Paying homage to one of the best-sounding errors in audio history, Electro-Harmonix has introduced the Ripped Speaker.
As the name implies, this fuzz pedal draws inspiration from the ’60s and ’70s, where pushing audio equipment boundary, intentional and unintentional amp damage, and experimental artists created some of the most compelling music.
No-brainer controls on the Ripped Speaker include Rip, Fuzz, Tone, and the self-explanatory Volume. The Rip knob functions as a bias control, while the active Tone control gives a tilt-shift style EQ. Ultimately, the Fuzz dial is where all the magic happens:
“At low fuzz settings the pedal emulates the lo-fi distortion sounds of yesteryear, the kinds of sounds created by a razor blade applied to a speaker cone, a loose tube or a faulty channel on a recording console,” Electro-Harmonix detailed. “When you crank the fuzz up the sound is transformed. It’s modern and monumental with a searing, fully saturated, fuzz tone.”
Electro-Harmonix founder Mike Matthews describes the unit as “modern and monumental with a searing, fully saturated, fuzz tone.” The Ripped Speaker comes with true bypass switching, a pedalboard-friendly size, a 9V battery, and a retail price of $99.
Hear it in action in the demo video below, or head over to the Electro-Harmonix for more details.
