PRODUCT REVIEW
StealthPedal
IK Multimedia
BY RICH TOZZOLI
If you’re a guitarist like me, you may find plugging directly into a computer to be a source
of frustration. Sure, I can run through my DIs
or preamps (or both) and then into the signal
path, but sometimes a simpler, cleaner solution is needed without firing up the racks. IK
Multimedia’s new Stealth Pedal might just be
the right tool for the job.
What’chya Got There?
Designed specifically for recording and playing
through Ampli Tube amp modeling software,
this USB interface/controller packs a lot into
a compact but sturdy wah style pedal. The
left side of the unit features a USB input jack,
three status LEDs, a 1/8” mini headphone
out, a 1/4” external dual footswitch jack and a
pair of balanced/unbalanced 1/4” audio outputs—Mono/Left and Right. The right side has
1/4” Hi-Z Left and Right balanced/unbalanced
inputs, a Volume/Midi control knob and 1/4”
Expression pedal input. Besides the basic wah
style integrated expression control and associated stomp switch, it also has 24-bit A/D and
D/A converters.
Setup
Included in the package are the StealthPedal,
a three-meter-long USB cable, Ampli Tube 2
Live, Ampeg SVX UNO, Ampli Tube X-GEAR
(which, according to IK Multimedia’s website,
stands for eXpandable Guitar Effects and
Amps Rig) Version 1. 5, Riff Works T4, a selection of AmpliGrooves loops and Ampli Tube
Metal. They also include hardcopy of both the
user and installation manuals (and on behalf of
users everywhere, thank you).
On both Mac and PC platforms (ASIO and
Core Audio) you first install the Ampli Tube
X-GEAR and then the StealthPedal MIDI
Control application. Note that PC users
will need to install the system drivers.
Authorization is made simple, with only a
few clicks online. X-GEAR will work with a
basic set of amps, cabs or stomps when no
other “Powered by Ampli Tube” products
are installed, however installing the included
software expands your palette. Note that
StealthPedal will work with any MIDI control-
lable software, not just Ampli Tube products.
In Action
Keeping it as simple as possible, my first
test was just to fire the unit up and plug in
my guitar. Hooking the USB cable up to the
Stealth, the LED first flashed red and then
settled on green, letting me know we were
ready. I launched X-GEAR and then the Audio
MIDI setup from the Settings tab. Selecting
StealthPedal as the Input audio interface and
Channel 1 as the Input channel, I set the audio
out to Line and left the buffer at 256 (options
are 64, 126, 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096).
Next, I selected StealthPedal from the menu
on the upper right of the GUI and turned it
on. I noticed that all my previously installed
Ampli Tube products showed up in the Preset
window, and I chose a ‘ 57 Deluxe from
the Fender collection. Bam! I was playing
a Deluxe through just a USB cable into my
computer. The latency was totally acceptable, the converters sounded great, and
the signal was seemingly as clean as you
could get it. Unlike some other amp modeling solutions, the pickup choice and lower
volume reacted accordingly—they actually
sounded like a real amp. Cool.
Now it was time to test the pedal itself.
By default (with Ampli Tube software), the
Stealth’s switch and pedal are assigned to
the first pedal loaded onto the virtual pedal
board, while the External Expression pedal
(optional) is assigned to the second slot.
Loading the Wah into the first slot, I simply
stepped on the pedal until I heard it click,
and voilà, I was in Jimmy-land. I then put
a Tape Echo into pedal slot 2 and selected
