The Keeley Electronics Memphis Sun Lo-Fi Echo Reverb Double Tracker is a lo-fi reverb, echo and automatic double tracker in one pedal. Guitar.com's Sam Atkins described what it offers as "a unique small room reverb pedal (simulating the hallowed 33x18ft asbestos-tiled room) with added slapback, along with ADT (auto double tracking)"1. ADT, or automatic double tracking, is a studio trick that layers a doubled version of the guitar under the original, and here it sits alongside the room reverb and slapback echo1.
Pedal of the Day reviewed the pedal in May 2024, calling it "like being transported to a 1950s recording session" and concluding that "if you've been looking for something to add to your pedalboard for a vintage vibe, the Keeley Memphis Sun is just what y[ou need]"2.
The three modes
Pedal of the Day describes the Memphis Sun as offering "three modes for three distinct starting points"2. The two reviews describe them in matching terms:
| Mode | What it does |
|---|---|
| Echo 600 | A lo-fi echo with long delays, over the small room reverb21 |
| Sun | Auto track doubling and modulated slapback echo with short delays, over the small room reverb21 |
| Room | The studio simulation reverb on its own, with pre-delay and variable filtering21 |
The Room mode is the pedal's studio simulation reverb, and it is where the small-room character is most direct. Guitar.com's reviewer noted that "the reverb is subtly compressed, which successfully emulates what happens to loud sounds in a small space"1.
Controls
The pedal carries four knobs and a mode switch: Time, regen/mod, reverb and mix, with the three switchable modes selecting between the Echo 600, Sun and Room starting points1. The regen/mod control covers the echo's repeats and modulation depending on the mode in use1.
Where it sits in the Keeley line
In a Stompbox Book interview, James Rotondi and Robert Keeley described the Memphis Sun as a themed reverb-line pedal, combining lo-fi reverb, delay and ADT3. Players who want the doubling effect on its own can look at the Keeley Automatic Double Tracker, which Guitar.com reviewed alongside the Memphis Sun, and the room-reverb approach also appears in the Keeley Abbey Chamber Verb from the same review1. Other themed reverb pedals in the maker's range include the Keeley Caverns and the Keeley Zoma.
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Questions
What room is the Keeley Memphis Sun based on?
Guitar.com describes the pedal as a recreation of the classic Memphis studio room, simulating what it calls the hallowed 33x18ft asbestos-tiled room. The reverb is subtly compressed, which the reviewer found successfully emulates what happens to loud sounds in a small space.
What is ADT on a guitar pedal?
ADT stands for automatic double tracking. On the Memphis Sun it is part of the Sun mode, where the pedal adds an auto track doubling effect alongside a modulated slapback echo with short delays, layered over the small room reverb.
Is the Memphis Sun part of a themed Keeley reverb line?
Yes. In an interview with Stompbox Book, Robert Keeley and James Rotondi described the Memphis Sun as a themed reverb-line pedal, combining lo-fi reverb, delay and ADT in one unit.
Who makes the Memphis Sun Lo-Fi Reverb?
The Memphis Sun is made by Keeley Electronics, the US pedal builder founded by Robert Keeley. Pedal of the Day reviewed it as the Keeley Electronics Memphis Sun Lo-Fi Echo Reverb Double Tracker.
Sources (3)
- Keeley Electronics 30ms Double Tracker, Abbey Chamber Verb & Memphis Sun Reverb reviews, Guitar.com, 2016-02-22
- Keeley Electronics Memphis Sun Lo-Fi Echo Reverb Double Tracker, Pedal of the Day, 2024-05-05
- Keeley Electronics, Stompbox Book (stompboxbook.com), 2019-01-13
