“It has taken us a long time to get this package perfected. I’ve got everything in here that I could dream of”: Keeley spent three years crafting the Octa Psi – a crazy 3-in-1 octave/pitch-shifting/fuzz pedal
With versatile switching, a wealth of voices and some smart functionality, the Octa Psi could be the only pitch/octave/fuzz pedal your ’board could ever need
Octa Psi Transfigurating Fuzz Demo | Featuring Aaron and Robert | Keeley Electronics - YouTube
Keeley has introduced the Octa Psi Transfiguring Fuzz – a wild new triple threat stompbox that serves as a pitch-shifting, octave generating, analog fuzz pedal.
As expected, it’s got a wealth of tones on tap, all of which are accessible from its intuitive topography. There are footswitches for the Octave and Fuzz, as well as two sets of control circuits that serve each effect type.
For the transistor-based fuzz, there are Fuzz, Level and Tone knobs, as well as a Scoop/Punch/Psi toggle that flicks between selected EQ and bass responses.
The octave, meanwhile, offers a Blend control, a Pitch parameter that cycles through a +/– two octave range, and an Up/Down/Dual switch that taps into an array of intervals.
On their own, there’s enough on each side to offer a comprehensive array of the selected effect, but when put together, these two sides seek to deliver a different playing experience altogether.
This is boosted by the fact the Octa Psi lets players switch the effect order – run the fuzz into the octave/pitch shifter, or vice versa, which is very neat – by holding down both footswitches, and offers the option for both true and silent buffered bypass.
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(Image credit: Keeley)
(Image credit: Keeley)
Further still, there’s an adjustable ramp speed, and the option to run All Wet or Wet/Dry modes for some especially crazy octave fuzz sounds.
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By all appearances, the Octa Psi is a pretty stacked three-in-one fuzz pedal, but that’s what you get when you invest time and money into crafting a stompbox. For Keeley, this particular pedal took three years to make – and, apparently, it is perfect.
“It has taken us a long time to get this package perfected,” says Robert Keeley. “My whole team has been working on it for three years. I’ve pretty much got everything but the kitchen sink in there now. I’ve got everything in here that I could dream of.”
The Octa Psi is available now for $249 – a rather savvy price, especially when you consider the fact you're effectively getting three pedals in one here. That, and it sounds absolutely wild.
Matt is a Senior Staff Writer, writing for Guitar World, Guitarist and Total Guitar. He has a Masters in the guitar, a degree in history, and has spent the last 16 years playing everything from blues and jazz to indie and pop. When he’s not combining his passion for writing and music during his day job, Matt records for a number of UK-based bands and songwriters as a session musician.
