DSM/HUMBOLDT

The company's founder and CPO is Daniel Schwartz, who is also credited as the designer of the Simplifier X²¹. Around the Simplifier family, DSM/Humboldt has built out a range that includes the Dumblifier two-channel overdrive, a dedicated bass lineup, and drive, compressor and distortion pedals.

The Simplifier: analog amp and cab simulation

The product the company is known for is the Simplifier MK-II, an analog amp simulation pedal that DSM/Humboldt calls "The State-Of-The-Art on Analog Amp simulation," packed into what the maker describes as an ultra compact footprint, the same size as the original Simplifier⁷. The earlier Simplifier Classic is described by the maker as a "100% true analog preamp"⁸, and its power-tube section includes a KT88 position the maker says is "Similar to 6L6 but with improved low-end range, perfect for bass or 7+ strings guitars"⁸.

The family has since grown:

For players comparing formats, the Simplifier X and Simplifier DLX are both analog amp simulator pedals; the X is the one the maker positions as its most advanced, while the DLX keeps the concept in a standard pedal format²⁹.

The bass lineup

Bass players get their own branch of the Simplifier. The Simplifier Bass Station is a bass preamp with DI and analog cabinet simulation, based on the Omnicabsim by DSM Noisemaker, with gain, level, a 3-band EQ with semi-parametric mid control, a parallel signal routing with a selectable LPF, and a dual FX loop¹⁰¹¹. The maker pitches it as "everything you ever needed to go direct to the FOH or recording amazing bass tones without sacrificing anything"¹²¹¹.

The newer Simplifier Bass Master is a bass preamp pedal with a new cabsim and a 4-band equalizer, which the maker calls "the culmination of years of research over the different factors that interact" to shape bass tone¹³¹⁴. The company published a demo of the Bass Master with Ben Jud¹⁴.

The Dumblifier and the rest of the range

The Dumblifier is a two-channel overdrive pedal that the maker says "can operate as a complete analog amp replacement with cab-sim and stereo features, or as a two-channel overdrive pedal," packed into a pedal format "without the cost or fragility" of an amplifier¹⁵. It includes a reverb section, with the amount controlled by a REVERB knob on the front of the pedal¹⁵.

The wider range covers:

• Black Clouds, a distortion pedal the maker bills as "The Ultimate Distortion"¹⁶
• Silver Linings, a drive/preamp pedal designed under lockdown, which the maker says was built to "bring rays of joy and inspiration"¹⁷
• ClearComp 1078, a compressor pedal "inspired by studio comp/limiters, but at your feet"¹⁸

The Chilean Floorboard

The range (5)

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