Chase Bliss Reverse Mode C Multidirectional 3-Voice Stereo Delay

The Chase Bliss Reverse Mode C is a multidirectional delay pedal built in collaboration with Empress Effects, and released as the first unit of Chase Bliss's Small Batch limited-run series¹. Where a conventional delay repeats your signal back at you, the Reverse Mode C splits its echo into three distinct voices that move in different directions: forward, backward, and up². Chase Bliss describes the result as "a fantastical mix of motion and space," an echo composed of multiple voices rather than a single repeat line².

The pedal is a celebration of a very special mode found on the Empress Superdelay, released in 2008². Pedal of the Day identifies the specific sound Joel Korte and his crew were after as the Octave Tap mode of the Empress Superdelay³, and Guitar Pedal X called the pedal "a fantastic recreation and evolution of the Empress Superdelay Reverse Model C with a heap of new features"⁴.

Three delay voices: forward, backward and up

The core of the pedal is its three echo voices, which can be isolated or blended together in a variety of ways to create rich, layered repeats and unique panning effects³. MusicRadar's Jonathan Horsley explains how the Offset knob separates the delay times of the three voices, forward, backward and up, letting you stagger them against each other⁶.

Chase Bliss says the signature character is not any single voice but the motion between them. Pedal of the Day puts it this way³²:

On top of the three voices, the pedal offers six varieties of modulation that can be pushed into audio rate, with the motion synced to the delay time or free-running². Pedal of the Day lists the modulation types as frequency shifting (x2), vibrato, chorus, and tremolo (x2)³.

Descended from the Empress Superdelay mode

The Reverse Mode C traces back to the Empress Superdelay, a delay pedal released in 2008. Gearnews reports the new pedal is based on the Superdelay collaboration with Empress Effects from 2008, celebrating a special mode found on that pedal¹. Pedal of the Day names that mode as the Octave Tap mode³.

Guitar Pedal X reviewed the pedal in its roundup of the best new time-based effects of 2023, calling it a recreation and evolution of the original mode with a heap of new features added⁴. For players who know the Superdelay, the Reverse Mode C is the modern, expanded take on that sound; for everyone else, it stands on its own as a three-voice stereo delay.

Stereo, MIDI and expression control

The Reverse Mode C is built for players who want deep control over their delay signal chain.

• True stereo in and out, including mono splitting, so the three voices can be spread across a stereo image²
• MIDI with program change, control change and clock sync²
• Presets for saving settings³
• CV control for hooking the pedal up to modular synths and other control-voltage gear²
• Expression control for sweeping parameters with an expression pedal²

Gearnews notes the pedal also allows internal modulation of any or all of its control knobs, so the modulation sources can be routed to the controls themselves, not just the repeats¹.

What the dip switches on the back do

The rear panel carries 16 dip switches⁴. As with other Chase Bliss pedals, these switches configure the pedal's internal behavior, and combined with the internal modulation of any or all of its control knobs¹, they give the Reverse Mode C far more configuration depth than the front-panel knobs alone suggest.

Editions and availability

The Reverse Mode C launched as the first release in Chase Bliss's Small Batch Bliss limited-run series, with a preorder price of $399¹. Guitar Pedal X listed it at $399 in its December 2023 roundup⁴.

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