RingerBringer and Warm Bender: Analogue Effects from Warm Audio
Warm Audio was founded in 2011 with the goal of producing high-end recording technology iaffordable for most musicians and sound engineers. Company founder and president Bryce Young surrounded himself with a team of experts with extensive experience in developing professional audio equipment, including microphones, preamps, studio compressors and equalizers that are designed and tested right at the Texas headquarters. This year, the brand has also added to its portfolio a pair of Warm Bender and RingerBringer guitar pedals, which have already arrived on the Czech market and, like other Warm Audio products, boast superior sound quality and workmanship.
The Warm Bender fuzz is based on the now legendary and highly acclaimed Sola Sound Tone Bender pedal designed by Gary Hurst while the first version of the Tone Bender from 1965 was essentially a modified Maestro FZ-1 pedal. In this case, Warm Audio took inspiration from the rather later MKII variant, and the effect design reflects this but the circuitry of the prototype has been heavily modified to deliver a much wider range of sounds.
In addition to the Attack and Level potentiometers, the Warm Bender also has a three-position rotary Version switch selecting between NOS 76, NOS 75 and Silicon modes, offering Mark II Professional-style fuzz registers, a classic Tone Bender or a circuit fitted with three silicon transistors. The resulting character can be further influenced by a SAG switch to activate a low-battery effect mode. The box is powered by a 9V battery or adapter while the footswitch is connected in true bypass mode.
"Warm Bender is like nothing else on the market in that it delivers three separate Tone Bender fuzz circuits in one stomp box for players to choose from, in a pedalboard-friendly format," comments brand boss Bryce Young on the pedal.
When building the RingerBringer analogue modulation, Warm Audio decided to follow in the footsteps of another prized effect, which this time is the Moog Ring Modulator MF-102 from the Moogerfooger edition, visually clearly identifiable thanks to the wooden sides of the steel chassis and the typical rocker switches. "With RingerBringer, we’re bringing back the full functionality and all-analogue tone of a pedal that real modulation fans will truly appreciate," says Bryce Young of the Moog MF-102 replica.
Just like the original, which was a favourite with the likes of Jeff Beck, Radiohead, Omar Rodríguez-López, Trent Reznor and many others, the RingerBringer delivers extensive connectivity options (9 jack inputs and outputs in total) and rich sonic textures that inspire boundless sonic experimentation, including the ability to generate layered frequencies and harmonic components, explore a wide range of sonic possibilities on guitar and other instruments, and create your unconventional sounds.
Using premium components, the RingerBringer's main panel is divided into LFO sections with Amount, Rate and Waveform switches, and a Modulator featuring Mix, Frequency and Lo/Hi options. In the middle of these units, we find the Drive parameter potentiometer and a trio of information LEDs. Due to the nature of the effect, the footswitch is wired in buffered mode. The power supply is again handled by a 9V battery or adapter. The price tag of the RingerBringer is around 220 euros and the Warm Bender fuzz comes to approximately 200 euros, which are more friendly amounts than with their predecessors.
If you have found an error or typo in the article, please let us know by e-mail info@insounder.org.
