UAFX Golden Reverb Pedal

The UAFX Golden Reverberator is not cheap, but it's the type of product I "worked my way up to" over many years of trying and selling other gear. If you are looking for studio-quality reverbs covering classics in the Spring, Hall, Plate, and Room, the Golden Reverberator is the...gold standard (pardon the pun). SOUND QUALITY: UAFX is known for their plug-ins and sophisticated digital modeling, and the Golden offers that in medium-sized stompbox form. Spring reverb is difficult to capture accurately in a digital pedal, and the Golden is definitely one of the best. It has both that authentic "drip" and a lush decay, reminiscent of a good amp or tank unit. However, I'm really appreciating the Hall and Plate models derived from decades-old Lexicon algorithms. The Golden can very subtle reverbs that add some space, or swampy, ambient sounds that decay over many seconds. All of it sounds great. Also, you have access to many variants those different types of reverbs, the ability to emphasize (or cut) bass and treble frequencies, and a modulation effect. Nothing here is groundbreaking or revolutionary, but it's simply a collection of all of these different types of reverb in one pedal, and the best versions of those. People will pay in excess of $200 for a single pedal that only does a good spring reverb, etc. The Golden could replace several of those units and, despite it being expensive, could be the last reverb pedal you ever need. EASE OF USE: There has been some criticism of how UAFX designed these pedals, and much of that relates to connectivity issues via Bluetooth to the phone app. You have to register the pedal on a computer to "unlock" three additional modes (two Lexicon Plate reverbs and an excellent Acoustic Chamber), but I did not have any trouble with that. However, once that is done, you really do not NEED to ever use the phone app again. Unlike the UAFX amp pedals (Dream '65, Ruby '63, etc.), the Golden has 1:1 controls for virtually all functions, and doesn't even require an ALT function to duplicate knob functions. The Golden has stereo inputs and outputs, which makes it useful for a wide number of instruments besides guitar. The footswitches are of the modern "soft press" variety, and those are reportedly more durable over long-term use. The build quality is top notch and the knobs have a lot of resistance and feel great to use. CONS/DRAWBACKS: The price point is an obvious drawback to the Golden, though it has been on sale frequently of late, and you are paying for quality here. I think objections to UAFX products often mention two interrelated things: (1) Preset management; and (2) Lack of MIDI. I think it is a fair critique to expect something of this cost to have a more performance-minded design for saving and recalling different settings. You essentially get one preset on the pedal that you can switch back and forth with the panel (manual) settings. Having said that, the Golden is clearly focused on studio use, and if you don't plan on using MIDI or having it tied to other devices on a pedalboard for quick switching, this may not be an issue for you at all. I do want to note that while the Spring reverb is excellent, the decay actually only has three settings - Short, Stock, and Long. I believe this is meant to be true to how analog springs actually work, but most digital spring emulations do have a decay setting tied to length in seconds, so that was a little surprising for me at first. CONCLUSION: If you want something cheaper than the UAFX Golden Reverberator, look at the BOSS RV-6, EHX Oceans 11, or countless others. If you want something that offers shimmer or more complicated modulation, there are products from Stymon and many others that specialize in that. But if you want a premium device that covers the library of all the classic guitar reverb sounds, the UAFX Golden is a great choice.

Fantastic pedal. Build, user experience, features, and most importantly the sounds. If you're looking for the best possible spring reverb and can't afford an Ebo E-Verb, I can't recommend this enough. I use it as an outboard studio reverb most of the time. Sometimes on my pedalboard, but mostly I run drums, sound design, sometimes vocals through it out of my DAW. It's all about the spring for me. The other reverbs are a nice bonus (they're actually fantastic but I have the plugin versions of the EMT 140 and 224 already). iPhone app is a pleasure to use. Very smart product and just feels great to use.

Everyone's taste is subjective--to me this reverb pedal is overly thin and metallic sounding. It always kind of sounds like you are playing in a tiled bathroom. The additional mode being only available if you register the pedal is ridiculous. This pedal probably meets the needs of other players, but not me. I will stick with my Neunaber Immerse Reverberator Mk. II which is the best reverb pedal I have found yet, doesn't have the huge power draw the Golden has, is smaller, and sounds richer.

Beautiful sounding reverbs and easily adjusted for all you needs. I couldn’t be more pleased.

I primarily use the Reverberator into a preamp pedal (DSM Simplifier) with XLR out to a mixer and then either to a PA or headphones. This is the first reverb pedal I have ever owned, and I’m very impressed, except for the price compared to some other offerings. Listening through headphones, I hear no change in noise level when the pedal is on. And as far as sounding thin or “digitally”, to my ear that’s not at all been my experience. I have found it to be very lush and pleasing. Maybe I’d have a different opinion if I didn’t use the Simplifier which has overall improved the tone of my rig without my amplifier. I have not tried running the Reverberator through my amp yet due to noise constraints at home. My only complaint is that I had to buy a separate power adapter for it and take up an AC plug on my pedal board because it requires more power than the 100 ma available from my open one spots. There may be other less expensive options that perform as well, I can’t speak to that, though I was also considering the neunaber, oceans 11 and mxr among others. 4 stars due to the price and extra cost for another power adapter.

The best reverb pedal I’ve ever owned, and I’ve owned them all over the last 40 years.

This pedal replaced another very high end reverb unit. I was only able to hear it through videos prior to purchase. On my own board, it more than exceeded my expectations!

I love it it works great