has clarity when you need it and can blur all discernable lines when you don't. It still retains the familiar foundation of the classic fuzz it was intended to be, but something special happened to it over the years and it has very much grown into its own thing

Notes: The EarthQuaker Devices Flexi Loops is a dual effects loop featuring our world renowned Flexi-Switch Technologyr!

Using an effect loop switcher on your pedalboard allows you to easily remove all your effects from the signal path creating a path of least resistance, to help maintain full tonal integrity when they aren't in use. Flexi Loops allows you to create two distinct loops of effects and then introduce or remove them all on the fly with ease and with its dual silent relay-based and true bypass switching, the pedal allows you to simultaneously use momentary and latching style switching.

Flexi Loops allows you to create two distinct loops of effects and then introduce or remove them all on the fly with ease and with dual silent relay-based true bypass switches, the pedal allows you to simultaneously use momentary and latching style switching.

Using high quality, soft touch momentary switches for durability and quick action to ensure a lifetime of switching enjoyment, Flexi Loops is entirely passive and there is no circuitry in the signal path. However, it will require power for the relays to pass signal. For standard latching operation, tap the footswitch once to activate the effect and then tap again to bypass. While for momentary operation, hold the footswitch down for as long as you'd like to use the effect. Once you release the switch the effect will be bypassed.

But you aren't just limited to using the Flexi Loops as a loop switcher either! You can use one channel as a tuner out/mute or even a plain old mute. Use the sends to run out to different sources and easily select between them. The Flexi Loops uses high quality, soft touch momentary switches for durability and quick action to ensure a lifetime of switching enjoyment. This device is entirely passive and there is no circuitry in the signal path, but it will require power for the relays to pass signal.

Powered by a regular 9 V DC PSU (centre -, 2.1 mm, ~25 mA current draw - not supplied)

Notes: EarthQuaker Devices is proud to introduce you to your new best bud, Gary. This little big guy was dreamt up by the one and only Lee Kiernan from the crushing and most necessary band, Idles!

Gary started as a simple request to create a compact version of the now discontinued Gray Channel, which was a mainstay on Lee's board and a big part of his main drive tone. This was all fine and good, and sounded quite sick, but it was worth and exploring his dark side a little more, Gary after dark, Saturday night Gary. So, he was sat down and began the trek of figuring old Gare-Bear out once and for all. The result is a real exercise in light and dark; smooth to shredded and everything in between.

Gary's right brain consists of a dynamic and destructive fuzz that is both domineering and interactive. It is a ripping fuzz tone with an envelope-controlled variable pulse width and enough volume to blow everything up. This nasty little fuzz turns the signal into a square wave and allows you to dynamically adjust the duty cycle with pick attack. Yes! Controls the sensitivity of the envelope. When this is all the way down you will get an unadulterated thick and heavy square wave fuzz tone that will sustain for days and go dead quiet when you stop playing. As you increase the Yes! control, the envelope becomes more interactive, and the pulse width narrows the harder you hit it. As the pulse width narrows, the tone becomes more nasal and biting until it gets so narrow that Gary goes to his dark place and disappears completely. In other words, with higher sensitivity settings, the sound will disappear entirely and come cruising back to Gary's big guy tone. With proper playing dynamics, this creates a very cool effect that can sound like an exploding amp coming in and out of life, blown through a phase shifter.

This effect can also be controlled with an expression pedal for manual operation or for finding just the right pulse width to cut through the mix for a set-and-forget operation. When using an expression pedal, Yes! operates in conjunction with the expression pedal to set the peak of the sweep. Set Yes! to the desired stopping point and express yourself as you please without worry of taking Gary over the edge!

Oosh acts as the master volume for Gary's nasty side. There is an insane amount of volume on tap so use this control wisely!

Gary's left brain displays his softer side. This is a simple and natural sounding overdrive that keeps your tone lively and drives your amp crazy. This side is based on the green channel of the Gray Channel, which is Earthquaker's take on the classic little yellow overdrive that started it all. Lee used this pedal with the clipping switch permanently set to the middle position, which removes all the diodes from the circuit, producing a full-bodied, cutting opamp distortion with plenty of volume on tap. Earthquaker have reproduced that tone here with exacting precision. Go sets the opamp drive and can range from a simple full-range clean boost all the way up to a smooth and natural distortion. In conjunction with That's It, which is the master volume for the drive side, you can use Gary's softer side as a clean boost to push your amp into overdrive or turn up Go and use all of Gary's internal magic to create the finely tuned dirt you desire.

Gary's signal path is fuzz into overdrive for total tonal integrity and cannot be changed. This is where Gary put his foot down.

Each and every Gary was softly brought to life by the delicate hands of EarthQuaker Devices in the elegantly unrefined canal-front city of Akron, Ohio USA.

Notes: Hizumitas was designed for the one and only Wata from the legendary experimental band Boris, one of the heaviest bands ever to come out of Japan. The trio of guitar sorceress Wata, drummer and vocalist Atsuo, and double-neck bassist, guitarist and vocalist Takeshi has almost 100 releases filled with genre and brain-melting music.

In their nearly three decades together, Boris has infused doom, hardcore, thrash, noise-core, ambient, free improv, drone, psychedelia, and more into their extensive discography. Boris is also known for their unique collaborations with mutually adventurous artists, including American Doom mongers Sunn O))), noise legends Merzbow, Keiji Haino, and Ian Astbury of The Cult.

Wata, always seen and heard on stage wielding her black Les Paul Custom, mixes killer riffs with searing, fluid, or jaggedly melodic leads and controlled walls of feedback, often with help from an EBow. It's a connection of chaos and melody that has enchanted Boris fans worldwide and influenced many bands that have followed in their considerable wake. Simply stated, no other band sounds like Boris, and no other guitarist rocks like Wata.

But with EQD's Hizumitas fuzz on your pedalboard, you can carve out your own singular, mega-heavy tone.

Hizumitas is a faithful recreation of Wata's go-to distortion pedal, the Elk BM Sustainar. The Elk is a Japanese variant of the very well-known "Triangle" BMP. The designers at EQD tried several vintage BMP's during development, found that each pedal was wildly different and realized that to truly capture the magic they needed the original. Wata graciously sent her beloved pedal halfway around the world, and EQD discovered that it had something special the others didn't have: heavy saturation with a gritty edge and massive bottom while maintaining a clear and dynamic tone with enough mids and top end to cut through any sludge. The studious wizards at EQD have built all of those characteristics into the Hizumitas.

Notes: The EarthQuaker Devices Passive ABY box is the perfect solution if you can't decide when and where you would like your signal to go. In its most basic form, this passive little box is commonly used to run a single input out to two destinations and lets you choose between using either individually or both at the same time.

The most common problem an ABY is used to solve, is one input being sent to out to two amplifiers, but it doesn't have to stop there! Because of its completely passive circuitry, Passive ABY can also be used in reverse to choose between two inputs to a single output. Use it to simultaneously run two different instruments to one source input. An oboe and a bass, a keyboard and a harmonica, a lute and a modular synth... you know, whatever!

This compact little device has a small footprint, won't take up much real estate on your board and is built using high quality parts that will withstand years of use and keep going.

Notes: Plumesr is a unique, all-analog approach to a classic tube-like overdrive circuit offering 3 different clipping voices, loads of headroom and almost three-dimensional clarity that will push your amp over the edge. The reimagined tone control is finely tuned to sculpt low end, clear top end, and focus midrange with blooming sustain.

Controls:
1. Level: This controls the output volume.

2. Gain: This controls the amount of drive.

3. Tone: More bass to the left, more middles in the middle and more treble to the right.

4. Clipping Modes (3-Way Toggle):

1. Symmetrical LED clipping - More Crunch and Compression.

2. No clipping - Wide open OpAmp drive for clean boost.

3. Asymmetrical silicon diode clipping - More transparency with a loose feel.

Tech Specs:
Flexi-Switchr Technology
This device features Flexi-Switchr Technology! This relay-based, true bypass switching style allows you to simultaneously use momentary and latching style switching.

For standard latching operation, tap the footswitch once to activate the effect and then tap again to bypass.

For momentary operation, hold the footswitch down for as long as you'd like to use the effect. Once you release the switch the effect will be bypassed.

Since the switching is relay based, it requires power to pass signal.

Power
This device takes a standard 9 volt DC power supply with a 2.1mm negative center barrel. Pedal-specific, transformer-isolated wall-wart power supplies or multiple isolated-output supplies are always recommended. Pedals will make extra noise if there is ripple or unclean power. Switching-type power supplies, daisy chains and non-pedal specific power supplies do not filter dirty power as well and let through unwanted noise. DO NOT RUN AT HIGHER VOLTAGES!

Dimensions: 4.75 x 2.50 x 2.25 in. (121 x 64 x 57 mm) with knobs
Current Draw: 25 mA
Input Impedance: 10 MO
Output Impedance: 100 O

Notes: EarthQuaker Devices Special Cranker

An Overdrive you can trust

The Special Cranker is an all-discrete analogue distortion enhancement device designed to give your signal some extra grit and boost without drastically altering your tone and retaining all of the natural nuances and character of your amp. Think of it as sticking an extra preamp tube in your amplifier for more saturation. Single notes will blossom and bloom with rich harmonics and singing sustain with responsive, tube-like sag. Power chords will sound thicker and crunchier, a little more ragged around the edges. Complex chords will remain distinct and complex, as the Special Cranker is designed to preserve your tone's integrity without muddying up the low-end or smearing the midrange.

The Special Cranker picks up where the beloved Speaker Cranker left off. It has the same spongy, dynamic, and touch-sensitive character of the original but with more gain, double the output volume (now with a user-friendly Level control), an added Tone control to shape your signal, and a diode selector switch featuring the original asymmetrical Silicon diodes as well as a hot, new Germanium diode option.

The More control goes from nearly clean to a medium gain overdrive when at maximum. This control adjusts the bias of the transistor, so you may hear a little noise as you turn the control. Don't freak out; it's totally fine. The gain characteristics are dependent on which diodes are chosen. When the Germanium diodes are selected, the Special Cranker delivers a softer, more rounded response with tamed highs and lower output, while the Silicon diodes add a brighter, more modern edge and higher output. Both are exceptionally responsive to playing dynamics and have excellent clarity. The Tone control gives the user full command over treble frequencies, cutting the highs when counter-clockwise and adding a slight high-frequency boost when turned clockwise. The Level control adjusts the output from nothing to nearly double at maximum.

Tech Specs:

Dimensions: 4.75 x 2.50 x 2.25 in. (121 x 64 x 57 mm) with knobs
Current Draw: 15 mA
Input Impedance: 5M P
Output Impedance: <25 kO

Flexi-Switchr Technology
This device features Flexi-Switchr Technology! This relay-based, true bypass switching style allows you to simultaneously use momentary and latching style switching.

For standard latching operation, tap the footswitch once to activate the effect and then tap again to bypass.

For momentary operation, hold the footswitch down for as long as you'd like to use the effect. Once you release the switch the effect will be bypassed.

Since the switching is relay based, it requires power to pass signal.

Power:

This device should be powered a standard 9-volt DC power supply with a 2.1mm negative center barrel. We always recommend pedal-specific, transformer-isolated wall-wart power supplies or multiple isolated-output supplies. Pedals will make extra noise if there is ripple or unclean power. Switching-type power supplies, daisy chains and non-pedal specific power supplies do not filter dirty power as well and let through unwanted noise.

The Special Cranker can be safely operated from 9-18 volts.

Notes: The Wave Transformer is a complex single oscillator with 7 audio outputs. Its method of wave shaping differs from other complex oscillators in that it is not based upon classic wave folding such as is common in West Coast synthesis, or filtration such as is common in East Coast synthesis.

This analogue, vintage-voiced, voltage-controlled oscillator features over 8 octaves of accurate pitch tracking. Its 7 simultaneous wave outputs include a unique Complex output. This strange and novel output varies between a simple waveform (triangle, unless you patch a signal into the Shape Insert jack) and a complex transformation of the harmonic structure of the original waveform. It contains a unique mixture of the fundamental frequency, odd order harmonics, even order harmonics and subharmonics. The Sub Octave panel control will determine whether the sub harmonics are derived from one octave down, two octaves down, or are muted altogether. It will vary from a simple waveform to a silhouette of your cat watching you as you react to a "present" that it left for you on the counter. No, seriously.

The module's Transform control morphs from a basic waveform through many strange iterations into a complex, gnarled mass of audio mutations at the Complex output using an asymmetrical multi differential audio transmutation circuit. You can yield countless variations on these permutations by combining this novel circuit with Hard Sync, Soft Sync, Linear FM and Exponential FM.

Additionally, you can mute the source waveform to use the circuit as a harmonic gate/VCA, rendering the Wave Transformer a voice unto itself.

If that is not enough, there is a Shape Insert that allows you to transform external oscillations and modular-level audio sources.

Notes: EarthQuaker Devices White Light

Limited Edition Reissue Overdrive - limited to 2,000 units worldwide.

The White Light is a hard clipping, vintage-voiced overdrive that takes its cues from the vintage dirt pedals that defined the sounds of heavy rock. Think OD250 or Distortion+ without being overly derivative, a new voice to an olde sound if you will. The White Light gives you total control over the feel and voice of the dirt along with a modern presence that is highly responsive to your playing. You'll find that it is much more dynamic, open and harmonically rich than these classic overdrives it shares its lineage with. This classic EQD overdrive has been updated with a new enclosure, top-mounted jacks and Flexi-Switchr Technology.

Gain: Controls the amount of distortion.

Weight: A multi-functional control, allows the level of saturation, low end response and the overall feel of the device to be altered.

Level: Controls the output.

Compression Switch:

Minus (-): open with more high-mids and bite.
Plus (+): crunchy and compressed with a bit less bite and a flatter mid response.
Flexi-Switchr Technology
This device features Flexi-Switchr Technology! This relay-based, true bypass switching style allows you to simultaneously use momentary and latching style switching.
For standard latching operation, tap the footswitch once to activate the effect and then tap again to bypass.
For momentary operation, hold the footswitch down for as long as you'd like to use the effect. Once you release the switch the effect will be bypassed.
Since the switching is relay based, it requires power to pass signal.

Power

This device takes a standard 9 volt DC power supply with a 2.1mm negative center barrel. Earthquaker Devices always recommend pedal-specific, transformer-isolated wall-wart power supplies or multiple isolated-output supplies. Pedals will make extra noise if there is ripple or unclean power. Switching-type power supplies, daisy chains and non-pedal specific power supplies do not filter dirty power as well and let through unwanted noise.

Do not run at higher voltages!

Tech Specs

Dimensions: 4.75 x 2.50 x 2.25 in. (121 x 64 x 57 mm) with knobs
Current Draw: 10 mA
Input Impedance: 500 kO

Notes: Zoar is a highly interactive medium-high gain discrete distortion (using only transistors; no opamps or diodes in here!) that has that highly sought after touch sensitive amp-like quality.

It has been finely tuned to create a highly tweakable hi-fi and modern sounding distortion, but with the ghosts of old school circuitry to deliver a grind that is both instantly familiar and delightfully unique.

From defined sparkle and tightness of an overdrive to low-medium gain fuzz that's perfect for drop tuned guitars and basses, Zoar can do it all. Zoar lets you dial in and control every nuance of your tone from jangly on-the-verge of break up to blowing the walls out heavy saturation.

While having its roots in a very familiar past, the passive 3-band EQ has been finely tuned for modern tones. While this style of tone shaping seems simple on the surface, it is deceptively complex and highly interactive - yet surprisingly easy to instantly dial in dozens of mind blowing sounds.

Want to elevate your sonic spirit to a higher level? Try running Zoar at higher voltage! Zoar can handle power up to 18v DC. Higher voltages will yield a different frequency response with more defined dynamics and a faster response. When powered at 18v, the range of clean tones are widened, dirty tones become punchier with better note articulation, low frequencies are tightened, higher frequencies will cover a broader spectrum without becoming harsh and the output volume nearly doubles! The experience is not unlike plugging into a wall of high wattage tube amplifiers!

This meticulously crafted box has six knobs that allow you to truly customize your sound with the Level, Weight, Gain, Bass, Middle, and Treble controls.

The Gain control on Zoar goes from the edge of break up all the way over the cliff into the crunchy, grinding abyss. The character of the distortion is heavily dependent on the setting of the Weight control as well as the pickup type and further fine-tuned by the EQ section.

Zoar's 3-Band EQ and Gain controls give you nearly unlimited options with great focus and sensitive precision, but the real powerhouse of Zoar is the Weight control. This control dictates the amount of low end that is passed into the circuit, thus controlling the entire character of the pedal. Simply dial in the 3-Band EQ to 12 o'clock and adjust the Weight to see how drastically it dictates your sound. From a mere clean boost to a high gain distortion to overdrive to the crispy Hi-Fi fuzz territory, this function gives you everything.

The Level control hits unity around noon, but this is dependent on where the other controls are set. In addition to controlling the output volume, it also plays a small part in controlling the voice of Zoar. By adjusting the Level control with any combination of EQ (boosting the frequency bands and cutting the output volume), you can achieve drastically different curves that have the feel of the more traditional low pass filter type tone control.