Almost like clockwork, EHX has been issuing new versions of the 9 series. Each one giving us new voices to transform our guitars into. The B9 was so revolutionary that it was widely seen on pro and hobbyist pedal boards near and far. Electro Harmonix have continued to release up date to the line to keep us busy. The C9 gave us even more organ noises. The Key9 let us made keyboard sounds. The Mel9 was possibly the last thing many of us expected, but still expanded the pallet of sonic expression. Now, we can apply synthesizer noises to the now-familiar 9-series format. So is this all good new, or is there some ugly truth behind all this. Let's see...
It's A Little Bit Too Familiar
Five knobs, one switch. The try-and-true format of the 9-series is back and weirder than ever. The synth sound is a mystic and allusive beast for many guitar players. While synth-guitar is nothing new, the quality of said synth is something that has alluded many a play for quite some time. I've played several effects that are supposed to create synth noise but each one comes up shy. Line6, Digitech, BOSS and others have tried and have come up wanting. So, is this just more of the same? From the demo video they dropped recently, it looks like they are hitting at least a few of those sweet spots to recreate some classic 80's rock and synth pop hits. Is this the go to pedal for 80's cover bands? Probably.
Much to the dismay of many of the 9-series fans, this is not the update that many are begging EHX for. There is no edit function, no customizable parameters, no usb connectivity. We now have 45 voices in the 9-series and no hint that we will even be able to mix-and-match or edit and deeper than the 4 parameters physically on the pedal. However, this pedal is the furthest we have ventured for any sound that we can create with a POG. Organ sounds were one of the key selling points of the POG for many player, but the Synth 9 gives us things the POG is not capable on its own.
Nailed It?
From the beginning of the 9-series, these pedals have been nearly perfect. Some would argue that they are, in fact, perfect. I would say to them, that the lack of some key features would show us that they are not. The B9 gave us great organ noises, but no expression pedal in or fast/slow Leslie feature (they stuck that is a completely different pedal). The Key9 did cool keyboard sounds, but lacked a little of the authenticity that we loved about the B/C9 units. The Mel9 was cool, but obscure. Now the Synth9 is taking on a huge task: upping the guitar-synth game. ... and it has? Look, the 9 series is great at what it does: being the next best thing to the real thing, or faking it just good enough.
Conclusion
Here is the next in what is becoming a long line of rather ingenious pedals. With the power of these pedals combined, you'd hardly ever have to hear the sound of your actually guitar again. I am impressed with the ability of EHX to keep finding niches for their family of funky sound machines. I thought they were running out of ideas. Turns out they are feverously coming up with new ways to make crazy sounds. And when you take a long at the guy running the show over there, it make a lot of sense. So, do you need this pedal in your life? Well, you have to ask your self. Do I have a consistent need to play "Jump".
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Elusive and eluded. Not allusive and alluded.
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