The Blue Sky Reverberator is a gem—a tone-
shaping masterpiece. Like the Orbit, the Blue
Sky has Bypass and Favorite footswitches.
Knobs include Decay (decay time), Mix (dry/
wet balance), Pre-Delay (delay time before
reverb), Low Damp (cuts the reverb’s low
end), and High Damp (dampens high fre-
quencies). Three of the most commonly used
reverb types, plate, room, and spring, can be
selected from the three-way Type switch. The
Mode switch has three positions: normal pro-
cesses an untouched rendition of the selected
reverb type, mod adds a slight modulation
(chorus) to the reverb effect, and shimmer
tacks a note an octave up to the wet signal,
and that note slowly rises in volume. When
shimmer is selected with either the spring or
room type, a harmonized fifth is added to the
octave for even more texture. For guitarists
fond of soundscapes and huge, ethereal pas-
sages, the Blue Sky has both two inputs and
two outputs for true stereo operation.
Using a Nick Huber Orca into a Quidley 22
head and Quidley 2x12, I gave the spring
reverb sound a run with Mode set to normal,
PRODUCT REVIEW
Pre-Delay at minimum (so I could hear the
reverb immediately after striking the strings),
and all other knobs set at noon. I was
pleased to hear that there were no latency
issues, and even more pleased to hear how
great the spring algorithm sounded. More
importantly, I was astounded at how accurately the Reverberator interpreted my pick
attack. Picking softly summoned a softer,
subtler reverb than when I picked harder.
The squeaking and squealing noises that
a good spring reverb gives off when you
dig in were also there, and they had a very
authentic feel. I could hear the emulated
springs shake and quiver louder and more
violently the harder I picked, especially when
palm muting.
After flipping to the room type, I turned Pre-Delay to 10 o’clock and dumped some of
the low end using the Low Damp knob.
No one will mind if you touch your tubes in public. MEMPHIS
Fryette Amplification, formerly VHT Amplification, 1201 South Flower Street, Burbank, California 91502 818.846.4000 www.fryette.com
www.premierguitar.com
PREMIER GUITAR JULY 2010 191
