Catalinbread Carbide Distortion Pedal
If you’ve been a fan of music with guitars tuned lower than standard in the last 30 years, there’s a chance you’ve heard of this hot new sound, usually associated with heavy riffs and power tools. In lay terms, the Carbide is a pulverizing distortion with heady boosts to certain frequency bands—three of them, to be exact—and a ton of volume. Officially, obtaining this “chainsaw sound,” as it came to be known, consists of plugging into a Boss HM-2 Heavy Metal and maxing all four knobs. Our Carbide starts with this at its base, then tweaks the majority of the distortion circuit for maximum crunch and thud. Instead of giving you a paltry blend control, the Carbide splits your signal into two paths; one path heads to a powerful clean boost specially configured to downtuned instruments, the other heads into the gears of the distortion. Each path is given its own volume knob before being mixed in parallel, letting you fine-tune the right amount of dirt. An Emphasis control tightens up the extreme low end while cutting treble, letting the boosted frequency bands jump out of the mix.
CONTROLS
- Dry Volume and Wet Volume: These two knobs control the volume levels of the dry, boosted path and the wet, “chainsaw” path. When either one is down, it disappears from the mix. These two circuits are in parallel, so you can mix both sides to your taste or rig.
- Emphasis: The stock HM-2 circuit gives you two “color mix,” or EQ knobs: L(ow) and H(igh). The “L” knob controls a frequency boost at 87Hz, but the “H” knob actually controls two different bands simultaneously, at 958Hz and 1279Hz. The Carbide keeps these three boosts intact, but the Emphasis control cuts frequencies around these bands, making them pop a little more. Like the “H” knob of the original, the Emphasis control adjusts two different filters simultaneously, one at 63Hz and a treble shelving filter. The Q of the low filter is just wide enough to butt up against the onboard bass boost. while knocking out pesky sub bass.
- POWER SUPPLY: The Carbide accepts a center-negative DC power supply from 9 to 15 volts, capable of supplying at least xxmA of current (over is fine). Plugging in anything other than this (center-positive, AC, higher voltage, etc.) will potentially brick the Carbide. I cannot recommend doing this. Check your supply and make 100 percent sure it says all the right stuff. If you plug in the wrong supply, you’ll immediately send your pedal to the shadow realm. Even though that sounds pretty cool, your Carbide doesn’t want to go there, this I can promise.
Chicago Music Exchange
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3-Day / 15-day Return Policy If you are not completely satisfied with any product, return it for a full refund of the product purchase price, full credit, or exchange of your choice. We give you 3 days from the shipping date on Vintage instruments, and 15 days on New instruments. Credit card returns are issued a credit for purchase price. Refunds are made for product value only, excluding shipping and handling charges. New, Unopened items: You may return most NEW, untouched, unopened items within 15 days of delivery for a full refund. if the return is a result of our error (you received an incorrect or defective item, etc.) we'll also pay the return shipping costs. AmEx credit cards: Note that if your order was paid using an AmEx card we may pass on a 3.5% fee of the purchase price to process your refund. Vintage, Used items: We have to evaluate vintage and used guitars, amps, and other items on a case by case basis. We spend a lot of time with you and the item before your purchase to try to avoid any surprises after your purchase. AmEx credit cards: Note that if your order was paid using an AmEx card we may pass on a 3.5% fee of the purchase price to process your refund. You should expect to receive your refund within four weeks of giving your package to the return shipper, however, we strive to issue your refund sooner. This time period includes the transit time for us to receive your return from the shipper (5 to 10 business days), the time it takes us to process your return once we receive it (3 to 5 business days), and the time it takes your bank to process our refund request (5 to 10 business days). Send your return to: Chicago Music Exchange 3316 N Lincoln Ave Chicago, IL 60657 The following items are returnable only if defective OR unopened or unused: strings, harmonicas, microphones, cleaners, polishes, and polishing cloths. Software/soundware, cassettes, CDs, DVDs, and videos may be returned for credit only if they are in their original, sealed packaging. If defective, these items will only be exchanged for the same product. For complete details on our guarantees, shipping, and return policies, please contact our Customer Service Department at 773-525-7773; fax us at 773-525-2775; visit our website at www.chicagomusicexchange.com, or write us at Chicago Music Exchange, 3316 N. Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60657.