The Eurotec Black Box Sustain Module is a vintage compressor/sustainer pedal: a box that evens out the differences between quiet and loud notes and holds a note's level as it decays, so single notes and sustained lines stay audible for longer. It can also be pressed into service as a booster, pushing a louder, more even signal into an amp or into overdrive or fuzz pedals downstream. TONEHOME describes it as a somewhat rare unit today1.
Who made it and when
The pedal was made in England by Eurotec, a division of Sola Sound/Colorsound, with a production period of 1976 to 19781. Sola Sound is the company behind the Tone Bender family of fuzzes, which places the Black Box Sustain Module among the output of one of the better-known British effects makers of the era. Because production ran for only a short window and the unit is described as somewhat rare, it turns up mainly on the used market rather than in current shops1.
The same circuit under other names
One of the more useful things to know about this pedal is that it was not unique. TONEHOME states that it is identical to three other sustainers1:
- the Dharma Sound Sustainer
- the Orange Sustain
- the Futuristic Sounds Sustain1
For a player, that means information, impressions or schematics relating to any of those pedals describe the same circuit. The Orange Sustain connection is worth noting for collectors of compressor pedals, since it ties the unit to another familiar British brand name of the period1.
How it compares
TONEHOME sets the Black Box Sustain Module against a widely used yardstick for compressor design, the Ross Compressor, and gives it the edge on two counts that matter in use1:
"It actually trumpes the benchmark Ross Compressor in clarity and signal to noise ratio."
Clarity and signal to noise ratio are the two things a compressor most easily gets wrong: heavy compression can dull the attack of a note and raise the noise floor. A benchmark comparison in its favor is a meaningful mark for a small-run 1970s pedal, though it is the assessment of a single independent reference rather than a spread of published reviews1.
Questions
What is the Eurotec Black Box Sustain Module?
It is a compressor/sustainer pedal made in England by Eurotec, a division of Sola Sound/Colorsound, during 1976 to 1978. A compressor/sustainer evens out the volume of your playing and lets notes ring longer, and this unit can also be used as a booster. TONEHOME describes it as somewhat rare today.
Is it the same circuit as other pedals?
According to TONEHOME, the Black Box Sustain Module is identical to the Dharma Sound Sustainer, the Orange Sustain and the Futuristic Sounds Sustain. If you have read about any of those pedals, the same description applies here.
How does it compare to other compressors?
TONEHOME compares it against the Ross Compressor, a common benchmark for clarity, and states that the Black Box Sustain Module trumps the Ross Compressor in clarity and signal to noise ratio.
Sources (1)
- TONEHOME, TONEHOME (tonehome.de)
