Freqscene Effects Koldwave

The Freqscene Effects Koldwave is an analog BBD chorus and vibrato pedal inspired by the Boss CE-2. It takes the vintage CE-2 circuit and gives it a modern makeover: more depth and speed than the original, a vibrato mode, and three extra knobs plus a Mode switch where the CE-2 had only two controls¹². It was designed, built and backed in Canada, and was the result of over a year of tinkering and countless revisions by its designer and engineer, Wade¹³.

The controls: Speed, Depth, Mode, Warp, Amp and Freq

Where the original CE-2 offered just two controls, the Koldwave gives you six. Guitar Pedal X lists them as Speed, Depth, Mode (Vibrato / Chorus), Warp (Detune), Amp (Output) and Freq (Wet Tone)².

The Warp knob is the control that sets the Koldwave apart most. Pedal of the Day calls it the pedal's secret weapon, one that "will get you those super detuned rubber band sounds"¹. The designer's own explanation, as reported by Guitar Pedal X, is that "Warp adds flutters at the edge of modulation, giving a more 3-dimensional output"³. In practice it can push the effect toward fluttery, unstable textures or pull it back and temper the output⁴.

Amp and Freq shape the character of the wet signal. Amp adds warmth and volume with what Guitar Pedal X describes as a huge amount of range, while Freq adjusts the tone of the wet path⁴. Pedal of the Day notes that a lot of the CE-2's muddiness is gone in the Koldwave, giving it more of a "3D" tone, which the review attributes to reworked preamp EQ filtering¹.

A CE-2 circuit with extra controls

The Koldwave is built around the Boss CE-2 circuit, the 1979 chorus pedal that Freqscene's whole approach expands on². Like nearly all current CE-2 style pedals, it uses a bucket brigade device (BBD) chipset: Guitar Pedal X reports the Koldwave uses CoolAudio V3207D and V3102D chips⁴. BBD chips pass your signal along a chain of capacitors a step at a time, and modulating that delay time is what creates the chorus effect.

The underlying architecture follows the CE-2's design. Anasounds' technical analysis of the CE-2 explains that the first part of the circuit generates a square wave signal, whose frequency varies with the RATE pot, and that this LFO drives the delay modulation⁵. The Koldwave keeps this analog approach but widens its range: Pedal of the Day reports a little more depth and speed than the classic CE-2 circuit¹.

Compared with the original, the Koldwave adds three knobs and a Mode switch on top of the CE-2's two controls². It sits alongside the Freqscene Slow Life, which expands Boss's 1979 SG-1 Slow Gear in the same spirit².

Chorus and vibrato in one pedal

The Mode switch selects between chorus and vibrato³. In chorus mode, Pedal of the Day says it covers "all those classic '80s lush chorus sounds you know and love, but with more functionality, range"¹. Flip to vibrato and the pedal produces what the same review calls "all the lo-fi, warped vinyl, seasick sounds you could want"¹. With the Speed knob fully clockwise, it can do the rotary speaker thing¹.

What reviewers said

Published reviewers were positive across the board. Guitar Pedal X's Stefan Karlsson, reviewing it in June 2026, called it "One of the best sounding Choruses I have encountered", crediting the additional Warp, Amp and Freq controls, and praising a great pseudo rotary speaker voicing². His fuller review the same month found it "delivers the maximum impact with the least amount of controls", excelling in looks, function, ease of use and quality of output design, and capable of lush, shimmery, fluttery, warm, loud and faux-rotary sounds⁴.

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