If you were listening to music back in 1987, then you may remember what an impact Joe Satriani’s Surfing with the Alien had on the guitar scene. With his fresh melodic sense, listenable compositions, stellar technique, reputation as guitar teacher to the stars (his students included Steve Vai, Kirk Hammett, Alex Skolnick, and Charlie Hunter), and unique tones, Satriani’s playing, along with this breakthrough album, immediately jumped to the top of many guitarists’ “must-listen” list.
Through the years, Satriani has not only released a steady stream of great music, but he’s also applied his talents and taste to designing gear, such as his popular Ibanez line of signature guitars and the successful amplifiers he created in association with Peavey. Now, the Silver Surfer’s accompanist has turned his attention to stompboxes. There have long been rumors that Satch actually creates his tones by running his amps clean, then stepping on pedals to get the dirt, sustain, and crunch that he craves. In fact, legend has it that a certain BOSS dirt box was long his weapon of choice, and that for years he would comb each town he played in to try to find examples within a certain serial-number range that he could add to his collection of backups and spare parts.
But, all of that has now changed. Satriani has released three pedals with Vox: an overdrive, a delay, and a wah. Let’s take a look at just what Professor Satchafunkilus has going on the floor.
Satchuration
First up is the Joe Satriani Satchurator, a beautiful red pedal with creme chicken-head knobs. This pedal is said to have taken a year to develop and road test. It’s designed to give you Satriani’s distortion tone, with a special dynamics circuit that allows you to turn down your guitar’s volume without losing high end.
There are three controls: Gain, Tone, and Volume. There are also two footswitches: “On” (bypass) and “More” (boost). In addition, there are also a “pad” toggle switch, which you can use to run high-output pedals or guitars before the Satchurator, and two LEDs that let you know which switches you’ve stepped on. As you’d expect, there are 1/4” guitar input and amp output jacks. The pedal can operate on a 9-volt battery or using an optional AC power adapter.
The first thing I noticed is that, regardless of where the gain is set, there’s an abundance of rich harmonics and presence in the top end. This really is two pedals in one. For a good crunch rhythm sound, I set the gain at around 10 o’clock – which still provides plenty of drive. When you step on the More switch, the gain jumps to 11, and the sound cuts more – perfect for smooth, singing, high-velocity leads. This is a great feature. Even if you have the gain knob dimed, when you step on the More switch, you’ll get more. Even better, regardless of the gain or the “more” setting, the sound doesn’t get mushy, muddy, or bloated. It stays tight and smooth.
With the right guitar/pickup combination, such as, obviously, one of Ibanez’s JS series Joe Satriani models, you’re right there with Satriani’s signature tone. With other guitars, such as a Les Paul or a Strat, you can still achieve great tones. The tone control is well voiced; I think of it as more of a presence control than a high-cut/-boost. Another real positive is that the pedal is remarkably quiet. With everything cranked, you’ll hear a little bit of hiss, which is really pretty unbelievable, considering how much gain and output is on tap! Further on the positive side, the pedal is set up to maintain highs as you turn down your guitar’s volume knob.
For a taste of Satch’s crunch, scream, and smooth sustain – or for your own unique tone – this pedal is a powerful, versatile tool.
Time After Time
The Joe Satriani Time Machine is an advanced delay pedal featuring two modes: Modern (clean digital delay) and Vintage (simulates analog tape echo). The available delay times range from 30 milliseconds to 5.8 seconds – plenty to cover virtually any musical need. Plus, it’s green! Like the Satchurator, it can run off of a 9-volt battery, though you’re going to want an optional AC power adapter to keep things in motion.
The creme chicken-head controls include Level, Delay Range, Time, and Feedback. There are On (bypass) and Tap Tempo footswitches – you hold down the Tap Tempo switch to select Modern or Vintage mode. A Hi-Fi/Lo-Fi switch engages and disengages a custom EQ for filtering; Hi-Fi is the pure, uncolored delay sound, while Lo-Fi has been tailored by Satriani to smoothly blend the delay into any musical setting. There is a single 1/4” input and two 1/4” outputs for wet/dry stereo operation, or you can run the Time Machine in mono.
Before you write this off as just another digital delay stompbox, you’ve got to check it out. It will do the clean digital delay thing as well as any pedal out there. But, it does so much more! In Vintage mode, the sound is much warmer and rounder; it’s one of the better analog simulations I’ve heard – very natural; the delays fit perfectly into whatever part you’re playing. To make the delays even less noticeable – I think of it as more of a textural, ambient effect – turn on the Lo-Fi filter/EQ setting. This drops the echoes perfectly into the background, adding life and space, and keeping the guitar from sounding dry, but the delays are definitely back a notch, in a secondary position presence-wise. I like this very much for rhythm work, arpeggios, and prominent parts where you don’t want the delay to clutter or distract from what you’re playing.
With nearly six seconds of delay time available, virtually every need except looping can be handled by the Time Machine. And I’m a fan of all the tailoring you can do to the delay signal. This one is a winner!
Wah!
Recently, there’s been a move toward wah pedals with customizable response, as well as multi-voice wahs. The Joe Satriani Big Bad Wah takes this to the extreme, with lots of great Satch-requested options. The Big Bad Wah includes two completely different wah voices, which you can switch between on the fly, with a footswitch. The first voice is Vox’s signature wah sound, as found on the company’s classic pedals, but it’s been tweaked to Satriani’s exacting tonal specs. The second voice is customizable; you can choose from two inductors, U.K.-style or U.S.-style, and also set the Drive control for up to 10dB of gain boost. This allows you to have two preset wah sounds: one cleaner and more classic, the other with enough aggressive gain and tonal tailoring to meet the requirements of any solo. The pedal has a 1/4” input and a 1/4” output, as well as a connector for an optional 9-volt power supply – though it will operate off of a 9-volt battery if you prefer.
In similar fashion to most wahs, you engage the effect by pushing the toe end of the pedal down to depress a switch. The treadle is firm enough that you can leave it parked for Michael Schenker-style fixed-wah filter effects. But, the real fun begins when you start experimenting with the two different wah voicings and the two inductors. You can achieve everything from funky wacka-wacka to deep swampy sweeps to vocal expression.
The differences aren’t subtle when you change voices or inductors; you’ll notice definite changes in the tone, the range, and the response of the wah. Being able to set the gain for the second voice is a nice touch. It’s like having two wah pedals in one. Set up one voice for cleaner, sweeter wah effects, then stomp on the switch to bring in a boosted, custom-voiced wah for solos.
Why be limited to one wah, when you can have two, without taking up any extra space on your pedalboard?
Wrap Up
The entire line of Satriani pedals shines brightly. The only thing better than having one of them is having all three lined up – a versatile array of tonal colors and a bright array of pedal paint jobs that you’ll enjoy both visually and aurally! The obvious target for these pedals is Satriani fans, and, yes, with the right guitar and a decent clean amp, you can definitely clone his sound. But, don’t think that’s all these pedals can do. Whether separately or as a team, these three pedals provide a wide range of sounds that can cover just about any application.