Darkglass Anagram Multi FX Announced

[SteveFromBerlin]

Hey guys, 6-ish-months-review:

I am VERY happy with my Anagram!

The NAM captures make all the difference to me, for I am able to sonically go much further than I would be with only the provided blocks. Especially in the beginning back in 04/2025. It is the first time that I am able to capture certain fuzz pedals as well as my studio chain if I want to: For example, I use a NAM capture to spice up my Stingray Special with a mix of Arkham Preamp -> NEVE 1073 SPX -> Finally DI. Magic!

To be honest, I never was a fan of Darkglass in the past. Even though I loved the Vintage Microtubes and some of their other drive circuits, I always hated how they incorporated the blend knob. (Still do with the current digital versions.) But Anagram is different! Compared to my previous FM3, it has the perfect form factor, a modern UI and convenient I/O routing possibilities. I just LOVE their octavers - the best in the market if you ask me!

Some of my initial cons have already been addressed or will be addressed in the future, like MIDI (missed it SO much on a tour back in june!), better comps and the new awesome multiband distortion plugin.

Here are the things I still miss, to make it the ultimate pedal - at least to me:

• an EQ block (!!!)
• a Brassmaster / Woolly Mammoth
• Variable LED Colors (so I can choose my own color for different scenes, like green / yellow / red for clean / crunch / distortion
• a Phaser and better Chorus (sounds a bit sterile / not warm enough to me, though I love the freq-split option. I'd love a Yamaha SPX 90 symphonic preset-block: Andy Wallace!)
• a Synth Block like Entropia
• better Reverb (the reverb is good, but I can't get a decent room-sound and a spring reverb for surf sounds or songs like “Feel it still” would be great)

My initial biggest con though was this:

I still don’t understand why Darkglass offered different amps to choose from but only incorporated their EQ-curves and not their gain / volume controls. People play a full tube SVT for their ability to push the input or output section. Because there is a different type of crunch to either that would won't find in any of the DG pedals. Other people swear by GK 400/800 RB because of their legendary “Hittin’ the rails” sound. When using the bassman on my Fractal FM3, I loved pushing the power tube section.

The only block that can do this is the Super California one - and that (along with some NAM captures) is instrumental to getting the sound from this video:

 

[Franciscus]

+1 for the Variable LED Colors. Coming from the HX Stomp (like many of you), I really miss it

 

[ga_edwards]

Hey guys, 6-ish-months-review:

I am VERY happy with my Anagram!

The NAM captures make all the difference to me, for I am able to sonically go much further than I would be with only the provided blocks. Especially in the beginning back in 04/2025. It is the first time that I am able to capture certain fuzz pedals as well as my studio chain if I want to: For example, I use a NAM capture to spice up my Stingray Special with a mix of Arkham Preamp -> NEVE 1073 SPX -> Finally DI. Magic!

To be honest, I never was a fan of Darkglass in the past. Even though I loved the Vintage Microtubes and some of their other drive circuits, I always hated how they incorporated the blend knob. (Still do with the current digital versions.) But Anagram is different! Compared to my previous FM3, it has the perfect form factor, a modern UI and convenient I/O routing possibilities. I just LOVE their octavers - the best in the market if you ask me!

Some of my initial cons have already been addressed or will be addressed in the future, like MIDI (missed it SO much on a tour back in june!), better comps and the new awesome multiband distortion plugin.

Here are the things I still miss, to make it the ultimate pedal - at least to me:

• an EQ block (!!!)
• a Brassmaster / Woolly Mammoth
• Variable LED Colors (so I can choose my own color for different scenes, like green / yellow / red for clean / crunch / distortion
• a Phaser and better Chorus (sounds a bit sterile / not warm enough to me, though I love the freq-split option. I'd love a Yamaha SPX 90 symphonic preset-block: Andy Wallace!)
• a Synth Block like Entropia
• better Reverb (the reverb is good, but I can't get a decent room-sound and a spring reverb for surf sounds or songs like “Feel it still” would be great)

My initial biggest con though was this:

I still don’t understand why Darkglass offered different amps to choose from but only incorporated their EQ-curves and not their gain / volume controls. People play a full tube SVT for their ability to push the input or output section. Because there is a different type of crunch to either that would won't find in any of the DG pedals. Other people swear by GK 400/800 RB because of their legendary “Hittin’ the rails” sound. When using the bassman on my Fractal FM3, I loved pushing the power tube section.

The only block that can do this is the Super California one - and that (along with some NAM captures) is instrumental to getting the sound from this video:

There's a thread started by Ivan from DG on facebook, collating feedback on existing blocks and features. It might be worth adding some of these.

 

[Stranger Danger]

Looking for someone to talk me into or out of one of these units.

I’m on the fence because although I love the demo sounds and the user interface looks really good, I’ve never been able to fully adopt the multi effects thing. Usually it’s a combination of too difficult to program, too difficult to use in a live setting and or bad tone.

 

[_aguacate_]

Looking for someone to talk me into or out of one of these units.

I’m on the fence because although I love the demo sounds and the user interface looks really good, I’ve never been able to fully adopt the multi effects thing. Usually it’s a combination of too difficult to program, too difficult to use in a live setting and or bad tone.

The Anagram is pretty simple to work. I haven't run into any issues or difficulties with anything and I've probably used every feature at one point except expression pedals since the initial release.

A con, and this is probably a 100% me issue is that I tend to spend way too long tweaking all the settings. I feel like I can dial in a good tone with my analog board much quicker, whereas with the Anagram I deep dive into everything.

 

[silky smoove]

Hmmm. Seeing the Kedem with the A & B footswitches on the TOP of the unit vs lined up at the bottom, seems ungainly to me. I get why you like the format of the Kedem (it fits on the Nano with the Anagram), but I don't know about the two top footswitches ..... I feel like foot switches in a row would be better.

glad it works for you though

In an ideal world all footswitches would be in a single row on all pedalboards. That’s simply not realistic when attempting to consolidate to a Nano-sized board unfortunately.

 

[silky smoove]

ere are the things I still miss, to make it the ultimate pedal - at least to me:

• an EQ block (!!!)

There are two EQ blocks and a global EQ.

 

[Stranger Danger]

I got my MIDI controller functioning as I wanted today. For anyone looking for an Anagram-only setup (for signal processing) that fits PERFECTLY on a Pedaltrain Nano board, please watch this video I made explaining the functions. I’m super stoked on this setup, and I think it could work exceedingly well for a lot of players, particularly those like me who have to balance local, road and fly dates and have a desire to use the same board for all of them.

One clarification on the video: I misspoke about the power supplied. The Cioks Sol has 660mA available per tap at 9V. Using a current tripler nets 1,980mA at 9V, assuming no losses in the cabling itself. The Kedem 4 draws 250mA per the manufacturer’s specifications. Darkglass told me that the minimum power spec for Anagram is 1,700mA. With that in mind, 1,700mA + 250mA = 1,950mA which leaves 30mA to spare. I think that will work just fine, but if I run into problems, as mentioned in the video I’ll just power the Kedem from the Sol which still has two taps available and then I’ll use MIDI cable to connect the two, or I’ll have West Coast build me a current quadruple or quintuple cable to have more amperage headroom in the system. I doubt that will be necessary.

Are the vents on the side blocked? Or are those just for show?

 

[Stranger Danger]

Are the vents on the side blocked? Or are those just for show?

Never mind. They are for Bluetooth.

The reason I asked is because of the proximity of the MIDI controller to the Anagram looks like it would block the vents but I would assume the Bluetooth would still work from the other side.

 

[Franciscus]

Vents for Bluetooth? I don’t understand the concept. I assume they’re meant to vent the electronics, and they should be unobstructed.
Or am I missing something?

 

[Bass Ape]

Looking for someone to talk me into or out of one of these units.

I’m on the fence because although I love the demo sounds and the user interface looks really good, I’ve never been able to fully adopt the multi effects thing. Usually it’s a combination of too difficult to program, too difficult to use in a live setting and or bad tone.

I’m sticking with my FM3 for now.

 

[silky smoove]

Are the vents on the side blocked? Or are those just for show?

The vents on the right side are not blocked and the vents on the left side are fully unobstructed. This is no different than many of the boards I’ve seen with other pedals pushed right up against Anagram. In some cases this is better as the Kedem has a jack on the left side that prevents it from fully seating against the side of Anagram, thus ensuring that the vent can never be fully blocked. I’ve seen some boards with a Cali76 smashed right up against the side of Anagram. That would be a full blockage.

 

[Stranger Danger]

Vents for Bluetooth? I don’t understand the concept. I assume they’re meant to vent the electronics, and they should be unobstructed.
Or am I missing something?

Bluetooth won’t pass through the metal chassis

 

[Stranger Danger]

I’m sticking with my FM3 for now.

I just have a nice analog board. No multis

 

[roogbass]

Outstanding tone. Fits the song very very well - and your playing is on point.

Would you share the specifics of your preset please? Would love to try it out.

Thanks!
I shared some tones.
Look for Roogbass.

Pls let me know if it worked.

 

[chuckcheeze]

The only block that can do this is the Super California one - and that (along with some NAM captures) is instrumental to getting the sound from this video:

@SteveFromBerlin are these presets on the hub? I'd love to give them a try myself.

 

[Stranger Danger]

Put in my order today

Will come back with a million questions lol

 

[wvbass]

Put in my order today

Will come back with a million questions lol

I haven’t owned one long enough to have a fully informed opinion, but I own a lot of all-in-ones and preamps…a couple different Zooms, an HX Stomp, a Sansamp Dug pedal, an Origin SV, a Trace Transit B, a DG Photon, Infinity, AO Ultra, B7K, Sushi Box Nobelium, Venus Z, and probably a bunch more I’m not thinking of.

The Anagram made the worst first impression of the lot. Second impression was based on spending 10 minutes on a basic preset to use in the studio with a bass I love to play but don’t always love the way it sounds, and with an engineer that just wants a direct tone so he can process it later. The second impression blew us all away.

For reference, in a live setting, I use a Little Bastard in situations where a normal person would use a DI or an amp modeler. I keep my Original SV on my board because I know I can always get a great tone from it. When people ask for a recommendation for a bass DI, the Origin SV is always my answer.

TBD if the Anagram will be my go-to for a while, but it has my attention. I do agree with the comments about the amp models/preamps being incomplete without the input level controls to let you get into amp overdrive, but DG offers enough dirty tone options that this isn’t a big deal to me. A little Vintage Microtubes and I don’t seem to miss the amp OD.

 

[silky smoove]

Can you label the footswitches on the screen or are they just "A, B, C, D?"

Following up on our earlier conversation. I got this issue sorted out. There’s a name for each footswitch, but that doesn’t pass through to the display. What gets displayed is the name of the last action performed by each of the footswitches. You can go in and name each action for a footswitch separately as well as color coding it if you’d like. This also changes the behavior of the momentary on-screen display that pops up when you press a footswitch. I’ve done that today, and these are the results.

All footswitches off lists them as such on the screen and all of the switches are dark.

All footswitches on and the screen display changes to match. The only thing I haven’t worked out is how to get the footswitches to stay illuminated when they’re in the “on” position. The default behavior of the unit is that the footswitch LED for the most recently pressed switch stays illuminated. I’m guessing there’s a way to program it so that they remain on when in the on position given how flexible everything else has been. I just need to figure out how to make it happen.

Momentary on-screen display. There’s a similar one with an inverted color scheme (black background, color-coded text) when switching to the off position. These stay up for approximately one second when pressing a footswitch to either the on or off position. After that time it reverts to the main display.

 

[Scott McArron]

My Entropia experience, feedback, and question.

Entropia != Parallax. In fact, after 10 days trying to dial in Entropia, I don’t know who it’s for.

I ask myself 1) who uses multiband distortion with clean compressed lows?

Well, probably someone who wants to use high gain distortion while maintaining definition, particularly useful for technical metal.

2) Who needs that?

It’s practically the defacto standard for modern metal. I can’t think of another genre that uses it so widely.

But I am having a heck of a time dialing in a modern metal tone, at least that which is readily available from another modern metal standard, Parallax.

The midrange at default frequencies adds no perceptible distortion (unless soloed). At the same settings and frequencies, Parallax is a monster, and the mid band is my distortion “home” if you will.

The only way I can get in the vicinity is cranking the low pass of the mid band up into the treble region (>4), essentially making a glorified X7. But the results are brittle high end and somewhat mushy lows.

I won’t go any further into all the different ways I tried dealing with the things I can’t get from it. The point is, it’s not readily available.

So if this multiband distortion is not for modern metalheads, who’s it for? I’m confounded.

(Also note: there is no parametric EQ block! And neither existing EQ block can target any frequency above 3.2k (or other frequencies I wanted to target) without resorting to shelving it. So my options for EQing appropriately were very limited, and only to the frequency centers programmed into the 2 existing EQ blocks. Frustrating. I need more EQ control than that.)

……….

I bought the Annie in the hopes of replacing my QC with Parallax for my deathcore band due to its small size that can fit in my Dingwall gigbag, especially with the release of Entropia which seemed to mimic the design of Parallax, in theory.

I’ve spent nearly every evening since I’ve gotten it trying to dial in a metal tone that can rival the Parallax’s clear and tight lows and raging mid band distortion and defined and not overly fizzy high end. It’s Darkglass, and they have their own Parallax now, so I figured it’d be easy…

I even brought over a pro sound guy friend to help dial in the tone and EQ while comparing the frequency spectrums. We got a near perfect match but frequency spectrums clearly don’t directly translate to overall tone as it was in the vicinity EQ-wise but missing on too many levels to go into.

So I’m frustrated, and this is my last-ditch effort.

Are any of you guys able to dial in a tone that can get close to, say, the default Parallax setting (to keep it simple) using Entropia? I need this one thing for my current band to justify keeping it. Otherwise, I’m giving up and sending it back before my 30-day return period ends.