I use this through a Vox AC30 and a '52 RI Tele with an Adder neck pickup. Other main pedals in my rig are...Keeley Compressor, Analogman King of Tone, Zendrive. So far so good.
I previously had an old Ibanez AD-80 and I ain't gonna lie...it may be a HAIR warmer. However, the Aqua Puss is clearer AND warm. Still wanna pick one of those up again down the line.
Pretty quiet although you will run into a little hiss after 1:00 on the dial which is fairly common for an analog delay. I use it for slapback so no hiss for me. This pedal has a very ambient sorta "reverbish" quality that at first wasn't used to but now I crave.
I also just sold an MXR Carbon Copy which Jeorge Tripps had a hand in and I kinda miss that pedal too! Every pedal has their unique flavors for different situations. Will have to get one of those again, too! I must say that the CC is a fantastic pedal that is built solid and priced right and that would probably be THE pedal to gig with.
Reliability/Durability:
Yes, it is built solid and I would not gig with it PERIOD unless I had a couple coked up NFL players standing guard right next to it. I don't think anybody in the crowd can tell the difference between this and anything else. This will be for studio use only.
Ease of Use:
Ahhhhh the ever famous, ever lusty Aqua Puss delay. A little tricky to get your exact setting because the feedback knob is very intense but once you dial her in you will never want to turn her off! As a guitar player, I look at this thing like an old man looks at a restored '57 Chevy.
Customer Support:
Actually e-mailed Jeorge some questions and he was helpful. Seems like a cool *** dude.
Overall Rating:
I first heard about this pedal through Brad Paisley and HAD to cop the tones myself. It's the only sure fire way to get that slapback tone. I know about the DM-2 but had to have the 'Puss. :-) You can get close with others but there is only one.
Everybody knows you can only get this used as they are not made anymore and you can say what you want about the price but you probably have some big purchases in your rig too and would buy certain expensive items if you had the money at the given time. I think modern Gibson is a waste of coin but we are all entitled to our opinions. I had to scrape it together for this one. I ain't rich, but my tone is!
