Crew held a fond affection for the Tritone prototype pedal, but its sound didn't mesh smoothly with the Soft Focus Deluxe's color scheme, leading Catalinbread to offer it as their initial batch of exclusive guitar effects.
Unleashing the Hidden: Stompbox designers are a passion-driven lot. If they aren't strumming the guitar, you'll likely find them fiddling with circuit designs or prototyping at their workbench, such as Brian Wampler, who treats it as both a job and a hobby.
But what about the unseen creations that never make it to the market? Many just fade away, but some find new life. Catalinbread takes a different approach with their novel Proto Club. This innovative scheme sells the pedals that reached the prototype stage but didn't quite make it to mass production.
kicking things off is a remarkable delay pedal known as the Tritone Proto 227. Originally envisioned as one of the modes on their shoegaze-focused Soft Focus Deluxe pedal, this pitch echo pedal comes packaged in the familiar, compact Catalinbread enclosure.
Catalinbread dubs it a Soft Focus "B-side," promising a touch of greatness. After all, classics like The Man Who Sold The World, Green Onions, and The Beach Boys' God Only Knows were all B-sides. This could very well be another classic in the making.
As a rare and limited-edition release, the Tritone Proto 227 will certainly have a collectible factor. And when paired with the Soft Focus Deluxe, it could significantly expand the pedal's sonic range.
"The Tritone, while universally loved by our team, didn't quite gel with the vibe of the Soft Focus Deluxe," explains Catalinbread. "It's been sitting on some of our personal pedalboards for a while. Fortunately, it fits the Proto Club to a T!"
In this instance, the "vibe" is experimental. This should cater to daring tone seekers, offering the ability to create three-note arpeggios from the repeats, as an "call-and-response type octave-up" effect interacts harmoniously with a perfect fifth. It's not just for electric guitars, though. In fact, it might be more useful for some synth players.
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Much like their other four-knob designs, there's a crucial Mix knob to manage the wet/dry blend. The Echo dial controls the feedback level, aka the number of repeats. If you crank this setting, you'll anticipate some oscillation. Dog owners, beware. Oscillation has been known to cause howling in pets.
The Time knob sets the delay time, while the "Triton" dial provides the Tritone Proto 227's unique selling point.
There's much more where this came from.
"We have plenty of effects on our workbenches and programming suites that we can't include in our regular releases," Catalinbread admits. "These are experimental or 'off-color' designs, the kind that didn't quite fit with our established lineup, or circuits with a small niche audience, or our take on contemporary classics."
The Tritone Proto 227 is available now, until July 9. For more details, head to Catalinbread. It's priced at £110/$149.
[References:2. Overview of Catalinbread Proto Club3. Catalinbread Proto Club Tritone 227 Product Page4. Soft Focus Deluxe Product Page5. Tritone Proto 227 Review]
- The unique Tritone Proto 227 delayed pedal, initially conceptualized for the Soft Focus Deluxe pedal but not a perfect fit, is now available for purchase through Catalinbread's Proto Club, showcasing how technology and entertainment intertwine in this innovative platform.
- As the Tritone Proto 227 is a rare, limited-edition release, it serves as a gadget for music enthusiasts, bridging the gap between the worlds of guitars, synths, and even vintage records, as classics like 'The Man Who Sold The World,' 'Green Onions,' and 'God Only Knows' were once B-sides.
