Source Audio Soundblox 2 Orbital Modeller

The Source Audio Soundblox 2 Orbital Modeler, also spelled Orbital Modulator in the maker's own materials, is a compact digital multi-effects pedal built around modulation. It carries twelve effect types drawn from chorus, flanger, phaser and tremolo, and its two footswitches give you access to two modulation effects at a time, so you can set up a pair of sounds and switch between them mid-song¹². Source Audio released it in February 2013 as part of the Soundblox 2 series³.

Under the hood it is a digital pedal, built on Source Audio's proprietary 56-bit SA601 Digital Signal Processor with 24-bit converters³. The maker's description of what it covers runs wide: multi-voiced choruses, through-zero flange, rotary speaker simulation and variable notch phasers³.

Twelve modulation effects on two footswitches

The core idea of the Orbital is that you get a whole modulation collection in one small box. Delicious Audio described it at launch as a super-compact DSP powered pedal featuring 12 modulation effects⁴, and the maker's page sums up the package as "twelve effect types, nine adjustable parameters, plus internal or external modulation control"².

The breakdown by effect family, as Guitar Interactive reported it:

• Chorus: three chorus effects, from a classic single-voiced chorus to two- and four-voiced effects⁵
• Flanger: five flavors of flanger, including a tape flange (through-zero flange) and two Resonator flangers⁵
• Phaser: five phaser effects, from a Uni-Vibe inspired modulation to 8- and 12-stage phasers⁵

Two footswitches select between the two modulation effects you have loaded, and you can save two presets that are recalled via those same switches¹⁵. In practice that means one switch can hold, say, a subtle chorus and the other a deep phaser, with the tremolo-mix trick (below) layered onto either.

The controls

Every effect on the Orbital has nine adjustable parameters. MusicRadar's review, written by Trevor Curwen, notes that "All of the effects have nine adjustable parameters"¹, and Source Audio's launch materials list them: DEPTH, FEEDBACK, DELAY, FREQUENCY, VOLUME, LoRETAIN, TREMOLO, MIX, and SPEED³.

On the surface of the pedal there is a knob to choose the modulation source¹, which is how you pick what drives the effect: the internal control or one of the external options covered next.

Control by MIDI, expression pedal or Hot Hand

The Orbital's modulation can be driven by internal modulation control or externally via MIDI, an expression pedal, or Source Audio's Hot Hand motion sensor rings¹. This runs through the Multi-function In jack, which Source Audio described at launch:

The jack also makes the pedal MIDI capable, allowing MIDI access to presets and parameters³. That control scheme was a series-wide feature: the whole Soundblox 2 line was built with a multi-function input supporting MIDI, expression pedal, or Hot Hand control, so the Orbital shares its control approach with the rest of the range.

For a player, this means the rate and depth of a chorus or the sweep of a phaser can follow your foot on an expression pedal, respond to hand movement through a Hot Hand ring, or be programmed and switched from a MIDI controller¹³⁶.

Tremolo on top of any effect

One feature reviewers singled out is that tremolo is not just a twelfth effect type sitting in a menu. Tremolo can be embedded into any of the Orbital's effect types, which Source Audio said allows "dramatic three-dimensional effects like rotary speaker"⁵. MusicRadar's review highlights the same thing as "the ability to mix in tremolo to any of the effects"¹. The TREMOLO parameter in the nine-knob list is what controls it³.

What reviewers said

MusicRadar's Trevor Curwen reviewed the pedal and found it compact and capable, with a verdict of¹:

Earlier coverage collected strong press quotes. Premier Guitar raved that the pedal "packs just about every modulation flavor imaginable with some extra Source Audio tricks and filters," and Guitar Player called it "an insanely flexible, killer sounding mod box that runs the gamut from classic to otherworldly"⁵.

Where it sits in the Source Audio line

The Orbital Modulator belongs to the Soundblox 2 series, which Source Audio announced in late 2012 alongside the release window for the pedal itself³⁵. Source Audio released the Orbital Modulator in February 2013³, and the pedal is now available³. A player comparing the Orbital today is comparing a multi-effect modulation box against the focused stereo pedals in the maker's range, including the Source Audio Gemini chorus.

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