SurfyTrem Deluxe

I have a long history of trying different tremolo pedals and never being fully satisfied. I don’t use tremolo just to modulate volume with an LFO. I pay attention to the waveshape of the LFO and the circuit used to generate the tremolo, as each has its own sonic implications. 

Whether you use a Bias Trem, Opto Trem, or Harmonic Trem makes a difference in the expression of the music, and the circuitry, whether it’s tube or not, leaves an impression on the tone.

Because I’m picky, it has led me to fewer options when choosing a tremolo for a gig or session. I usually like to have a few options at my disposal for a few reasons.

·      Pedalboard real estate: When I’m doing a gig or tour, I need to consider the other effects I'll be using, which may limit the space I have for a tremolo.

·      Power requirements: Sometimes it is feasible for me to use a pedal that has special power needs, and other times it’s not. There are situations where I need to use a pedal that has a 9V center positive for simplicity’s sake.

·      Tone: Some pedals add a unique character to your sound, such as the Effectrode Delta Trem, which I also use alongside the Strymon Volante to imitate the tone of the Binson Echoed preamp. 

I’m not a person who has a static pedalboard. My needs change frequently, and it would be hard to commit to a collection of tone boxes. In many ways it makes sense to have a couple of each style of pedal, not only for backup, but for variety.

Side note: If you rely on a specific sound from a pedal for a gig, meaning it’s a deal breaker if it goes down. It’s always a great idea to have a backup with you. For instance, if tremolo is a main ingredient in your sound, and your set would be significantly affected if your tremolo ceased to work, keep a backup in your gig bag. I often do this with delay and fuzz on tour.

For a long time, I only had the Fulltone Supa Trem, which is a legit opto tremolo. The Supa Trem is no longer being made. I was then introduced to the Effectrode Delta Trem, which is a fantastic trem that can do Bias Trem (among others) and has different wave shapes. The Effectrode is still being made and has become a staple in my rig.

But, the Delta Trem requires special power and is a large pedal, which means there are times that it’s not practical. I needed another tremolo that is still being manufactured (which means it can be replaced).

Surfy Industries, which makes my all-time favorite spring reverb, the Surfy Bear, makes a tremolo that creates opto and harmonic tremolo. I decided to give it a try, considering how much I love the Surfy Bear, and I was delighted.

I’ve been using the Surfy Trem Deluxe, which has the option for stereo. Surfy Industries also makes a mono version if you don’t ever need the option for stereo.

The footprint of the Surfy Trem Deluxe is larger than the mono version, but it’s not very big, and with its top-mounted jacks, it still fits well on a pedalboard. It’s about half the size of the Effectrode Delta Trem, which makes a big difference when you need several effects for a gig. 

Controls

The controls on the Surfy Trem are relatively simple. Speed (which adjusts the speed at which the Low Frequency Oscillator modulates the volume), aka the rate of the tremolo. Intensity is the strength of the tremolo (blend of the LFO modulated volume signal and clean signal).

Surfy Trem also added a volume knob, which is quite helpful, as often tremolo lowers your perceived volume. It’s beneficial to be able to add a bit of volume boost when the tremolo is on, especially with heavier intensity settings.

Tap Tempo

I’m going to say something that may be controversial, but I think tap temp is overrated. I’m not saying it’s never useful. But, for the most part, I don’t use it for the projects I work on. I often prefer to use artist’s tape and a Sharpie to mark settings.

Here is the thing: unless you’re clocking the tremolo to a master clock that everyone is following, the tremolo is going to drift. There are times when I need to clock he tremolo, and I do so using the Effectrode Delta trem, which receives CV from the Clock Multi-Step. This allows me to lock the tremolo speed to drum machines, arpeggiators, or a DAW. It’s a particular purpose.

There are solo times when I like the fight that happens between a tremolo or delay that isn’t fully synced with the tempo. You can get fascinating rhythms that result from the offset tremolo.

Tap tempo is application-specific. There are some gigs, like Broadway and wedding gigs, where a quick change that can be made by foot is the best tool. But, for many gigs that don’t need locked tremolos to tracks or electronics, I prefer to bend down and change my settings quickly.

The Surfy Trem does not have tap tempo, and I’m not mad about it. You don’t always need every modern feature. And tru to the Surf spirit, they never set their tremolos with tap tempo.

Toggle Switch

The Surfy Trem has a toggle switch to switch between what they call Black and Brown settings. This refers to the black panel Fender amps and the Brown panel Fender amps. To be even more specific, the higher wattage amps in each of those categories. The lower-wattage Fender brown and black panel amps used a different style of tremolo. So, tremolo is not uniform among all the Fender models of each era.

Harmonic Tremolo

Fender did something pretty unique with the tremolo in their higher-wattage brown panel amps. Instead of just modulating the volume, they split your signal into high and low frequency bands. When the highs are at their peak, the lows are dialed back—and vice versa—all controlled by a sine wave LFO. This back-and-forth creates some cool phase anomalies, so you get a rich, phase-like modulation as the sound moves in and out of phase. Even though it acts a lot like a phaser, Fender called it “Harmonic Tremolo,” which honestly adds to the confusion!

It should be noted that although Fender is known for its harmonic tremolo, Paul Barth designed amps for Magnatone from the early 1960s, featured what’s called true vibrato, and can be heard on the Chantays’ most famous recordings. Check out “Wayward Nile” and “Pipeline” for a dose of classic true vibrato, which, although it is also swirly, sounds a bit different.

Surfy Industiries has alsoi created the true vibrato circuit with their Surfy Vibe pedal.

A great example of Harmonic Tremolo is on The Lively Ones “Surf Rider” as well as The Safaris “Wipeout”.

Bias Tremolo

Fender’s bias tremolo circuits take a different approach compared to their harmonic tremolo. Bias tremolo uses a low-frequency oscillator (LFO), typically generating a sine wave, to rhythmically vary the bias voltage of either the amp’s power tubes or a preamp tube.

The bias voltage sets the operating point of a tube. By modulating this voltage, the amp increases and decreases the tube’s gain, which results in the audio signal’s volume rising and falling, creating the tremolo effect.

Harmonic and Bias Tremolo were used frequently by surf guitarists in the early 1960s. Harmonic tremolo predated opto trem, which became available on Fender amps starting in 1964.

Opto Trem

Fender introduced Opto Tremolo in 1964. Unlike earlier tremolo circuits that worked by modulating the bias of the tubes, this new design controlled the volume of your signal using a small internal bulb. As the amp’s low-frequency oscillator (LFO) cycles, it causes the bulb to glow brighter and dimmer in a smooth, repeating pattern. The brightness of the bulb affects a light-dependent resistor, which in turn controls how much of your guitar signal is allowed to pass through. When the bulb is brighter, more signal gets through; when it dims, the signal is reduced, creating the tremolo effect.

The waveform used in opto tremolo is a sine wave, which gives it a smoother and more consistent feel compared to bias tremolo. While the two types of tremolo can sound somewhat similar, opto tremolo tends to have a more polished, even pulse that became a signature of Fender’s blackface-era amps.

I would say that some tremolo pedals are entirely functional, but don’t inspire me sonically. These functional pedals may serve a purpose for some, but as someone who responds to tone, I want something that will enhance and inspire.

The posityion on the toggle switch labeled Black emulates the optical tremolo circuit found in Fender amps starting in 1964.

Power

The Surfy Trem Deluxe runs at 9-12V. It’s nice to have the option to run at a higher voltage for more headroom.

There is a brilliant new feature on the Surfy Trem Deluxe that blew my mind. You can use any polarity cable! You don’t have to worry about the center being negative or positive and potentially damaging your pedal. I wish every pedal company would add this option. Even though many pedals use center negative, not all do. There is the potential for cables to pop out, and in the panic of the moment, you plug the wrong polarity into your pedal and fry it.

Surfy Industries has removed this stress, which is terrific.

With other pedals, I have gone as far as to label the ends of cables and put labels on pedals to make sure I can find the power requirements even in fast-moving, stressful situations. I’ve made a few videos on the subject, you can watch below.

The Surfy Trem Deluxe has become one of my two main tremolos. I use it on guitar, baritone, and synths! It excels in each of those applications. The pedal is built to high standards, and I trust I can tour with it.

Stereo

The Surfy Trem Deluxe allows you to run a true stereo signal in and out of the pedal. In stereo mode, the Left and Right sides have the opposite phase, which allows you to create a ping-pong effect. You can also achieve this with a mono input signal, which then splits the signal to left and right with opposite phase. The left and right channels share the same LFO.

It's rare to find a modulation pedal that has stereo inputs and outputs. I appreciate that they went the extra mile for those of us who may want to process a sound in true stereo.

Bias Trick

There are times when you want to create a Bias like tremolo sound with the Surfy Trem. This can be emulated by placing the Surfy Trem before a drive pedal and adjusting the intensity.

As the LFO modulates the volume, the volume's rise and decline will affect the amount of signal sent to the overdrive. This volume modulation changes the amount of the signal that is overdriven. As the volume is at a low point, your signal is overdriven less. When your signal is at the peak of the modulation, your signal is fully overdriven.

This is not identical to bias trem, as opto trem uses a triangle wave shape, whereas bias trem uses a sine wave. So, Bias trem is also a little smoother, but you can still get some of the character.

The “bias” trick can work with distortion and overdrives, but be mindful with vintage fuzz circuits. Vintage fuzz circuits such as the Maestro FZ-1a, Rush Pepbox, Tonebender MKI and MKII, and Fuzz Face (germanium) don’t like pedals to be placed before them. It can cause them to act, resulting in a surprisingly bright tone and guitar volume knob adjustments going rogue.

For vintage fuzz boxes (and modern recreations), I need to use a real bias trem such as the Effectrode Delta Trem after.

Conclusion

When you choose a trem you need to know what features you need. Let’s look at a short list of characteristics I consider when choosing a trem for a gig or session:

·      Tone: makes my tone sound good.

·      Power: takes 9-12v and any polarity.

·      Size: about the size of two MXR pedals

·      Jacks: has top-mounted jacks, allowing you to squeeze pedals together.

·      Tap Tempo: does not have tap tempo

·      Volume: has a volume knob to make up for volume loss induced by the tremolo.

·      Tremolo Style: Harmonic and Optical Trem options

·      True Bypass

·      Soft Switch: allows for smoother and quieter effect switching

·      Stereo: true stereo with opposite phase on the left and right channels