Strymon Brig

The Strymon Brig is a compact stereo delay pedal from Strymon that recreates the sound and feel of analog bucket brigade delays (BBDs) using the company's dBucket processing. Instead of modeling tape machines or digital racks, the Brig is built around three distinct bucket brigade voicings, delivering what Strymon describes as "the warmth, subtle grit and unique tactile playing experience of analog bucket brigade delays" in a five-knob, single-footswitch enclosure¹. It was released on July 18, 2023².

The pedal is digital, but it is not a generic digital delay. Strymon's dBucket engine emulates how bucket brigade chips actually behave, including the way notes degrade as they pass through the delay line and the character of the modulation those circuits produce³. Delicious Audio describes the Brig as "a rather simple (at least for Strymon's standards) 3-mode, 5-knob stereo delay" built around that proprietary dBucket chip⁴.

What the Brig does

A bucket brigade delay passes your signal through a chain of analog chip stages, and each stage takes a small toll: the repeats get slightly darker, grittier and more degraded as they cycle. The Brig's dBucket engine reproduces that behavior digitally, so repeats "evolve with captivating complexity and uncommonly rich tonal characteristics," in Strymon's words¹. MusicRadar's Rob Laing framed the launch the same way: "It's about how Brig emulates and captures the BBD character of degrading" notes³.

The signal path starts with an analog stage: a high impedance, ultra low-noise, discrete Class A JFET preamp input, which gearnews noted "should help to maintain tone" at the front of the chain¹⁶. From there the delay is digital, with full stereo input and output through a single TRS input jack and a single TRS output jack, and a rear Mono/Stereo switch for stereo operation¹⁷. Use a TS cable for mono output or a TRS cable for stereo; a TRS adapter cable for stereo input is required and not included¹.

The Brig sits in Strymon's delay lineup alongside the dBucket family. Strymon's own buying guide lists the pedals that use the dBucket algorithm as the TimeLine, Ola, Orbit and "the brilliant all-new Brig"⁸.

The three voices: 3205, 3005 and Multi

The Voice control selects between three bucket brigade circuits, each modeled on real chip configurations⁹¹⁰.

The 3205 voice has a range of 30ms to 300ms via the Time knob, extending up to two seconds in tap tempo mode¹¹. MusicRadar's review notes that Pete Celi designed the Multi Voice mode for the Brig¹¹. Because the 3205 voice reaches down to 30ms, it can double as a chorus: set it to the minimum 30ms delay time and turn up the modulation, and the Brig works as a BBD chorus pedal¹³.

The controls

The front panel carries five knobs: Time, Mix, Filter, Repeats and Mod⁶.

The single footswitch engages and disengages the effect, with a red LED at the top of the pedal indicating the effect is on¹. The chassis is a strong and lightweight anodized aluminum build¹.

Tap tempo, presets and MIDI

Despite having only one footswitch, the Brig includes onboard tap tempo¹⁵. Press and hold the footswitch for 1 second to enter or exit TAP mode, then tap quarter notes to set the delay time; the LED flashes red and blue to indicate the tempo¹⁵. While in tap mode, the Time knob sets the tap division: minimum is triplets, 10 o'clock is eighth notes, 1 o'clock is dotted eighth notes, and maximum is quarter notes (the default)¹⁴.

The rear EXP/MIDI jack is configurable to multiple functions. To configure it, press and hold the footswitch for at least 2 seconds while connecting power, release when the LED flashes red, then turn the Mix knob to select the function¹⁴:

• Expression Pedal mode (green LED, default): continuous control over one or more knobs¹⁴
• MIDI mode: full MIDI via a 1/4" TRS connection using a Strymon Conduit or MIDI EXP cable, with up to 300 presets available via MIDI Program Change messages¹⁴
• Favorite mode (amber, 11 o'clock): a Strymon MiniSwitch recalls a Favorite setting¹⁶

MIDI can also be sent over USB-C, which gearnews notes is used for DAW MIDI control and firmware updates⁶. With a MultiSwitch Plus connected, you save a preset by pressing and holding the footswitch for at least 3 seconds until the LED blinks blue¹⁷.

History: from the Brigadier

The Brig is the compact successor to the Strymon Brigadier, Strymon's earlier dBucket delay¹. Strymon's Sean Halley put it this way at launch: "Even though it shares lineage with our classic Brigadier pedal, Brig is a new thing entirely"⁹. Gearnews likewise called it "an update of the larger format pedal"⁶.

The Brigadier, reviewed by Pedal of the Day in 2014, offered three delay time modes (Short, Medium and Long), a dedicated Modulation control, a Filter control for the repeats, and a press-and-hold Tap function for infinite repeats¹⁹. Its brochure also listed three tap tempo modes: quarter, dot and triplet²⁰. The Brig carries the same core ideas forward in the smaller format Strymon introduced with the Cloudburst, adding stereo TRS I/O, USB-C and the 300-preset MIDI implementation⁶.

What reviewers said

Reviews were largely positive, with a few reservations.

• MusicRadar (Rob): "The Brig packs a great emulation of Bucket Brigade delay glory into a compact package," calling it easy to use and compact, with a Multi mode that creates inspiring sustained sounds¹¹.
• Guitar.com (Jason Mays): reviewed at $259/£259, part of Strymon's compact-format line²¹.
• Pedal of the Day: "Strymon has done it once again, folks," calling it a wonderful delay¹².
• Guitar Pedal X (Stefan Karlsson): more measured, writing "The Brig does sound decent though, no complaints there, it's just nowhere near as exciting as the Cloudburst!"²²
• gearnews (Jef): "Not a bad little pedal, but there is already a lot of competition from other brands in the analogue delay marketplace"⁶.

Videos

Click to load

Click to load

Click to load

Questions