Eventide H9 Multi-Effect Pedal

The Eventide H9 is a compact multi-effects pedal from Eventide that puts the company's Harmonizer heritage on a pedalboard. It runs one effect algorithm at a time, drawn from a library covering pitch-shifting, modulation, delay, reverb, distortion and more, and is built around two footswitches and a small front panel¹². Where it stood apart at launch was control: the pedal is fully controllable from its front panel, but it is also edited in depth from a phone or computer over Bluetooth, which was a first for Eventide³⁴.

Eventide announced the H9 at NAMM in January 2013¹⁵. The line grew into several versions over the following decade, and in June 2026 Eventide rebooted it as the H9 Gen 2, which carries the algorithms of the larger H90 Harmonizer in the original H9's single-pedal format⁶⁷.

A twin-footswitch pedal of Eventide effects

The H9 is a stompbox-sized unit with two footswitches and a minimal top surface: a small number of knobs and buttons, with the real editing depth living in software²⁸. Eventide's own announcement described the pedal's connectivity plainly: "The H9 features stereo audio I/O, MIDI I/O and Expression Pedal and Auxiliary Switch inputs"¹. At launch it came loaded with 15 effects presets, with more available via in-app purchases⁵, and a Core version introduced at NAMM 2014 was likewise controllable from its front panel⁹.

The effect types cover the ground of a full board: Pitch, Modulation, Delay, Reverb, Distortion and more, with an ever-growing preset list over the pedal's life¹⁰. A Presets button on the unit both changes presets and switches the pedal's operating mode, and the pedal can hold up to 99 user presets, with the user defining how many it holds⁸.

Inputs, outputs and app control

The back panel of the H9 Max carries two 1/4 inch inputs, two 1/4 inch outputs, a USB input and an expression pedal input¹¹. The expression jack accepts either an expression pedal or a three-button footswitch¹¹¹, and Eventide staff noted a wiring trick: the single jack can carry an expression pedal and one AUX switch simultaneously if the pedal is connected between tip and sleeve and the switch between ring and sleeve¹.

The H9 Control app is the other half of the pedal. It provides remote control access to Eventide effects pedals¹²¹³, and on the H9 Max it works wirelessly over Bluetooth to create and manage presets and to command live control over multiple H9s from a desktop¹³. Editing is two-way, as Bass Gear Magazine's reviewer described:

Guitar World's reviewer found the app gives access to algorithms, presets and preset lists on up to five registered H9 pedals, plus pedal and app settings¹⁵. MusicRadar's Trevor Curwen found the pedal "has been designed to take full advantage of this and it works brilliantly, especially so on an iPad"¹⁶. JHS Pedals' writer put it simply: "You use your phone and via Bluetooth you create different presets"¹⁷.

H9 Max, H9 Core and the Gen 2

The H9 shipped in tiers. The H9 Core was the entry point⁹, while the H9 Max came fully loaded: Eventide pre-loads it with everything from all four Eventide stompboxes plus H9 exclusive algorithms, for 45 effect algorithms and over 500 factory presets¹³. MusicRadar noted the Max offered "all those algorithms and more for less than the price o[f]" buying the three dot9 series pedals at street prices¹⁸. The H9 Max is made in China¹⁹.

There is also a collector's item in the wild: JHS Pedals' writer described "a special edition H9 in my collection that is literally gold-plated", which comes with a wipe for fingerprints and has never been turned on¹⁷.

What reviewers said

Reviewers across a decade broadly rated the H9 highly, with a few consistent wishes. MusicPlayers.com's Bruce Sokolovic found the pedal upheld Eventide's reputation but "really wished this pedal had digital I/O" for studio use⁸. Performer Mag's Chris Devine noted that "since there are MIDI connections, it would be a snap for users to connect the H9 to a MIDI controller"²⁰. On the bench, Bass Gear Magazine scored the H9 Max 3.5 of 5 for ease of repair¹¹. MusicRadar called it Eventide's "acclaimed H9 pedal"²¹, and JHS Pedals' writer described it as "a pedal that I have used as a catch-all at the end of my board for the past five years"¹⁷.

For the Gen 2, Pete Thorn demoed the pedal carrying the H90's algorithms on updated ARM processing with an easier workflow⁷²²:

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He also published a later video of his favorite H9 and H90 algorithms, including new ones like Cosmic Web, Bokeh Delay and Headspace, with the controls shown on the editor screen, including Eventide-specific control names like "gravity"²².

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Videos

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Questions