Neunaber Stereo Chroma Chorus Pedal

Brian Neunaber’s small California workshop has just launched a pair of awesome sounding and unique pedals that bassists should take notice of.  Their new stereo Chroma Chorus and stereo Wet Reverb Pedals not only sound great, but also incorporate some uncommon and hip features that set them apart from the pack.  With the use of their proprietary  “Pedal Customizer” software and included USB cable, users can reprogram either pedal in a number of ways; Assign an expression pedal to either the mix or depth control, change the function of the ? knob from “regeneration” to “tone”, or even completely reprogram your Chroma Chorus as a Wet Reverb pedal (or vice versa).  Allowing users to customize their pedals for their specific needs is not only handy, but ensures that your pedal will never go out of date, or lack the most current upgrades or mods.  The idea is that as their line grows and products evolve, one will be able to program their pedal to function as any pedal in the line.

OK, on to the real meat and potatoes of this review: the tone!  The 3-knob layout provides great control over effect mix, depth, and regeneration.  Capable of providing lush atmospheric pitchiness, crazy warbled flutter, and everything in between, it’s hard to get a bad sound out of the Chroma Chorus.  What’s more is that unlike many non bass-specific chorus pedals, the Chroma Chorus retains bottom end integrity like a champ.  I was pleased with how the bottom stayed tight and full in achieving the desired level of effect.  Just out of curiosity and utter self-indulgent fun, I wired up my 2×112 rig in stereo to hear how it sounded, and although I probably wouldn’t need it on 90% of my bass gigs, it did sound frickin fabulous in both chorus and stereo modes.  The 3D depth and tone quality was addictively delicious.

In addition to its great tone, the Chroma Chorus seemed extremely well built, with high quality pots, a pro feeling footswitch and tight graphics. The Neunaber’s high level of fidelity coupled with total mix/level control allowed me to scale the effect way back for my personally puritanical tone tastes, but when notched up a little, it still sounded like my bass, only cooler.  These new pedals from Neunaber stand out based on their great tone combined with righteous quality and technical innovation. Neunaber says, “I figured that since most people buy the reverb, this will allow them to try the chorus and anything else I come up with in the future.  If they like it, then maybe they’ll buy one.” I agree, the ability to not only customize, but also program your pedal as the other and audition to your hearts content, with your rig, on your gig, is a real service to players.   As a Wet Reverb owner, I can attest that as cool as either pedal is on its own, they sound so good; you’ll want to have both.

Both the Wet Reverb and Chroma Chorus sell direct for $229.  More info at www.neunabertechnology.com