Octave and Pitch Shifter Pedals

Octave and Pitch Shifter Pedals For Sale on Reverb

If you’ve ever watched the Chipmunks or played a record at the wrong speed, you’ve witnessed pitch effects at work. Often achieved through time-based processing (and sometimes combined with delay), octave, pitch-shifting, and harmonizing effects have many uses. Pitch-based effects have been in popular music for over 50 years. In the '60s, Roger Mayer’s Octavia circuit ripped up guitar licks with its octave fuzz scream, while Chuck Berry pitch-bent his voice to sound younger.

One of the most iconic guitar tones of all time is Brian May’s lead harmonies. In the '70s, players could achieve similar effects with rack units made, such as the Eventide Harmonizer. In the late '80s, pitch-shifting pedals made the effect more accessible. In the '90s, Slowdive layered ambient guitars with the Boss PS-2, while Dimebag Darrell popularized the Digitech Whammy dive bomb. Tom Morello also found interesting uses for the Whammy as part of Rage Against The Machine, often sounding more like a DJ than a guitarist.

In the 21st century, the Eventide Pitchfactor brought the brand’s popular pitch effects to pedalboards, while Electro-Harmonix’s revolutionary POG (Polyphonic Octave Generator) series appeared in the rigs of Jack White and other popular guitarists.