Believe it or not, analog is still very much a thing. You might not think all that much about going all analog, but believe you me, the means are totally there. Just look at a brand like JAM Pedals. Proudly all-analog, globally renowned, and favored by players on stages big and small, JAM Pedals have drummed up quite the fanbase. Check out any of their original, analog effects and you're sure to see why.
From Athens, Greece, JAM Pedals is one of your proverbial guitar nerd's favorite brands. What makes them so compelling? Let's find out.
Kick Out the JAMs
JAM Pedals History
Our JAM session starts with musician Jannis Anastasakis. A lifelong guitarist turned effect pedals purveyor, Anastasakis is among Greece's premier performers and composers. Anastasakis has been found all about Greece's jazz, psychedelic, theater, and experimental music scenes championing traditional and nontraditional guitar stylings. Since 2005, Anastasakis has also been hard at work as the founder of his very own pedal company, JAM Pedals.
The direction JAM Pedals has taken since its inception is clearly informed by Anastasakis's taste for the strange, vintage, all-analog music of the past – and has since been reflected in the artists who turned to JAM Pedals effects! JAM effects are centered around all-analog, sometimes completely proprietary, designs that prioritize tonal expressiveness, reliable playability, and authenticity above all else. Their love for vintage effects has brought them worldwide notoriety with a vast library of pedals trusted by your favorite guitarists and bassists. Today's JAM Pedals lineup runs the gamut from reliable recreations of historically finicky yet beloved-all-the-same fuzzes, modern-minded interpretations of classic modulations and delays, and so much more.
JAMs Run Free
JAM Pedals Effect Pedals
As Anastasakis has said himself, JAM Pedals sought to fill a gap of faithful representations of classic effects. "It’s extremely expensive to buy a '70s vintage guitar or a '65 original fuzz or Univibe," Anastasakis has stated. Thus, JAM Pedals seeks to be that option for players wanting something authentic, faithful, reliable, and quality – their effects' hand-built quality being something of an icing on the cake.
JAM Pedals Drives and Distortions
Some of JAM's most popular pedals play dirty – not by cheating, of course, but with drive, distortion, fuzz... you know what we mean. Even skimming through the JAM Pedals archive, you come across quite a few unique dirt pedals with varied effect voices and plenty of muscle behind them. JAM's drives and distortions focus in on classic effect archetypes and models – some of which somewhat forgotten to time – for a healthy variety of tones to choose from.
You see classic effect pedal archetypes redesigned in the JAM image like the Lucydreamer overdrive or Rattler distortion. The Lucydreamer, JAM's premier "screamer"-style overdrive, comes together with a top-secret, proprietary chip design that clips in its own unique way with a special focus towards mid and low-end frequencies. Capable of screamin' with the best of them with an onboard clean blend and second high-gain channel, the Lucydreamer has become a favorite of Slipknot's Mick Thomson, just in case you need that nu-metal seal of approval.
The JAM catalog also covers other staples of dirt with their Rattler and Rattler Bass distortions. Reminiscent of one dirty rodent in particular, the Rattler series has garnered the praise of longtime distortion aficionados like Testament's Alex Skolnick for its thunderous tones, onstage playability, and flexibility in a rig. The Rattler Bass has become similarly celebrated among bassists for its bass-forward and bass-friendly design and clean blend control.
JAM fuzzes are built up with plenty of fuzzy routes to take. Fuzz, a subset of effect known equally for their highly coveted place in the secondhand vintage market and historic reputation for, you know, breaking, is one of JAM's breads-and-butters. With JAM, you get pieces like the Fuzz Phrase Si and Eureka! – revivals of the JAM team's favorite '60s and '70s-era fuzzes with all the tone and none of the "Is it breaking? I can hear it breaking," that you're sure to experience with original, decades-old fuzzes. You talk about someone like Sean Ono Lennon and all the heavy and psychedelic sounds he slings onstage and his fixation on the Eureka! makes total sense.
JAM Pedals Modulations and Delays
It isn't always about dirt, though – it often is, but, you know, not always. JAM has you covered there, too. JAM Pedals also has an extensive selection of your favorite modulations and delays to cover your bases. For one, the JAM lineup features the Delay Llama analog delay with a custom-designed analog delay chip and thoroughly modern playability. Internal trimmers and a tap tempo and self-oscillation footswitch add up to make this an analog delay to fine tune exactly to your preferences and play with as you please.
Couple an analog delay with an analog chorus and vibrato and you're truly off to the races. The WaterFall, a chorus for people who don't like chorus and for people who really like chorus features a proprietary bucket brigade delay chip design that plays like your favorite blue box choruses and your most out-there wavering and wobbling vibratos, alike. The Delay Llama and WaterFall being favorites of someone like Dweezil Zappa might inform you about the retro authority these pedals play with. Or it might not. Up to you.
JAM Pedals' library tops off with some lesser-seen but none-the-less beloved effects like wah and tremolo. You might find pieces like the Harmonious Monk tremolo and Wahcko wah up near the top of "The Best" lists of their respective effects. The Harmonious Monk, originally a collaboration design with the guys from That Pedal Show offers pretty unprecedented control over a fully analog tremolo effect while the Wahcko wah seeks to deliver an authentic wah filter experience just like the many celebrated, teary-eyed wahs of the past with modern playability as a priority.
The JAM Remains the Same
For a brand like JAM, the mission is clear: Faithful and reliable representations of beloved, vintage effects. There's always a stone to turn for someone out there's favorite retro effect. JAM have certainly proved themselves masters of many domains with all-analog, proprietary effect designs that seamlessly integrate more modern-minded sensibilities like clean switching, internal trimming, and unencumbered playing.
JAM Pedals are timeless pieces primed for more years in the spotlight. They're prolific, they're reliable, they're ready for anything. JAM spreads; JAM preserves.
