Outlaw Effects Vigilante Chorus

Classic shimmering chorus at an incredibly low cost

Chorusing is a classic effect that can add shimmer and movement to your sound. Every guitarist should have at least one chorus in their pedal collection, but different guitarists often want different things from their chorus pedals; from subtle movement and shimmer to wild over the top sound effect freakouts and fast rotating speaker simulations, no single chorus pedal is going to be right for every player. Today we'll be taking a look at a new chorus pedal from Outlaw Effects called the Vigilante, and seeing just what it does best, and which types of chorusing tasks it excels at.  

What You Need To Know

• The Outlaw Effects Vigilante is an all-analog chorus that is housed in a very compact and pedalboard friendly all metal enclosure that measures 3.75" L x 1.77" W x 1.89" H.

• There are three knobs on the Vigilante. The larger metal knob is labeled Rate. The two smaller sized knobs are labeled Level and Depth. These small black knobs have small indentations on them to indicate the knob position.

• Level sets the blend between the dry and chorus signal. When it is fully counterclockwise, the sound is essentially the same as when the pedal is bypassed, with just your unaffected clean sound. As you turn the knob up, more and more of the modulated signal is blended in along with the clean signal, resulting in a very deep chorusing when it's in the upper range of its travel.

• The Depth knob controls the intensity of the chorused signal's pitch sweep, allowing you to go from subtle variations to fairly wild amounts of pitch swing.

• The largest knob controls the Rate of the modulation swings. If you're a fan of slower shimmer, you're going to like the Vigilante's ability to dial up settings that provide more subtle and lethargic movement than some other chorus pedals do at their minimum settings. There's also enough speed available for more traditional chorusing, but there are some limits in terms of the fastest settings, which may not be sufficiently fast enough for some tasks.

• This 1590A sized pedal is way too small to house a battery, so powering is strictly limited to external adapters. The Vigilante runs on 9V DC, and uses the industry standard 2.1mm center-negative style power jack, which is located at the top of the pedal. Current draw is a very reasonable 10mA.

• The input and output jacks are staggered, which makes the Vigilante's very small size possible and also makes it easier to position it closer to its stable-mates in the Outlaw Effects lineup (and other pedals with similarly offset jacks) without the wiring and patch cable plugs getting in the way.

• The Vigilante features true bypass switching. A red LED illuminates when the pedal is active.

• There are no internal jumpers, switches or trim pots inside the Vigilante. The bottom plate has a foam rubber pad mounted on it.

• The Vigilante is a fairly quiet pedal. If you listen closely when you click it on you will notice a littte bit of added hiss, but it's very slight.

• The street price for this pedal is extremely attractive. There's simply no reason not to have that classic chorusing effect in your collection when you can get one that sounds this good for so little dosh.  

Limitations

• The maximum rate / modulation speed could be a little higher. While it's fine for general purpose chorusing, those seeking faster speed rotating speaker emulations may be a bit disappointed.

• The position of the two smaller sized (Level and Depth) knobs can be a bit difficult to see; adding some white paint to the knob position indicator indentations helps considerably. The paint color and labeling also don't contrast very much, which can make the labels hard to read in some lighting conditions.

Conclusion

The Vigilante has deep and rich sounding modulation. Users who are looking to add classic 80s era sounding chorusing shimmer to their clean and overdriven tones will find a lot to like here, especially in light of the low price. It's not going to be hogging up tons of pedalboard real estate either, which is always appreciated. Still, those who like to simulate rotating speakers or push their chorus to the extreme may find the Vigilante not quite what they're after; there is plenty of depth, but the maximum modulation rate isn't as fast as they might prefer. However, if your tastes run towards the sound of classic late 70s and 80s era chorusing, you'll probably like the Vigilante a great deal. And at fifty bucks "street", it is that - a really great deal on a classic effect type.

Resources

Outlaw Effects Vigilante Chorus ($60.00 MSRP, $49.00 "street")

Outlaw Effects website

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Phil O'Keefe is a multi-instrumentalist, recording engineer / producer and the Senior Editor of Harmony Central. He has engineered, produced and performed on countless recording sessions in a diverse range of styles, with artists such as Alien Ant Farm, Jules Day, Voodoo Glow Skulls, John McGill, Michael Knott and Alexa's Wish. He is a former featured monthly columnist for EQ magazine, and his articles and product reviews have also appeared in Keyboard, Electronic Musician and Guitar Player magazines.