The Creation Audio Labs Funkulator is a bass EQ pedal built around a single preset EQ curve, controlled by one knob and one switch. Creation Audio Labs calls it a Bass Tone Shaper and describes it as "the funky love-child of the acclaimed MK.4.23 and the Holy Fire"12. Released in 2013 as the company's first dedicated bass product2, it is aimed at players who want a slap-ready tone without stacking and tweaking a full EQ section.
The concept is simple: instead of a graphic or parametric EQ with multiple sliders, the Funkulator carries one fixed EQ preset, and the knob sets how much of it you hear. Bass Musician Magazine's reviewer, Jonathan Moody, summed up the design as "Take a great EQ preset, make it simple to use and dial in, and put it in a stomp box"3.
What it does to your sound
The Funkulator's single EQ knob provides a variable upper mid frequency scoop with a gentle hi/low boost, as reported by Guitar Interactive Magazine at the pedal's launch2. In practice, the maker describes a range of uses: a little of the effect adds punch to finger-style playing, a little more tightens pick-style tone, and the switch toggles between a finger-style tone and what the company calls the perfect slap sound with one click1.
The knob also goes further than bass. Creation Audio Labs says it can tighten clean chicken pickin' on guitar, and that maxed out after a distortion pedal it gives a heavy metal Q1. The pedal can also be used as a DI to plug directly into the line input of any sound system1.
The controls: one knob, one switch
Creation Audio Labs kept the interface deliberately minimal, explaining the design choice plainly: "That's why we kept it simple, one knob, one switch"1.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Knob | Dials in the amount of the preset EQ, from a little added punch to a maxed heavy metal Q1 |
| Switch | Toggles between finger-style tone and slap sound1 |
Bass Musician Magazine's reviewer found this simplicity to be the pedal's main strength, writing that it is "easy to dial in, easy to get a great tone, and easy to recall that tone consistently"3. For a player who switches between finger-style and slap during a set, the switch means the tone change is one click rather than a re-dial of several EQ bands.
Power and bypass
The Funkulator uses 9V DC at 150mA through a standard center-negative 5.5 x 2.1mm barrel connector1. That current draw is on the higher side for a compact analog-style pedal; for comparison, the company's MK.4.23 Clean Boost, one of the two circuits the Funkulator is based on, draws 75mA on the same 9V center-negative supply62.
The 150mA draw means the Funkulator is not a candidate for a typical low-current daisy chain output. Plan for a power supply or isolated output rated for at least that current1.
Bypass is buffered as standard, using Creation Audio Labs' Pristine Redeemer buffered circuit, with true bypass available as an optional build1. Players who prefer a buffer in the chain get one by default; players who want true bypass can order it that way.
Where it came from
Creation Audio Labs announced the Funkulator on 3 June 2013 as its first dedicated bass product, describing it as the Funkulator EQ Tone Shaper and noting that it shares the same floor pedal footprint as the company's MK.4.23 Clean Boost and Holy Fire overdrive2. The company's own history says the circuit came out of work in 2013 on a power boosting circuit, brought to the world as the Funkulator4.
Guitar Interactive Magazine reported at launch that the pedal was designed as a quick and easy solution for getting great slap tone2.
What reviewers said
Bass Musician Magazine reviewed the Funkulator in July 2013. Jonathan Moody described the preset EQ as designed to give you "Marcus Miller in a box," and found the single-knob approach let a player dial in as much or as little of the preset as needed to keep a slap sound "shaking the floor and supporting the band"3. He also noted a small touch: the logo lights up when the pedal is plugged in3.
"And with a street price of $149 for a handmade in the USA pedal, you really can't go wrong."
That 2013 street price matches the maker's current direct price of $149, against a list price of $19953.
Videos
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Bass Whisperer TV
Questions
Is the Funkulator true bypass?
Buffered bypass is the stock configuration, and Creation Audio Labs offers true bypass as an optional build. The pedal uses the company's Pristine Redeemer buffered circuit, so the standard version keeps a buffer in the signal path when the effect is off.
Can the Funkulator be used as a DI?
Yes. Creation Audio Labs states the Funkulator can be used as a DI to plug directly into the line input of any sound system, which makes it useful for going straight into a mixer or interface without an amp.
Does the Funkulator work on guitar?
Yes. The maker describes using it to tighten clean chicken pickin' on guitar, and maxed out after a distortion pedal it produces what the company calls a heavy metal Q. The single EQ knob works the same way for guitar as for bass.
Why is the Funkulator called Marcus Miller in a box?
Bass Musician Magazine's reviewer described the pedal's preset EQ as designed to give you Marcus Miller in a box. The idea is that the fixed EQ curve, dialed in with one knob, gets you a slap-ready version of that kind of tone without building it yourself.
Where is the Funkulator made?
Bass Musician Magazine reported in 2013 that the Funkulator is a handmade in the USA pedal, built by Creation Audio Labs. The company's own history describes it as a Bass Tone Shaper perfected in 2013.
Sources (6)
- Funkulator, Creation Audio Labs
- Creation Audio Labs Unveils The Funkulator Pedal, Guitar Interactive Magazine, 2013-06-03
- Funkulator Combines Simplicity and Great Tone, Bass Musician Magazine, 2013-07-01
- Creation Audio Labs, Creation Audio Labs
- FUNKULATOR, Creation Audio Labs
- MK.4.23 CLEAN BOOST, Creation Audio Labs
