Cusack Music Resound Digital Reverb

Cusack Music Resound Digital Reverb

Resoundingly retro cool ...

by Chris Loeffler

Cusack Music can be single-handed thanked for many of the electronic advancements in pedals these last 15 years, introducing everything from tap-tempo control to analog devices to innovative switching approaches and a military-grade level of design efficiency. Most of his pedals, from the Tap-A-Phase to the Screamer, were so far ahead of the competition in terms of features when they were released that most of the press (professional and forum) was around how damned great they worked. “Yeah, it sounds really good too,” was almost an afterthought in most mentions.

The Cusack Sound Resound Reverb is an eight-type digital reverb that features controls for Program, Mic, Par 1, Par 2, Decay, and Mix as well as switches for trails and extend, stereo output, expression in, and is powered by a standard 9v power supply.

What You Need to Know

With no less than eight modes (and eight preset options), the Resound packs a lot of sounds into a relatively small box. It is built around the much-praised Spin Semiconductor FV-1. The Level and Mix controls are intuitive, and the Par 1 and Par 2 set different parameters depending on the mode of the reverb. The reverb can be run in true stereo, with independent control of bypass to each channel.

The eight reverbs available include Room, Plate, Catherdral, Modulation, Glisten, Hall/Freeze, Spring, and Shimmurmur.

Room mode emulates the natural reverb of a small-to-medium sized room and has controls for Decay and Tone. At the shortest settings, closet-like refractions are possible, while the longest settings produce an authentic slap-back effect that would be at home in any vintage Memphis recording.

Plate mode recreates the sound of a physical plate reverb, with the characteristic bright and slightly lightly metallic haze. The tone can be darkened via the Tone knob without taking away from the unmistakable plate sound.

Cathedral mode is massive both in size of the space it creates and the tails it can leave. It’s easy to take this one too far with a distorted electric signal, but it sounds amazingly real with a clean acoustic guitar.

Modulated mode isn’t merely the addition of a chorus to the reverb, it fluctuates filters, pitch, and even little sonic gremlins. It’s full and lush sounding without getting muddy. The Speed of the modulation is controlled by the Par control, but all the modulation quirkiness happens in a single control, so it’s more about enjoying swelling levels of discombobulation than it is fine-tuning how the filter plays against the pitch shift.

Glisten mode is the now obligatory “shimmer” effect, applying both a 5th and an octave to the reverb signal. An additional twist in the inclusion of Tremolo for true amplitude modulation. The result is a more animated sound than many “shimmer” contemporaries.

Hall/Freeze mode takes the standard hall (with long tails and all) and allows you to freeze the reverb at the highest settings for a droning background reverb.

Spring mode sounds like it was pulled off the back of my vintage Super Reverb amp, but with a bit less grime. The Tone control is surprisingly effective in Spring mode, and dramatically changes the style of spring reverb to go from Blackface to Silverface.

Shimmurmur mode is the true “no one has this!” mode on the Resound and is a collaboration with Rick Matthews of Matthews Effects of the Shimmer and Murmur effect. It is effectively two different voicings with independent controls for deeper, weirder, and more choir-like enhancements.

The most surprising revelation in my time with the Resound (although, considering my experience with others in the line, maybe it shouldn’t have been) was how pristinely quiet it is. I don’t know that I’ve played a reverb with no perceivable white noise that didn’t at least have a touch of gating going on, but the Resound is just silent.

Limitations

Like other Cusack Sound pedals, there is more control than initial meets the eye, and I wouldn’t recommend giving it a go without having a manual in front of you the first time.

Conclusion

The amount of control and configuration Cusack Music offers in the Resound may exceed what simpler players are looking for in a reverb, and the learning curve that comes with that flexibility takes some time, but there is nothing like it on the market that offers as many quality, real-sounding reverbs that manage to sound professional and interactive without sounding too much like post-production polish.- HC-

Resources

Cusack Music Resound Product Page

Buy Cusack Music Resound at Amazon.com ($279.00)

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Chris Loeffler is a multi-instrumentalist and the Content Strategist of Harmony Central. In addition to his ten years experience as an online guitar merchandiser, marketing strategist, and community director he has worked as an international exporter, website consultant and brand manager. When he’s not working he can be found playing music, geeking out on guitar pedals and amps, and brewing tasty beer.