The Henretta Engineering Purple Octopus is an octave up effect pedal, also listed as the Purple Octopus Octave Up, made by Henretta Engineering. It takes your guitar's signal and generates a note one octave above what you are playing, and Pedal of the Day's reviewer described the result as "creating a multitude of squeaks, blips, bleeps and even delving into ring modulator territory"1. An octave up effect works differently from down-and-octave designs such as the Boss OC-2 or the MXR Blue Box, which the same review points out as a contrast1.
Size and controls
The pedal measures 2" x 2", and reviewer Mike B of Pedal of the Day noted that "Measuring 2″ x 2″, it would be pretty hard to find a pedal smaller"1. That footprint leaves space for only the essentials: "With the size and only one lone stomp switch"1, the pedal carries a single trim pot on the outside.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Trim pot (external) | Adjusts the output volume of the octave effect1 |
| Two small trimpots (internal) | Accessed by opening the back plate, for an extended level of control1 |
The two internal trimpots sit under the back plate. Adjusting them means opening the pedal up, so set them where you can hear the pedal while you work.
What reviewers said
Pedal of the Day reviewed the Purple Octopus in December 2015, with the feature's product page posted on Sunday, November 29, 20152. Mike B's verdict was that it "might just be the perfect compliment to your pedalboard, and one you never even thought you needed"1.
Henretta Engineering publishes a user manual for the Purple Octopus as a PDF on its website, which the review links to1.
Videos
Chicago Music Exchange
Brett Kingman
Phil Vickman
Questions
How big is the Henretta Engineering Purple Octopus?
The Purple Octopus measures 2 inches by 2 inches. Pedal of the Day's reviewer, Mike B, wrote that at that size it would be pretty hard to find a pedal smaller, which makes it easy to fit onto a crowded pedalboard.
How many footswitches does the Purple Octopus have?
It has one stomp switch. With the pedal's small footprint and a single lone stomp switch, there is no room for anything else, so all further adjustments are made with the trim pot and the internal trimpots.
What are the trimpots inside the Purple Octopus?
Opening the back plate reveals two small trimpots on the inside. Henretta Engineering includes them for an extended level of control beyond the single external trim pot, which adjusts the output volume of the octave effect.
Is there a manual for the Purple Octopus?
Yes. Henretta Engineering publishes a user manual for the Purple Octopus as a PDF on its website, and Pedal of the Day links to it in its review of the pedal.
Sources (2)
- Henretta Engineering Purple Octopus Octave Up, Pedal of the Day (pedal-of-the-day.com), 2015-12-05
- Henretta Engineering Purple Octopus Octave Up, Pedal of the Day, 2015-11-29
