Reverb Pedals Around $50

[Ryo17]

Hello, I recently started building my own pedalboard and I am looking for a reverb pedal around like 50$ new or used.

I record in my house and I play in gigs as well. I usually only play straightforward bebop of just medium swing stuff. Idk if the reverb is "spring" or "plate" but I just want a simple reverb that does the work.

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

Most any pedal would work for your needs. I found that delay was better than reverb for me, or delay and just a bit of reverb.

[Stevebol]

Never tried one but the Hall of Fame is supposed to be good;

[TedBPhx]

I have the Hall of Fame - meh.

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

Are you looking for tremolo, too?

Okay, it's $300, but lots of full-sized pedals go for $150 each. Start saving yer nickels!

[BComp61]

I have a TC-HOF mini and like it. You can always dive into their library of Tone Prints to add a little variety. YMMV, but, hey, if they're good enough for Steve Morse...

[Herbie]

There is a lot of reverb pedals in the market today. I don’t have experience in the cheaper brands but Catalinbread Topanga is as good as they say.

I like simple approach so I had a one-knob prdal J. Rockett Boing! for a couple of years but then I accidentally hit the strings so that I heard that it was not a reverb but a very short delay pedal. Nasty metallic short delay. So I went to Topanga.

I had the HOF Mini too for a while. It is cheap and very flexible – but it does not make a good simple spring reverb. Too many too fancy sounds for me.

And I hate the idea of programming the pedal with my cell phone. But some love it.

Good luck!

[73Fender]

There is a lot of reverb pedals in the market today. I don’t have experience in the cheaper brands but Catalinbread Topanga is as good as they say.

I like simple approach so I had a one-knob prdal J. Rockett Boing! for a couple of years but
then I accidentally hit the strings so that I heard that it was not a reverb but a very short delay pedal. Nasty metallic short delay. So I went to Topanga.

I had the HOF Mini too for a while. It is cheap and very flexible – but it does not make a good simple spring reverb. Too many too fancy sounds for me.

And I hate the idea of programming the pedal with my cell phone. But some love it.

Good luck!

I have the Topanga as well. It is supposedly made to emulate early Fender spring reverb. Nice and simple. I use it with my 5 E3 Tweed build. I like it.

[wyndham]

You would be hard pressed to find a HOF mini for $50, you may need to either raise your price point or settle for one of the many budget models available.

Some options:

1. Biyang Tri-Verb
2. Caline Snake Bite (for more versatility)

I'd save another $15 and get a used HOF mini.

Good luck.

[camhead]

Haha, I just got a new amp, first one I've ever had without onboard reverb, and I'm thinking about pedals, too. In your price range, the Hall of Fame or EHX Holy Grail come to mind, you can find used of either for under $100.

Since everyone here is talking about pricier stuff, the new Keeley Hydra looks awesome!

[guido5]

Somewhere between the cheapo $50 unit and the Strymon is the Behringer DR600 at $115. It has a very wide range of 24-bit high-resolution stereo reverbs including spring, plate, hall, gate, room and modulate and level, tone and time controls to tune them to your taste. It does like to draw power though, so an external powersupply is a real must.

[wzpgsr]

I know it’s outside of your price range, but the new Keeley Hydra is a great reverb and tremolo pedal that sounds more natural than any other digital reverb I have used aside from DAW-based impulse response reverbs. I have never played through the highly regarded Strymon Flint, but I’ve read several comments from folks who have played both and feel that the Hydra has dethroned the Flint.

[Jabberwocky]

Not in your ballpark but do give the Milkman/JHS F-Stop Reverb cum Tremolo. It is an expanded control version of the one in the Cream Milkman The Amp 50W into 8ohms.

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

I know it’s outside of your price range, but the new Keeley Hydra is a great reverb and tremolo pedal that sounds more natural than any other digital reverb I have used aside from DAW-based impulse response reverbs. I have never played through the highly regarded Strymon Flint, but I’ve read several comments from folks who have played both and feel that the Hydra has dethroned the Flint.

Wow! Lots of control possibilities and it sounds amazing!

[Ryo17]

Okay i think I will be getting HOF. Should I get hall of fame mini, the normal hall of fame, or the new hall of fame 2. Is there even a difference between HOF and some 30$ reverb pedal from amazon like the donner reverb pedal.

[Pycroft]

bang-for-buck I'd recommend the Zoom MS70CDR . I got one second hand for £50 , that's about 70 of your US dollars .

Cheap reverbs tend to sound horrid to my ears , one of the few pieces of music tech that show a direct correlation between price and quality .

[christianm77]

Yeah just get the Strymon Big Sky (jk but that’s the sort of gear advice you get here.)

[TedBPhx]

Couple of my metal head friends are going gaga for the Hydra. That’s what put me off.

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

Couple of my metal head friends are going gaga for the Hydra. That’s what put me off.

Metal guys like Brownface (harmonic) reverb?

[wzpgsr]

Couple of my metal head friends are going gaga for the Hydra. That’s what put me off.

If you’re at all curious, I wouldn’t let that stop you from trying it out. The only thing inherently “metal” about plate and spring reverb is that they are made of metal. This demo features some subtler reverb settings that you might find more useful:

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

If you’re at all curious, I wouldn’t let that stop you from trying it out. The only thing inherently “metal” about plate and spring reverb is that they are made of metal. This demo features some subtler reverb settings that you might find more useful:

Now I'm thinking "shoegaze", not that there's anything wrong with that.

The panning is really nice, but who regularly hooks up stereo amps?

[wzpgsr]

Now I'm thinking "shoegaze", not that there's anything wrong with that.

The panning is really nice, but who regularly hooks up stereo amps?

Sure. But you can also just use a plate reverb without the long decay and the “shimmer” and it’s just a simple plate reverb that sounds really good. My gold standard for reverb is the spring reverb on my mid-60s Ampeg, which is very plate-like and not super sproingy at all. The Hydra’s plate can get very close and sounds real fine in a jazz context.

[Doctor Jeff]

I had an EHX Holy Grail a few years ago and is one piece of gear I wish I hadn’t sold. It can easily be bought used for $75 or so. (Cf Reverb)

FYI if you’re looking for cheap used pedals check the local guitar stores but also Craigslist and pawn shops. I have gotten some killer deals over the years from both.

[citizenk74]

Sure. But you can also just use a plate reverb without the long decay and the “shimmer” and it’s just a simple plate reverb that sounds really good. My gold standard for reverb is the spring reverb on my mid-60s Ampeg, which is very plate-like and not super sproingy at all. The Hydra’s plate can get very close and sounds real fine in a jazz context.

Plus one for those classic Ampegs. I had a V-2 (IIRC) with four 10" speakers and just the nicest reverb. Ended up trading it in, along with a ton of other stuff, on a 12 channel stereo powered board that also weighed a ton. Miss the amp.