Chase Bliss Habit - The Echo Collector
A brand new delay/looper from Chase Bliss
“Habit is a collector of sound. A musical sketchpad for you to revisit, gather and change. Or it could just be a fun echo.”
Chase Bliss has returned! With a brand new logo and a brand new pedal!
Chase Bliss’s last release was back in 2020 when they released their reverb powerhouse - CXM 1978 with Meris. And now, they just released a new looper and delay pedal called Habit. Since we are talking for Chase Bliss, we all know that this is not going to be your standard delay but a deep pedal for experimentation and weirdly beautiful tones.
It is the third pedal from them that utilizes looping. The other two “siblings“ of Habit are MOOD which is a micro looper made with Drolo Effects with a reverb/ delay section from Old Blood Noise and Blooper which is the most versatile and quirky (in a good way) looper pedal ever made. Habit is focused mainly on delays and echoes while also being something like a tape recorder that is always listening.
As it is stated on Chase Bliss’s website - Habit is a delay with a memory. It stores everything you play for later, so you can revisit and reuse sounds from the past: Gather up loops, design echo patterns, and harmonize with yourself from two minutes ago.
It’s an effect that can be turned into an instrument on a whim, an evolving paint-splatter of everything you do. Or it could just be a fun echo.
What do all these mean?
Habit takes the looper within a delay concept to a whole new level with its three-minute memory section to reintroduce the past throughout the rest of the pedal. Initially, the buffer will record and playback your last moments with no worry of overdubbing, and the only way to reset the loop is to disengage and re-engage the effect. Only when you engage the Scan parameter will Habit playback from its memory, setting the memory's header position with options to introduce a second playback head via the Spread control. Habit's memory may be routed through the echo and modifier section or can run completely dry, and memory can overdub and even listen while the effect is disengaged when the rear Collect and Always dip-switches, respectively, are engaged.
Borrowing from Blooper's fantastic array of modifiers, Habit can choose from one of six-time and pitch-warping effects that can be set to be fed back into the echo or be used as a final effect. A third feedback option known as FEED can be selected to completely connect the output back into the input, feeding the memories back into themselves for some massive and convoluted delay lines and loops.
Conclusion
Habit is a highly experimental pedal. I love the direction Chase Bliss is going in the past years. Their releases are aimed at musicians that want to try unconventional ways to create music and have a lot of fun in the process. Chase Bliss's quality is undisputed so you know you are paying for a high-quality product in all its aspects.
Habit Features
Experimental delay and looping pedal
Constantly captures up to three minutes of audio in an internal memory buffer
Stylish delay setup with delay time (Size) and feedback (Repeats)
Size shifts timing anywhere from 50ms to 60 seconds
Dual echo and multi-tap setup when increasing the Spread control
Scan manually or automatically through the three-minute buffer while playing on top
Modify features six effects with individual control per type (select type from 1,2,3 and A, OFF, B toggles)
Modify effects include stepped speed, stability, trimmer, smooth speed, filter, and dropper
IN, OUT, FEED toggle changes Habit's internal routing of feedback
Engageable looping, tap tempo, and momentary scans via footswitches
Switch between two saved presets and an additional live preset
External CV, expression, tap tempo, and MIDI functionality
Modulation, control, and settings easily changeable via rear dip switches such as ramping, collect, always, and much more
Check out the best YouTube reviews of Habit! All in one place!
