Chase Bliss has turned the Goodhertz Lossy plugin into a standalone sound design pedal with the same lo-fi bit-crushing goodness and beyond.
Effect pedals and plugins often have something in common. Digital and based on code but with the difference that it’s usable and packaged differently. More and more manufacturers are also exploring new fields by publishing plugin versions of their pedals. See Eventide with the H9 series, or recently Strymon with the BigSky plugin, etc.
The reverse path that leads the plugin to the pedal is less common. This is now the case with the new Chase Bliss Lossy pedal.
Chase Bliss Lossy
Lossy is a close collaboration with the plugin manufacturer Goodhertz. The plugin of the same name is very popular, and there have been many requests to pour it into a hardware pedal. That’s what Chase Bliss did and pushed even further.
Like the Lossy plugin, the pedal infuses the goodness of degradation that happens to digital audio when it’s shrunk, transferred, and compromised. Including 56k modem, MP3 ripped…
The LoFi sound that most people on this big planet no longer want is what today’s sound designers want in their arsenal. Strange music world hehe. Lossy offers all the features of the plugin. But this is optimized for performance and hands-on operation.
But both developers didn’t stop there. They refined the algorithms and extended the code with new features.
LoFi Sound Engine
Like the plugin, the core consists of a routable (pre- or post loss) ’80s-style reverb, a filter (bandpass or band reject), and a loss section that features various degradation modes. “Submerged sparkles, feathery plunks, shifting digital clouds, and much, much more”, says Chase Bliss.
What’s New
The Lossy pedal features a new, unique spectral freezer that follows your playing and evolves at your chosen speed. It can create lush synth sounds, shifting backgrounds, and traditional pads with a spectral flavor.
Then, you get a new built-in limiter that always keeps your signals at a perfect level, an all-wet mode, and tons of modulation. Lossy features an internal modulation engine that allows you to animate any knob. Perfect for creating constantly evolving effects.
Typically, Chase Bliss, many deeper functions are adjusted using little dip switches on the back of the pedal.
On the connection side, it has a stereo input and output on four mono sockets, full MIDI support, CV, and expression control.
First Impression
I know the Goodhertz Lossy plugin, but I don’t have it in my arsenal. It can degrade very beautiful and musical sounds. It’s exciting that this code is now available in an extended version in pedal format. Sounds like a lot of crushing fun.
Chase Bliss Lossy is available now for 469€ and Lossy pedal users get a 50% discount on the Goodhertz plugin.
More information here: Chase Bliss / Goodhertz
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