EarthQuaker Devices Disaster Transport Reissue

The Disaster Transport Reissue, sold by EarthQuaker Devices as the Disaster Transport Legacy Reissue and billed as "The Original Delay Modulation Machine," is a limited-run reissue of one of the company's most popular previously discontinued effects¹. It is an analog-voiced digital delay with modulation: the delay signal is modulated by an LFO, and the reissue adds a redesigned delay line that EarthQuaker Devices says reduces the noise floor and improves the quality of the delay compared with previous versions¹²³.

The original Disaster Transport dates back to 2007 and was one of the first two pedals the company made, alongside the Hoof Fuzz⁴⁵. Delicious Audio credits the pedal with starting the delay-plus-modulation trend, and by the time of the reissue it had become a rare, discontinued piece²⁶.

A delay with bendable modulation

The pedal carries five knobs: Speed, Intensity, Mix, Repeats, and Time, on a newly designed enclosure with a sparkly finish¹². Time sets the delay time from around 30ms at zero to 600ms at max with modulation off, and EarthQuaker Devices notes the actual time varies by settings and unit¹. Mix sets the volume level of the delay signal, and Intensity controls how much the LFO modulates the delay time¹.

The modulation side is where the reissue departs from the older Disaster Transport. Two new mini switches are essentially the updates for this delay/modulation effect³.

• Mod Mode: a two position toggle that chooses the modulation style, Bend or Stretch¹. Bend offers a subtler vibe closer to a traditional chorus sound, while the new Stretch option gives heavy pitch-stretching modulation¹. Gearnews describes the switch as letting users bend or stretch the modulation wave³⁷, and Guitar.com's Tamzin Kraftman notes it lets players choose between bending and stretching the wave⁷.
• Mod Speed: a three position toggle that sets the range (Slow, Medium, Fast) in which the Speed knob operates¹. Per EQD, the rates go from bizarrely animated gradual climbs and steep drop-offs to rapid chorus and intense vibrato³.

The modulation uses a Ramp wave¹. Speed and Intensity together shape how far the pitch bends and how quickly, which is what gives the pedal its chorus-to-vibrato character.

Two footswitches

The reissue has two footswitches, one for the modulation and one for activation of the effect³. Delicious Audio names them the Modulate and Activate switches². This means the delay can run dry of modulation, or modulation can be brought in and out while the delay stays active.

The Parra Disaster Transport, a special limited edition version with enclosure art from Parra and the same features as the Legacy Reissue, also has two footswitches, one for each effect, with Flexi-Switch technology⁴⁶.

Versions and the limited run

The Disaster Transport line has gone through several versions:

The Legacy Reissue is limited to 3,500 units worldwide²¹. It was priced at $219 at launch in June 2023⁴; gearnews reported a Thomann listing of $165.00 / £148.00 / 169.00€ and an MSRP of EUR 289³. The Parra version was priced at $249 and limited to one unit per customer, with 500 pedals made before the Disaster Transport slipped back into discontinued territory⁶.

How it differs from the Disaster Transport SR

The Disaster Transport SR is a different, larger pedal: a dual delay with reverb and modulation, with a series/parallel bleed control and true bypass or trails operation⁹. Premier Guitar's review called it "an evolution of EarthQuaker Device's superb Disaster Transport modulating delay"¹⁰.

Where the reissue has one delay line, the SR has two:

• Delay A: a 600ms delay with modulation, with controls for Time, Repeats, Rate, Depth, Mix and Bleed⁸. Its Repeats control ranges from one single repeat through an endless wash into self oscillation, and can also be controlled via an expression pedal; EQD recommends the Moog EP-2⁹.
• Delay B: reverb into a 300ms delay, with controls for Time, Repeats, Reverb Blend and Mix⁸.

The SR has dedicated footswitches for each delay, and a bypass switch that shuts off the effect without trails¹⁰. Its output impedance is under 1 kΩ⁹. The SR is no longer in production⁹, so players comparing the two today are looking at the reissue as the available option and the SR as a discontinued piece.

What reviewers said

Gearnews' verdict on the reissue was positive on both counts:

Delicious Audio quoted EarthQuaker Devices on the redesign: "we redesigned the delay line to reduce the noise floor and improve the quality of the delay"². The same coverage notes the pedal's lineage as one of the company's most beloved pedals¹².

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