I have been interested in using a Ring Modulator with my guitar for some time. The roots of my interest relate to use of the effect by three artists. The first is Jeff Beck's ring modulator work on the album "Live with the Jan Hammer Group." In several solos, Beck switches the effect on and off with very creative musical, and sometimes startling, results. Jon Lord's use of aggressive ring modulator noise effects for the Hammond organ on Deep Purple recordings inspired me to imitating these tones with an electric guitar.

Live recordings of Jimi Hendrix reflected his pioneering use of guitar pedals, such as fuzz with octave dividers/multipliers (Octavia), and I surmised that a ring modulator's powerful frequency manipulation abilities would allow me to create similar timbres.

I became aware of Frostwave Analog's Blue Ringer during an Internet search and was attracted by its quality specifications, compact design, ease of operation, positive reviews and reasonable price. In addition, it was claimed that at lower frequency levels the Blue Ringer could simulate amplifier tremolo. I've always enjoyed the tremolo effect (a quick fluctuation of volume), but always had difficulty with noise and stability of the effect at faster rates.

After some email correspondence with Frostwave Analog's Ben Keenan, to which I received courteous and timely replies, I decided to try a Blue Ringer. The pedal was shipped from Australia to Canada in good time, well-packaged, with a useful instruction sheet and the requisite power adaptor.

A quick read of the instruction sheet enabled straightforward use of the effect. I was pleased that the Input Volumes, Balance, Modulation, and Mix controls are of the "set-and-forget" type, meaning that once you've found the desired position they do not need frequent tweaking.

The Frequency control varies the ring modulation, ranging from smooth, quick tremolo sounds when positioned to the left, through a remarkably wide range of pitch and timbre shifts as you move clockwise. Unique sounds are found by either leaving the Frequency control in a fixed position or manipulating the control as you play. Thankfully, the signal-to-noise ratio is low and the Blue Ringer operates quietly.

Naturally a guitarist wants effects on the floor for foot control. At first, I thought there should be an auxiliary foot control for the Frequency, possibly using a rocker-type pedal. However, this would compromise floor space. My solution to this was straightforward, as I simply replaced the stock plastic knob on the Frequency control with a larger one that can be manipulated by foot while the Blue Ringer sits in my pedal-board. This is perhaps an option Frostwave Analog can consider for its guitarist customers.

Remarkably quickly, I was able to approximate on guitar the effects I was after - musical tremolo, low/high harmonies, de-tunings, metallic textures, dissonance, and a seemingly limitless variety of original modulations. As anticipated, I was able to imitate the aforementioned timbres of Beck, Lord, and Hendrix.

I find it inspiring that the Blue Ringer functions as a fantastic ring modulator, but can simulate such effects as tremolo, Octavia, Octaver, and harmonizer. These options are not only cost-effective, but help to eliminate the clutter of additional pedal effects.

Another positive is that the Blue Ringer works very well in combination with other guitar effects. For example, I have used it with both a clean and overdriven amplifier with great results. Similarly, I have tried the Blue Ringer in series with numerous pedals, including fuzz, wah, flanger, looper, echo, phaser, and compressor. It interacts with them singly or in combination. This truly opens up an unlimited palette of sounds.

Being an analog effect, the Blue Ringer is warm and round. While certainly capable of both subtle and abrasive tones, and many shades in between, there is none of the inherent harshness/hardness that characterizes many digital effects. The Blue Ringer responds musically and intuitively to changes in guitar volume and playing dynamics.

I have had great success with the effect in both live and studio situations and receive many comments about the ring modulator's generated tones. The Blue Ringer is versatile, capable of subtly complimenting a guitar's tone or, at more extreme settings, launching the instrument into profoundly non-guitar-like textures that are reminiscent of synthesizer effects.

I have recorded a few mp3 files that highlight some of the sounds that can be created using the Frostwave Blue Ringer:

+ Blue Ringer Tremolo
tremolo effect with Frequency speeding up at the end.

+ Blue Ringer Lead
a short solo with effect on at the beginning in a set Frequency position, effect off in the middle, and on at end with Frequency manipulated.

+ Blue Ringer Lead 2
solo with the Frequency at a fixed setting at the start, then manipulated toward the end.

+ Blue Ringer Lead 3
short clip of the Frequency control being manipulated to highlight guitar phrasing.

+ Blue Ringer Percussive Lead
using picking hand muting to create drum-like textures.

+ Atmospheric
nice texture, combining the tremolo of the Blue Ringer with a chorus pedal and subtle tone manipulation with a wah.

Find out more about the Frostwave Blue Ringer V2 Ring Modulator by Clicking Here