Sonic Edge Tumbleweed

The Sonic Edge Tumbleweed is a combination boost and compressor pedal designed by Ben Fargen, the founder of Sonic Edge. It puts two channels side by side: a compressor with Level and sensitivity controls, and a boost channel with its own level knob. A three-way switch moves between three voicings labeled Brit, Cali and Jazz, which is what Premier Guitar's reviewer pointed to, along with the combination configuration, when he called the pedal exceptionally versatile¹.

Premier Guitar lists it at a street price of $269¹.

What it does and how it is controlled

The Tumbleweed's layout is simple: three knobs across the top. One sets the boost level for the boost channel, and the other two set Level and sensitivity on the compressor channel¹. The voicing switch is the third main control, selecting between the Brit, Cali and Jazz settings¹.

Because the two functions are separate channels rather than a single blended circuit, the pedal can work as a compressor alone, a clean boost alone, or both at once. The earlier Fargen version of the circuit was described by Vintage Guitar magazine as "a compressor and clean boost pedal," with the comp side carrying the Level and sensitivity controls².

Sonic Edge markets the pedal toward country players: Premier Guitar notes it is "even advertised as 'an innovative country pedal'" on the company's website¹. The reviewer's own testing suggests a wider range. He found it exceptionally versatile for shaping aggressive rock tones, increasing sustain and presence, and fattening up clean tones in crowded band mixes¹.

For his review clips, the Premier Guitar reviewer recorded a Custom First Act Delgada with mini-humbuckers into a 1968 Fender Vibro Champ, and he also used the pedal in tests with a Fender Telecaster, a Danelectro Hodad 12-string, a Fender Blues Jr., and a Fender Bassman 4x10 reissue¹.

Where it came from

Ben Fargen launched Sonic Edge as a newly founded guitar and bass effects company, announced in a Premier Guitar press release in March 2010³. At launch, Fargen said the company had developed nine additional product designs, with many more in the works, and that it would distribute products directly to consumers as well as through dealers³. The company is also known for the Fluffer isolation buffer and the FXUL8R, which Vintage Guitar described as adding effects without the need for a built-in effects loop⁴.

The Tumbleweed circuit later appeared under a second name. In 2013, Guitar World reported the release of the Pete Anderson Tumbleweed, a signature pedal for Pete Anderson, described as a multi-platinum and GRAMMY Award-winning producer, artist and writer. That pedal, now documented on its own page as the Fargen Pete Anderson Tumbleweed, is based on the original Tumbleweed circuit released under the Sonic Edge brand⁵. Guitar Interactive Magazine reported the same lineage⁶, and Vintage Guitar described the Fargen version as carrying a new design⁶⁷. Anderson's own words at the time: "My signature Tumbleweed brings clear sustain and clean gain, all in one pedal, just the way I like it."⁵

What a reviewer said

Premier Guitar's review is the main published verdict on the Sonic Edge version. The reviewer's summary praise centered on the pedal's combination boost and compressor configuration and its switchable voicing capabilities, which he found exceptionally versatile overall¹. His specific applications: shaping aggressive rock tones, increasing sustain and presence, and fattening up clean tones so they hold their place in crowded band mixes¹. On build quality, he found the enclosure burly, tough, and ready for the rigors of stage use¹.

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