AionFX Redshift Phaser

[Nic]

Build Rating

5.00 star(s)

This one was a lot of first for me : first real big box build, first real test at drilling 20+ holes and having everything aligning perfectly. I also tried to use some ribbon connectors... let's just say that there is still room for improvement there.

I was really excited about this one, I've also put a lot of time trying to get a design I liked.

Overall, the build was not that hard, populating the board was not as much a challenge as I thought... now the next one is the L4. Drilling the enclosure wishing the scale on my UV print was spot on was the toughest part, but it also went really smooth.

Now, I did not spend a lot of time playing with it, there is a lot of settings and some are more subtle than others. You also need to understand how the pots interact with some of the switches. It's a fun thing, not sure it's a keeper for me.

First, the guts !


Then the artwork

 

[VanWhy]

Looks great. Nice job! I really dig the graphics.

 

[Synchrony Pedalworks]

I like the graphics too! How does it sound compare to other phasers?

 

[Nic]

I like the graphics too! How does it sound compare to other phasers?

There is really a lot of options there, but in all honesty, that's a first for me on the phaser so I can not really do a comparison. I'll let others chime in on that!

 

[eh là bas ma]

How does it sound compare to other phasers?

As mentioned in the instructions, it's based on Electro-Harmonix Small Stone. So i guess it sounds similar to the original.
If i remember correctly, i read somewhere that the Whetstone is a Small Stone circuit including all the most popular mods.

I never compared it with an original EHX. I have a few other phasers (MXR phase 90, Walrus Lillian, PPCB Phase II, etc.) and i would say the redshift sounds like a classic phaser, nothing special about the basic sound in my opinion. It does sound good, but the main interest here is that you can shape the modulation thanks to the various controls, and dial some interesting sounds that the other famous phasers can't do.

For exemple : Low pass + 2 stages + vibrato, with the rate set quite fast, gives something very singular and very beautiful. With these settings if you play with the sym/asym toggle, its effect is more noticeable, altering the modulation character.

All these controls and mods allow this phaser to be used with various instruments (keyboard, bass, etc.) with much more room for calibration and fine-tuning than the usual phaser with 3 knobs.

The Rate footswitch is also very interesting, allowing you to toggle quickly between two speed settings while playing your instrument. It's a great feature too.

https://aionfx.com/app/files/docs/redshift_documentation.pdf

 

[Synchrony Pedalworks]

As mentioned in the instructions, it's based on Electro-Harmonix Small Stone. So i guess it sounds similar to the original.
If i remember correctly, i read somewhere that the Whetstone is a Small Stone circuit including all the most popular mods.

I never compared it with an original EHX. I have a few other phasers (MXR phase 90, Walrus Lillian, PPCB Phase II, etc.) and i would say the redshift sounds like a classic phaser, nothing special about the basic sound in my opinion. It does sound good, but the main interest here is that you can shape the modulation thanks to the various controls, and dial some interesting sounds that the other famous phasers can't do.

For exemple : Low pass + 2 stages + vibrato, with the rate set quite fast, gives something very singular and very beautiful. With these settings if you play with the sym/asym toggle, its effect is more noticeable, altering the modulation character.

All these controls and mods allow this phaser to be used with various instruments (keyboard, bass, etc.) with much more room for calibration and fine-tuning than the usual phaser with 3 knobs.

The Rate footswitch is also very interesting, allowing you to toggle quickly between two speed settings while playing your instrument. It's a great feature too.

This is great and sounds appealing! Thanks for the great explanation!

 

[steviejr92]

Wow great execution all around! I bet getting all those holes lined up right must’ve felt so good!

Your graphics are fantastic!

 

[Nic]

Wow great execution all around! I bet getting all those holes lined up right must’ve felt so good!

Your graphics are fantastic!

Thank you!
Yes, it's very satisfying... it's not 100% accurate but aligning everything before soldering was possible, so not too bad

That was my most elaborate design ever. A lot of hours and 3 ideas later I decided to go with labeled frames. I really love the result. Hesitated between pale blue and grass green, which would also look sick.

 

[coltonius]

Nice work! I just finished one a few days ago, and I agree on the subtlety. After building a VFE Tractor Beam, I was expecting the many controls to affect wild changes in the tone. Some do, but it greatly depends on how the myriad toggles are positioned.

It's a nice change from a Phase 90-type phaser, to be sure.

 

[Fingolfen]

Great write-up. This one has been on my "list to do" for a while, but I haven't gotten around to it...

 

[jimilee]

Nice work! I just finished one a few days ago, and I agree on the subtlety. After building a VFE Tractor Beam, I was expecting the many controls to affect wild changes in the tone. Some do, but it greatly depends on how the myriad toggles are positioned.

It's a nice change from a Phase 90-type phaser, to be sure.

Same, but at the end of the day, it’s still a 4 stage phaser. I was a little underwhelmed myself. Lectric-GC has (still maybe?) a 12 stage that’s fun.

 

[coltonius]

Same, but at the end of the day, it’s still a 4 stage phaser. I was a little underwhelmed myself. Lectric-GC has (still maybe?) a 12 stage that’s fun.

What! That does sound like fun..

I see a 10 stager. Is this what you mean?

Countdown Phaser V.1.1 - Lectric-fx

The Countdown phaser is a reproduction of the A/DA Final Phase™ circuit, vintage 1979, somewhat different from the reissue. It has been designed for true bypass, and uses a charge pump/regulator setup for 15V operation using a standard 9V power supply. 🙂 Has a built in overdrive operated by a...

lectric-fx.com

 

[jimilee]

What! That does sound like fun..

I see a 10 stager. Is this what you mean?

Countdown Phaser V.1.1 - Lectric-fx

The Countdown phaser is a reproduction of the A/DA Final Phase™ circuit, vintage 1979, somewhat different from the reissue. It has been designed for true bypass, and uses a charge pump/regulator setup for 15V operation using a standard 9V power supply. 🙂 Has a built in overdrive operated by a...

lectric-fx.com

That’s the one.

 

[Dan M]

It's a fun thing, not sure it's a keeper for me.

Before you get rid of it, you should do this at least once. It’ll put you in a trance state. You’ll see the edge of the universe!

 

[owlexifry]

How does it sound compare to other phasers?

i love this phaser.
first phaser was mxr phase 90, then mutron phasor ii, ross phaser (OTA), and then i built this one.

being an OTA phaser (a modified a EHX small stone), the redshift seems kinda similar to the ross phaser, but the additional controls give it a massive range of tones/sounds.

some above are saying it's subtle and possibly not wild enough. idk, depends what you want it to do.
i like it for the occasional addition of that chewy syrupy texture to melodic/chord-based rhythm parts (when i'm not chugging or downpicking).
to be fair, i do find that if you don't keep the depth and feedback controls fairly high, you'll miss a fair bit. and most of the controls/toggles for me are quite redundant.
having the x2 independent switchable rate controls is awesome though.

 

[jimilee]

I feel like it’s a 4 stage jfet phaser with all the mods on switches.

 

[Gordo]

I built the actual Blackout board and found mine to overly dark.

 

[cdwillis]

Fantastic job!