Vox 1905 Chorus

• 1900 Series
• (Discofreq’s Effects Database page.)
• Made in Japan 'to Vox specifications'

Related: Guyatone PS-110 Chorus Machine Box Effect Box Series Made in Japan (Discofreq’s Effects Database page.) As I mentioned in my review of the Vox 1901 Distortion, the six pedals that made up Vox's 1900 Series of effects pedals were largely just re-housings of selected 1970s Guyatone effects (from their Effect Box Series).

The Vox 1905 Chorus is very straightforward to use. There are three controls; the usual Intensity (depth) and Speed, and also an 'Input' control. The Input control is a gain control for the chorus circuit but almost acts more like an effect level control.

The instructions state that the Input should set so that the peak LED lights up occasionally, but I find that its setting is also linked to the effect depth and prominence. Lower Input level settings (even with the Intensity dialled right up) will produce a fairly mild chorus; around halfway sounds right to me for most things; or by turning it up further the modulated signal will become louder and stronger with a very vibrato-esque effect the result. [It's not quite a vibrato as the direct signal can still be heard - although not always very easily.]

Even with the Input level turned up (so the peak LED is almost constantly lit), I don't really hear any negative artefacts in the output; there is no increase in noise (the effect is very quiet, especially for its age) and there isn't any noticeable distortion. [Although, if your guitar has very high output pick-ups, your experience could differ from mine. The only time I've ever encountered any distortion from this pedal was when I tried it as a studio processor, feeding it with a line level signal - I had to heavily attenuate the signal to remove the distortion.]

Being a 1970s-designed effect (this is when the original Guyatone pedal was first produced), the effect is more warm, soft and subtle than what we're used to hearing today. Unlike most modern chorus pedals, the 1905 Chorus runs at 18v.

While the 1905 Chorus is excellent at subtle thickening effects, it is also capable of more prominent sounds with extreme settings. The waveform is nice and wobbly; not too precise and has a bit of a spring and bounce to it.

If you are in the market for a chorus pedal but don't want a bright/sparkly/shimmery/cheesy/80s/delete-as-appropriate effect, the Vox 1905 is one that is well worth investigating. It is one of the best I've used for subtle movement and thickening - I've even used it in a delay unit's effects loop for a very authentic tape-like flutter - but it can also be pushed for more out-there sounds. And it looks great.

* * * Notes about the video * * *

Gear used:

• Guitar - Epiphone Casino
• Recording set-up - 1980s Roland Cube 20 amp (DI'd through a Palmer PDI-09), to Cubase 5 (via a MOTU audio interface) with no additional processing.