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Eventide Instant Phaser MK II Bridges Gap between Analog and Digital
In 1972, Eventide Audio released the PS101 Instant Phaser. One of the first dedicated electronic effects units ever (see below), it immediately caught the attention of forward-thinking studio engineers (that had previously been creating these effects manually), and such legendary artists as Jefferson Airplane, Todd Rungren and even Led Zeppelin. Still used in many iconic recording studios around the world, Eventide Audio is proud to release the Instant Phaser MK II plugin, for those of us that can’t find the “real thing.”
Bringing Analog into Digital
The thing about analog is that nothing is “precise.” Any component you use will have a certain value associated with that. However, there IS some wiggle room; a .033 value capacitor can be anywhere from .031-.035 and still considered within spec. And, when you use multiples of these components, the variations of that is where the magic happens. This is why analog stompboxes, while they’re the same model, can sound slightly different. With digital, you will get razor-sharp precision and consistency. Replicating the nuances of analog into digital was the mindset that was used when tackling this project.
Modern Options
While staying true to the nuance and feel of the original, analog unit, the folk at Eventide Audio looked to update it with some modern options that would enhance the experience. The first was to allow you to sidechain the effect, to allow your sound to be effected by another signal. You can now control which output (either the main or the aux) with a mode switch. The “Age” knob also allows you to control how you want to hear the phaser; brand new from the factory, or with 40+ year old analog parts. All of these options help enhance the overall usability and experience with the Instant Phaser MK II.
But, How’s It Sound?
In a word? Fantastic. One of the features I was really intrigued by was the “age” function, where you could emulate a brand new, straight from the factory unit or one that had been in a studio for decades. Both of these models, while identical, would sound different in the real world. But how different? What I noticed is that with the dial closer to the “new” unit, it was a cleaner, more precise phaser effect. As you moved that dial clockwise to the “old” unit, the effect got a little looser, not as precise from note to note, and even the timbre was slightly warmer, and not as crisp. Dial in some feedback as well, and you have a killer analog phaser tone in a digital work environment.
The other features work just as well as you’d think. The shape knob really works great in navigating between a sharp triangle wave, and one that is much more circular, and not as precise. This attention to detail is apparent as you’re mixing a track with the effect; it’s not just a plugin but an accurate representation of the actual hardware.
Conclusion
Replicating the nuance and magic of the analog world into a precise digital world is no small feat. The Instant Phaser MK II from Eventide Audio was painstakingly recreated to bring the landmark effects unit to the digital studio, keeping the original analog sound and updating it with modern features. The result is the bridge between two audio worlds that is going to inspire a lot of recording engineers, producers and artists. This is one to check out.
Appendix: Eventide Innovation
The creation of the PS101 Instant Phaser wasn’t the only thing that the owners/founders of Eventide Audio – Tony Agnello and Richard Factor – were the first to create. In fact, their combined efforts were recognized this past year at the 2018 Grammys, when they received the Lifetime for Technical Achievement award, for their contributions to pro audio.
A Timeline of Firsts
- 1972 – Instant Phaser World’s first studio electronic effects box. Analog simulation of tape phasing/flanging. For example, Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir” and Itchycoo Park’s “Small Faces.”
- 1973 – DDL 1745 World’s first digital audio box. Used on hundreds of records for ADT (automatic double tracking) and predelay for plate reverb.
- 1974 – Omnipressor World’s first dynamics effects box. Introduced the innovative concept of the “side chain.”
- 1975 – Instant Flanger World’s first studio variable delay box. First realistic emulation of tape flanging. Used to create the strange piano sound on David Bowie’s Ashes to Ashes. Used to enhance stereo image on Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time.”
- 1976 – H910 Harmonizer World’s first digital effects box. Combined delay and pitch change. Used on hundreds of records. Famously used by Tony Visconti on David Bowie’s Berlin trilogy.
- 1978 – H949 Harmonizer World’s first de-glitched pitch change device. Introduced micro pitch change and digitally reversed audio.
- 1982- SP2016 World’s first digital multi-effects processor. Reverb used on countless hit records. Introduced the concept of the effects “plug-in.”
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Photo: Self-portrait by Melissa Auf Der Maur
Melissa Auf Der Maur is a Canadian bassist who played with Tinker, Hole, and The Smashing Pumpkins. She released her own work and is a photographer with photos published in Nylon, Bust, and National Geographic. She released her ‘90s Rock Memoir “Even The Good Girls Will Cry” on 17 March 2026.
KB: Did you always want to be a singer-musician growing up?
I’ve played music my whole life. In school, I played trumpet and sang in a children’s choir, so music was always within me. My mother was the first female disc jockey on the Montreal airwaves; her record collection played a huge role in my inspiration and love of music.
KB: When did you start playing bass, and why this instrument?
When I was 19, the early 90s music explosion began to percolate in tiny clubs around the world. I was lucky to be a ticket girl at Montreal’s underground music club. In one year, I saw Hole, Sonic Youth, Smashing Pumpkins, White Zombie, and The Breeders – all had female bass players. That’s when the seed was planted. By the age of 22, I was the bass player of Hole.
KB: Which brands of basses have you used in your career, and which one are you using now?
The first bass that I learned on was a vintage Squier Precision. Hole was sponsored by Fender guitars, so I upgraded to Fender Custom Shop Precisions. That is all I play, but I have a cool vintage 8-string Greco that I use on recordings to thicken up guitar parts.
KB: What equipment do you use or have you used with your basses?
Ampeg SVT amps and cabinets, a couple of Sans-Amp pedals, and that is it.
KB: How did you become a member of Hole, and what is your fondest memory of that time?
Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins was helping scout a replacement for (RIP) Kristen Pfaff, Hole’s bass player. My band, Tinker, opened for them on the Siamese Dream tour, so Billy had seen me play and could vouch for me. Courtney trusted her talented friend, and that was it. I initially said “no thank you” due to my commitment to my photographic studies and the drama and chaos surrounding the band during the “Live Through This” album release. Courtney took it as a good sign that I said no, so convinced me to reconsider, and soon after, I accepted their invitation, in the name of helping put females in the male-dominated landscape of rock music. My fondest memory is every show we played as a mostly female band, symbolizing what a woman could do in a rock band. Every show had a purpose: get more women to play music.
KB: You are a photographer as well. What makes a great picture? Do you shoot in color or b/w?
I started shooting photographs at age 15. Initially only shot black & white and worked in the art school darkroom. In university, I took a color photography course, and shifted mostly and forever to that, because it was easier to process film on the road when I joined a rock band. I experimented with many cameras, point and shoots, manual, polaroids, medium format, and vintage finds. The trick to a good photograph is to shoot many and all the time – the magic is in the edit and selection process.
KB: Are there artists you would love to collaborate with or wish you had?
??I’ve been lucky to collaborate with some of my favorite musicians in my career. I would still love to collaborate with a new generation heavy electronic artist on an analog bass, heavy electronic drums, and synths collaboration project. Take me out of my usual zone, merging the past and future: my love of 80s dark new wave and new artists exploring that genre. It was very futuristic back then, and we are now, after all, living in the future. I am in the mood to play bass to heavy beats I want to dance to.
KB: What are your 7 favorite bass lines in music across all genres? And why these 7?
“Mountain Song” – Jane’s Addiction (love a rambling, rolling bass line – feels like the ocean waves)
“Black Top – Helmet” (was the first bass line I taught myself)
“Gold Dust Woman” – Hole from “The Crow 2” Soundtrack (it was my first bass line contribution to the band)
“Get Ready” – The Temptations (Motown just feels so good, because of the bass)
“Lucretia My Reflection” – Sisters of Mercy (makes me want to hit the dance floor and play bass simultaneously)
“Be My Druidess” – Type O Negative (full chord bass playing at its best by iconic, demonic, Peter Steele, RIP)
“Romantic Rights” – Death from Above (1979 – unique distorted overdriven tone, combined dance rhythm and melodic intelligence, all in one shot – also! Shout out to a bass & drum only band, which is awesome, and we should have more of, but the bass player needs to be a killer to fill that role.
KB: What are you currently up to?
Releasing my ‘90s Rock Memoir “EVEN THE GOOD GIRLS WILL CRY”. Visceral healing process, it was to get it out of me and write it, but I suspect the real magic will begin by putting it into the world and reflecting with others on what the magic of the ‘90s was all about. Powerful music decade that carried us into what is now a brave new world of digital corporate weirdness – may the past shed a light on our future. That’s my hope for this book release and tour.
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