Alexander Pedals - F13

[zoooombiex]

A little late to the thread, but FWIW, the F13 does a lot of cool stuff

I'm not so much into the normal jet whoosh flanger sounds, but have found a lot of interesting settings on the F13. Both dynamic and step modes are nice for making any kind of loop/pad more interesting. It sort of randomizes whatever is looping.

Dynamic mode in the feedback loop of a delay can also get crazy in a pretty random way.

Also like the normal mode with mix at 100% for twisted pitch bending sounds.

My one wish would be for self-oscillation. That is what keeps the clusterflux on my board. But the dynamic mode makes it a close call. Mod pedals with envelope-based controls are IMO almost always winners. I just wish chase bliss would add an envelope-controlled ramp feature...

[HighDeaf1080p]

Ok, I wish I had gotten some more sleep last night, but I'm ready to give a first impressions review...

I feel like flanging is one of those effects that you have to use with restraint or at least very good judgement, because it can become monotonous quickly if used in too many songs. This flanger, however, has enough different sounds in it, to make it a far more useful pedal than, say, an electric mistress, or MXR flanger. Not a one trick pony here.

Gotta give it thumbs up for its ability to be set to very subtle, but still stay distinct. That's a very fine line to walk, that few pedals do very well, but I feel like this pedal knocks that out of the park without breaking a sweat. And then, you have access to all manner of insanity...from the same subtle, musically useful pedal. This pedal has more range than Bruce Willis playing the part of a 13 year old girl. I also found it interesting that the wild stuff still sounded usable musically to me. The "Dynamic" mode is both some of the craziest stuff the pedal offers, and one of the most usable envelope triggered effects on my board. I found several settings where a listener simply wouldn't be able to identify what was being done on a recording. Playing fingerstyle, some settings sound more like a VERY controlled string bend that layers over the top of successive notes or something, than anything from a pedal. The sensitivity control is extremely fine, so I was able to get it to FREAK OUT MASSIVELY only on the notes I wanted, and then calm right back down to an extremely light chorus on the others. I like it.

The filter matrix/manual flanging mode works great, but it left with me wanting for an expression pedal input that takes over the depth control in that mode. Oh god that would be sweet.

I primarily bought this to stick in the effects loop of my EHX Superego, but I can see this getting plenty of front stage time. It's tremendously clear and detailed and has a very pleasing sound...and for a sci-fi insanity pedal, that's saying something. On negative feedback, medium depth, and a long slow sweep, it is funk, funk, funk. Seems Matthew needs to charge quite a bit more for his pedals. At $189, I'm left with the feeling that I somehow did something unethical in this transaction. It's a good value, I think, with the only limitation in my mind being the lack of a fully analog signal. But then, to make an analog flanger with this feature set, it probably would end up the size of a volkswagen.

[goroth]

This pedal has more range than Bruce Willis playing the part of a 13 year old girl.

Um, can you explain this metaphor? Bruce Willis is not exactly known for his wide range of acting skills, and putting him in a situation whereby he plays a 13-year old girl is bound to fail.

[HighDeaf1080p]

Technically, its a simile.

Maybe I should have said, "more range than Bruce Willis SUCCESSFULLY playing the part of a 13 year old girl."

[Inconuucl]

More range than Gary Oldman.

[AlexanderPedals]

Hey guys - the "manual" knob on a flanger changes the range of the sweep. The LFO sends a control voltage to the clock driver IC, which then changes the delay time of the BBD. The manual control adds a fixed amount of voltage to the clock driver, which is added to the value of the LFO. If you want the maximum sweep, generally the manual control needs to be set to the lowest available setting.

The F.13 is a little different - we keep the "manual" at minimum in Sweep mode, EXCEPT when the Rate knob is close to zero. When you do that, the LFO is disabled and the Depth knob controls the delay time directly. It's inspired by the Filter Matrix mode on the Deluxe Electric Mistress, which I love.

[Chankgeez]

Nice, thanks for the explanation. I filter matrix too.

[sylnau]

MIght need this later.
Scott @ Axe and you Shall Receive have them.

[echorec]

are these analog? digital? if digital, are they made off of the spin chip (same as the bitquest)?

if they are it sucks they dish out 100s of pedals with less than 8 modes. Dr Sci spoils me.

Definitely digital, and they're likely using something like the FV-1.

https://www.experimentalnoize.com/products_makers.php

I'd like to see someone make a dual FV-1 modulation pedal in the $225-299 range. I'd love to have two phasers or two flangers in one box. I'd also accept dual trem-phase or dual vibe/chorus.

[resincum]

dual fv1.. MAKE IT HAPPEN!

[HighDeaf1080p]

An odd stance, since the F.13 is one of the more progressive flangers, so I'm not sure what you're basing that assessment on. I will continue to touch all their stuff.

[neonblack]

Yeah I mean if you look at just the F.13, it has 3 modes with all kinds of sounds in each. All the other Alexander pedals are similar- multiple distinct modes with interesting sounds. If you look at the bitquest (which I love) there are 8 effects in there for around $300. You can use one effect at a time, and I feel like a lot of people find two or three modes to use and just stick to them. For me its delay, ring mod, and pitch shifter. And as much as I do love the bitquest, I will probably eventually sell it to fund a pedal that does one of those effects really well.

So yeah, they could make one pedal that does a little bit of everything, but then they probably couldn't get as deep into each effect as a lot of people would like. So why not make a badass flanger for someone who just wants a flanger?

[HighDeaf1080p]

Furthermore, what if you want to use ring mod, pitch shift, and delay at the same time? I avoid multi-effects in a single pedal usually, unless they are able to be stacked and designed to work together, like the modulation in a delay pedal. The reason is that specialized pedals are usually higher sound quality, and you then have more flexibility in regards to order of the effects, and are able to stick other effects between them.

[UglyCasanova]

And as much as I do love the bitquest, I will probably eventually sell it to fund a pedal that does one of those effects really well.

So yeah, they could make one pedal that does a little bit of everything, but then they probably couldn't get as deep into each effect as a lot of people would like. So why not make a badass flanger for someone who just wants a flanger?

While I do get what you're saying, I will say that a lot of the modes on the BQ are very well thought out and implemented. I've had my fair share of reverbs to say the least (including the RRR), yet the BQ reverb has been my main verb for well over a year now. Oh, and six tweakable parameters, expression input, plus a dirt section is quite a lot for any pedal (unless we're talking Chase Bliss or something), so not being able to go deep into each effect is perhaps a little weird of a statement, at least the way I read your post.

[HighDeaf1080p]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKBRtdp2e98[/youtube]