AC Noises Respira – Reverb & LFO Tremolo

AC Noises Respira

The AC Noises Respira reverb is an ambient machine that consists of 2 effects in 1 pedal unit.

It’s something that we dreamed about for a very long time here at AC Noises. This is due to their true love for movie soundtracks, cinematic soundscapes and atmospheric music in general.

A shimmer reverb in front of a multi-mode LFO tremolo.

Shimmer Reverb

The digital shimmer reverb has been developed by Luca Romanelli from Mastro Valvola.  It is the first effect in the internal signal chain of the pedal.

It provides all that every musician usually expects from this type of effect. A very deep atmospheric sound with a long/infinite decay.

Plus a dreamy character provided by other octaves sounding in addition to the one currently played by the musical instrument involved.

What does the AC Noises Respira Sound Like?

The Respira has a unique blend of stand out tones for dramatic “film score” type of effects:

• Diverse Tremolo Styles: Experiment with a range of tremolo styles that can vary from subtle pulsing to intense, rhythmic waves. This dynamic element adds depth and character to your music.
• Innovative Shimmer Reverb: The pedal’s shimmer effect creates ethereal soundscapes, reminiscent of celestial choirs or distant harmonies. It’s perfect for adding an ambient layer to your tracks.
• Endless Tweaking Possibilities: With its versatile controls, you can tweak settings to craft personalized tones. It’s ideal for musicians who love to push boundaries and discover unique sound combinations.
• Unmatched Tonal Bloom: Unlock complex and rich tones that evolve and shift as you play. The pedal encourages experimentation, offering tones that you won’t find in standard models.

The Respira is empowering – creates unparalleled audio experiences, from lush atmospheres to bold, textured sounds. Whether in the studio or on stage, it’s a tool that inspires endless creativity.

Controls:

When it comes to tweaking the wave shape on the RESPIRA, two additional controls provide a whole new level of customization: Symmetry and Tone.

Symmetry Control

The Symmetry feature acts as a secret weapon for wave shape customization. By adjusting the symmetry of the selected wave, you can influence the waveform during its attack or release phases – anticlockwise affects the attack, or clockwise to modify the release. To achieve a balanced wave shape, keep the knob centered at 12 o’clock, ensuring equal emphasis on attack and release.

Tone Control

Though not typically found in tremolo units, the Tone control on the RESPIRA is particularly versatile. In the MASTER and HARMONIC modes, it functions as a traditional tone shaping tool, allowing users to tweak the sound’s characteristics. Meanwhile, in the BASS and TREBLE modes, it blends different frequencies, enabling you to determine how prominently the tremolo effect influences the sound. This adds an extra layer of depth to your sonic palette, allowing for nuanced and tailored outcomes.

The key controls are as follows, described in detail below:

• Depth
• Rate
• Symmetry
• Tone
• Harmonic
• Bass
• Treble

As external controls, the shimmer reverb’s side of the RESPIRA offers the following ones:

MIX:

Basically a dry/wet control. The user can easily decide how much reverb signal has to be noticed, starting from no reverb at all by setting the knob fully counterclockwise (and that’s the most obvious setting in case the user would prefer to play the tremolo side only) to a 100% wet signal by turning the knob in the opposite direction (clockwise).

DECAY:

Sets the length of the reverb tail.

While turning it clockwise, the decay becomes longer and longer until transforming the signal within an infinite ambient soundscape.

About the other two octaves provided (-1 and +1), those are both premixed from the factory in order to offer the best balance for every musical instrument plugged into the RESPIRA.

Anyway, if the user wants to experiment and try different sound flavours, the two relative internal trimmers can be easily tweaked and adjusted (always by keeping in mind the obvious counterclockwise/clockwise working method).

MULTI MODE LFO TREMOLO

The brain of the RESPIRA’s tremolo consists of 16 different wave shapes split into two sets of 8. Once selected one of these two sets by the toggle switch is placed in the middle, and the central 8-position rotary switch allows to choose the exacted wave shape that the user wants to play with.

Regarding the time control possibility, the RESPIRA provides the speed rate, the multipliers subdivision and the tap tempo control.

The speed rate can be adjustable by tweaking the RATE knob: turning it counterclockwise the rate will be slower, while the speed will increase by turning the knob clockwise.

TAP TEMPO

This switch is related to the multiplier previously selected by the 4 positions rotary switch on the left. The user can choose up to 4 different subdivisions: = x1 (1/4 note, crotchet) = x2 (1/8th, quaver) = x3 (triplet 1/8th note, triplet quaver) = x4 (1/16th note, semiquaver).

A truly special and pretty unique feature provided by the RESPIRA is the possibility to choose up to 4 tremolo modes by rotating the 4 positions switch on the right: M, H, B, T.

MASTER (M):

The standard optical tremolo acts on the master volume of your signal. Pulsing, deep and side chain-like. Just perfect for basically every music genre which often requires strong rhythmic events.

HARMONIC (H):

That type of tremolo acts between bass and treble because it is out of phase action. Smoother than the master mode and incredibly useful when needing a rhythmic event with a gently modulated flavour.

BASS (B):

The tremolo acts on bass frequencies only. Created for that kind of arrangement with a sequenced/pulsing bass line and free lead phrases above.

TREBLE (T):

Obviously the opposite of the bass mode. Tremolo acts on treble frequencies only, so it allows to creation of sequenced phrases or arpeggios above a drone-like bass line.

The tremolo part of the RESPIRA also presents the most obvious and necessary control of the depth

DEPTH:

The user can turn off the tremolo and play just with the shimmer reverb side of the RESPIRA just by rotating the DEPTH knob fully counterclockwise.

When going in the opposite direction (clockwise) the tremolo’s depth will act deeper.

Also, considering both the shimmer reverb in front of the tremolo and how much we love to increase the climax while playing, we decided to add an expression input to adjust the DEPTH with an expression pedal (10k value recommended) so it’s possible to have fun by making the two effects dialogue constantly.

SYMMETRY:

The Symmetry knob adjusts attack (counterclockwise) or release (clockwise). Users can obtain a perfect wave shape symmetry (50%-50%) by leaving the knob at 12 o’clock.

TONE:

Not a very common control for a tremolo, but it’s a very useful one (especially for the RESPIRA).

It works as a standard tone-shaping tool when using the tremolo in MASTER (M) or in HARMONIC (H) mode, while it works more like a blender between frequencies when using the tremolo in BASS (B) or TREBLE (T) mode.

That means that the user can decide how noticeable is the sound portion affected by the tremolo.

VOLUME (trimmer):

The user can adjust the output level by rotating the dedicated internal trimmer.

Anyway, the RESPIRA’s circuit is very sensitive to the output level because of the optocouplers involved, so a “clicking” noise can be noticed when using the tremolo with a strong depth setting and too much high output, and that’s why we highly suggest leaving the trimmer as it comes from the factory.

Don’t forget to look at the sister pedal to AC Noises Respira, the AMA.

The AC Noises Respira is a true bypass pedal (switching system managed by soft switch + programmed relay).

Power: 9v centre negative. Current draw: 100 mA minimum