Analog Music Company So High So Low

The So High So Low (SHSL) is an analog preamp and filter pedal from Analog Music Company. RockBoard's PedalPedia describes it as a preamp based on a high-pass/low-pass filter, inspired by an MS-20 filter and a Moogerfooger preamp¹. For a player, that means two resonant filters in series that can shape tone gently or push into self-oscillation for synth-like sounds, with a preamp stage to boost the result.

What it does

The pedal's filters are arranged in series and have controllable resonance, according to Pedal of the Day's review of the Mk.3 version². Each filter's resonance can be pushed past what the review calls the OSC Point, at which the filter begins to self-oscillate and can be used as a CV controlled oscillator². That turns the pedal from a tone shaper into a sound generator, which is where much of its character lies.

The controls, as described by Pedal of the Day²:

Pedal of the Day's verdict on the Mk.3: "This combination of two classic circuits yields some strange and wonderful tonal creations, getting super weird at times, but in the very best of ways sound"². The reviewer's point is that the pedal sits between a filter pedal and a synth voice, and rewards players willing to explore its extremes. If you are new to resonant filter pedals, the filter pedal and preamp pedal pages explain how these circuits fit on a board.

Where it came from

The So High So Low is a variant of Analog Music Company's The Evil Pumpkin. Pedal of the Day frames the Mk.3 as the next step after The Evil Pumpkin the company released a few years earlier². The Evil Pumpkin line is experimental by design: Guitar Pedal X's coverage of the Evil Pumpkin Ghazala Edition describes an oscillator preset that works in bypass, where less gain gives a higher pitch³, and Pedal of the Day's 2020 review of The Evil Pumpkin Synth Fuzz traces the company's approach of rebuilding familiar circuits into noise machines⁴.

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