Shift-line Astronaut

The Shift Line Astronaut is what the maker calls a Multiverb Space Unit: a compact reverb pedal with eight fixed programs that range from a plain room sound to octave-up shimmer and long, filtered "deep space" washes. Shift Line describes it as "reverb unit with fixed deep and cosmic sound modes," an "8-stage rocket to reach deep space"¹. It is a small box, 111 x 60 x 30 mm (4.3 x 2.4 x 1.2 inches) without knobs and half a pound, so it fits easily on a crowded board¹.

The original Astronaut is discontinued. Shift Line marks it as such on its product page¹, and the family carried on through the Astronaut V.2, the Astronaut III and the A+ Astronaut V, each generation expanding on the original's programs.

An eight-program space reverb

The Program knob switches between eight fixed modes, each a different take on space rather than a tweakable reverb engine¹:

The set covers the ground a player looking for one space pedal usually wants: a normal room, a spring substitute, two shimmers, a big filtered wash and a reverse-flavored delay, all selected with one knob rather than menus¹.

The controls

The Astronaut keeps its surface simple: three knobs and a footswitch.

The Mix knob reaching full wet matters for the ambient end of the pedal's range: with Sky Net or a shimmer at 100% wet, the dry guitar disappears into the wash entirely. Level sitting at unity fully counterclockwise means the pedal can be set transparent, then boosted only when a program needs it¹.

The bypass button also hides a function that is not on the panel. As Shift Line explains¹:

That choice matters in practice. With input muting on, the reverb could be fully muted in bypass and will start making reverberation only after engaging it. With it off, the pedal could always listen to the input signal and play tails right after pressing the bypass button¹.

Power: 9V, 25mA

Power comes from a 9V regulated center negative adapter or a 9V battery, drawing 25mA¹. The battery option is unusual for a digital multiverb and genuinely usable at that draw, and the low current also means the pedal is easy to place on a shared 9V supply. The center negative polarity matches the common standard, so most pedalboard power supplies fit without an adapter cable.

Astronaut V.2: eleven programs and a tails switch

The Astronaut V.2 grew the concept from eight programs to eleven, and Pedal of the Day described it as "a multiverb space reverb unit" in the same spirit as the original². The added programs push further into experimental territory:

The V.2's controls work the same way as the original's, with two refinements. Mix still blends wet and dry and can go 100% wet, while Level gained headroom: Pedal of the Day notes it "is your output level boost, with the ability to add up to +10dB when maxed out"². Decay "controls the length of the reverb, but also has different uses depending on which program you're using," including delay time and rate in some programs².

The biggest functional change is the Tails toggle. As Pedal of the Day put it²:

Where the original Astronaut buries its tails behavior in a hidden button-press routine, the V.2 puts it on a switch: the Bypass footswitch ends the effect according to the Tails setting, so a ringing reverb can either fade out naturally or stop dead².

Where the line went next

The Astronaut III, the third generation, expanded the format into 22 reverb, delay and sampling algorithms in two banks, with switchable reverb tails in bypass and a multifunctional bypass switch offering press-and-hold Infinity Mode³. Delicious Audio noted the V3 "offers 22 different reverb, delay and sampling algorithms, compared to the 11 reverbs offered by the previous version"⁴. The III includes extended versions of algorithms from the Astronaut, Astronaut V.2 and Shift Line Force³, so the original pedal's programs live on inside it.

The current A+ Astronaut V continues the family with 22 unique stereo algorithms including reverbs, delays and microsampling, based on an ARM processor⁵, and RockBoard describes it as able to do "anything from traditional reverb sounds to complex soundscapes, effects and arpeggios"⁶. There was also a Eurorack-format A+ Astronaut Modular, since discontinued, which ran the same algorithm idea on +/-12V module power⁷.

For a player weighing the generations: the original Astronaut is the simplest and smallest, eight fixed programs, three knobs, battery power; the V.2 adds three more programs, a +10dB level range and the Tails switch; the III and V multiply the algorithm count and add stereo, sampling and MIDI-style control, at higher current draw¹².

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