The Death By Audio Phosphene Scream is a reverb and delay pedal the maker bills as "SPACE TRIPPIN' REVERB & DELAY". It was a collaboration with the Austin festival Levitation and the band The Black Angels, designed to pay tribute to Austin's psychedelic rock legacy1,2. Death By Audio describes the sound as "a reverb that multiplies internal reflections of segments of comb filtered waveforms from zero to infinity", combined with a multifunctional delay covering everything from '60s psychedelic to futuristic sounds1.
It was a limited release: 420 units, with pre-sales beginning September 12, 2019 at the Levitation webstore, where it was sold exclusively1,2. Guitar.com reported a price of $200 and that pre-orders were also available via Reverb3.
Controls
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Feedback | Sets both the feedback of the delay and the delay level, ranging from zero of both to almost never-ending screaming repeats1 |
| Reverb | Sets the mix of the reverberated signal and adjusts the reverb time simultaneously1 |
| D-Time | Sets the time between the repeats of the delayed signal; at short times, allows for comb-filter-like results1 |
| Filter toggle | Changes the character of the repeats and reverberation between low passed, unfiltered, and high passed1 |
The Feedback control is the pedal's centerpiece: it is what gives the Phosphene Scream its name, pushing the delay from clean single repeats into what Death By Audio calls "almost never-ending screaming repeats"1. Guitar.com's Daniel Ong noted that the D-Time knob can, depending on settings, produce filter-flange sounds, 1950s-sounding slapback effects, or cavernous reflections3.
The Filter toggle
The three-way Filter toggle adjusts the tonality of the decays for all of the effects. Death By Audio describes the positions as left for deep thundering booms, middle for full range, and right for "a perfectly bright vintage edge"1.
Power and specifications
The pedal runs on a standard 2.1mm negative center 9V adapter or the included 9V battery, and draws 80 mA1. It measures 4.88" x 3.68" x 2.15" including hardware and weighs 13 oz1.
The Phosphene Scream was a limited edition of 420 units, sold exclusively through the Levitation webstore from September 20191,2. It is no longer in production.
Where it sits in the Death By Audio range
The Phosphene Scream belongs to a line of Death By Audio delay and reverb pedals that includes the Echo Dream 2, the Ghost Delay, the Micro Dream, and the later Exploding Head Triple Delay. Its closest relative in spirit is the collaboration format: Death By Audio later worked with EarthQuaker Devices on the Time Shadows II, another limited-run delay project.
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Questions
How many Death By Audio Phosphene Scream pedals were made?
The Phosphene Scream was limited to 420 units. It was a collaboration between Death By Audio and the Austin festival Levitation, and pre-sales began on September 12, 2019 at the Levitation webstore, where the pedal was sold exclusively.
Does the Phosphene Scream run on a battery?
Yes. The pedal runs on a standard 2.1mm negative center 9V adapter or an included 9V battery, and draws 80 mA. It measures 4.88 x 3.68 x 2.15 inches including hardware and weighs 13 oz.
Who designed the Phosphene Scream?
Death By Audio founder Oliver Ackermann designed it together with Alex Maas and Christian Bland of The Black Angels. Guitar World reported that the pedal was designed to pay tribute to Austin's psychedelic rock legacy.
Where was the Phosphene Scream sold?
It was sold exclusively at the Levitation webstore, with pre-sales beginning September 12, 2019. Guitar.com reported pre-orders were also available via Reverb and the Levitation festival's web store, at a price of $200.
What does the Filter toggle do on the Phosphene Scream?
The Filter toggle changes the character of the repeats and reverberation between low passed, unfiltered, and high passed. Death By Audio describes the three positions as deep thundering booms on the left, full range in the middle, and a perfectly bright vintage edge on the right.
Sources (3)
- PHOSPHENE SCREAM, Death By Audio, 2019-09-12
- Death By Audio and the Black Angels team up for “space trippin' ” Phosphene Scream pedal, Guitar World, 2019-09-12
- Death By Audio, The Black Angels team up on Phosphene Scream, Guitar.com, 2019-09-13
