I don't think he mentioned the fact that, unlike a real trem, this won't throw your guitar out of tune. No matter how much you use it. That's a pretty big feature. Notice the entire demo was on a hard tail guitar!
@@pedalprescription I think that once you get the cables neatly tied together and attached to a strap, it would be fine. You could easily spend $200 on a traditional tremolo that could hurt your tuning stability. And they certainly can't do the capo functions. I think this is pretty cool myself.
I wonder if you can still do all the tricks you could with a real floyd rose. Like when you tap the whammy (no idea what the term is) or hit a harmonic and divebomb.
I think this design has a much broader future. There is no limit to what that arm can control. It could move a filter, increase distortion, alter eq, deepen a chorus, change a delay wet/dry mix. Expression pedals can theoretically also do this, but honestly they aren’t that expressive. Most people can be way more subtle and precise with their hands than their feet. Other guitars have included touch pads, but having a $400 attachment that converts any guitar is better. If that wireless connection is very low latency, then I think this could have a big future. It probably needs a redesign to reach full potential. I hope it gets there.
Agree that was my thought. Taking it a bit more to the limits of a trem system would have been nice for the review though, like dive bomb, flutter and similar. But yea using this as a general controler for other effects would be great, especially if there were options like not having it snap to neutral etc. Also something that would be nice would be an option to install it undeneath a conventional bridge ... I have an upcoming build from a luthier extra route under the hannes bridge, fixed bridge mounted on top ... I would get that right now :)
My first thought was...gimmicky....but the more you get into it, its really not a bad idea. I think every guitarist who avoids trems due to tuning issues may take a look at this. Thanks for showing this Phil !
Definitely appreciate the shot at some innovation, gear world could use some. This current iteration seems like it has a lot of parts/failure points if using live and looks clunky, but I'm sure it will evolve. Cheers!
I got one of these for my son for Christmas last year. He really likes it, and it seems to be the only option for a whammy on a 9 string that isn't controlled by the feet. It's had a few issues (power supply was bad, bluetooth disconnects, etc.), but overall seems pretty decent for a first offering. I'm interested in seeing what they do next.
I have used it on an acoustic. it does not to the capo function well as you can still hear your acoustics natural tones. But it can turn your six string acoustic into a 12 string.
Ian Moss was using one with acoustics on his most recent tour. When I looked into it, it turns out that he was half of the team that made it in the first place.
@@ellsworth1956 You could also use it in a Frippertronics style, and feed the shifted output to a delay so every note you play is followed by an echo of the same note unless you start playing with the bar, in which case the echoes get bent. That way you don't have to deal with the cognitive dissonance of the acoustic and shifted sounds.
@@bobdelair02 Put _everything_ in a single cable that _looks_ like a guitar cable in terms of thickness and slackness. The guitar's audio should be routed from its output to the unit, then on to the stomp box over the single cable. If the output was going somewhere different, there might be a case for using two cables, but it's not. Everything is attached to the stomp box. So consolidate the whole connection between guitar and stomp box into one cable. Also if using Bluetooth, there should be more than enough bandwidth available to put the raw guitar audio out over the same connection, rather than requiring two separate transceiver setups. Why have two parts that could fail when you could do it with just one?
@@mal2ksc Right... though talking about things that could fail (using it on stage), is the attachment of the trem arm unit to the body IMHO ... especially after putting it on and off a few times.
I've played exclusively hardtail guitars live for years for many reasons, tuning stability being the main reason. I just picked one of these up 3 weeks ago, and I'm really enjoying it! I do alor of ambient pad type stuff, so I usually find myself using it for that as some extra flavor. But the more extreme options can be pretty cool to, it'll dive bomb. the capo function is useful, as I do find myself playing in D# or D standard regularly. I used to get use a polyphonic pitch shifter on my helix (copying a patch and setting each patch for different tunings) but it's seed me from having to create double patches/ running into the issue where I want a certain sound but I didn't think ahead and set a drop tuned patch All in all I think it's a great product, and I hope they come out with more! I think there's even more potential to use the whammy bar as a regular expression pedal And BTW, to my ears it tracks perfectly. which I can't say about some of the other pitch shifting options out there
I’ve got one of these and I like it a lot. I think my favorite effect is the blend mode (that wasn’t in the demo), where your original signal is blended with the altered note, it can be a “slightly off unison bend” sound or a more spacy “strange detour in the background”. I don’t like that the blend mode needs an external foot switch to activate. But I like a little unexpected extra note wandering around every now and then as I’m noodling. The other thing I like is capoing down to baritone range when looping, and then going back up to normal to play over the loop.
I personally have a Floyd Rose on mine but I can see someone with a hardtail who wants to add a tremolo system but not to potentially screw up when adding a traditional one would be interested in this.
Very grateful you reviewed this. I've had Virtual Jeff and now the Pro version. It's amazing, freeing, and the guitars stay in tune. Strings last longer. Bends feel weird, using the bar, but you get used to it, like anything, the more you do it. Phillip's review pretty much covers all you need to know. Good job, in my opinion. About the Bluetooth: it works. I don't notice any delay, either. It's great not having the extra wire.
At 1st, I was skeptic but after getting into it more. It seems like a pretty cool addition to your rig. Especially when using that guitar that you dont want to mod due to Collector/Valuable/rarity.
I've known about this Tremolo for a while, and think it's a cool idea. They should partner with a company that can pre-install the unit into the body of a guitar so it is fully integrated as advanced guitar tech. Remove the kludgey element of it being stuck on with tape and unsightly wires running out of it. That could make it more acceptable, and perhaps even a necessity for contemporary guitarists.
I’d use it on recordings because I only have one guitar and it’s a hard tale. The wires wouldn’t bother me but I’m sketchy about the tape. Actually screw that I just heard the price.
Brilliant Design. The foot operated whammy does not have the the finesse that the Virtual Jeff has. The hand is quicker than the toe. It can be used with anything and sounds great. I wish it could flutter although I think they are working on it. At the sale price of $399, it is a good buy. A nickel or aluminum bar would look cool but it is not a deal breaker. Instant baritone very cool. I am saving up to get one. Incorporating Bluetooth into the bar would be nice. Great product!!!!!
Seems pretty awesome. Especially for those who don't want to harm their expensive hardtail guitars. My question would be if you have the ability to change the tension/sensitivity on the arm. Thanks for the video, Phil. I really appreciate your opinion and look forward to what's next as always.
I have a line 6 variax, because I can change tunings on the fly. With the virtual jeff, I also have the automatic capo. This gives me over 100 different tunings without touching the tuners or a capo.
Great concept, as some people pointed out, you get the advantage of a floating trem without the hassle of messing up the tuning or annoying string change process. I do think the layout can be improved. Having 2 cables and the extra pedal, isn't super practical. I'd rather have it connected between the guitar and the rest of the signal chain (like with a small jack female and male connector inserted between) and have everything on board. Then with an extra remote for those who do want to change the settings during a gig, but for the user who only wants to use it as a trem with constant settings, they could just have the onboard trem and nothing else.
well now, I've seen it all. interesting bit to me was the capo ability seemed pretty cool for detuning, etc. (like an octivizer-thingy) as well as the variability for the amount of whammy pitch detune up and down. thanks for sharing Phil!
Not in love with the sound but it does open up some new options like compound bends while pitch bending, or super accurate bending of chords. I'd have to hear it in a song though. Sometimes a thing can sound pretty digital but in a song sometimes you can't really tell.
I think it’s a good idea seems to work better for the trem arm function than a whammy pedal can do . I have a whammy dt it is good but I am glad there is new technology working on this idea for the electronic capo.
I love this so much. My only gripe is that it's an item you slap onto a guitar. I'll wait for the day these come built into guitars. It would be so nice to have a trem system without all the of pain having one comes with.
@@thestan2941 not even that bad once u figure it out, and if you really don’t like it that much take it to a shop to get it installed, or just don’t get one 😭
It I’d love to see what it’s like since I have used a bigsby on mine and it was a bit of a hassle to get the tuning stability decently reliable even with decent lube on the nut and locking tuners
Darrell Braun also reviewed this device a few months ago, and I will comment here exactly what I commented there: this this is ONLY a vibrato/whammy *replacement*; I would want that unit mounted on the guitar to replace a foot-pedal device, such as a wah, or use it like you would use any expression pedal for some completely other effect that can be effected by using an expression pedal.
Thanks Phil. Great stuff as always. It's so refreshing to see someone who cares about the consumer and not just their own profit margins. We need more people like you in this world and we need to support them to show how much they matter. ❤️
I still have a few detailed questions. 1) how is the latency when it's pitch shifting/doing the capo thing? With pitch shifters, I like to test them with a thrash metal riff to see how latent they are (a round of the "Battery" riff my metallica will usually tell me how it holds up), 2) How well can this mimic a Steinberger TransTrem in functionality, since the things it boasts it can do are exactly the same (for those covering "Summer Nights", "Me Wise Magic", or "Fire in the Hole" by Van Halen; knowing how easily you can pitch it up or down with accuracy and then hold it there would be cool to know), 3) Could this replace a floyd rose in terms of sound/response Maybe someday I'll buy one. They seem kinda cool.
I think it is a hall sensor that sends signals to the pedal, so curved top shouldn’t matter from a functionality point of view. How well the tape adheres that’s a good question.
I’d love to get one for my electromechanical keyboards too. I heard a guy using one on his clav and it sounded good without using that giant Castle Bar thing that some clav guys use. Much cooler.
From what I can see...placement is just for convenience, not a requirement to be where it is. That could mean someone could make mounting options that could put it into a pedal, or hook it on the back into a belt loop, etc. If they made a model that is essentially an expression pedal in this format, you'd have even more options.
I get it's in the early stages and still expensive, but I gotta say, this is a genuinely good idea for a guitar gadget actually. Seems a bit gimmicky, but if it were, say under 200$ I'd buy one without thinking twice.
I love it, except for the fact it is so difficult to scratch the plastic compartment off of your guitar top once it's taped to it. But the system's responsiveness is crazy good, and the virtual capo is simply amazing. Not fit for an acoustic guitar though, because you will hear the natural notes on top of the "processed" ones, which is confusing to the ear.
I was initially like "ugh, this cannot be what i think it is" and to my dismay, it was exactly that. And then i was surprised by how cool it was. I feel like this would be best for a jazz player looking to wiggle the bar, but stay in tune.
I think it works well if you like digital type effects or don’t want to buy a trem guitar ,personally you can’t beat a good kaler trem with a Floyd rose titanium locking nut ,but Im Old school .
I'm thinking about the guitars I have that lack a whammy, and some perfectly good ones I passed up for just that reason. They also seem to have gone out of their way to make it simple and reasonably priced. Imagine if Strymon had gotten hold of the box! Eleven dual function sub-menu knobs with 256 MIDI channels. As pointed out elsewhere, the arm could be used to trigger all kinds of stuff but what I'll be watching for is someone integrating it into a guitar. The blend feature, not really discussed here, is the most interesting to me. But it doesn't seem to have caught on so I guess I'm wrong.
So it's like an expression pedal but in the form of a trem... If that's a TRS cable, I wonder if you can plug it into EXP input of other pedals to control parameters.
I would love to have one. I'm a big fan of tremolo system, all my electric guitars have Floyd Rose, Kahler or 2 point tremolo. It's a little too pricey.
Interesting device. I would love to hear a short Jeff Beck style phrase or two and see how it compares to a well setup tremolo. Thanks for the demo and info.
Jeff Beck actually picks out notes with the whammy bar. It would be interesting to see if he could do that with this device. I couldn’t tell on my IPad how it actually sounds.
Wondering if Jeff Beck is watching. The whammy pedal has always fascinated me, however I've never frankly been tempted by it. The cool notion is that you can use your hands to activate this particular pedal unit without remotely affecting the tuning of your guitar. You aren't likely to break (as m)any strings just from using the arm.
You don’t need the digi whammy pedal - the VJP stompbox has its own pitch processor that far exceeds the performance of the previous generation in the whammy pedal. Cheers
Phil, even for just a short, I need you to hook this guy onto an acoustic guitar. I love the idea of an acoustic with this trem plus a chorus pedal and abit of light reverb. Touch of delay for those chikin pickin runs. I think this could be a game CHANGER for instruments that only come with hard tails. Also for those pricey guitars in someones collection that they play often but definitley do not want to route out a cavity for a trem. I definitely hear the digital tone but I think if you throw an EQ right behind it you could compensate for any shift in tone. I love the idea for sure! (also I agree about them needing to add an optional footswitch input)
I wish they would just include the Bluetooth transmitter on the main guitar unit instead of another tethered clunky thing. But overall this sounds like something I will need to try on my Ric. I love my Ric but sometimes wished it had a trem.
Like most commenters seem to be saying, this seems cool but also seems like a tech demo/prototype. The arm itself looks too much like an aerial from an old walkie-talkie with a little shower radio attached - even some visual/aesthetic upgrades to make this fit more seamlessly would help a lot because right now it really looks like a pedal taped to the guitar.
Seems like a really cool concept. The possibilities of what you could do with it seem only limited by programming. I see it almost as a midway between a manual trem and like a midi control.
It’s a really neat product if they would just scan your comment section to see what to teak to make it better they’d have a million dollar product on their hands .. multiple controllable effects need to be added with distortion or delay or Chorus that could be added and controlled with the arm would be amazing , and a few other tweaks like moving the location of the plug in and the ability to invert controls on the arm like a flight simulator , where up and down can be applied to down and up motions as well… I think everyone would end up wanting one for their effects arsenal. It’s REALLY cool as just a tremolo , but I can see it doing SO much more, if it could do just a little bit more I think it will be the product of the decade as far as effects .
I saw someone else demo this contraption a while back. The first thing I wondered was why the designer didn't put the output of the "trem unit" on the bottom so that it comes out almost perfectly along side the output cable of the guitar. That would streamline the already cumbersome cables that, although wireless has existed for centuries, a lot of players don't and won't use. However great this thing may prove to be, it does create a messy gaggle of cables look. Nothing is perfect but the location of the output of that little cable seems like it should have been immediately obvious without question.
Simply put, there should only be one cable between the guitar and the stomp box. Breaking the lines out at the stomp box is a lot less annoying than turning your guitar into a broom. This would necessitate a short cable from the audio output to the lever unit, but it just has to pass it on, not process it. It doesn't even have to buffer the signal, although there would be definite advantages if it did.
I think I remember hearing about these (or something really similar) like ten years ago and I assumed it was dead in the water. Got some cool features, good to see it's actually in production
I love effects pedals, but one thing I've learned is that it's one more thing to go wrong, and can be frustrating if a pedal acts up, it's not always easy to locate the fault quickly, whereas a well set-up whammy is less likely to break, I think. This pedal is interesting and could have uses, but I also think it doesn't sound exactly the same as a real whammy, so not so good if that's the sound I was going for. I'll pass on this one, but thanks for a good demo.
But it's one of those things where you're trying to replace an analog piece of gear with digital.. its never ever going to be as good. Just play with your normal guitar like everyone has done throughout the history of guitar playing😅
I could see this being useful for the working player for the capo feature. Also you can have a whammy bar when you need one without worrying about string break on a floating strat bridge or tunning issues as the trem gets out of adjustment. Curious if it will do open tunnings as well? That would allow you to do slide without switching guitars. Drawbacks are definitely the digital sound. I'm sure it will leave a mark just like your pickgaurd does over time from no direct light compared to the rest of the body. Wouldn't put it on that vintage strat, tele, or LP. The other downer is the need for extra stuff to have to haul & pedal board real-estate. Curious about how the trem feels? Does it feel like a normal trem arm to you?
My question...how does it feel? Without any tension to fight against, do you find yourself putting too much pressure on it? Does it feel weird not having the strings "slack" when you divebomb? In general....does it feel "weird?"
I actually like this one to tell you the truth, I mean this can go on any guitar really, without messing with the tuning stability of the guitar, and that is huge. Put this on a Les Paul or a SG and you have a Whammy without making tuning stability any worse than it already is. Hard tale bridges can be way more stable than any Trem system out their because of what they do, and this allows you to use a Hard tale bridge and still have a whammy bar. The extra stuff this one does is a bonus and I can't help but to wonder if this could somehow be made to work on a acoustic guitar as well.. That might be interesting...
Couldn't tell you weather it truly is this but I am not really into the tone of a digital intervention into the chain. It's good for some stuf. I'm sure but I wouldn't want it influencing my tone all the time.
Fun fact, there’s a company that makes carbon fiber guitars that use electronic vibrato along with a bunch of built in effects, I forget their name at the moment
If it's a digital polyphonic whammy running through the pedal, I don't understand why the piece on the guitar needs to be plugged in; is that just power for the tremolo bar controller?
![Matt Freeman - "Climb In (The Bottle)" by Rancid [Bass Bunker Sessions]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/91kvFLiwofU/mqdefault.jpg)
I don't think he mentioned the fact that, unlike a real trem, this won't throw your guitar out of tune. No matter how much you use it. That's a pretty big feature. Notice the entire demo was on a hard tail guitar!
Agree this is definitely the huge selling point. Whether thats worth adding all the clunkiness to your signal chain/rig is the real trade off.
@@pedalprescription I think that once you get the cables neatly tied together and attached to a strap, it would be fine. You could easily spend $200 on a traditional tremolo that could hurt your tuning stability. And they certainly can't do the capo functions. I think this is pretty cool myself.
I wonder if you can still do all the tricks you could with a real floyd rose. Like when you tap the whammy (no idea what the term is) or hit a harmonic and divebomb.
Unless it gets stuck or doesn't return to position consistently.. then it'll still be out of tune... but I guess you could at least just turn it off.
@@apropostt same issues with a real trem
I think this design has a much broader future. There is no limit to what that arm can control. It could move a filter, increase distortion, alter eq, deepen a chorus, change a delay wet/dry mix. Expression pedals can theoretically also do this, but honestly they aren’t that expressive. Most people can be way more subtle and precise with their hands than their feet. Other guitars have included touch pads, but having a $400 attachment that converts any guitar is better.
If that wireless connection is very low latency, then I think this could have a big future. It probably needs a redesign to reach full potential. I hope it gets there.
Agree that was my thought. Taking it a bit more to the limits of a trem system would have been nice for the review though, like dive bomb, flutter and similar. But yea using this as a general controler for other effects would be great, especially if there were options like not having it snap to neutral etc. Also something that would be nice would be an option to install it undeneath a conventional bridge ... I have an upcoming build from a luthier extra route under the hannes bridge, fixed bridge mounted on top ... I would get that right now :)
it needs to be wireless like why have another wire hanging down to where your gonna trip over it
but other then that i like the idea of that
@@MJ75150 it can be wireless, he stated it can use Bluetooth
This would be awesome with a digitech whammy
My first thought was...gimmicky....but the more you get into it, its really not a bad idea. I think every guitarist who avoids trems due to tuning issues may take a look at this. Thanks for showing this Phil !
And the technology has been around, since whammy pedals came out years ago.
Tbh my Jazzmaster always stays in tune no matter how hard I go on the whammy. 🤔
@@meroinheroin are those jazz Squier or fender?
@@retrovertigo.505 Fender
Or just get a floydrose
Definitely appreciate the shot at some innovation, gear world could use some. This current iteration seems like it has a lot of parts/failure points if using live and looks clunky, but I'm sure it will evolve. Cheers!
Good as a prototype, gotta get feedback to see where improvements are needed.
I got one of these for my son for Christmas last year. He really likes it, and it seems to be the only option for a whammy on a 9 string that isn't controlled by the feet. It's had a few issues (power supply was bad, bluetooth disconnects, etc.), but overall seems pretty decent for a first offering. I'm interested in seeing what they do next.
I’d like to see it demoed on an acoustic guitar. Not something I need, but always appreciate people thinking outside the box
FOMOFx have videos demoing it on acoustics. Here’s one: th-cam.com/video/dE_Cer8SFJs/w-d-xo.html
I have used it on an acoustic. it does not to the capo function well as you can still hear your acoustics natural tones. But it can turn your six string acoustic into a 12 string.
Bass guitar :) Too many strings guitars as well.
Ian Moss was using one with acoustics on his most recent tour. When I looked into it, it turns out that he was half of the team that made it in the first place.
@@ellsworth1956 You could also use it in a Frippertronics style, and feed the shifted output to a delay so every note you play is followed by an echo of the same note unless you start playing with the bar, in which case the echoes get bent. That way you don't have to deal with the cognitive dissonance of the acoustic and shifted sounds.
They should of put the power plug at the bottom, so the cords are closer to bundle them.
Include the power in the guitar cable… or better, battery power the unit.
@@bobdelair02 Put _everything_ in a single cable that _looks_ like a guitar cable in terms of thickness and slackness. The guitar's audio should be routed from its output to the unit, then on to the stomp box over the single cable. If the output was going somewhere different, there might be a case for using two cables, but it's not. Everything is attached to the stomp box. So consolidate the whole connection between guitar and stomp box into one cable.
Also if using Bluetooth, there should be more than enough bandwidth available to put the raw guitar audio out over the same connection, rather than requiring two separate transceiver setups. Why have two parts that could fail when you could do it with just one?
@@mal2ksc Right... though talking about things that could fail (using it on stage), is the attachment of the trem arm unit to the body IMHO ... especially after putting it on and off a few times.
They should just not build such a monstrosity actually, especially for $500
@@mal2ksc the term arm doesn't do anything with the audio tho, it's literally just an expression pedal
I've played exclusively hardtail guitars live for years for many reasons, tuning stability being the main reason. I just picked one of these up 3 weeks ago, and I'm really enjoying it! I do alor of ambient pad type stuff, so I usually find myself using it for that as some extra flavor. But the more extreme options can be pretty cool to, it'll dive bomb. the capo function is useful, as I do find myself playing in D# or D standard regularly. I used to get use a polyphonic pitch shifter on my helix (copying a patch and setting each patch for different tunings) but it's seed me from having to create double patches/ running into the issue where I want a certain sound but I didn't think ahead and set a drop tuned patch
All in all I think it's a great product, and I hope they come out with more! I think there's even more potential to use the whammy bar as a regular expression pedal
And BTW, to my ears it tracks perfectly. which I can't say about some of the other pitch shifting options out there
I’ve got one of these and I like it a lot. I think my favorite effect is the blend mode (that wasn’t in the demo), where your original signal is blended with the altered note, it can be a “slightly off unison bend” sound or a more spacy “strange detour in the background”. I don’t like that the blend mode needs an external foot switch to activate. But I like a little unexpected extra note wandering around every now and then as I’m noodling. The other thing I like is capoing down to baritone range when looping, and then going back up to normal to play over the loop.
I'll never buy one, but really appreciate knowing about it and hearing it in use. Enjoyed the video, Phil. Gracias.
I personally have a Floyd Rose on mine but I can see someone with a hardtail who wants to add a tremolo system but not to potentially screw up when adding a traditional one would be interested in this.
DOUBLE TREMOLO!!!!
Very grateful you reviewed this. I've had Virtual Jeff and now the Pro version. It's amazing, freeing, and the guitars stay in tune. Strings last longer. Bends feel weird, using the bar, but you get used to it, like anything, the more you do it. Phillip's review pretty much covers all you need to know. Good job, in my opinion. About the Bluetooth: it works. I don't notice any delay, either. It's great not having the extra wire.
Almost had me at the beginning there, i thought you were gonna play the Better Call Saul theme!
For real!
fr
Wow very interesting device!
When you spend thousands of dolars to get one of these and people only ask for the Better Call Saul intro... 😂😂
At 1st, I was skeptic but after getting into it more. It seems like a pretty cool addition to your rig. Especially when using that guitar that you dont want to mod due to Collector/Valuable/rarity.
An expression pedal to control tremolo while the whammy bar controls the vibrato would be super interesting.
At 3:40..."And that's not very pleasing to me". LOL! I love the understatement. Thanks Phil, nice demonstration.
Did anyone else think that Phil was playing the "Better Call Saul" intro at the start of the video for a second?
With that first note I thought you were about to play the theme to Better Call Saul. For the memes.
It's so ironic because I got this video on my recommended after watching better call saul theme memes and covers lool
I've known about this Tremolo for a while, and think it's a cool idea. They should partner with a company that can pre-install the unit into the body of a guitar so it is fully integrated as advanced guitar tech. Remove the kludgey element of it being stuck on with tape and unsightly wires running out of it. That could make it more acceptable, and perhaps even a necessity for contemporary guitarists.
I’d use it on recordings because I only have one guitar and it’s a hard tale. The wires wouldn’t bother me but I’m sketchy about the tape.
Actually screw that I just heard the price.
who else thought of better call saul in the beginning?
The very first second I thought you were playing the better call Saul intro lmao
Same dude, i got excited there for a second there lol
Brilliant Design. The foot operated whammy does not have the the finesse that the Virtual Jeff has. The hand is quicker than the toe. It can be used with anything and sounds great. I wish it could flutter although I think they are working on it. At the sale price of $399, it is a good buy. A nickel or aluminum bar would look cool but it is not a deal breaker. Instant baritone very cool. I am saving up to get one. Incorporating Bluetooth into the bar would be nice. Great product!!!!!
Darrell Braun made a video about this glad to see your take on it
Seems pretty awesome. Especially for those who don't want to harm their expensive hardtail guitars. My question would be if you have the ability to change the tension/sensitivity on the arm. Thanks for the video, Phil. I really appreciate your opinion and look forward to what's next as always.
That's exactly what I was wondering = can the tension be changed? Some ppl like a lot of springs in their strat, others loose.
That's exactly what I was wondering = can the tension be changed? Some ppl like a lot of springs in their strat, others loose.
I have a line 6 variax, because I can change tunings on the fly. With the virtual jeff, I also have the automatic capo. This gives me over 100 different tunings without touching the tuners or a capo.
Great concept, as some people pointed out, you get the advantage of a floating trem without the hassle of messing up the tuning or annoying string change process.
I do think the layout can be improved. Having 2 cables and the extra pedal, isn't super practical. I'd rather have it connected between the guitar and the rest of the signal chain (like with a small jack female and male connector inserted between) and have everything on board. Then with an extra remote for those who do want to change the settings during a gig, but for the user who only wants to use it as a trem with constant settings, they could just have the onboard trem and nothing else.
It's a pitch shifter pedal, but with a great interface! I think the hand-operated interface has a great deal of potential!
well now, I've seen it all. interesting bit to me was the capo ability seemed pretty cool for detuning, etc. (like an octivizer-thingy) as well as the variability for the amount of whammy pitch detune up and down. thanks for sharing Phil!
Man really played the better call saul theme
I was summoned for a second
Not in love with the sound but it does open up some new options like compound bends while pitch bending, or super accurate bending of chords. I'd have to hear it in a song though. Sometimes a thing can sound pretty digital but in a song sometimes you can't really tell.
I think it’s a good idea seems to work better for the trem arm function than a whammy pedal can do . I have a whammy dt it is good but I am glad there is new technology working on this idea for the electronic capo.
Thought he was gonna play the Better caul Saul theme at the beginning
I love this so much. My only gripe is that it's an item you slap onto a guitar. I'll wait for the day these come built into guitars. It would be so nice to have a trem system without all the of pain having one comes with.
Or, get a Floyd and a Whammy?
@@KelticKabukiGirl and then deal with the maintenence
@@thestan2941 not even that bad once u figure it out, and if you really don’t like it that much take it to a shop to get it installed, or just don’t get one 😭
@@liam___. I'm a guitar tech for a band, luckily none of them use Floyd roses.
@@thestan2941 Why not? Good quality floyds stay in tune great and are even easier to finetune once you lock the nut.
This thing is pretty cool. It'd be interesting on a les Paul I think
It I’d love to see what it’s like since I have used a bigsby on mine and it was a bit of a hassle to get the tuning stability decently reliable even with decent lube on the nut and locking tuners
Adam Jones from Tool uses one of these on his Les Paul, saw it on Bernth youtube channel
@@op-z that makes sense. I'll have to check it out
Darrell Braun also reviewed this device a few months ago, and I will comment here exactly what I commented there: this this is ONLY a vibrato/whammy *replacement*; I would want that unit mounted on the guitar to replace a foot-pedal device, such as a wah, or use it like you would use any expression pedal for some completely other effect that can be effected by using an expression pedal.
Thanks Phil. Great stuff as always. It's so refreshing to see someone who cares about the consumer and not just their own profit margins. We need more people like you in this world and we need to support them to show how much they matter. ❤️
This seems like an ideal addition to an Evertune guitar!
And remove another layer of humanity
@@lucasoheyze4597 screw humanity bro
Love my Virtual Jeff! I like to set it up so it turns your guitar into a 12 string with the blend mode.
Great idea, but looks more cumbersome than I would mess with. I love seeing companies innovating and try new stuff.
I still have a few detailed questions. 1) how is the latency when it's pitch shifting/doing the capo thing? With pitch shifters, I like to test them with a thrash metal riff to see how latent they are (a round of the "Battery" riff my metallica will usually tell me how it holds up), 2) How well can this mimic a Steinberger TransTrem in functionality, since the things it boasts it can do are exactly the same (for those covering "Summer Nights", "Me Wise Magic", or "Fire in the Hole" by Van Halen; knowing how easily you can pitch it up or down with accuracy and then hold it there would be cool to know), 3) Could this replace a floyd rose in terms of sound/response
Maybe someday I'll buy one. They seem kinda cool.
What about fitting on a slight curve top. L.P. or a likewise surface not entirely flat.....🤔
I think it is a hall sensor that sends signals to the pedal, so curved top shouldn’t matter from a functionality point of view. How well the tape adheres that’s a good question.
was that the better call Saul themr at the start 😂
Cool! Definitely closer to those digitech pedals than actual mechanical tremolo, but that's what makes it cool
Love the Shijie guitar - I’m way more interested in your review of that!
I’ve purchased 2 teles and a strat from Shijie…they’re so so so stupidly good
I love it! If nothing else that capo function would be very useful when you use open tunings. Can't wait to play around with one
nice like knowing stuff like this exists . . . and not too bad on the tone.
I’d love to get one for my electromechanical keyboards too. I heard a guy using one on his clav and it sounded good without using that giant Castle Bar thing that some clav guys use. Much cooler.
I dig the randomly cool stuff you bring to my feed.
How responsive is that? it seems there's some lag when using the tremolo bar
From what I can see...placement is just for convenience, not a requirement to be where it is. That could mean someone could make mounting options that could put it into a pedal, or hook it on the back into a belt loop, etc. If they made a model that is essentially an expression pedal in this format, you'd have even more options.
I like it a lot. Especially for being able to get a baritone guitar sound.
Honestly I liked it this way more than I thought I would, dialed in just right had a great Bigsby effect. Very innovative.
I get it's in the early stages and still expensive, but I gotta say, this is a genuinely good idea for a guitar gadget actually. Seems a bit gimmicky, but if it were, say under 200$ I'd buy one without thinking twice.
I love it, except for the fact it is so difficult to scratch the plastic compartment off of your guitar top once it's taped to it. But the system's responsiveness is crazy good, and the virtual capo is simply amazing. Not fit for an acoustic guitar though, because you will hear the natural notes on top of the "processed" ones, which is confusing to the ear.
I have this a few months and I love it in the live situation....
I’ve seen a few reviews on this product. The selling point for me is that you can use it and not have to constantly retune your guitar
I was initially like "ugh, this cannot be what i think it is" and to my dismay, it was exactly that.
And then i was surprised by how cool it was. I feel like this would be best for a jazz player looking to wiggle the bar, but stay in tune.
I think it works well if you like digital type effects or don’t want to buy a trem guitar ,personally you can’t beat a good kaler trem with a Floyd rose titanium locking nut ,but Im Old school .
Just the capo feature makes me want it! Think it’s pretty cool!
It's real power is when you slap it on a guitar with an evertune bridge
I'm thinking about the guitars I have that lack a whammy, and some perfectly good ones I passed up for just that reason. They also seem to have gone out of their way to make it simple and reasonably priced. Imagine if Strymon had gotten hold of the box! Eleven dual function sub-menu knobs with 256 MIDI channels. As pointed out elsewhere, the arm could be used to trigger all kinds of stuff but what I'll be watching for is someone integrating it into a guitar. The blend feature, not really discussed here, is the most interesting to me. But it doesn't seem to have caught on so I guess I'm wrong.
i could see this being useful for instruments that dont normal get the whammy treatment. mandolin family/basses etc.
So it's like an expression pedal but in the form of a trem... If that's a TRS cable, I wonder if you can plug it into EXP input of other pedals to control parameters.
I like the capo feature. Is there a product that does that without the tremolo bar?
I think I will stick to my quad cortex :)
Good idea but not too keen on the extra cabling though...
I would love to have one. I'm a big fan of tremolo system, all my electric guitars have Floyd Rose, Kahler or 2 point tremolo. It's a little too pricey.
Interesting device. I would love to hear a short Jeff Beck style phrase or two and see how it compares to a well setup tremolo. Thanks for the demo and info.
Jeff Beck actually picks out notes with the whammy bar. It would be interesting to see if he could do that with this device. I couldn’t tell on my IPad how it actually sounds.
Wondering if Jeff Beck is watching.
The whammy pedal has always fascinated me, however I've never frankly been tempted by it. The cool notion is that you can use your hands to activate this particular pedal unit without remotely affecting the tuning of your guitar. You aren't likely to break (as m)any strings just from using the arm.
The fact that it has a capo built in makes this genius
I need to see metal guitarist try this out lol I'd love to play around with this
I kept waiting/expecting for it to go out of tune hahahaha.
Would pair this up with my Floyd Rose and my digitech whammy pedal to see what kind of interesting stuff I would get 🤘🏻
Now this sounds like a lot of fun!
You don’t need the digi whammy pedal - the VJP stompbox has its own pitch processor that far exceeds the performance of the previous generation in the whammy pedal. Cheers
Phil, even for just a short, I need you to hook this guy onto an acoustic guitar. I love the idea of an acoustic with this trem plus a chorus pedal and abit of light reverb. Touch of delay for those chikin pickin runs. I think this could be a game CHANGER for instruments that only come with hard tails. Also for those pricey guitars in someones collection that they play often but definitley do not want to route out a cavity for a trem. I definitely hear the digital tone but I think if you throw an EQ right behind it you could compensate for any shift in tone. I love the idea for sure! (also I agree about them needing to add an optional footswitch input)
Expression pedal seems like it would be an easy integration. That would be cool I agree.
I wish they would just include the Bluetooth transmitter on the main guitar unit instead of another tethered clunky thing. But overall this sounds like something I will need to try on my Ric. I love my Ric but sometimes wished it had a trem.
Like most commenters seem to be saying, this seems cool but also seems like a tech demo/prototype. The arm itself looks too much like an aerial from an old walkie-talkie with a little shower radio attached - even some visual/aesthetic upgrades to make this fit more seamlessly would help a lot because right now it really looks like a pedal taped to the guitar.
Seems like a really cool concept. The possibilities of what you could do with it seem only limited by programming. I see it almost as a midway between a manual trem and like a midi control.
Hi... VJP has 14bit expression data MIDI OUT to control other devices!
Something that’d be really cool is other options for the length of bar to do kevin shields stuff
I've wanted to see a review of this for a while! Great job brother
It’s a really neat product if they would just scan your comment section to see what to teak to make it better they’d have a million dollar product on their hands .. multiple controllable effects need to be added with distortion or delay or Chorus that could be added and controlled with the arm would be amazing , and a few other tweaks like moving the location of the plug in and the ability to invert controls on the arm like a flight simulator , where up and down can be applied to down and up motions as well… I think everyone would end up wanting one for their effects arsenal. It’s REALLY cool as just a tremolo , but I can see it doing SO much more, if it could do just a little bit more I think it will be the product of the decade as far as effects .
I saw someone else demo this contraption a while back. The first thing I wondered was why the designer didn't put the output of the "trem unit" on the bottom so that it comes out almost perfectly along side the output cable of the guitar. That would streamline the already cumbersome cables that, although wireless has existed for centuries, a lot of players don't and won't use. However great this thing may prove to be, it does create a messy gaggle of cables look. Nothing is perfect but the location of the output of that little cable seems like it should have been immediately obvious without question.
Simply put, there should only be one cable between the guitar and the stomp box. Breaking the lines out at the stomp box is a lot less annoying than turning your guitar into a broom. This would necessitate a short cable from the audio output to the lever unit, but it just has to pass it on, not process it. It doesn't even have to buffer the signal, although there would be definite advantages if it did.
Ok i hate pitchers normally but this sounds super nice I'm actually shocked... Especially the lows sounds like some sort of gated bass or something.
I was skeptical, but I like it! Might have to try it out!
Man, it's refreshing to hear someone call it vibrato. *sighs* That's not a hill I'm willing to die on, but man it's refreshing...
I think I remember hearing about these (or something really similar) like ten years ago and I assumed it was dead in the water. Got some cool features, good to see it's actually in production
I love effects pedals, but one thing I've learned is that it's one more thing to go wrong, and can be frustrating if a pedal acts up, it's not always easy to locate the fault quickly, whereas a well set-up whammy is less likely to break, I think. This pedal is interesting and could have uses, but I also think it doesn't sound exactly the same as a real whammy, so not so good if that's the sound I was going for. I'll pass on this one, but thanks for a good demo.
But it's one of those things where you're trying to replace an analog piece of gear with digital.. its never ever going to be as good. Just play with your normal guitar like everyone has done throughout the history of guitar playing😅
I could see this being useful for the working player for the capo feature. Also you can have a whammy bar when you need one without worrying about string break on a floating strat bridge or tunning issues as the trem gets out of adjustment. Curious if it will do open tunnings as well? That would allow you to do slide without switching guitars.
Drawbacks are definitely the digital sound. I'm sure it will leave a mark just like your pickgaurd does over time from no direct light compared to the rest of the body. Wouldn't put it on that vintage strat, tele, or LP. The other downer is the need for extra stuff to have to haul & pedal board real-estate.
Curious about how the trem feels? Does it feel like a normal trem arm to you?
My question...how does it feel? Without any tension to fight against, do you find yourself putting too much pressure on it? Does it feel weird not having the strings "slack" when you divebomb? In general....does it feel "weird?"
There is tension and you set your max tone deflecture .
I actually like this one to tell you the truth, I mean this can go on any guitar really, without messing with the tuning stability of the guitar, and that is huge. Put this on a Les Paul or a SG and you have a Whammy without making tuning stability any worse than it already is. Hard tale bridges can be way more stable than any Trem system out their because of what they do, and this allows you to use a Hard tale bridge and still have a whammy bar. The extra stuff this one does is a bonus and I can't help but to wonder if this could somehow be made to work on a acoustic guitar as well.. That might be interesting...
Would that work on a bass?
Couldn't tell you weather it truly is this but I am not really into the tone of a digital intervention into the chain. It's good for some stuf. I'm sure but I wouldn't want it influencing my tone all the time.
I just mentioned this device to a luthier that is fixing up a solid tail Razorback. Talk about timing
Fun fact, there’s a company that makes carbon fiber guitars that use electronic vibrato along with a bunch of built in effects, I forget their name at the moment
That's not fun.
Wonder If It would work with bass
If it's a digital polyphonic whammy running through the pedal, I don't understand why the piece on the guitar needs to be plugged in; is that just power for the tremolo bar controller?
Does it have sustain like a sustainiac?
The sound of this device reminds me of the sound of the whammy bar on my old Suzuki Unisynth XG-1.