I built one of these for myself and i love it. Definitely one of those pedals i probably would never have purchased, but it was a fun diy project so i went for it.
Thanks for putting together such a concise, comprehensive look into the Shallow Water. I’ve been interested in this pedal for quite some time. And while I love it’s sound, I haven’t had enough spare dollars to justify buying such a specialized pedal. At the moment, I’m in the process of building up a collection of hardware that covers the basic effects (reverb, delay, modulation, etc...), but once I’ve got the basics covered, I plan to branch out and pick up a Shallow Water. You did a fantastic job putting this video together. I appreciated the combination of explanation and demonstration. I am excited to see what else you have in store for the channel!
Thanks a lot for taking the time to write the kind words. I’ve got plenty of effects videos in the pipeline, and not all of them are as esoteric as the Shallow Water, so hopefully I can shed some light on some of the “basic” pedals you’re looking for too!
Thank you for this video. Im only halfway through and you have already explained this pedal to me in a way that is 1000x easier to understand than all of the guitar oriented channels combined. I've been trying to hunt this Boards of Canada-esque style sound down in pedal form for a while. I keep going back and forth between a few pedals, but mostly have narrowed it down to the Cooper FX Generation Loss, Chase Bliss Audio Warped Vinyl mk2 (the Hi-Fi is too bright for me) and this pedal, Fairfield Circuitry's Shallow Water. Both this and the Gen Loss have random modulation, which means they are very likely my top two contenders - though if I had an extra $1000 to waste I'd toss in the Chase Bliss Warped Vinyl AND the Thermae just for good measure. lol Anyways, enough rambling - thanks again for approaching this pedal from more of a...synthesists POV, I guess you could say. It's definitely helped me to understand exactly what I would be getting with this pedal. Liked and subbed.
Random modulation is the way to go! If you haven't already made up your mind, add the Hungry Robot Wardenclyffe to your list. It has the same Boards-y spirit as the others, but with some reverb and additional filtering options to make it more unique. I haven't gotten one yet because of overlap, but it's getting harder and harder to resist!
@@greatlakestrader The Borderland is definitely more ambient than lo-fi. But it's got a filter and modulation, so it could get to some dark, wobbly places for sure. Depends on what you're trying to accomplish, I guess. If you're looking for something that does anything close to what the Shallow Water does, the Borderland is not going to be your best choice from Hungry Robot. The Wardenclyffe (and the newly released Wardenclyffe Deluxe, which I own) is an excellent choice for lo-fi warble. But if it's the crushed tape compression part of the sound that you like, you pretty much just have to go with the Shallow Water for that. I haven't found any other pedals that nail that sound in quite the same way. Definitely unique.
Your breakdown of this pedal is what made me break down and buy it after watching other peoples demos of it for years. I have to admit those warm meandering pads you were playing also had something to do with it. Can I ask where/what your source the sounds were coming from? I need whatever that is too!
The Shallow water seems to create dream like sounds which can also be of the future or no time at all. I don't think its purely a retro fx pedal, which is a bit too simplistic a description. Remember that those movies that are referenced in the video are called Back to the Future for a good reason. Time travel goes both ways. So merely OldSkool it certainly isn't. It may lend itself very well to that warped tape vibe, but there are plenty more other eras to travel to using this device.
Nope, this is straight from the synth into the pedal. I do this with all of my pedals, I don't even own a reamping box. I know this isn't the "proper" way to do it, but I never have any issues, as long as I mind the volume and gain staging!
Interesting. I have a question. I got a new digital piano that is also portable that can run on batteries.. I want to buy a nice expression pedal to use with it on the go. What pedal would you recommend to use specifically with Piano, Rhodes and some Synth sounds? One that doesn't need external power. Budget under $350 Also, this might sound pretty vague but I have this analogy from the camera world. There's *Leica* and then the more affordable and reasonable *Fujifilm* who make their cameras with this amazing analog quality, simplicity and great tactile control that brings a fun and enjoyable experience. I'm wondering what's the equivalent in the expression pedal world? Thank you!!
Interesting question! Sorry for the slow response... So, first off, one point of clarity, an "expression" pedal is actually a specific pedal that is used to modulate parameters on other pedals, kind of a pedal controller. Any time you see an expression jack in a pedal, that means you could plug an expression pedal into that jack and use it to control a parameter on that pedal. But expression pedals do not actually make any noise themselves. It sounds like from your description that you are actually looking for some type of master effect that will work well with Piano, Rhodes, and synth. For your use case and budget, I would highly recommend looking into a multi-effect pedal. Something with reverb, delay, and modulation, and at least two effects at a time. Combining those three effects will get you 90% of the places you want to go with your instruments. Something like the Zoom G3Xn would work very well for this (and it has an expression pedal built in!). Look around UA-cam for people using multi-effect pedals on pianos, Rhodes, and synths and see if you like what you hear. You will get so much more value for your money investing in something like that than you would dropping $300+ on some boutique pedal that only does one thing!
You can even simulate bees and moskitos :) thanks for this other great video, the quality of your videos is impressive, and I see how perfectionist you are, and the work it is, as I’m a professional editor :) UA-cam is a bitch... your videos deserve more views ! Hi from France ;)
There is hiss from the v3207d bbd chip. You can filter it out a bit with the low pass gate, I prefer to keep some hiss for the effect. Sounds like worn out tape to me. But then again, I built the pedal for myself and did not purchase so my opinion is coming from a different place. I only spent maybe $60 on components and enclosure and such. It is a subtle pedal, which is my favorite thing about it. It's not a chorus on full blast, it's a gentle random warble.
I built one of these for myself and i love it. Definitely one of those pedals i probably would never have purchased, but it was a fun diy project so i went for it.
You are a really great communicator! Far away one of the best videos out there about this pedal.
Thanks for putting together such a concise, comprehensive look into the Shallow Water. I’ve been interested in this pedal for quite some time. And while I love it’s sound, I haven’t had enough spare dollars to justify buying such a specialized pedal. At the moment, I’m in the process of building up a collection of hardware that covers the basic effects (reverb, delay, modulation, etc...), but once I’ve got the basics covered, I plan to branch out and pick up a Shallow Water.
You did a fantastic job putting this video together. I appreciated the combination of explanation and demonstration. I am excited to see what else you have in store for the channel!
Thanks a lot for taking the time to write the kind words.
I’ve got plenty of effects videos in the pipeline, and not all of them are as esoteric as the Shallow Water, so hopefully I can shed some light on some of the “basic” pedals you’re looking for too!
Just ordered one! Absolutely cannot wait to get it!! thanks for such a well done review.
Excellent explanation of this pedal! Thank you.
It also distorts so beautifully
This and the lofi junky together are so much fun. Great demo
amazing demo, thank you!
Thank you for this video. Im only halfway through and you have already explained this pedal to me in a way that is 1000x easier to understand than all of the guitar oriented channels combined. I've been trying to hunt this Boards of Canada-esque style sound down in pedal form for a while. I keep going back and forth between a few pedals, but mostly have narrowed it down to the Cooper FX Generation Loss, Chase Bliss Audio Warped Vinyl mk2 (the Hi-Fi is too bright for me) and this pedal, Fairfield Circuitry's Shallow Water. Both this and the Gen Loss have random modulation, which means they are very likely my top two contenders - though if I had an extra $1000 to waste I'd toss in the Chase Bliss Warped Vinyl AND the Thermae just for good measure. lol
Anyways, enough rambling - thanks again for approaching this pedal from more of a...synthesists POV, I guess you could say. It's definitely helped me to understand exactly what I would be getting with this pedal. Liked and subbed.
Random modulation is the way to go! If you haven't already made up your mind, add the Hungry Robot Wardenclyffe to your list. It has the same Boards-y spirit as the others, but with some reverb and additional filtering options to make it more unique. I haven't gotten one yet because of overlap, but it's getting harder and harder to resist!
@@Bloom_Music what do you think about the Hungry Robot Borderlands pedal for similar applications?
@@greatlakestrader The Borderland is definitely more ambient than lo-fi. But it's got a filter and modulation, so it could get to some dark, wobbly places for sure. Depends on what you're trying to accomplish, I guess. If you're looking for something that does anything close to what the Shallow Water does, the Borderland is not going to be your best choice from Hungry Robot. The Wardenclyffe (and the newly released Wardenclyffe Deluxe, which I own) is an excellent choice for lo-fi warble. But if it's the crushed tape compression part of the sound that you like, you pretty much just have to go with the Shallow Water for that. I haven't found any other pedals that nail that sound in quite the same way. Definitely unique.
I'm sold.... I have the Warped Vinyl and Wardenclyffe.. this adds something very special. Great video!
Well thank you for putting something in front of me that I had no idea I NEEDED to spend money on. Nice review and demo.
Oh yeah I agree with the others - Love the way you explain everything so clearly!! Cheers
Thank you!
Excellent video, thanks!
OMG. This is THE content! Thanks!
Combine 2 of these for stereo and throw it on strings. Instant outer space trip ❤
very nice demo ! which Synth do you use for the sound examples ?
Your breakdown of this pedal is what made me break down and buy it after watching other peoples demos of it for years. I have to admit those warm meandering pads you were playing also had something to do with it. Can I ask where/what your source the sounds were coming from? I need whatever that is too!
The Shallow water seems to create dream like sounds which can also be of the future or no time at all. I don't think its purely a retro fx pedal, which is a bit too simplistic a description. Remember that those movies that are referenced in the video are called Back to the Future for a good reason. Time travel goes both ways. So merely OldSkool it certainly isn't. It may lend itself very well to that warped tape vibe, but there are plenty more other eras to travel to using this device.
Awesome demonstration, you gained a new subscriber!
Great video! I’m curious to know which synth you used for the demo? Prophet rev2?
Boutique JX-03! :)
Hi are you doing anything with the internal jumpers or did you leave them as the came? Thanks! This video was sick
I did not touch the jumpers, I've never even opened the pedal up!
Did you happen to change either the buffer or pad jumper settings for use with synths?
I did not.
cool , thanks for this. what synth are you playing through the pedal? mono?
This was a Roland JX-03, mono.
Hi, did you use any kind of reamping type box to run a synth into this or just straight from synth to pedal to DAW? Thanks
Nope, this is straight from the synth into the pedal. I do this with all of my pedals, I don't even own a reamping box. I know this isn't the "proper" way to do it, but I never have any issues, as long as I mind the volume and gain staging!
Interesting. I have a question. I got a new digital piano that is also portable that can run on batteries.. I want to buy a nice expression pedal to use with it on the go. What pedal would you recommend to use specifically with Piano, Rhodes and some Synth sounds? One that doesn't need external power. Budget under $350 Also, this might sound pretty vague but I have this analogy from the camera world. There's *Leica* and then the more affordable and reasonable *Fujifilm* who make their cameras with this amazing analog quality, simplicity and great tactile control that brings a fun and enjoyable experience. I'm wondering what's the equivalent in the expression pedal world? Thank you!!
I started playing more and more funk lately. stuff like Vulfpeck, Scary Pockets and older legendary players tunes.
Interesting question! Sorry for the slow response... So, first off, one point of clarity, an "expression" pedal is actually a specific pedal that is used to modulate parameters on other pedals, kind of a pedal controller. Any time you see an expression jack in a pedal, that means you could plug an expression pedal into that jack and use it to control a parameter on that pedal. But expression pedals do not actually make any noise themselves. It sounds like from your description that you are actually looking for some type of master effect that will work well with Piano, Rhodes, and synth. For your use case and budget, I would highly recommend looking into a multi-effect pedal. Something with reverb, delay, and modulation, and at least two effects at a time. Combining those three effects will get you 90% of the places you want to go with your instruments. Something like the Zoom G3Xn would work very well for this (and it has an expression pedal built in!). Look around UA-cam for people using multi-effect pedals on pianos, Rhodes, and synths and see if you like what you hear. You will get so much more value for your money investing in something like that than you would dropping $300+ on some boutique pedal that only does one thing!
You can even simulate bees and moskitos :) thanks for this other great video, the quality of your videos is impressive, and I see how perfectionist you are, and the work it is, as I’m a professional editor :) UA-cam is a bitch... your videos deserve more views ! Hi from France ;)
Trees. Would love to see a drum machine put through it
sun baked cassette tapes... i have a few hundred without a deck... kept in boxes for 35 years
For the price, i’m not hearing lots. It seems to be quite a hissy snake unless thats your recording or synth source? Great demo though, thanks.
There is hiss from the v3207d bbd chip. You can filter it out a bit with the low pass gate, I prefer to keep some hiss for the effect. Sounds like worn out tape to me. But then again, I built the pedal for myself and did not purchase so my opinion is coming from a different place. I only spent maybe $60 on components and enclosure and such. It is a subtle pedal, which is my favorite thing about it. It's not a chorus on full blast, it's a gentle random warble.