Caroline Guitar Company Parabola Tremolo

Caroline Guitar Company Parabola

Think of the Caroline Guitar Company Parabola as your rig’s new “tremolo channel”.

We’ve adapted the deliciously sloshy, transistor-based LFO and distinctive waveform from our favorite “West German” device. We’ve modified its speed and depth ranges to match and go beyond those of your favorite classic amps. Also added are pre and post-effect gain stages for both overdrive and volume boost.

Then we offer the classic, dramatic amplitude modulation (AM) you might expect.  Or there is a filtered frequency-based modulation (FM) that is subtle, beautiful, and less invasive on your playing.

In this pedal, Havoc increases the speed and depth of the effect. To give your effect a little juice, hit it and hold it down. Then release to come back to your settings. Or, leave the depth all the way off, and hit Havoc for momentary bursts of tremolo.

Designer’s note:

“One of the things that I’m most excited about with Parabola is the sound quality. I loved how the old Schaller TR-68’s transistor based oscillator and feel had a wonderful, very “Wim Wenders/Hal Hartley early days of indie film soundtracks” vibe. But the originals had some issues.

The input would get loaded down a lot, and there was a definite volume drop when you’d use the effect.

As a result, they were great to record with. You would just adjust your EQ to work with the constraints but live could be tough, and that’s before we even get to the very bunched up potentiometer tapers or limited speed ranges.

So with improved input impedance and gain staging, we’ve been able to recapture the lush sound that I loved about the originals, but give you plenty of first stage gain AND a second stage volume boost, keep it entirely analog and transistor based, and maintain that sound and vibe that may not be for everyone, but is something I find specific and beautiful.

The speed ranges have been improved to go from AC-30 style slow speeds to faster than Fender® “Silverface” levels of fast, the depth control actually does cool things before 3:00, and the AM/FM modes have to be heard to be believed.”

Controls:

• Gain: Controls the first preamp stage; for cleaner sounds, leave this set low (though what fun is that?)
• Output:
• preamp,
• Depth: Affects the intensity of the effect and the shape of the waveform
• Speed & Range: Set the Tremolo LFO rate
• Switch FM / AM
• Switch FST / SLO.