Chase Bliss announces Onward audio-controlled sampler pedal

June 1, 2024 · 1 sources

Chase Bliss announced Onward, an audio-controlled sampler pedal, and opened preorders on June 1, 2024. The company said it is a standard, non-limited release and that it aims to start shipping in mid-June, with all orders filled by the end of July.

Founder Joel Korte described the pedal as an audio-controlled sampler that tracks the player's playing and uses it to create musical landscapes that move with the player. He said it does synthy things but, unlike a synth pedal, does not have to analyze the playing: "It just samples it, it's all you. So it's really tight and responsive"¹.

The pedal has two sides. Korte wrote that the freeze side is smooth and shapeless while the glitch side is crisp and repetitive, one giving atmosphere and synthetic soundscapes and the other rhythm and structure. The sides can be used solo, both at once, or with one locked in to play along to while the other continues to follow the player¹.

Korte wrote that Onward takes the envelope mode concepts from Outward, a Cooper FX pedal, and is more focused and refined, and that it does not try to do everything Outward did. He said Chase Bliss tested a version with more in common with Outward but it felt watered down, so the company committed to the new direction. He said features are finalized and hardware is ordered, and that preorders will ship in the order received¹.

Chase Bliss did not give a price in the announcement.