This article takes a look a what pedals might be suitable Generation Loss 2 alternatives, in the light of recent news from Cooper FX.
Cooper FX is closing its doors
Tom Majeski recently announced on Instagram (October 21) that Cooper FX would no longer be making pedals, and that Tom himself would be leaving the pedal business 7 years after founding the company.
We wish Tom and Cooper (his lovely dog) the very best for the future in Tom’s new endeavours.
The Gen Loss 2 pedal has always been scarce
The Gen Loss 2 is a really innovative pedal which has gained global attention.
This pedal is based on nostalgic tape degradation its associated decrease in sound quality (think broken VHS player) and introduction of noise.
Random pitch fluctuations, filters to cut down on the signal’s bandwidth, sample rate reduction, and noise are all brought together in this pedal.
However, supply chain issues, component shortages and the recent pandemic has caused severe challenges for the smaller manufacturer.
The popularity of the Gen Loss pedal, combined with supply shortages, means there is a lot of unfulfilled demand for this type of pedal. Already we are seeing used prices go through the roof!
So, we thought it might be helpful to look at some Generation Loss 2 alternatives.
What are the alternatives?
During the year we have noticed that some of our customers have gone for alternative pedals given the Gen Loss was even then in such short supply.
Clearly this is a very innovative pedal and there is no “direct replacement” at the time of writing.
However we have put together a list below of some possible alternatives.
These are pedals that have a lo-fi, tape / vinyl wow and flutter, arcade game or glitchy element to their sound.
We have called those pedal that might be closest to the Gen Loss the “Top 5”, but it really depends what sounds you were hoping to get.
When researching this article we came across other lo-fi and arcade insipred pedals that we will list in other posts (currently being written), as follows:
- Lo-fi Delay and Modulation Pedals
- Lo-fi Reverb and Pitch Shift Pedal
- Glitchy, Stuttery Fuzz
Top 5 Gen Loss 2 Alternatives
An analogue chorus pedal is then further modulated and pitch shifted using random K Field generator
Digital effects inspired by dial-up and grainy lo-fi. Delay, stretch, reverse, ring modulator, distortion plus sample crusher & pitch shifter. This pedal does a lot!
Pitch modulator, vintage filters & ambient reverb. Subtle vibrato, chorus, or pad reverb. Lo-fi time stretching, stutter, and glitch sounds.
Ranges from gentle delay & modulation to radical stutter and glitching. Random, density, LFO, random pitch and reverse modes make this a versatile pedal.
Fundamentally a bit crusher, but again does a load more! Sequencer, stutter and filter effects inspired by vintage gaming consoles
Or.. a Chase Bliss Generation Loss v2 🙂