The Beautiful Noise Exploder is a full-range distortion pedal built around a 3-way switchable hard-clipping preamplifier with 1000x gain amplification, running into an active 3-band EQ post-amplifier1. Its distinguishing feature is an envelope-controlled white noise generator, a circuit commonly used in analog synthesizers, which can be blended into your signal and turns on and off with your instrument signal1. Beautiful Noise describes the range as "anything from gritty amp-like overdrives, to massively destructive fuzz tones"1.
The pedal is a highly expanded and modified version of the gain circuit from the company's When The Sun Explodes reverberation distortion, put into a standalone, pedalboard-friendly enclosure1. Delicious Audio, introducing it in November 2022, called it "a distortion pedal for the heavy yet tweaking-inclined guitarist" and added it to the site's list of the Best Creative pedals of 20222.
The Exploder runs on a 9V DC power supply only; the maker lists no battery option. It draws 37mA1.
What the Exploder does
The core of the pedal is a hard-clipping preamp whose clipping character is switchable in three ways, feeding an active EQ stage after it1. That topology means the tone shaping happens after the distortion rather than before it, and because the EQ is active with a boost/cut design, each band can be pushed hard in either direction. The white noise generator is the part that sets it apart from a conventional distortion: it produces noise like a synth's noise source, and an envelope follower keyed to your playing gates it on and off, so the noise appears and disappears with your attack1.
Pedal of the Day, reviewing it in February 2023, described the result in the maker's own terms: "Anything from gritty amp-like overdrives to massively destructive fuzz tones are easily achievable here"3.
The controls
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Gain | Turn up for distortion2 |
| Master | Output volume control1 |
| Low, Mid, Hi | Clean 3-band active EQ; mid point is unity, boost or cut the frequency. Fully cut is zero, and no audio passes in that frequency band1 |
| Env | Envelope amount for the white noise generator; the higher it is set, the more sensitive the noise is to turning on while you play1 |
| Clipping switch | 3-way: Sym, Off, Asym1 |
The three clipping positions change the character of the distortion itself1:
- Sym: Even hard-clipping, which gets very compressed and fuzzy at high gain levels1.
- Off: Diode clipping is removed; the distortion heard is the op-amps overloading far beyond their limits1.
- Asym: Uneven hard-clipping, harsh and nasally, a mixture between symmetrical and no clipping1.
Because the EQ bands cut to zero rather than merely attenuating, a fully cut Mid knob silences that frequency band entirely, which makes the EQ a shaping tool rather than a gentle tilt1.
Where it came from
The Exploder grew out of an earlier Beautiful Noise Effects pedal: it is, in the maker's words, "a highly expanded and modified version of the gain circuit from the WHEN THE SUN EXPLODES," now housed in a standalone pedalboard-friendly enclosure1. Delicious Audio added the Exploder to its list of the Best Creative pedals of 20222.
What reviewers said
Pedal of the Day's February 2023 review was positive about the pedal's overall character3:
"takes the distortion genre head-on, flipping it on its back, twisting it around and spitting it right back out, in a glorious and super-loud fashion"3
Delicious Audio added the Exploder to its list of the Best Creative pedals of 20222.
Delicious Audio's Paolo De Gregorio placed it among the year's more inventive releases, adding it to the site's Best Creative pedals of 2022 list2.
Videos
collector//emitter
ambienttrash
Pedalboard of the Day
Questions
Is the Beautiful Noise Exploder true bypass?
No. The Exploder uses buffered bypass, with a single footswitch turning the effect on and off. That means a buffer is in the signal path even when the pedal is off, which can help drive long cable runs but differs from true bypass switching.
What does the Off clipping mode on the Exploder do?
In the Off position the diode clipping is removed entirely. The distortion you hear is the op-amps themselves overloading far beyond their limits, which sits between the compressed, fuzzy Sym mode and the harsh, nasally Asym mode in character.
How does the white noise generator on the Exploder work?
The Exploder has an envelope-controlled white noise generator, a circuit commonly used in analog synthesizers. It can be blended into your signal, and it turns on and off with your instrument signal. The Env knob sets the envelope amount, so the noise responds to how hard you play.
What colors does the Beautiful Noise Exploder come in?
The maker lists five color options: Black, Pink, Silver Sparkle, Metallic Red, and Metallic Purple.
Where is the Beautiful Noise Exploder made?
It is handmade in Newcastle, Australia, by Beautiful Noise Effects. The company's first pedal, the When The Sun Explodes reverberation distortion, came out of the same workshop, and the Exploder's gain circuit is an expanded and modified version of it.
Sources (3)
- EXPLODER, Beautiful Noise Effects
- New Pedal: Beautiful Noise Exploder Distortion + White Noise, Delicious Audio, 2022-11-29
- Beautiful Noise Effects Exploder Distortion Device, Pedal of the Day, 2023-02-03
