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I ordered a MXR Phase 90 about a week ago and just recieved my Dunlop TS-1 Tremolo in the mail today.

My thoughts are as follows...

Phase-90:

Okay, you've all probably played one of these at one time or another but for me this is a first. Having been weaned on multi-knobed phasers like the Boss PH-3 the striking simplicity of the single-knob on Phase-90 made me chuckle a little at first. I mean, the thing didn't even come with instructions!

I plugged my Yamaha Pacifica Telecaster into the little orange box and then into a PODxt and was bowled over by how many differant tones I could get by turning single idiot-proof knob ever so slightly. From the watery heaven of the 2 o'clock to the slow rising phase at 8 o'clock to the wigged out warble of 5 o'clock this thing had a setting for everything.

Granted, the Phase-90 doesn't offer the wealth of tones other phasers like the Boss PH-3 or Ibanez PH-7 Phase Modulator, but it does what it does really well. I'm not really into turning knobs and flicking switches as I once thought I was after buying, and subsequantly selling, the Boss PH-3.

I've constantly heard bad things about the reissue but wasn't sure if these things were true because I'd never actually tried one myself. Getting this pedal was a big gamble since I've already been through about 3 phasers and the last thing I needed was one with bad press or crappy tone. The Phase-90 actually delivered in every catogory the naysayers said it wouldn't.

From now on just one knob is all I need. That's it. I'm in love forever (hopefully).

Dunlop TS-1 Tremolo:

Encased in a grape purple bulletproof housing the Dunlop TS-1 Tremolo may not be as simple as the Phase-90 but it's just as idiot-proof.

The three controls on the top of the unit are you basic Intensity, which determines how much of the Tremolo single is mixed with the original guitar signal, Shape, from wave to triangular/trapazoidal to square, and Speed, which controls the speed of the Tremolo.
The two footswitches, quot;Mono/Stereoquot; and quot;Effect/Bypassquot;, change the operation from stereo (2 amps or two speakers) or mono (one amp) and to turn the unit on/off (duh). A neat feature is that when in stereo mode the led light above the quot;Mono/Stereoquot; footswitch blinks in time to whatever setting the speed control is at. A tremolo pedal that keeps time? What a fantastic idea!
The top of the unit contains an input, a quot;output tipquot; output (mono plug-if there's one ring on your cable near the tip), an quot;output ringquot; output (stereo plug - if there's a ring on the top and the sleeve of the cable), a 9V DC jack, and a push switch that allows you to change between stereo or mono operation (depending on your application).

As with the Phase-90 the subtly of the controls was amazing. The slightest movement in any of the controls caused a new sound to come rolling out of my headphones. I was able the coax pretty much any Tremolo sound from vintage to modern without much tweaking.

The only drawback with the TS-1 is that it's pretty dang big and a tad high off the ground. It won't take up a lot of real-estate on your pedalboard, but it may look a little gigantic if all you use is Boss size footpedals or smaller MXR boxes like the author of this article (well, now I do anyway).

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In conclusion: I'm pretty happy with both purchases. I'd recommend anybody looking for a simple, but effective phaser the Phase-90 (but that goes without saying...it's the Phase-90!) and the TS-1 Tremolo for anyone looking for a versatile, easy to use Tremolo.

Excellent man, glad you like the pedals, and thanks for taking the time to type up your review!

I was looking at that Tremolo, now im sold. Thanks for that!