PastFX New Division Chorus or Kurt's Cologne - any users?

[boristhespider7]

I'm interested in getting one of these pedals but have a strong dislike of noise and/or easily clipped analogue pedals.

I have a EHX Clone theory reissue which i love the sound of, plus a bass clone which i'm less fond of but keep for when i need a smaller form factor.
My CT is v quiet. I know they have a reputation as being quite noisy but i wouldn't say mine is at all. It has the fabled MN3007 chip in it.
I love the warm analogue chorus sound and tend to go for Hooky, Gallup or Cocteau twin tones with it.
However, i use both pedals on guitar with humbuckers and with an active bass with high output, so they are prone to clipping (the bass clone more so).
I'd be interested in a clone theory with the gain knob to stop it clipping, as long as its not real noisy. The Kurt cologne actually sounds nicer on youtube videos that i've seen, but i haven't come across any on bass so it may be a gamble.

Anyone got any experience of either?

 

[sunbeast]

I’m surprised to hear you say the Clone Theory isn’t noisy! My reissue was easily the noisiest pedal I ever owned, unfortunately unusable so for me as I loved the sound. Mine also clipped with a few of my main basses too.

My only experience with PastFX is the PX101, but that is a wonderful pedal all around and I found Verlie from PastFX to be very responsive and offer great customer service as well (my original pedal had a noise artifact, they did a bunch of testing and soundclips to make sure a new pedal wouldn’t have the same issue, and sent the new one- a special limited color without upcharge- immediately expedited shipping plus paid for the return shipping- all that international shipping would have cost at least half the cost of the original pedal).

Given the significant upgrades to the Moog circuit they added to the PX101, I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that some upgrades were done to these other pedals as well.
It should be noted though- Part of what makes the EHX chorus units so special is a relative lack of compander filtering giving that signature bright tone- and with an analog BBD-based circuit I don’t think you can get that brightness without additional high-frequency noise, they just go hand in hand. The EHX Small Clone (or in my case, the Analogman chorus, which is a Small Clone-based design) is the acceptable sweet spot for me of being bright/edgy without too much noise (it still has a noticeable idle hiss, but far less than the Clone Theory). Since you find the Clone Theory acceptable I’d guess you are probably much less sensitive to that than I am though!

 

[Insouciance]

I have the Kurt's Cologne! I am a shameless and enormous Nirvana fan, so I ordered it as soon as they were live on Reverb.

It does nail the Small Clone sound, but it's much more lively and apparent on guitar, and more subtle on bass. For many years, I have used Mode 8 on the Boss PS-3 for my "chorus" sound (despite it technically being a detune effect and not a time based chorus), and that is much more watery and noticeable, especially in a live setting. So switching back to a chorus is kind of jarring, and underwhelming.

That said, I definitely am keeping it not only for the Nirvana lore, but it's kind of the be-all-end-all Small Clone clone and does sound pretty dang good!

 

[sunbeast]

J

I have the Kurt's Cologne! I am a shameless and enormous Nirvana fan, so I ordered it as soon as they were live on Reverb.

It does nail the Small Clone sound, but it's much more lively and apparent on guitar, and more subtle on bass. For many years, I have used Mode 8 on the Boss PS-3 for my "chorus" sound (despite it technically being a detune effect and not a time based chorus), and that is much more watery and noticeable, especially in a live setting. So switching back to a chorus is kind of jarring, and underwhelming.

That said, I definitely am keeping it not only for the Nirvana lore, but it's kind of the be-all-end-all Small Clone clone and does sound pretty dang good!

That thing does look awesome! I'd love to hear a side-by-side comparison with an Analogman Chorus with the "Deep" switch and Blend control, which is also a modded Small Clone design with some similar mods. The Kurt's Cologne has alot more tweakability if it matches the same great tones.

The Analogman has been my traditional bass chorus of choice for awhile, specifically because it adds depth without too much wobble or loss of punch like some chorus pedals can have. For detune sounds I love the Tech 21 Bass Boost Chorus