TC Electronic Plethora X1, 14 Toneprint effects squeezed in one multi-FX pedal

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The TC Electronic Plethora X1 is the single FX slot version of its Plethora X5 multi-FX pedal, which includes all 14 TC Toneprint effects.

In 2020, TC Electronic released the Plethora X5, a stompbox that combines almost all Toneprints pedals into one multi-FX. I bought it three years ago on a good deal on Amazon, and it has been in the studio ever since.

Then, in 2022, they released the Plethora X3, a compact version with just three FX slots. Today, TC Electronic has introduced the smallest and most affordable version with the Plethora X1.

TC Electronic Plethora X1

TC Electronic Plethora X1

Plethora X1 is a new stereo multi-FX pedal, aka the 1-FX slot version of Plethora X5. It’s a super compact pedal but has the same powerful selection of Toneprint effects as its bigger brothers.

The TC Electronic developers described the Plethora X1 as a TonePrint loader that covers the entire range of TonePrint pedals. Yes, they have squeezed the same 14 TC Toneprint effects in this new pedal:

  • Hall of Fame 2 Reverb,
  • Flashback 2 Delay,
  • Helix Phaser,
  • Viscous Vibe,
  • Sub n Up Octaver,
  • Brainwaves Pitch Shifter,
  • Corona Chorus,
  • Hypergravity Compressor,
  • Mimiq Doubler,
  • Vortex Flanger,
  • Pipeline Tap Tremolo,
  • Quintessence Harmony,
  • Sentry Noise Gate
  • Shaker Vibrato.

So TC has 14 TonePrint pedals in one. You can turn the pedal in seconds in an atmospheric reverb, flexible delay, or lovely pitch shifter. All effects can be tweaked directly on the hardware with three parameters (A, B, C).

For those who want to go deeper, there is also the TonePrint app, which can be connected to the pedal via Bluetooth. Here, you have full access to all parameters and presets.

TC Electronic Plethora X1

The new TC Electronic Plethora X1 also has a MASH-supported single footswitch with various modes. In ‘latching’ mode, it simply turns the effect on and off, and in ‘momentary’, the effect is only applied for as long as you press and hold the footswitch.

Then, there is the A/B’mode where you can switch between two different effects, and when relevant, you can also tap the tempo, using the footswitch. And with the MASH function, you can also manipulate parameters expressively with the footswitch.

Boards 

In addition to the built-in 14 TonePrint effects and the ability to load presets from the app, you can also work with boards. You can choose from seven boards, each with two pre-installed effect types in two slots (A/B). This gives you instant access to all 14 effect types. 

Great, boards and effects slots are super flexible in the TC Electronic Plethora X1. Thus, you can use 14 different Hall Of Fame 2 TonePrints, or 14 Corona Chorus TonePrints spread on two boards. Plus, there is a 1′ LCD display for visual feedback.

You have stereo in and out on 3.5mm mono jacks and a USB-C port on the connection side. However, MIDI ports and support, as on the Plethora X5 and Plethora x3, are missing.

First Impression

It’s great to see that they are continuing the Plethora multi-FX series and offering it to more people in a 1-FX slot version at a more affordable price.

However, I wonder who would still buy a Hall of Fame 2 reverb for 145€ or a Flashback 2 delay for 135€ when you can get the entire TonePrint catalog in one pedal for 189€. Or will the original single FX pedals be massively reduced in price? We will see.

TC Electronic Plethora X1 is now available for $179 in the US and soon in Europe for 189€.

More information here: TC Electronic 

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