The Ashdown Bass Verb is a reverb pedal designed specifically for bass guitar. Ashdown describes it as a high quality reverb pedal that allows the user to go from a light reverb to full on cathedral style echo, and it keeps the control set small on purpose: two knobs, Mix and Depth, cover the whole pedal1. It sits among Ashdown's wider line of bass pedals, which includes the Dr. Green OctaDose and the Bearded Lady.
Controls
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Mix | Adjust the blend of clean and effected signal1 |
| Depth | Control the size/amount of reverb1 |
The two-knob layout is aimed at dialing in a reverb quickly. The Mix knob sets how much of the effected signal is blended with your clean tone, which is how most bass players keep the low end dry while adding space on top. Depth sets how large the reverb itself is. Delicious Audio, covering the pedal at launch, put it this way21:
Ashdown describes the Bass Verb as "housed in a custom designed steel casing that will stand up to being stomped on night after night"1.
The same report described the pedal's range as "from endless cathedral style reverb to nice, tight, subtle, short plate style", and called it "Simply a fantastic quality and easy-to-use reverb pedal made for bass players who need a bit of space around their core tone"2.
Background: the Dr. Green range
The Bass Verb was introduced as part of Ashdown's Dr. Green range of bass effects pedals. Ashdown describes it as coming "Straight from Dr Greens surgery", and notes that it is "housed in a custom designed steel casing that will stand up to being stomped on night after night"1. Related pedals from the range are covered on their own pages, including the Doctors Note and The Tourniquet/Aspirin.
Build and bypass
Ashdown houses the pedal in a custom designed steel casing that the company says will stand up to being stomped on night after night1. The pedal also features true bypass switching, so the reverb circuit is out of the signal path when the effect is off1.
Questions
Is the Ashdown Bass Verb true bypass?
Yes. Ashdown states that the Bass Verb features true bypass switching, so when the pedal is off, your bass signal passes through without the reverb circuit loading it. That matters on bass, where preserving low-end clarity is a common concern.
Is the Ashdown Bass Verb the same as the Dr. Green Bass Verb?
The Bass Verb was introduced as part of the Dr. Green range of bass pedals, which Delicious Audio reported as launching in January 2013. Ashdown now lists it simply as the Bass Verb on its own product page, describing it as a high quality reverb pedal designed for bass.
What does the Depth knob do on the Ashdown Bass Verb?
Depth controls the size and amount of reverb. Ashdown describes the pedal's range as going from a light reverb to full on cathedral style echo, and Delicious Audio described the same pedal as covering everything from endless cathedral style reverb to a nice, tight, subtle, short plate style.
Sources (2)
- Bass Verb, Ashdown Engineering
- Pedal News: Ashdown Dr. Green Bass FX Pedals, Delicious Audio, 2013-01-28
