Is there any consensus on the best reverb unit?

[jorgemg1984]

May I ask, what direct means? Here is the lexicon manual, https://lexiconpro.com/en/product_documents/lxp1pdf

On page one – eight, it shows a set up with the guitar going into an amp and a direct out or preamp out. This must be the line level output that goes to the Lexicon that you guys are explaining. I guess that puts the nail in the coffin for the Lexicon for me. Maybe I’ll get the RV-7 to compare to the Hall of Fame.

It means the LXP1 must be connected trough the fx loop of an amp (line level) and cannot be used in front (input) of the amp (instrument level).

[DRS]

May I ask, what direct means? Here is the lexicon manual, https://lexiconpro.com/en/product_documents/lxp1pdf

On page one – eight, it shows a set up with the guitar going into an amp and a direct out or preamp out. This must be the line level output that goes to the Lexicon that you guys are explaining. I guess that puts the nail in the coffin for the Lexicon for me. Maybe I’ll get the RV-7 to compare to the Hall of Fame.

I had both at the same time and liked the RV7 best and returned the H of F. It has those great Lexicon reverbs in it. The H of F had good reverbs but the RV 7 is so lush. I still use it daily.
The RV7 is bigger but that doesn't bother me as I'm not trying to fit 15 other pedals on a board. The RV7 is solid and feels like a pro piece of gear.
Also, I got a funny sound artifact if I ran the H of F on the same power supply as a few other effects I had.

[Guy In Lyon]

The Strymon Flint is a fantastic reverb, and you get an exceptional tremolo as a bonus.

[st.bede]

… so level in too low (guitar) and level out too high (line level) right? Outcome would be A: raising the noise floor, B: hitting the preamp too hard and creating unwanted intermodulation?

[Spook410]

… so level in too low (guitar) and level out too high (line level) right? Outcome would be A: raising the noise floor, B: hitting the preamp too hard and creating unwanted intermodulation?

There is consumer line level, professional line level, instrument level (low or high impedance if considering acoustic guitar), and microphone level.

It is conceivable to damage a preamp with too high a level. It will certainly overload and distort and not in a pleasant way. Too low a level and you won't be able to hear it. As a guitar player you pretty much have to learn what all the levels are and how they relate to your gear.

[Crm114]

I found a builder on the East Coast that makes what he calls Tremorverb:
Think original fender deluxe circuit with the original fender three knob standalone reverb unit put in the same cabinet
Hubba hubba

[jorgemg1984]

I found a builder on the East Coast that makes what he calls Tremorverb:
Think original fender deluxe circuit with the original fender three knob standalone reverb unit put in the same cabinet
Hubba hubba

Wow, that looks good. For me, I would've removed the vibrato and increased the deluxe headroom (6v6 to 6l6, meaning 35w/40w, like the Vibrolux or the Pro Reverb).

Enjoy it!

[Papawooly]

another vote for the Strymon.. using it on all of my clone builds..

[pingu]

Concensus ?

Har har

[gitman]

Concensus ?

Har har

Not really unexpected now - there is no such thing as "consensus" in our world when it comes to gear ....

My new UA Golden Reverberator came in 2 days ago and it is a fine piece of gear indeed, a lot of beautiful sounds to be found !

Since the option of built-in reverb circuits came up here recently I will make a shout-out to Gary Croteau who builds the JUKE line of
tube combo amps. He uses the old Ampeg tone stack design in the preamp and a sideband reverb circuit - that reverb NEVER gets in the way
of the notes, it just envelops the sound in a beautiful cloud of smoothly decaying obscure reflections ... never heard that kind of reverb in any other amp.
My 1x12" CODA model amp also has the Magnatone Harmonic Vibrato option built in which adds yet another very useful gimmick - and I get to leave almost all of
my outboard gear at home ! At least for the kind of gig where this amp will fit the bill ....

This is the same as my amp :
Juke Coda 2010s Emerald | Reverb

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

That boss dual cube looks pretty interesting, I’ll have to check one out.

The bass dual cube really looks promising as a jazz amp - a stereo amp & a pair of 5” drivers in a 10 pound package! If I didn’t already have enough amps, I’d go try one

[entresz]

If I'm using an external reverb, I use a Boss FRV-1. They're supposed to sound like the original Fender outboard reverb unit. They're in the ballpark but comparing side-by-side to the real thing, there's definitely a difference. The controls are really sensitive - it doesn't take much for it to get into surf guitar territory, but on lower settings it sounds great. It also does something very pleasing to the tone of the guitar aside from adding reverb, it seems to smooth the sound of the guitar slightly.

[Doctor Jeff]

The electro harmonix Holy Grail used to be the gold standard reverb pedal. I have no idea what the modern pedal world has to offer.

The OP opened a can of worms and there will be as many opinions as respondents, but I am on my second Holy Grail, and find it to be a very good, basic reverb pedal that does one job and does it well. Small and light and not too expensive.

[micklerd]

+1 for Strymon. Specifically for a jazz application, a combo of the Iridium + Flint pedals provides an amazing range of realistic amp and reverb tones to choose from.

[Little Jay]

If I'm using an external reverb, I use a Boss FRV-1. They're supposed to sound like the original Fender outboard reverb unit. They're in the ballpark but comparing side-by-side to the real thing, there's definitely a difference. The controls are really sensitive - it doesn't take much for it to get into surf guitar territory, but on lower settings it sounds great. It also does something very pleasing to the tone of the guitar aside from adding reverb, it seems to smooth the sound of the guitar slightly.

Boss FRV-1 is what I use as well. I find it pretty identical sounding to my Twin Reverb’s reverb, so it does a pretty good spring reverb emulation imho.

I even record with it and the studio engineer is fine with it (usually they hate it if you deliver a signal that’s already reverberated…).

Not so releveant, but I like it’s Fender-brown color because it sits on my amp, not on my floor board, and I wouldn’t like some modern bright candy color on my vintage tube amp, hahaha

[voyage]

Dr Jeff, my Hof will arrive soon. Can you tell me exactly what your settings are? I think on these pedals a slight change in settings makes a pretty big change in sound so I want to try some settings that somebody else has found to work. Thanks.

[entresz]

Boss FRV-1 is what I use as well. I find it pretty identical sounding to my Twin Reverb’s reverb, so it does a pretty good spring reverb emulation imho.

I even record with it and the studio engineer is fine with it (usually they hate it if you deliver a signal that’s already reverberated…).

Not so releveant, but I like it’s Fender-brown color because it sits on my amp, not on my floor board, and I wouldn’t like some modern bright candy color on my vintage tube amp, hahaha

Cool to hear that I'm not the only one here using one. I've tried a few of the other of the pedals mentioned in this thread but I still like the FRV-1 best, even though the controls are very sensitive. I hope I never lose mine - for some reason they're very expensive to buy used.

[jorgemg1984]

Cool to hear that I'm not the only one here using one. I've tried a few of the other of the pedals mentioned in this thread but I still like the FRV-1 best, even though the controls are very sensitive. I hope I never lose mine - for some reason they're very expensive to buy used.

They're no longer made and they're already "vintage" by guitarist standards - scarcity and nostalgia are very relevant in the guitar market

[LimehouseBlues]

UA golden has stuck to my board like glue. Best reverb I've come across in a pedal or modeler. The plate algo is special.

Budget pick: MXR M300 Reverb. Thought this was a really solid unit, would grab another one if I was downsizing

[waltf]

another great pedal is the dr. scientist reverberator.

[m_d]

I almost never amp but will likely get into it more and more. I use the simple reverb in my Superblock. I wonder if single pedals are still worth it when a multi FX like the Helix gives you a dozen adjustable reverb choices plus a myriad other effects. Otherwise I think the UA golden reverb would be a great choice.

[gitman]

I almost never amp but will likely get into it more and more. I use the simple reverb in my Superblock. I wonder if single pedals are still worth it when a multi FX like the Helix gives you a dozen adjustable reverb choices plus a myriad other effects. Otherwise I think the UA golden reverb would be a great choice.

For ensemble/stage playing the reverb patches in the current upper-tier FX units are more than adequate and will deliver in most situations. When playing alone in my room however I do hear the slight deficits these units have : the DSP power that's needed for a complex reverb algorhithm often is not enough when other patches also demand this power and therefor the sound suffers a bit. When I compare the reverb patches in my Quad Cortex side by side with a newly acquired UA Reverberator the differences (mostly with plate and hall programs) become apparent and the extra expense is justified. The term "indulgence" comes to mind ....
For a "simple" spring reverb effect a € 90,- Hall-of-Fame pedal by tc. electronics does the trick for me but the complex and computing-power-hungry plate and hall programs demand more, not surprisingly....

[JazzNote]

I recently bought a TC Hall Of Fame 2 because it was discounted and i urgently needed a reverb for a specific gig requirement. I dislike many of the presets, but some of the "artist tone prints" which can be loaded into it are of superior reverb quality. Eg. there's a Adam Holzman designed piano reverb which i do like a lot, as well as one by Robben Ford and another by Albert Lee. These sound very smooth and round, in a league comparable to a Lexicon PCM 90.

[voyage]

UA golden has stuck to my board like glue. Best reverb I've come across in a pedal or modeler. The plate algo is special.

Budget pick: MXR M300 Reverb. Thought this was a really solid unit, would grab another one if I was downsizing

I thought "downsizing" meant selling stuff, not buying another pedal. :-)

[Herbie]

I still had my Vox AC30 when I started to search a reverb pedal in about 2010ish and then there was only one available: Hermida Reverb. A bit too big one knob reverb. Sounded good but a bit too big for my pedalboard.

Then suddenly world was full of reverb pedals. Still digged the one knob idea so I tried J. Rockett Boing! But soon I realised that it was not a reverb but a delay with very short delay time. Kinda bathroomish.

HOF Mini was my third one knob wonder. But after all it didn’t have anything useful spring reverbish sound and off ot went.

Earthquake Device Topanga stayed a bit longer on my board but at the end I had to face the truth: it has FOUR knobs! Too many! And the sound was thinnish after all.

Then I decided to try the DIY route and ordered a kit from local guitar electronics company Uraltone:
404 Sivua ei loydy

Only three knobs and great voicings. Although I use only one mode and I don’t even know is it plate, shim or hall.

I You can solder etc I highly recommend this or something similar.

And glitterish finish gives a final boutiqueish touch for it!