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Klowra Verdict Poly-Octaver Review – It’s almost a synth pedal!
Introduction
I have another review for you, thanks to the amazing people at Klowra pedals! I loved the last review of the Klowra Everest pedal I did (Review here), that they sent over the Klowra Verdict! A crazy and wild Poly-Octave effect pedal! Think of an octave pedal but on steroids! This pedal is wild! I am so excited to share this pedal with you! Mainly because it is something so different from what I would normally go for.
As always with my reviews, I will go through the pedal, talk about the features and functions, and then I will show you some sounds and finally my thoughts on the pedal! Oh boy, do I have a lot to say about this pedal. So let us dive right into it and tell you all about what the Klowra Verdict is and what it does, because it does a lot! So much!
Klowra Verdict Pedal
So what is the Klowra Verdict? Well, it is wild! If I were to simply describe it, then I would say that the Klowra Verdict is an octave pedal. However, it does so much more than that! Using the Klowra Verdict, you are able to shape and alter your tone and control it in ways you haven’t been able to before. Using the swell and filter functions, you are able to turn your guitar into a synth or even a violin!
Let’s talk about the controls the Verdict has, because there is a lot to unpack! On the front of the pedal, it may look fairly simple; however, you can do a lot with this pedal. So let us dive into the controls.
- +Oct: This allows you to adjust the level of the +1 octave voice.
- +2 Oct: Allows you to adjust the level of the +2 octave voice.
Direct: This blends in the original signal. - –Oct: Adjusts the level of the -1 and -2 Octave
- Swell: This alters the steel or the attack time of the effect. Higher creates a slow sound, like a cello!
- Freq: Alters the low pass filter on the sound. Allowing you to adjust between darker sounds to brighter sounds
- LED Button: Glows to tell you what function the foot switch is doing. It also allows you to access the hidden controls.
More on the Klowra Verdict
As with the Everlast Delay pedal, this pedal also features some hidden parameters that you can adjust by holding in the LED button down. So why don’t we go over them now:
- Detune: Controls the detune amount of the detune effect. (+Oct)
- RampATK: Adjusts the ramp attack time. (+2 Oct)
- RampRLS: This adjusts the Ramp release time. (Direct)
- -2 Oct: Adjust the -2 octave but in a ratio to the -1 Octave. (-Oct)
- Low Cut: This allows you to adjust the low cut for the octave effect. (Swell)
- Q: Adjust the resonance of the low cut filter. (Freq)
The two main options on the Verdict are the Freeze or the ramp feature. These are controlled using the foot switch. The Freeze function allows you to lock in a note or chord for infinite sustain. Alowing you to play over the top of the notes! Adding harmonises and melodies. The other feature is the Ramp. This allows you to fade between two different sounds, controlling the attack and release of the effect! Creating an ever-changing and live effect.
As far as inputs and outputs, we have a few! On the right-hand side of the pedal, you will see your input and your footswitch control input. Then, on the right-hand side of the pedal, you will find the effect output and an analogue dry output.
A few extra features about the pedal that are worth mentioning are that it features analogue dry through as well as the option to select true or buffered bypass. It runs on the WildSeed engine and uses 32-bit floating-point DSP processing for a huge amount of headroom and processing power. The Klowra Verdict is available to purchase for $149.99 (£112) on Amazon or their website.
The Sounds
For the sound samples, I just plugged the Klowra Verdict into the front end of my Neural Nano Cortex. You will hear that I added a bit of delay and reverb in the Nano Cortex. I go through the pedal with both a clean and crunch tone on the amp. I also show you how the freeze function works on the pedal (excuse the socks). As much as I love this pedal, I really struggled to demo the sounds just because of the sheer amount that this pedal can do! The YouTube video could have easily been around an hour long!
For the demo songs, this was a chance to splash out and have a bit of fun with the sounds! I used a few different pedals for the sounds. The first demo song is the pedal set to a really fast attack time. The second is more of a pad sound. I have turned the guitars up a fair amount just so you can hear all the little nuisances in the sounds.
What are my thoughts?
The Design
The packaging is some of the best packaging I have seen! (Similar to the Everlast). The goodies in the box and the manual are great! Such a well-presented pedal when in the box! There has been a lot of thought and design gone into the packaging! They have really presented the pedal well before you even see the pedal!
This design continues when you open the box and see the pedal! As with the Klowra Everlast, the design is amazing! The colours and the printing on the pedal are just so well done! I know design doesn’t make it sound better, but it is a wonderful pedal to look at!
The whole pedal feels super well built and constructed! Holding the Verdict, it feels solid! All the knobs and controls feel substantial and long-lasting! Really impressed with this pedal in regards to looks, design, and build!
"You can make them take over and go from subtle octave to full organ sound!
The Sounds
Oh my! The sounds! This pedal is insane! I plugged it in expecting an octave sound, which it does, but it does so much more! You can get full organ and synth sounds from this pedal! Thanks to the various features like swell and hold, you can really “play” this pedal! It is so much fun and, just like the Everlast pedal, it is mega inspiring!
The octave options are clear, sharp, and shine through the sound without being overwhelming or overtaking the original sound. Of course, with the direct and swell controls (more on the swell soon), you can make them take over and go from subtle octave to full organ sound! So diverse and huge sounding while maintaining great clarity and precision!
More on the Sounds
Freeze! Let’s talk about the freeze feature! I have never been more creative than when I am playing with the freeze feature! Holding a chord and a sound allows you to jam over the top of it. It is like a super simple loop pedal but different! Allowing you to create huge soundscapes and then freeze a small moment in time. It is honestly so amazing when you are playing at home!
Swell! Oh my! What a setting to put on this pedal! Honestly, this is the control that makes the Klowra Verdict stand out from any other octave pedal! Swell is basically an attack option for your sound! You can go from a direct and immediate sound to a long swell and create a string or organ-like sound! It is so good! I honestly can give this control enough praise! Playing rhythm in a funk band? Jazz it up with this pedal! Bit of swell, and you will see that it has blown open rhythm playing!
The Drawbacks
Not a whole lot, if I am honest! One thing I will say is that the Klowra Verdict can do a lot! There are a lot of sounds to be had from this pedal! It will take some researching, some playing around, and also, most importantly, reading of both the manuals! It can be overwhelming at first! When you first get the pedal and set it up. Fortunately, fortunately, they have laid the controls out nicely and labelled them very well. Also, the manuals are so helpful, so you will find yourself up and running in no time.
It would have been nice to have the option to save a few presets! Now, I understand there is the ramp function, so you could set the ramp time and release really short so you can get a sort of preset. However, I would have liked the option to save 1 or 2 sounds. You are able to create some amazing sounds, and I have found myself taking photos of the controls to remember them and come back to them!
"I could argue it is on the side of “expensive” as a “fun effect to try out” kind of pedal"
Final Thoughts
This pedal is so much more than just an octave pedal. It can do so much! Allowing you to get synth-like sounds with such ease! I have put this on my board and really enjoyed blending in some synth sounds to my live tones. Can it do the straight-up octave tones? Of course, it can! Easily! However, that would be like buying a Ferrari to pop to the shops! This pedal needs to be at a race track going full throttle! It is marvellous to play! When you look at the price, I don’t think you will find a better option for these kinds of sounds.
I mentioned the price above, so I think it is worth that I discuss the price here. I think this pedal is insane value! Around £112 for all this processing power and tonal opportunities! It is a very powerful and very creative pedal that comes at a reasonable price! I could argue it is on the side of “expensive” as a “fun effect to try out” kind of pedal, but if you are looking into synth and octave pedals, it is defo worth a look!
Conclusion
So that is my review of the Klowra Verdict Poly-Octaver pedal! What an insane pedal! If you are after a basic octave pedal, this is the one! If you are after an octave pedal with lots of functions that is simple to use, then this is also the one! It is so versatile, and you will find yourself using it more than you think! How do I know this? Because I have found myself using it more than I thought!
Huge thanks to Klowra for sending over this pedal! I have thoroughly enjoyed it! They did send over the pedal for me; however, I haven’t received any money, and they also have not had any input in the review. If you want to check the pedal out further, then you can check the Verdict out at the link below.
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