K.S. Aji

K.S.Aji Tone Workshop

A boutique pedal company from Indonesia? That's right. The name is K.S. Aji Tone Workshop and chances are you've probably never heard of this effects pedal company. That is of non-importance though, what is important is this one-man pedal company is out there, and responsible for some really fantastic sounding stompboxes. It was through a fellow blogger that I first discovered K.S. Aji Tone Workshop, a few weeks after this discovery I would try and make contact. Once I got through I was greeted by a friendly and informative builder, his name is Kintoko S. Aji, hence the name of the pedal company. This tells me our pedal boom is doing better than I thought, with all these cats from all over the world getting into the game, means we get a chance to try more and more unique stompboxes. I'm proud to be one of the first to review these awesome pedals and hope you guys are inspired to try them out.

______________________________________

K.S. Aji Tone Workshop
Echologue

FEATURES:

* PT2399-Based Delay Pedal with Burr Brown OPA2134PA Op Amp IC Chip.
* Diecast Aluminum Enclosure.
* True Bypass Switching with 3PDT Footswitch
* Boxed Metal Film Caps, 1% Metal Film Resistors, High Quality Wire.
* Groovy Artwork and Matching Colored LED.
* 9V Battery or (Boss Style) 9VDC Adapter powered.

------------------------------------------------------

CONTROLS:

* Repeat: Controls amount of delay repeats
* Level: Controls overall effect volume level
* Delay: Sets delay time

It's always a blast whenever we get a chance to review a delay pedal, like overdrivers delay pedals are all similar but each one holds a sound of their own. The delay is one of the few effects pedals that has steadily been evolving throughout the years. Compared to the delay pedals of today the first delay units look and function nothing alike. I've run into delay pedals with so many options it's almost insane to even classify them as delay. I guess the two types of delay units most people would say they prefer are the tape delay, and the analog delay pedal. Let's ask ourselves, why is this? It is the warm tone and feel of the analog delay that appeals to us so much, it works with our guitar's tone the best, and gets in the way the least. Ladies and gents I'd like to introduce you to The Echologue, a digital based delay pedal with many of the same characteristics of the analog delay. The advantage here is that you get clarity, definition, and warm analog feel all on one pedal. The Echologue's layout is quite simple, the controls being Repeat, Level, and Delay. It is usually these types of delay unites that always work the best for me, simple, straight to point, and great tone. There wasn't much to it, all we did is plug it into a few of our favorite amps and effects pedals, and we were able to get some amazing sounds from this pedal. First I plugged directly into the Echologue with just a clean tone and a cable. The repeats from this pedal are both clear and warm, the trails disappear smoothly and evenly. You will also notice that the delay effect from this pedal won't color your tone, your base sound is still up-front and present. Even in high repeat settings the delay doesn't become muddy or uneasy, I actually put it up against some of my favorite analog delays and it held it's own. Some digital delay pedals tend to get too sharp and rigged when set to high, they, this makes your tone hard to listen to. It's also hard to get good sounding short delays from digital delay units but this pedal handles it all with no problem. The Echologue keeps everything sweet, balanced, and usable. Once I found some favorite delay settings I plugged it into some dirt boxes and let it fly. The first dirt box to put it through was a Maxon Vintage Overdrive Pro, I set the overdrive to just a hair before it breaks, and set a short delay time on the Echologue. The overdrive stayed true and transparent while the echoes bounced out with just the right amount of effect. Something that really impressed me about this delay pedal was how well it stood side by side as I turned up the overdrive level. Some delay pedals will get lost or become too powerful when played through too much grit, not this baby, sweetness all the way! Next I set the pedal for a U2 (The Edge) sound, you know that "Where the streets have no name" sound. Here is where this pedal really shined, because it's digital all the echoes come through strong and focused, but because of the pedal's analog character the sound also stays fluffy and round. Last I played it through some extreme fuzz pedals to see if it would still come through just as clear as it did through clean settings. Sure enough the Echologue did exactly just that, it was able to sound-off just enough to let the fuzz effect do it's thing. Overall I would say this is a perfect delay pedal for gigging. When playing shows you never know what kind of room you're gonna get, I've played through halls, and clubs that have totally robbed me of my delay sounds. The Eacologue makes it easy to dial-in a great sound and works with you through whatever you put it through. It is one of the most clear, focused, and warm digital delay pedals I have ever had the pleasure of playing. This tells me one thing, if this cat can make a great sounding delay pedal lord knows his overdrive pedals must sound fantastic. Analog War Cry will definitely look into featuring more of K.S. Aji Tone Workshop's effects pedals.

For more info on K.S. Aji Tone Workshop guitar and effects pedals you can go to www.ksajitoneworkshop.wordpress.com Make sure to stay in tune for more from this great one-man pedal company.

______________________________________