vibe leslie

BBE Sound Soul Vibe Pedal

January 30th, 2010

BBE SOULVIBE Rotary Speaker Effect

The rotary speaker effect was made popular in the late 60’s by Jimi Hendrix. Of course everything he touched became popular as everyone wanted to be like him. The rotary speaker simulator or “vibe” is no exception. The modulated sound that ranges from a slow sweep to a fast warble is typical of the vibe sound and adds depth to a guitars overall tone. The BBE Soul Vibe is one of the better offerings in that category.

Appearance
The pedal has a beautiful, bright yellow glossy finish with a cool funkster kicking back in a chair sipping a glass of wine and chilling out in a retro leisure suit, platform shoes and wicked afro. But that’s where the retro ends. The chrome knobs are knurled in case you have to make a quick change on stage and the indicator light is a blue LED that pulsates in time with the speed of the rotary effect.

Construction
This pedal is made to be played. The metal housing makes it nice and durable for onstage use. Any guitar player knows that when things get groovin’ on stage, stompboxes really earn their name. The on-off switch is a typical high profile effects box switch and the metal construction means it will have a long service life. The input and output jacks are on the sides and marked in big letters in a contrasting color the to main paint color. The battery compartment (9 volt) is on the bottom and has a plastic cover that is secured with a tab that can be opened with your fingers. The AC adapter plug is on the front and this pedal comes with an AC adapter.

Operation
There is no great mystery here. Operation is very simple. The two knobs control speed of the rotary effect and intensity of the effect and the blue indicator light lets you visually know the speed of the effect.

The SOUL VIBE is a modulation effect similar to a flanger or phase shifter without the spacey sound. It gives you a deep growling sound when played through an amp that is distorting and has a very Leslie like organ effect when played clean. The SOUL VIBE makes your leads come alive without the heavy effect sound of a phaser or flanger. The effect sounds best by itself but if you want to use it with other effects, I would use it at the end of the chain because it is modulating the signal and will tend to overdrive any effect it is fed into.

Blurp
This pedal is a 10 out of 10 in every category but it is not for everyone. Modulation effects can be very cool if used in moderation but they can be tiring if you overdo it. With the list price of $189.00 and an advertised price of $129.99, it may seem steep but the metal construction makes it a good, long term value and if you consider the included AC adapter, you are paying about $115 for the pedal.

For more information check them out at their website BBE SOUL VIBE or you can purchase them at BoutiqueMusic.com.