Chase Bliss Reverse Mode C Multidirectional Delay

The Chase Bliss Reverse Mode C is a multidirectional delay pedal, made in collaboration with Empress Effects and released as the first pedal in Chase Bliss's Small Batch Bliss limited-run series¹²³. Rather than a conventional echo that simply repeats what you play, it is built around a special mode from the Empress Superdelay of 2008, and its character comes less from a single repeat sound than from motion: as Pedal of the Day put it, "its signature sound is actually the way it moves. It creates this layered, mesmerizing motion unlike anything we've done"⁴¹.

For a player, that means a delay aimed at experimenters and stereo lovers: true stereo in and out with mono splitting, six varieties of modulation that can be pushed into audio rate, and deep control through MIDI, CV and expression inputs¹⁴.

A multidirectional delay that moves

The Reverse Mode C is a delay, but "multidirectional" is the word Chase Bliss uses for what sets it apart. The pedal is a tribute to a very special mode found on the Empress Superdelay, released in 2008, and specifically the sound Joel Korte and his crew were after comes from the Superdelay's Octave Tap mode¹⁴. Guitar Pedal X's reviewer called it "a fantastic recreation and evolution of the Empress Superdelay Reverse Model C with a heap of new features"⁶.

What that means in practice is layered motion. The pedal offers six varieties of modulation, and that motion can be synced to the delay time or left free-running⁴. Pedal of the Day describes the result as aimed at "the experimenters, audiophiles and Stereo Effects lovers," with unique panning effects and a shifting stereo image⁴.

The front panel keeps things playable. MusicRadar's coverage notes a three-way toggle switch for selecting modulation, which can be synced to the delay time or not, and two footswitches, both pulling dual-shifts³.

Presets, modulation and control inputs

The Reverse Mode C carries two presets, set from the pedal itself¹. Beyond that, its connectivity is where much of its depth lives:

• MIDI: program change, control change and clock sync¹
• CV: control voltage input for external control²
• Expression: an expression pedal can drive the pedal's parameters¹⁴
• Internal modulation: any or all of its control knobs can be modulated internally²

The six modulation types are frequency shifting (two varieties), vibrato, chorus and tremolo (two varieties), each of which can be pushed into audio rate, where modulation stops being a subtle wobble and becomes part of the sound itself⁴.

From the Empress Superdelay to Small Batch

The pedal's lineage goes back to 2008, when Empress Effects released the Superdelay. Chase Bliss describes the Reverse Mode C as a celebration of a very special mode found on that pedal¹. As the maker tells it, "for our 10th anniversary, we decided to team up with Empress and make a tribute to its most exciting mode"⁷.

The Reverse Mode C became the first unit of the Small Batch series, Chase Bliss's limited-run line⁴³. The design itself was a joint effort: Chase Bliss describes the process between Joel Korte and Steve Bragg as "really collaborative and natural, one feature leading to the next"⁸.

The Reverse Mode C Multidirectional Delay was the first unit of Chase Bliss's Small Batch series³. The pedal is a tribute to a special mode found on the Empress Superdelay, released in 2008¹, and Chase Bliss made it for the company's 10th anniversary in collaboration with Empress¹.

Where it sits among Chase Bliss delays

The Reverse Mode C is one strand of Chase Bliss's delay work, and it stays fixed on one thing: the specific sound Joel Korte and his crew were after comes from the Octave Tap mode of the Empress Superdelay⁴. Its signature sound is the way it moves, creating layered, mesmerizing motion⁴. ===

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