The Origin Effects DCX Bass Tone Shaper & Drive is a tone shaper and drive pedal for bass, built to bring a range of old-school colors to a bass tone in one box1. Its circuit is inspired by Universal Audio's 610 preamp, which in its original form was used to record a long list of American musicians1. Origin Effects also makes the Cali76 Compact Bass compressor and the DCX Bass Studio, a related version of this circuit.
Controls and modes
The DCX has four rotary controls: Drive, Level, L.F. and H.F. The first two are self-explanatory, boosting the overdrive and setting the output level, while L.F. and H.F. shape the low and high ends of the tone1.
A Mode switch selects between two settings:
- EQ mode: the lower gain setting of the two, which is great for a clean boost or a very subtle drive tone
- OD: keeps the treble off permanently, for full overdrive sounds1
Adaptive Circuitry
The pedal's headline feature is called Adaptive Circuitry, described in the manual as "adjusting the pedal's voicing in response to playing dynamics and volume knob changes"1. In practice that means the voicing follows how hard you dig in and where your bass's volume knob sits, rather than applying one fixed EQ curve.
What it sounds like
Origin Effects' DCX Bass pedal aims to bring a range of old-school colors to your tone. Guitar World's reviewer, Joel McIver, described the range as running "from taut cleans via warm crunches to full-on overdrive, with the secondary goal to give you a degree of fine control over these sounds"1.
Build and power
The enclosure is, in McIver's words, "a chunky half-kilo of metal that looks able to survive being stamped on by stage divers"1. It weighs 18 oz (500g)1.
The DCX needs a 9V DC adaptor and draws 90mA, so check that your pedalboard power supply can spare the current on the output you plug it into1.
Verdict
Guitar World's review summed the pedal up as "a high-quality bass effects box containing a vast number of sounds", with a full recommendation for players who have the time and patience to master it1. For players mainly after clean shaping or light drive, the EQ mode covers boost and subtle drive duties, while the OD mode and Drive control reach full overdrive territory1.
Videos
Origin Effects
Origin Effects
Nate Navarro
Sources (1)
- Origin Effects DCX Bass Tone Shaper & Drive review, Guitar World, 2023-12-14
Rex Brown
