Chase Bliss Reverse Mode C
A collaboration with Empress Effects for perfect reverse delay.
It’s always a good day when Chase Bliss announces a brand-new pedal. And today it’s one of those days. Reverse Mode C is a stereo echo/ delay pedal made in collaboration with Empress Effects and it’s inspired by Empress Superdelay which was released back in 2008!
The Echoes are composed of multiple distinct voices that can move in forward or backward motion creating a blend of reverse, forward, or reverse with octave-up echoes that can also be modulated with three different effects. And since it’s a Chase Bliss pedal, you already know it’s a deep pedal with a ton of applications and different sounds you can get out of it.
Controls
A thing I really love about Chase Bliss is that almost all of their pedals (except for the ones with the mechanical faders) have the exact same form factor, knobs, switches, and dip switches. On Reverse Mode C, you have your standard Mix, Time, and Feedback knobs to control the basic functions of the delay, a Filter knob that adjusts a dual filter (clockwise for a high-pass & counter-clockwise for a low-pass), and then there are the Offset & Balance knobs that control the unique aspects of this pedal.
As we said before, Reverse Mode C has 3 voices that can be blended together or isolated in the mix. With the Balance knob, you can have one of the three voices isolated or blend between them by turning it counter-clockwise or you can adjust their relative volumes by turning it clockwise. The Offset knob separates the delay times of those three voices to different ratios creating different patterns and rhytmhs.
On top of that, there is a modulation section with three types where you can control the Depth and Rate. A Vibrato/ Chorus, a Tremolo effect, and a Frequency Shifter that can go up or down. The modulation section can also be synced to the tap tempo or run free.
But the main attraction of this pedal is definitely the Sequencer! By flicking the switch and engaging it, the sequencer moves between the different voices creating complex and beautiful patterns. It can be run continuously while being synced to the delay or be manually triggered by the input signal. Plus, when you engage the sequencer, a fourth voice is introduced, which is a reverse octave-down! You can also add rests or even skip the muted voices from the sequence giving you full control of the sequencer.
Lastly, another neat feature is that you can hold the Bypass to reduce the sample rate and double the delay time while also giving a mild lo-fi character!
Initial Thoughts
From the first demos, Reverse Mode C looks (and sounds) like a very cool pedal. I’m a huge fan of reverse delays so having a pedal made by Chase Bliss sounds like the perfect combo. Since I’ve spent a lot of time playing with the Red Panda Raster V2 (full review here) I definitely see a lot of overlap between those two pedals. The sequencer added on the Reverse Mode C is a great idea and an elegant way to separate the voices and add complexity without making the delays compete with each other. The modulation section is simple but effective (the frequency shifter also reminded me of the Raster V2 pedal) and the customization options are more than enough to go deep with this one.
Small Batch Bliss
Also, another important thing is that this will be the very first pedal in the Small Batch Bliss Collection. This is a new idea by Chase Bliss to ensure that they will be able to cover the demand for their pedals without selling out too quickly or having to invest more than they should. The concept is that the pedal will be available for preorder only for one month. Once all the orders are done, they will start the manufacturing process and ship every pedal to its owner. Since Chase Bliss decided to sell their pedals directly to consumers, I’m sure they had a lot of things to consider to control their finances and also please their customers. So, by doing that, they can have total control over the cost & delivery of the pedals without leaving anyone frustrated. So if you want this one, make sure you preorder within a month to get it by the end of this year because the next batch will probably be somewhere in 2024! It is now available for preorder for 469€.
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