Strymon Ultraviolet Vintage Vibe Pedal
Product Code: SN-ULTRAVIOLET
$469
$549
QUINTESSENTIAL VIBE
A warm grittiness to the warble, a rippling, wooshing, bubbling irregularity to the modulation and a dynamic response to your picking are all hallmarks of the true vibe experience.
Thicker and chewier than any chorus, earthier than any phaser and uniquely magical in front of a driven amp, the perfect vibe pedal moves you to dig in and play without inhibition.
This feeling has been difficult to find outside of large and expensive fully-analog boutique units, but the search for that elusive experience is now over.
Delivering vintage vibe tone that’s second to none with simple and powerful controls for instantly obtaining a rich variety of captivating sounds, UltraViolet is the vibe pedal you’ve been looking for.
VINTAGE PLUS
UltraViolet’s simple and responsive controls provide a wider range of sounds than traditional vibe pedals.
In addition to the familiar Chorus (50% wet) and Vibrato (100% wet) settings, there is a new Blend setting (30% wet) for an inspiring variety of more subtle effects.
A Bias switch gives you three distinct flavors of sweep shape and tone emphasis, allowing for tons of sonic variation.
At slow speeds, the intensity range has been expanded beyond that of traditional vibe circuits to push even further into warmly undulating sonic territory.
UltraViolet gives you all the classic vibe tones—and more.
ALL NEW ALGORITHM
For UltraViolet’s new vibe algorithm, all the elements of the classic optical vibe circuit (and their interdependencies) have been meticulously recreated for a dynamic playing response.
From the effects of bias, speed and LFO waveshape on the pulsing of the lamp, to the response of the light-dependent resistors that set the center frequencies of the staggered phasing filters, the entire system has been duplicated and carefully tuned to produce the very best sounds a vibe pedal can offer.
STEREO MIDI RIG READY
TRS stereo input and output in a dual mono configuration means you can place UltraViolet at any point in your pedal chain with no impact on your stereo image.
Full MIDI implementation with 300 available preset locations ensures that UltraViolet is ready for your MIDI rig.
In addition to TRS MIDI, there is a USB-C jack for controlling the pedal via MIDI from a computer or for performing firmware updates.
For hands-free control without MIDI you can connect an expression pedal for control over any combination of knobs in any direction (Expression pedal controls Speed by default.) Or attach an optional external switch for tap tempo or favorite recall.
Finally, a high-impedance, ultra-low noise discrete Class A JFET stereo input preamp provides exceptional touch sensitivity, dynamics and feel—all in a rugged and elegantly compact form factor.
One aspect of vintage vibe pedals is variation in the way each unit sounds. Even two identical pedals manufactured the same year are likely to sound different from one another, and a single pedal may not sound quite the same year after year.
Some of this variation in vintage circuits can be traced to drift in the setting of an internal bias trimpot, which has a marked impact on the sonic character of the pedal, affecting the shape and timing of the warble as well as frequency emphasis. The thing is, some of these variations can sound pretty great!
So with UltraViolet, we included a Bias switch in order to reliably cover the full range of the best vibe tones. Under the hood, the switch not only changes the bias level, but also optimizes the LFO waveshape for the selected bias to create the most inspiring vibe experiences possible.
The Low setting produces a pulsing character well-suited for tremolo effects (especially in Blend Mode). The Mid setting has a balanced character capable of producing many of the most sought-after classic vibe effects, while the High setting has a smoother shape with a wider frequency sweep, able to create sounds evocative of Pink Floyd’s “Breathe.”
FEATURES
Limitless Possibilities.
UltraViolet features full MIDI implementation and 300 presets, allowing you to control it remotely by sending MIDI commands from your controller or DAW via the EXP/MIDI jack or USB-C connection.
Remotely bypass or engage the pedal, automate Speed or other knob adjustments in your DAW or recall unique presets for each song on your setlist — the possibilities with MIDI are limitless.
CONTROLS & ROUTING
Hover over the interactive dots (+) to learn more about UltraViolet’s knobs, switches, and inputs/outputs.
SPEED
Adjusts the rate of the LFO
sweep.
VOLUME
Adjusts the pedal’s output level, up to a 4dB boost at maximum.
MODE
The 3-way toggle switch selects the mix configuration of the dry and wet signals:
chorus: (left position) combines a 50/50 mix of dry and wet to achieve maximum depth and the classic vibe effect
blend: (middle position) combines a 70/30 mix of dry and wet to reduce the depth for a milder effect
vibrato: (right position) only the wet signal for a classic, frequency-dependent, phase-vibrato effect
BIAS
Sets the center point of the LFO for a range of vibe experiences:
low: centered around lower frequencies for a pulsing vibe
mid: optimized for a balanced vibe effect
high: centered around higher frequencies for a wide ranging vibe effect
FOOTSWITCH
Engages and disengages the effect. The RED LED at the top of the pedal indicates that the effect is engaged.
INTENSITY
Adjusts the LFO sweep amplitude. At minimum, the LFO amplitude is zero, resulting in a static effect determined by the BIAS setting.
IN
High impedance, ultra low-noise, discrete Class A JFET preamp input.
TRS adapter cable required for stereo input signal (not included).
OUT
Low impedance stereo TRS output. Use TS cable for mono output or TRS for stereo output.
EXP/MIDI
Multifunction communication jack for external control of UltraViolet’s features and functions. Use a standard TRS expression pedal for continuous control over the knobs of the pedal (default setting). Can be set to operate in one of five modes: Expression Pedal, Favorite, Tap, or MIDI Mode. See User Manual for details.
See complete User Manual for details about configuring for MIDI communication or accessories such as Strymon Conduit, MultiSwitch Plus, and MiniSwitch.
9V DC
Use a power supply with the following rating: 2.1mm, 9VDC, center negative, 250mA minimum. Power supply not included.
TRS SWITCH
mono: mono input, mono output
mono stereo: mono input, stereo output
stereo: stereo input, stereo output
NOTE: Stereo operation requires a TRS adapter or cable.
USB
Computer connection for controlling UltraViolet via MIDI, for performing firmware updates and for connection to Strymon’s Nixie editor/librarian software (coming soon).
SPECS
High impedance ultra low-noise discrete Class A JFET TRS stereo input
- Low impedance TRS stereo output
- Expression pedal input allows the connection of a TRS expression pedal, MiniSwitch, MultiSwitch Plus, or TRS MIDI connection
- USB jack for controlling via MIDI from a computer or for performing firmware updates
Audio Quality
- Premium JFET analog front end
- Ultra low noise, high performance 24-bit 96kHz A/D and D/A converters provide uncompromising audio quality
- 520MHz ARM Superscalar processor
- 32-bit floating point processing
- 20Hz to 20kHz frequency response
- Audio Input Impedance: 1M Ohm
- Audio Output Impedance: 100 Ohm
- Typical signal to noise ratio: 116dB
