Chase Bliss Automatone CXM 1978

The Chase Bliss Automatone CXM 1978 is a digital reverb pedal, made in the USA, built as a collaboration between Chase Bliss Audio and Meris¹. It is a 32-bit AD/DA pedal adaptation of the venerable 1978 Lexicon studio reverb²: a reinterpretation of the vintage Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb, the rack unit that defined studio reverb in the late 1970s³¹. Where the original was a rackmount box the size of a briefcase, the CXM 1978 packs that character into a stompbox with the moving-fader format of Chase Bliss's Automatone series².

For a player, what that means is a fully stereo reverb pedal with three algorithms, Hall, Room and Plate², and a set of motorized faders that physically move when you recall a preset. It was the second Automatone pedal, following the Preamp MKII collaboration with Benson Amps¹.

A Lexicon 224 style reverb in a pedal

The CXM 1978 was designed in tribute to the coveted Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb⁶, and its sound is modeled on early digital reverb rack units from the 1970s⁷. Meris are the creators and programmers of its reverb algorithms, which were honed from the Meris Mercury7 and largely matched to the legendary Lexicon 224⁵. Guitar.com described the result as aiming to offer "a modern take on vintage studio reverb"⁸.

The pedal includes three algorithms, Hall, Room and Plate, selected with the Type button for three distinct reverb characters²⁶. Beyond the algorithms, three buttons each offer three settings that shape the reverb in different ways²:

The Clock setting is where the vintage character lives. At its lowest settings the tails can sound like grainy multi-delays, emulating the early digital reverbs the pedal honors².

The controls and motorized faders

The heart of the pedal is its motorized, slider-based operation⁷. The faders cover Bass, Mids, Cross, Treble, Mix and Pre-delay¹, and they react individually to preset changes, expression pedal control, control voltage and MIDI, moving automatically to recall saved preset positions¹. Switch presets and the reassuringly substantial faders fly to the saved position of each parameter; a jump button skips to a favorite preset¹.

What each fader does:

• Bass and Mids: EQ for the reverb, split by the Cross fader, everything above that point going to the Mids control and everything below to the Bass⁶
• Treble: Darkens the reverb reflections, working with the other EQ settings⁶
• Mix and Pre-delay: Set the reverb level and the time before the reverb begins¹

The fader automation also allows slow-moving ambience effects, obtained by cross-fading from one preset to the next or using MIDI control on any of the parameters². The expression pedal input supports global expression control over the reverb mix level and morphing between fader positions at toe and heel settings¹. There are two multi-function footswitches, MIDI in and thru, and the faders respond to MIDI¹.

Line level and studio use

Although it defaults to unbalanced instrument level, the CXM 1978 can be switched to balanced line level, which transforms it into a powerful outboard processor in the studio¹. It also features optional ultra-low-noise, fully balanced I/O, stereo inputs and outputs, 32-bit AD/DA conversion, and internally boosted plus and minus 15V rails for line level use⁶. The Guitar.com reviewer strongly recommended experiencing the unit in stereo with a pair of amps¹.

What reviewers said

The CXM 1978 was exceptionally well received. Guitar.com gave it a 9/10⁷, and in the site's best premium effects pedals of 2021 awards it wrote that the pedal "succeeds in elevating the humble reverb pedal concept to a whole new level of tonal excellence and creative potential"⁸. Pedal of the Day's verdict was simply:

Despite its rather hefty price tag, $899 as listed in 2021⁴¹, the pedal was exceptionally well received⁷, and it placed 11th with 2 points in Delicious Audio's best guitar pedals of 2020 roundup⁴⁶.

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