Death by Audio Exploding Head Limited Edition (2023 Chicago Boutique Effects Pedal Showcase Special Edition) Death By Audio

This pedal was part of a special offering for those that attended Reverb’s 2023 Chicago Boutique Effect Pedal Showcase, hosted at Chicago Music Exchange. Remaining inventory is now available.

You asked and we listened, after the eruptive initial release of the limited edition Exploding Head pedal, we’re making another limited batch for those who missed out! Inspired by the effects used to make the earth-shattering sounds of the Exploding Head album, this pedal features 3 cascading dreamy delay lines and and infinite feedback stomp to break your sound through new sonic frontiers!

DO NOT DELAY…..EXPLODING HEAD.
Long ago, ghostly echoes spun and danced their way around amplifiers across the world. Dormant for years, they have finally been awakened once again. Beware… the EXPLODING HEAD!

To celebrate the unlucky 13th-anniversary edition of the A Place To Bury Strangers album of the same name, the EXPLODING HEAD pedal looks back at a key piece of gear from that era – the now legendary and unobtainable Ghost Delay. The EXPLODING HEAD is a triple delay dream maker/destroyer system in an ultra-small footprint.

The EXPLODING HEAD pedal produces all new otherworldly soundscapes ready to inspire future records to come! Three delays are connected in series (BLACK into GREY into RED) with individual control over delay parameters for a soiree of rhythmic multi-tap echoes, feedback, noise, swells, and slapback sounds. It’s the delay sound in your head, in a pedal. Mind blown!

ULTIMATE CONTROL
Exploding Head is a simple way to generate an infinite number of multi-head (or multi-tap) delays in an extremely compact and road-ready size (where my road dogs at?). Isolate one (or several) delay lines with the independent BLEND controls or use all three delays simultaneously for the ultimate head-spinning interactive ambiance generator experience.

The knob-per-function design lets you quickly change the delay’s behavior. Create a faux reverb with multiple short slap delays, or stretch the times out long and bring up the FEEDBACK for a slowly evolving ambient cloud. Different feedback amounts per delay create new rhythmic variations and build oscillations at multiple speeds simultaneously. In other words, this thing sounds cool!

At maximum, each delay’s BLEND knob mixes the wet signal louder than the thru signal—ideal for especially intense sounds.

STEREO MADNESS

EXPLODING HEAD has a stereo output section. Using a TS cable will output all three delays mono. However, using a TRS cable will tap the first two delays (BLACK and GREY) to the Ring connection, and the third delay (RED) to the Tip, allowing for a wide stereo spread.

FEEDBACK FOREVER

A momentary footswitch feeds the third delay (RED) into the first delay (BLACK), causing a feedback swell unlike any of the individual delays feeding back on their own. Use the INFINITY switch for dynamic swells, bursts of noise, or to slowly build massive walls of sound.

The BLEND knob of the first (BLACK) delay controls the volume of the feedback generated by the INFINITY switch.

You’ll stay in an infinite loop of joy/chaos, harmony/destruction, and dreams/nightmares with this bad boi on your pedalboard.

TIME: Controls the time of each delay, from ~10ms to ~600ms.

FBACK: Controls the number of repeats for each delay. Different amounts of feedback for each delay section can lead to new rhythmic patterns of repeats.

BLEND: Controls the volume of each delay section. At maximum, the repeats will be louder than the clean signal.

INFINITY SWITCH: Momentarily feeds the output of the third delay to the first delay, creating a multi-delay feedback network around the individual delays. The first (BLACK) Blend knob controls the volume of this feedback.

TECH SPECS

• Dimensions: 5.06” x 2.58” x 2.45″ (including hardware)
• Weight: 9.8 oz.
• Power: 9V DC (runs on standard 2.1mm negative center 9V DC adapter).
• Current Draw: 70 mA.