tortuga effects

Tortuga Effects founder Matt Johnson clearly likes his cocktails in the evening. No, there’s nothing sloppy or woozy about his hip line of timedomain and distortion/fuzz pedals. On the contrary, they’re thoughtfully designed, with smart, common-sense controls and clear, warm sonics. But with names like the Mai Tai Dual Classic Phaser, the Single Malt Dual Vintage Delay, and the Martini Dual Analog Chorus, it’s easy to see that Johnson enjoys making pedals as much as some folks enjoy a night on the town. But there’s a sonic precision and warmth to these all-analog effects that is anything but tipsy—though you may well get a buzz while drinking one in.

Pour Me Another
The latest addition to Tortuga’s cocktail list is the Manhattan Dual Analog Flanger. Housed in a rugged, powder-coated aluminum enclosure, the Manhattan is relatively light but feels solid and roadworthy. It has two independent channels governed by controls labeled “single” and “double,” so you always have two modulation options on tap. In fact, the Manhattan does chorusing just as well as it does combfilter- style flanging, so you can switch from chorusing to a jet swoosh without another piece of hardware in the mix—pretty nice for such a compact pedal! Switching between channels is as simple as stepping on the footswitch labeled “How Strong?” The order footswitch turns the effect on and off, with true-bypass switching.