Performing with multiple pedals
can be a tricky dance. You may
find yourself doing things like turning
off a compressor and a flanger
while turning on a fuzz and delay,
all before a verse turns into the
chorus—a move that can make
you look as if you’re desperately
stomping out a fire and fending
off a swarm of bees. If that weren’t
bad enough, a whole board full of
pedals can also suck the life out of
your tone. The Cusack Pedal Board
Tamer, which helps you program a
series of presets from your effects,
helps bring these beastly problems
under control.
Row of Options
Housed in a 24" x 4 1/4" x 1 3/4"
metal casing, the Tamer fits neatly
on a Pedaltrain 2 or Pro pedalboard.
It has switches for nine
presets and effect loops—the last
three loops are stereo—a switchable,
mutable tuner output, and a
tap-tempo switch that sends information
to RCA outputs on three of
the presets.
Both input and outputs can be buffered
or set for true bypass. There is
only a single input and main output,
but you can play into two amps by
using stereo cables. Switching amps
involves running a mono cable out
of the amp output to one amp,
while routing Effect Loop 9’s send
to the other. When you choose
Loop 9, the Tamer sends your signal
to its designated amp, effectively
shutting off signal to the regular
output amplifier.
In Mech Mode, each loop brings
any effect (or effects) in that loop
into the signal path, while in “Preset
Mode,” each of the nine switches is
assigned to a combination of loops.
Setting up presets was super simple:
I stepped on and held the Tuner switch and the All Off switch simultaneously,
then chose a numbered switch and the loops I wanted that number to
engage. (Dipswitches inside the board let you program any of the loops to
remain in Mech mode even when you are using presets.)
Preset Simplicity
I plugged a Moolon Lotus Octa Fuzz, an Electro-Harmonix Ring Thing, a
Maxon OD-9, and a Guyatone Micro Delay into their respective loops. I kept
the Tamer’s output buffer on and turned off the input buffer, as the Moolon
doesn’t like a buffered signal. The Tamer worked beautifully, first engaging
and disengaging individual effects, then, in Preset mode, combining them in
my chosen combinations.
With the effects off, I checked the tone through the Tamer against a straight-into-the-amp signal. With the input buffer off, I detected a slight loss of low
end and a harder feel to the playing response. With the buffer on, the difference
was negligible—but what to do about the fuzz? The solution was to put
a Fuchs Plush Pure Gain pedal in Loop 4 and leave it on. Then I could shut
off the input buffer, making the fuzz happy, yet regain my full bandwidth and
playing feel—a simple solution facilitated by the flexibility of the Tamer.
The Verdict
The Cusack Pedal Board Tamer is an affordable and effective solution to the
issue of pedal-switching acrobatics, as well as a way to maintain your guitar
and amp tone. Of course, it won’t to anything to curb your stompbox habit,
if you have one. But for players who can’t get enough pedal power in their
chain, the Pedal Tamer is the cure for a hundred headaches.
Buy if...
you need a collection of multi-pedal sonic
concoctions at the stomp of a single switch.
Skip if...
you don't mind a little tap dancing to get
your multi-pedal recipes.
Rating...
