By Nick Ecker
Fever Pitch: A Deeper Dive into the Octa Psi – Outside of sheer engineering prowess, if there’s one particular area that Keeley has excelled at, it’s an understanding of how to combine effects and what pairs well with one another.
This, of course, has previously been evidenced via the 4-in-1 series, along with the Caverns, Hydra, Dark Side and Loomer in the past. It’s with great pleasure that I assist in introducing the latest addition to the Keeley lineup, which carries on the tradition of meshing effects: the Octa Psi.
The Octa Psi combines two commonly paired effects: Pitch Shifting and Fuzz. This combination has obviously been explored in the past, as towards the very beginning of guitar pedals commercial availability, octave fuzz has been a concept. Jimi Hendrix and Pete Townshend had helped introduce the world to octave fuzzes, helping push rock music forward towards a more psychedelic and heavy era.
Later the pairing had been further explored to greater capacity thanks to advancements within the realm of effects. Fuzz would be pushed into heavier, more saturated territory via the Big Muff. Pitch Shifting would be explored as a standalone effect to greater capacity via the advent of the Digitech Whammy and Boss Octave.
Guitarists such as Kevin Shields and Jack White, existing at opposite ends of the guitar spectrum, would utilize both effects to explore new sonic territories and inspire a new generation of players.
The Octa Psi is here to help move the pedal industry forward yet again, combining the iconic Muff fuzz and pitch shifting in one pedalboard friendly enclosure. Gone are the days of sacrificing space for both an octave and fuzz pedals, allowing for precious pedalboard real estate to be free for more effects!
First, the Muff section of the Octa Psi applies some effective mods to the classic circuit. Players can add more low end to help further pulverize their amps via the “Punch” mode. The “Psi” mode provides rich harmonic overtones that pair well with the pitch shifting mode, and also helps push itself further into a mix, especially for those that may use mid scooped amps. Of course, a more classic Muff mode is available, via the “Scooped” mode for traditionalists.
The pitch shifting portion of the Octa Psi is truly a thing of beauty. Of course it pairs perfectly with the Psi side for all of my shoegaze and garage rock needs, yet I’ve found that there are a bevy of useful modulation and pitch shifting tones available here. The Detune mode in particular creates some of the most stunning chorus tones I’ve ever heard, and is a breath of fresh air from the CE-2W and DC-2W that I’ve been using for years. Combining the retune mode with the fuzz will undoubtedly remind players of Nirvana’s “Nevermind” era.
Adding the upper octave textures combined with a hall or plate style reverb makes for some lovely ambient textures, almost an inverse shimmer effect if you will, where your dry signal is effected rather than the wet signal.
For those that don’t own an expression pedal, there is the saving grace of being able to dive bomb and bend. Simply set the pedal to momentary mode (fuzz knob down for 1 second), then press and hold the octave switch while adjusting the blend knob. This is a perfect method for recreating the Kevin Shields “Glide” guitar technique of consistently manipulating the tremolo arm.
Lastly for the octave side’s features, we have the capacity to double tap the blend knob for either all wet or wet/dry signal. The wet/dry mode creates a harmonizing effect that is reminiscent of church organs covered in glitter. Stacking this effect with the fuzz mode, this makes for some truly fun effects that have a very trippy flavor about them.
When combined with one another, the Octa and Psi modes create some of the most unique and inspiring guitar tones I’ve heard emerge from my amp. For years I’ve struggled to properly recreate the shoegaze textures I’ve aspired to achieve. Using the Octave mode in the down setting with the fuzz set to Psi mode, I had finally achieved the warm, dreamy shoegaze textures I had desired with my Jazzmaster in the neck position.
Using upper octave selections has proven to be equally satisfying. Fans of Jack White, Jimi Hendrix and Tom Morello will find plenty to love in the Octave Up mode, with the fuzz section set to the traditional scooped mode. The angry bee sound of “Purple Haze” is perfectly achievable in this setting and provides hours of psychedelic fun. If you own an expression pedal, the Octa Psi is compatible and offers the more traditional Whammy experience, allowing for greater control over the pitch shifting portion.
Conventional wisdom states to run octave before fuzz, yet Keeley have allowed to run fuzz before octave, resulting in more of a classic, Hendrix adjacent fuzz effect, whereas placing the octave before fuzz (default Octa Psi setting), will result in a cleaner, more modern approach in which the octave/harmonizer will feel more prominent.
Similar to the 4 in 1 lineup, the Octa Psi also allows for true or buffered bypass for those that prefer one over the other, I won’t elaborate on that debate, I’d rather discuss politics or religion. Also of note is the capacity to run the Octa Psi at 18V, which allows for higher headroom and a greater sweep of the fuzz knob.
In conclusion, the Octa Psi is one of the most inspiring additions to the Keeley lineup that we’ve seen in years. In many ways, it feels akin to the true successor to the Dark Side and Loomer, as fans of both circuits will find plenty to love here. Classic Rock aficionados can achieve King Crimson, Pink Floyd and Doors textures by shaping the octave side to sound similar to an organ.
Shoegazers on the other hand can create beautiful modulation by using the Octave side alone, or achieve the famous wall of fuzz effect by combining the octave down mode with the fuzz side. Throw in some reverse reverb, perhaps from your Loomer, Parallax or Realizer and you have the recipe for iconic Shoegaze tones.
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