Strymon unveils the Cloudburst Ambient Reverb, its most affordable and compact pedal yet

Strymon has unveiled its latest reverb pedal, the Cloudburst Ambient Reverb, which introduces a new form factor for the company, along with a new price tag.

As the name suggests, the pedal builds on the Cloud algorithm – one of the standouts from the company’s flagship BigSky – but adapts it to cover a wider array of sounds, from rooms and halls to its trademark ambient pads.

Despite its downsized chassis, the Cloudburst adds a new feature that sets it apart from its forebears: its newly developed Ensemble processing essentially takes the longstanding shimmer reverb to the next level, adding a wealth of new harmonics for an almost orchestral effect.

Seriously, listen to the demo – we’re expecting this to crop up on a lot of ambient pedalboards in the coming months.

Controls include a three-way switch for the amount of Ensemble effect, as well as the usual Decay, Mix, Pre-Delay, Tone and Mod knobs.

The Cloudburst’s top-mounted jacks include TRS inputs and outputs for stereo operation, as well as an EXP/MIDI jack, which can be set for Expression Pedal, Favorite, Freeze, Infinite or MIDI control. There’s also USB connectivity, a mono/stereo switch and the industry-standard 9V power supply in (you’ll need at least 250mA of juice for this one).

And, of course, there’s the $279 price tag, which makes this the most affordable pedal in the Strymon catalog.

For more info on the Cloudburst, hit up Strymon (opens in new tab).

It’s been a big year for Strymon reverbs: back in October, the BigSky was launched as a plugin, while the blueSky reverb was revamped with new features in June, along with five other dual-footswitched Strymon classics.

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Michael Astley-Brown

Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master's degree in journalism, and has spent the past decade writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar (opens in new tab), Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as the best part of 20 years performing in bands of variable genre (and quality). In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe (opens in new tab).