The JPTR FX Bleach is a distortion and analog chorus pedal from JPTR FX, a builder of distortion pedals and fuzzes. The maker describes it as "your Seattle buzzsaw, an analog chorus circuit combined with our love language of raw destruction," a reference to the 1990s Seattle grunge sound it is aimed at1.
What it does
The Bleach puts two effects in one box. The distortion side is an OpAmp circuit with a filter similar to the "Muff," meaning it draws on the Big Muff family of fuzz and distortion designs1. Its clipping is handled by big clipping diodes that can be changed with internal dip switches, which JPTR FX says ensures "that the sound is properly grinding into your" amp1. In practice, that means the player can alter the distortion's clipping character without opening the pedal to solder, by flipping switches inside.
The chorus side is analog, and the maker describes it as "wide, wet and ultra-lush just waiting for waowaowao feedback or iconic, hypnotic lead tones"1. Together the two sides cover the saturated, chorused textures associated with 90s alternative guitar.
Seattle Guitar Destroyer 10 YRS EDT
JPTR FX also makes a limited edition version, the JPTR FX Bleach - Seattle Guitar Destroyer 10 YRS EDT. It combines the same distortion with an analog chorus circuit, which the maker calls "our love language of raw destruction"2.
The distortion side differs from the standard Bleach in its voicing. JPTR FX changed a handful of parts "to offer both scooped and mid-forward sounds" and, in the maker's words, "a wide tonal range"2. It keeps the big clipping diodes changeable with internal dip switches on the distortion side2.
Related pedals
JPTR FX's range includes several other dirt pedals that share the Bleach's heavy character:
- JPTR FX Gainsaw Distortion, described by Pedal of the Day in 2017 as a one-knob gated distortion ranging from overdrive to fuzz to distortion
- JPTR FX Silbermaschine Fuzz, a large parallel two-stage fuzz distortion drawing on the Tone Bender and Fuzz Face circuits, per Pedal of the Day in 2019
- JPTR FX Katastrophe
A related build from another maker is the Jeds Peds Brain Bleach, which the maker says will "suit guitar and bass, spitting out fat riffs from whatever your throw in the front end"3. Players working with bass may also find the bass pedals page useful for comparing options.
Videos
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Sources (3)
- JPTR FX Bleach, JPTR FX
- JPTR FX Bleach, JPTR FX
- Brain Bleach, Jeds Peds (jedspeds.co.uk)
