With such mainstay drive pedals as the Swollen Pickle and Red Llama, Way Huge forged a reputation for no-nonsense, analog tone in all forms starting with their original run in the '90s. Designer and founder Jeorge Tripps discontinued the line for a number of years before the Dunlop company resurrected the brand in the late 2000s. With pedals like the Way Huge Aqua Puss, Dunlop has effectively captured the boutique quality and innovation that have turned original run Way Huge pedals into collector's items.

Deep and Ethereal Delay Tone

The most stand-out thing about the Aqua Puss is the shimmering depth it adds to any signal chain. Imagine plugging your guitar into into a mystical coral reef that also happens to be in outer space. Each repeat on the delay time is colored with a warm almost distorted tone that does much to fatten any lick or rhythm part.

Control-wise, the Aqua Puss features the familiar format of delay time, feedback and blend similar to the classic delay pedals of the early '80s. Blend, of course, adjusts the amount of volume split between the dry and wet signals. All the way to the left, the dry guitar sound is very dominant, and when maxed to the right, the delay tones take over the sound entirely. The delay time goes up to 300ms which is not quite as far as many delays, but plenty long for most applications. The real fun comes with the feedback control that controls the number of repeats coming out of the pedals.

"Self-Oscillating Psycho-Freak Mode"

With the feedback knob pushed to max, the Puss pulses with what Way Huge calls "Self-Oscillating Psycho-Freak Mode." This setting sends the pedal into full-on chaos with similar tones to the most psychedelic of all tape delay experiments. This particular setting plays great with other effects on your chain, and is just as adept at expanding the sound of a synth as it is a guitar. When you max the feedback, you can also toy around with the delay knob which adjusts the pitch of the signal for Tom Morello, Omar Rodríguez-López-esque squeals and squelches.

The Slapback Specialist

Compared to other analog delays, the Aqua Puss' delay time is a little coming in at 300ms. So while you can't get those super-long tails you'd find in some stompboxes, there is more than enough delay on hand to carve out interesting shorter patterns. Most notably, the Aqua Puss excels at country-style slapback, an essentially element of the chicken pickin ethos. None other than country guitar guru Brad Paisley is known to keep an Aqua Puss on his board.

The Other Aqua Pusses

Following the success of the Aqua Puss, Way Huge has released two expanded versions. There's the Way Huge Echo Puss which doubles the max delay time of the original and adds an LFO modulation circuit for more of a tape delay effect. And then there's the Way Huge Supa Puss which features 900ms of delay time, tap tempo, and a sub division control to adjust the pattern of the repeats. Both are fantastic options for those who love the liquid texture of the original Puss but crave a little extra.