Timed auto volume swell - does this exist?

solar

I want to do some volume swell stuff, but I've never got on very well with volume pedals and I find Boss Slow Gear-style auto swell pedals a bit too unpredictable. What I want is something like this:

Pedal with a momentary switch. Pressing the switch immediately kills the signal completely. Releasing the switch causes the signal to slowly fade back in (with a Rate knob to control how fast this happens).

Googling has failed me - the closest I can find is this circuit from 1981 (!) which seems to do something vaguely similar: http://www.muzines.co.uk/articles/auto-swell/3621

Does anyone make anything like this? If not, maybe one of the super-complicated programmable tremolo pedals can do something similar?

richh

Maybe Roland / Boss 'Slowgear'?

I think this was available in Boss pedal format, and is certainly on various multi effect units.

solar

See first paragraph of post

not_the_dj

The TC Electronic Hall of Fame 2 reverb comes with a toneprint that's a swell effect. That pedal has the "mash" footswitch so with that effect enabled you strum and you hear nothing, until you press and hold the footswitch, it then swells in. Release the switch and it fades away. There's then a Pete Thorn version of that as well (second part of the video below). With the editor you could make the reverb less massive so it's just the swell effect.

paganskins

The 'internal pedal' controller found in Boss MFXs might do it, GT-1 is probably the smallest, cheapest option with it.

I've just done this in the editor, no pedal connected though so no idea if it works. Also don't know what the 'int pd time' is using as a measurement of time.



A bit of GT-1 internal pedal discussion here

VJIves

Malekko Sneak Attack I think does that?

stickyfiddle

Volume pedal? 

Paul_C

IIRC the Line 6 M5 has an auto swell of some description.

solar

VJIves said:

Malekko Sneak Attack I think does that?

Ooh that looks interesting!

VJIves

solar said:

VJIves said:

Malekko Sneak Attack I think does that?

Ooh that looks interesting!

It's been a while since I had one so I can't remember if it works exactly how you want it to, but it's the most expanded version of the Slow Gear idea that I know of.

Fretwired

I did something similar for an ambient guitar piece I was recording. I had an array of pedals but used a Big Sky and Ditto looper. The Big Sky has a swell plus assignable infinite sustain/freeze mode ..  arm the looper, play a note, hold freeze or infinite sustain (depending on what you want) and when its sustained enough take your foot off the Big Sky, switch off the looper then switch the looper back on to play the swelled in sustained loop and play over the top. There are other pedals with a similar function.

Not sure if this is what you are looking for ...

Adji

If you have a digital noise gate (even VST if its just for the sake of recording) you should be able to set the release time to swell, rather than immediately cut the gate. I achieve this live with an old 90's Digitech unit. That's a different way to look at it.
I can't think of a noise gate pedal that you can programme like this, though that Malekko sounds interesting and a similar concept.

JezWynd

Might be worth checking out the VFE Pedals Bumblebee. There were various versions, all discontinued now but it did one of the nicest volume swells I've come across with lots of tweakable functionality built in. They occasionally surface secondhand.

Beexter

For standalone pedals, the EHX Superego might be worth a look. The footswitch can be set as momentary or latching and swell/glissando time is adjustable. 
Many of the latest multi fx/ modellers should be capable of this as well - I know the HX Effects,  Helix or AX8 allow this sort of set up with momentary switching along with adjustable swell and actuation curves.

PolarityMan

A fixed rate is going to go out of time though, I reckon on a boss GT-10 or above you could get it synced to tap tempo.

Ddigger

Never seen one or played one... doesn't quite tick all your boxes, but what about a fader pedal by Coopersonic?

vasselmeyer

I think the Zoom Multistomp pedals have one of the effects which does timed autoswell. They can be had for about £50 used.

solar

Thanks for all the suggestions! That Coopersonic thing looks almost perfect. I'll investigate everything posted.