30 Pedals in 30 Days 2014: Korg Nuvibe Vibrato/Chorus

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When it comes to tones that had their advent in the Woodstock era, there’s one that stands out and is the hardest to capture. The Univibe. Played by the biggest name in classic rock on the biggest day of classic rock, the origins of this pedal are just as mysterious as the sound itself. Well, Korg has gone back to the source to recreate that classic tone. For 30 Pedals in 30 Days, TheToneKing.com brushed off their hacky sacks and tied-dyes to check out Korg’s Nuvibe.

Many attempts have been made to recapture the classic Chorus/Vibrato but most have fallen short of the attempt. There’s a big reason. Very few people understood the design and the components were hard to get a hold of. Not to mention that only a few of the original units exist. For decades, it seemed that harnessing that unique Chorus/Vibrato sound heard around the world would be difficult, if not impossible to recreate.

When I say that Korg went back to the source, I wasn’t kidding. Korg found the original designer, Fumio Mieda, to repeat his success. With the original engineer’s supervision, Korg began with creating original circuits that simulated the hard to get a hold of parts. Korg believes that their hard work has paid off, and they believe to have exactly recreated the original sound of the Univibe.

That would’ve been enough to get most players stoked. But Korg went about sixty-nine steps further. First, by integrating 10 individual sliders than can be used to vary the LFO waveform, the Nuvibe creates a unique tonal experience while recreating a classic. Recreate that classic Hendrix sound by setting the sliders to the markers or create something new. Either way, players are going to be blown away from the variation that this pedal offers.

A footswitch also lets players determine which effect is dominant. And, an expression pedal is included to vary the speed of the effect in real time. When the expression pedal is brought all the way down, the effect is bypassed. On the pedal, are three additional dials; a volume, an intensity, and a speed for maximum versatility.

When you talk about iconic sounds, there aren’t many that can reach the level of the Univibe. And, because of its rarity, its reached the top of Olympus where many thought it could never be obtained again. Well, Korg climbed that mount and happened to get their hands on that sound. On the way, they decided to include some features that improve on the original, making it more versatile for today’s player. They don’t call it “Nu” for nothing, and Korg’s Univibe was a historic addition to TheToneKing.com’s 30 Pedals in 30 Days 2014.

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