Hmm, still it feels strange reviewing an individual pedal. Still not missing the POD except for its recording easyness.
Anyways, on to the review:
The Hema definatly colors your tone. If you dont want that, dont buy it. Tho I can see/hear why peeps would want a transparent OD, I wanted one that would kill the extreme highs. The Hema does this
Even with the dark coloring of the Hema it stays defined, but sounds very pushed, even at low gain levels. The "pre-amp" side of it is nice too. Basically just a boost, but cus its before the OD circuit, it makes for some interesting sounds. On low gain it still pumps up the volume, tho not as much as it would've if the OD side is off. I actally had to mess around with different settings for a couple of hours just to be sure, but there is definatly more "grit" not just the same grit but louder. For me its awesome, and gives me more dynamic range to play with. I can play soft or hard and get different levels of grit out of the Hema, then pump in the boost for some extra heaviness and volume. As for the sound of this thing, on lowish gain (knob pointing at the "G") it makes my low A (downtuned from B on a 5er) go from "normal" to obnoxiously growly. It kills the ultra highs, but still emphisizes the pick attack in a nice way, and adds overall sustain to the bass. It also keeps the bass. A lot. It doesn't neccesarrily empisize it, but it doesn't cut it any either. The higher strings sound quite sweet too. Playing a little "Schism" (iirc) by Tool, the chords in the intro are sweeter and more present.
The EQ is nice too. A little one way or the other and it actually affects the sound. I have it a little towords the treble and it sounds a lot more cutting. I boost the mids a little at 800Hz on my amp and its a wonderful cutting tone. The EQ shift is a little strange tho. To the right it kills your high mids and attack, and it sounds as if im playing under a pillow. I imagine it would be usefull to someone, but I find I like it "open" (to the left).
Making this thing play nice with other pedals, especially those before it, can be interesting. I found that if I put my Goat before the Hema it killed to much of what made it a sweet fuzz. I put it after, and thanks to the blend I can still hear that wonderfull Hema tone. Another interesting effect of going Hema->Goat was that it makes the Goat produce a less "gated" sound, cus of the added sustain/compression from the Hema. IMO it actually makes the Goat smoother, less harsh.
Anyways, as I feel I can't really produce proper (read: mic'd) sound clips Im not going to do any until I decide what Im gonna do on that front. The ones in the wiki are pretty true to the sound of this pedal, so I dont think me adding to them is gonna make much difference to peeps opinions.
So, there you have it, my review of the Hema and the Hema/Goat combo.
Hema Review 
