This is my Orange Sustain Pedal Review.
Orange recently re-released its Distorion, Sustain and Phaser. They are originals from the 1970s, in a modern twist just like that. Let’s take a closer look at the Orange Sustain Pedal right now!
Overview – Orange Vintage Pedals
You probably know Orange mostly from their orange amps. You might also remember their modern effect pedals, such as the Fur Coat and the Two Stroke. But did you know that Orange also marketed Distortion, Phaser and Sustain pedals in the 1970s? Because they were produced in small quantities, it is now difficult to find those originals. Following photos of these pedals on social media, Orange was asked if the company could remanufacture these effect pedals.
The pedals were so rare that Orange only had the original drawings left, nothing more. So Orange asked for help from the guitar-loving public on the Internet. They shared their experiences with the original effects with Orange designer Ade Emsley. It led to the reissue of the pedals, with the same names, colors and typography of the time.
But note that these pedals are upgrades to the vintage examples, they have the same functions but feature modern components such as LEDs and the ability to be powered via a 9-volt power supply. So don’t let their appearance fool you into thinking you’re dealing with reissues.
The UK-made pedals are very solid. The footswitches are attached directly to the chassis and not to the circuit board. This allows them to be easily replaced in the future, should the need arise.
Orange Sustain Pedal Review
- Price indication: $ 250
- Type: New edition of the vintage ’70s Orange Sustain pedal.
- Power: 9 V DC power supply
- Size (W*H*D): 187 mm x 112 mm x 141 mm
- Weight: 0.4 kg
- Circuit: Revised and improved
- Controls: Level and Depth, LED changes colour from blue to purple as soon as the signal is compressed
- Other: Buffered bypass
For
- Very close to the original, but with slightly revised, improved circuitry for smoother response.
- The compression open, airy, and mostly transparent and can be either soft or warm and brisk.
Against
- Some guitarists may find that the pedal doest not give enough squish.
Check price:
lf you actively experienced the 1970s, you know that compression pedals were called ‘sustainers’ back then. Today’s ‘sustain’ is an optical compressor and has two relegars. The pedal is super easy to set up: the attack and release times are already determined. You control the amount of volume reduction -and thus sustain- with the depth knob, the overall volume with the level control. You can also use the pedal as a gain boost. Then you set the depth to minimal, and you have hardly any compression.
The pedal produces a consistent sound and subtly lengthens the notes. The compression respects the beginning of the note. If you want to keep things clean you have to adjust the level down, at higher depth settings. If you keep the level high, you will give the amp a nice low-level overdrive.
Verdict
The simple controls for the Sustain pedal are fine. These are pedals with the looks of the originals, equipped with the modern features of our time. A large group of guitarists will be very charmed by the retro look. But perhaps the box is a little too big for some, now that we have become desirable to the small units of today. That’s mostly a matter of personal taste and preference. Let’s welcome these almost forgotten pedals from the 70s into the modern era!
