Emma Electronics (EMMA) Emma DiscumBOBulator MkII

The Emma DiscumBOBulator MkII, also known as the DiscumBOBulator 2 or DB-2, is an analog autowah and envelope filter pedal from Danish manufacturer Emma Electronic. An envelope filter listens to how hard you pick and sweeps a filter across your tone in response, giving the quacking, vocal funk sounds of an auto-wah without a foot pedal. The MkII keeps the sound and controls of the original DiscumBOBulator and adds an independent, foot-switchable 10dB clean boost on a second footswitch¹².

The original DiscumBOBulator, released nearly 20 years before the MkII's 2017 launch, was often heralded as the world's best autowah/envelope filter, and the MkII reboot carries those sounds forward with increased frequency range, improved tracking, and increased headroom¹³. Warren Haynes has named an Emma DiscumBOBulator envelope filter among his gear⁴.

What the MkII does to your sound

The pedal is an envelope filter: it tracks the volume of your picking and opens and closes a resonant filter in response, so harder picking pushes the sweep further. MusicRadar described it as "a boutique auto-wah with plenty of headroom"⁷. Pedal of the Day found the v2's new Boost mode gives "that extra push to slice up the mix and really make solos and lead runs stand out"³.

The DB-1 original was reviewed as working well with guitar, bass and keys, and even saxophone, so the circuit has a reputation beyond six strings⁸. The MkII's improvements over the original include increased frequency range, improved tracking, and increased headroom, plus the dedicated clean Boost feature that can run independent of the filter or combined with it¹.

The controls: Sensitivity, Width and Attack

The MkII keeps the simple three-knob interface of the original, with Sensitivity, Width and Attack controls to adjust the response of the filter effect¹. Gearnews described the original's face as "a simple interface featuring Sensitivity, Width and Attack knobs, plus a switch for Up/Down"⁹.

All three knobs were carried over from the original DB-1 to the v2 unchanged³. On top of them, the MkII adds the Boost channel: an independent, foot-switchable mode with +10dB on tap, described by the maker as a boost that'll "make funky solos instantly take flight"²³.

The boost, and using it without the filter

The Filter and Boost sections can be used separately or combined¹. That means the boost works as a standalone clean boost: leave the filter bypassed with one footswitch and kick in the +10dB boost with the other when a solo needs to cut through. Pedal of the Day's take on the v2's Boost mode was that it gives you "that extra push to slice up the mix and really make solos and lead runs stand out"³.

History and versions: DB-1, MkII and V3

The DiscumBOBulator line runs through three main versions:

The original DiscumBOBulator was often heralded as the world's best autowah/envelope filter, and by 2017 it was pushing 20 years old, which prompted the DB-2 reboot³⁹. The v2 improved the filter-triggering and dynamic range over the original³¹⁰. In turn, the V3 improves the filter-triggering, dynamic range and headroom signal of the original further, with an improved side chain that the maker says gives even better and more precise tracking on high notes, plus a new side chain input and refinements to the clean boost⁵⁶. Delicious Audio noted the V2 is almost identical to the V3⁶.

For more detail on each version, see the pages on the Emma Electronic DB-1 DiscumBOBulator, the EMMA Electronic Discumbobulator DB-2, and the Emma Electronic Discumbobulator V2.

Where it is made and who stands behind it

The DiscumBOBulator line is handmade in Denmark by Emma Electronic, a Danish manufacturer, and distributed in the US by Godlyke Distributing¹²³. The MkII carried a 3-year warranty at its 2017 launch¹.

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