DigiTech Lyra
At one point in time, DigiTech
made a whole series of
compact pedals based on
signature sounds of several
influential players, including
Eric Clapton, Scott Ian of
Anthrax and Dan Donegan
of Disturbed (hey, they’re
influential to someone). Each
pedal contained a knob—
always placed fourth in the
row—which changed the
entire sound of the unit to
emulate guitar tones found
on certain songs, essentially
turning the pedal into a
“greatest hits” type box. The
strangest offering in this series
by far is the Lyra, a mega-
rare pedal that features seven
tones based on characters
found in the Eternal Descent
comic book and CD. The
soundtrack to the book was
comprised of metal bands
such as Atreyu and Shadows
Fall, and so the tones are
meant to emulate these
crunchy metal textures, called
“Lyra types” by DigiTech.
Electro-
Harmonix
Corona Concert
There is no pedal company
on this earth that could fill up
a “strange devices” column
like Electro-Harmonix,
helmed by notorious
madman Mike Matthews.
Electro-Harmonix has more
odd machines in its storied
history than most companies
have actual pedals. Some
of these devices include a
sound-reactive light to be
worn around a performer’s
neck, a device made to
transmit your guitar to
an AM radio and several
other oddities. One of the
strangest, however, is the
Corona Concert, a giant light
bulb-type device that is very
much like those lightning
balls that were sold by the
thousands in 1980s gift
shops. Perhaps the Corona
Concert was developed as a
stage prop for ‘70s rockers,
but its stated use remains
unclear 40 years later.
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