Cooper FX is a pedal that focuses on quirky and textural pedal designs that – we may add – are constantly sold out and rather pricey when you find them.
The Cooper FX Generation Loss is presented as a simulator of cheap tape machines, i.e. a lo-fi “character adder” for the guitarist that finds solace in sonic filth. In truth, it does a lot more than that.
The kind of effects it adds to your guitar signals range from the classic “Wow and Flutter” typical of tape recorders to hiss (Noise knob) to Sample rate degradation (Gen knob). A hi and lo pass filters (LP/HP) allow to limit the frequency bandwidth of the tone for nasal effects reminiscent of the sonic response of old telephones, walkie talkies or portable radios.
In 2019, Chase Bliss Audio released their own version of this pedal, in collaboration with Tom Cooper: the Chase Bliss Audio Generation Loss.
In 2021, the company unveiled V2 (pictured above) which adds separate Wet and Dry knobs in place of the previous Mix knob, and also Presets.
The most exciting function though is the extra footswitch for momentary effects, which can be programmed through the Function button to produce Tape Stop, Garbled Tape or Spectral Freeze effects.
The pedal is also Midi Compatible.
Cooper FX Generation Loss V2
This is the sound of nostalgia. The Generation Loss brings together all aspects of tape degradation and uses a combination of effects to hone in on that sound we’re all familiar with. Generation Loss refers to the decrease in sound quality and introduction of noise and sound artifacts each time a copy is made on magnetic media such as tape. Random pitch fluctuations, filters to cut down on the signal’s bandwidth, sample rate reduction, and noise are all brought together in this pedal to mimic that sound without the need for a broken VHS player.
Here’s picture and videos of V1
The Generation Loss recreates the degradation found on old worn out VHS tapes. The Generation Loss can be used to create lo-fi textures featuring random pitch fluctuations, high and low frequency loss, white noise, and sample rate reduction.
Controls:
Noise – white noise generator
LP – Low pass cutoff frequency
HP – High pass cutoff frequency
Gen – Controls the sample rate
Span – Sets the intensity of the pitch warble
Speed – Sets the speed of the pitch warble
Clean Blend – Go from 0% wet to 100% wet allowing for chorus and vibrato
