The CMATMods Analog Chorus is a compact chorus pedal from CMATMods, a small maker whose pedals are built by Chad. It is a fully analog chorus built around discontinued bucket-brigade chips, and it sits in a little white enclosure measuring 4.78 by 2.61 by 1.4 inches1. For a player, it is designed to add depth and character to your tone, with the warm, smooth, buttery and slightly fluttery modulation that vintage analog choruses are known for.
A warm analog chorus in a little white box
The pedal earned its description as a "little white box" from Pedal of the Day, whose reviewer wrote in June 2014 that "almost any shimmering chorus tones you can think of are achievable with this little white box"1. The reviewer found the sounds reminiscent of vintage choruses from the past, and specifically named classic Police, Smiths-era Johnny Marr, Slash with Guns N' Roses, and Nirvana "Come As You Are" style tones as within its reach1.
That vintage character comes from the parts inside. The reviewer noted that the pedal's warm, smooth sound comes from the discontinued BBD MN3007 and MN3101 analog chips1. Bucket-brigade devices (BBDs) are the delay-line chips at the heart of nearly every classic analog chorus: they pass your signal along a chain of capacitors one small step at a time, and modulating that delay slightly is what creates the chorus effect. The MN3007 is the 1024-stage delay line, and the MN3101 is its clock driver. Both are out of production, which is why many modern analog choruses use reissue or clone equivalents instead.
The controls: Blend, Rate and Depth
The pedal keeps its control set to three knobs, all mounted with Alpha pots1.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Blend | Dials in the exact amount of the effect you want; the reviewer called it "always a welcome knob, on any pedal"1 |
| Rate | Sets modulation speed, with a wide range from slow, mellow and subtle to super-fast, high-energy warble1 |
| Depth | Works with the Blend knob to pinpoint the sweet spot where your tone "really sparkles and comes alive"1 |
Three knobs is a deliberately simple layout. Some larger analog choruses add tone-shaping controls, like the MXR M234 Analog Chorus with its Low, High, Level, Rate and Depth controls, but the CMATMods keeps to the core chorus adjustments. The Blend knob is for dialing in the exact amount of the effect you want, and it works in conjunction with the Depth knob to pinpoint the sweet spot where your tone really sparkles and comes alive21.
How it compares with other analog choruses
The CMATMods Analog Chorus shares its approach with several other BBD-based pedals. The Analog Man Chorus line also uses MN3007 bucket-brigade chips, in Analog Man's case NOS high-voltage Panasonic parts, for what that maker describes as high-fidelity, organic sound3. The MXR M234 Analog Chorus is likewise built from all-analog bucket-brigade circuitry, though it uses buffered bypass rather than the true bypass switching of the CMATMods4. Where the MXR offers five controls and a stereo output path, the CMATMods offers three controls in a smaller box.
The MN3007 and MN3101 chips inside this pedal are discontinued. That is part of what gives it its vintage character, but it also means the design depends on remaining stocks of original parts, as the reviewer pointed out1.
What reviewers said
Published coverage of the pedal is limited, with the main review coming from Pedal of the Day on 12 June 2014. The reviewer, Mike B, was positive about the pedal's range and character:
"Almost any shimmering chorus tones you can think of are achievable with this little white box1."
Mike B, Pedal of the Day1
He described the pedal as producing sounds reminiscent of vintage choruses from the past, and attributed its warm, smooth and buttery, fluttery character to the discontinued MN3007 and MN3101 chips1. He also highlighted the practical details a player cares about: true bypass switching, Alpha pots, and operation from a 9V battery or 9V adapter1.
Questions
Is the CMATMods Analog Chorus analog or digital?
It is fully analog. The pedal is built around discontinued bucket-brigade device (BBD) chips, the MN3007 and MN3101, the same family of parts used in classic analog chorus designs. Pedal of the Day's reviewer credited these chips with the pedal's warm, smooth, buttery and fluttery character.
Is the CMATMods Analog Chorus true bypass?
Yes. The pedal uses true bypass switching, so when it is off your signal passes through without the tone loss that buffered bypass can introduce on some pedals. The reviewer at Pedal of the Day listed true bypass among the pedal's specifications in 2014.
Can the CMATMods Analog Chorus run on a battery?
Yes. It operates on a 9V battery or a 9V adapter, so it works on a pedalboard with a standard power supply or standalone with a battery. No voltage or current draw figures beyond that were published in the review.
What chips does the CMATMods Analog Chorus use?
It uses the discontinued BBD MN3007 and MN3101 analog chips. The MN3007 is the bucket-brigade delay line that creates the modulation, and the MN3101 is its companion clock driver. Both are vintage parts no longer in production.
How big is the CMATMods Analog Chorus?
It measures 4.78 by 2.61 by 1.4 inches, roughly the footprint of a compact single-effect pedal, small enough to fit easily on a crowded pedalboard. The enclosure is a little white box.
Sources (4)
- CMATMods Analog Chorus, Pedal of the Day (www.pedal-of-the-day.com), 2014-06-12
- Guitar Pedal X - GPX Blog - MXR Celebrates 20 Years of its Zakk Wylde Collaboration with reissues of its Wylde Audio Trifecta - Chorus, Overdrive and Phase, Guitar Pedal X
- Analog Man Chorus Pedals, aNaLoG.MaN (analogman.com), 2026
- M234.pdf, Jim Dunlop, 2019
