Clari(Pirate)

I have been looking for a pedal that does what the Clari(Pirate) does for a long time. I will be using it on fretless bass (which it pairs with very well!) and synths (yet-to-be-tested). While this is definitely a delay pedal and can be used somewhat like a straight up delay with most settings dialed back (other than delay and repetitions) albeit with a sort of crunchy delay clock click that sounds a bit like snare drum wires rattling along. However, I am probably never going to use this as a delay or place it toward the back of the pedal chain with delays and reverb. Its going right to the front of the chain as a sort of pitch shifter/ modulator. However, this is not a pitch shifter. Instead, the delay and envelope features in this pedal create a fascinating pitch shift/ vibrato/ chorus effect that is both messier and better than what you think you when you think of any of those. The note you play is delayed and detuned/shifted (dive bombs down and rises back up) in a glissando manner with results varying based on the intensity of your playing (and how you've set the envelope and sensitivity settings). In this sense, this pedal shares some similarity with EAE's Mirror House, Alexander's Marshmallow, and a few other pitch pedals. But this resemblance is only a passing one.

In terms of pitch modulating delay, there are also some passing resemblances to Chase Bliss's Thermae or Alexander's Superball in that they're all doing a sort of delay clock pitch shift thing. However, while I love the Thermae for floaty delay sequences that drift away from what you play, the Clari(pirate) is firmly connected to your playing but brings it into the territory of more resonant and overtone-laden instruments like woodwinds (like a clarinet perhaps?) or the plunging sound of string instruments like the guzheng/gayageum/koto but more gnarled. I am probably mostly going to use this with the delay time set short and repeats low to get a sort of smeared delay that acts as a plunged pitch thingy when I play staccato fortissimo notes. I should also mention that the LFO, Speed, and Wave knobs are great for getting a lot of extra flavor out of the sound this thing produces. While some of the features of the Clari(pirate) certainly tick some boxes for lo-fi tape warble/hiss/stop effects, it should be noted that those occur as byproducts of a deeply versatile and strange modulation pedal as opposed to working as some sort of simulator. As a side note, this pairs so so so well with other odd tape effect pedals. I'm really loving pairing the Clari(pirate) with Red Panda's Tensor for instance.

All in all, this is a top-notch pedal whose exact characteristics are unlike anything I've played before. This is a sort of excitement I haven't had for a good strange pedal in a long while. I have a few minor critiques though. Since 2 out of 3 of these were known factors, these should be read as aspirational. 1. The Clari(pirate) has the old noisy clicky type of trigger. Your other pedals like reverb or delay will notice and announce this... while this isn't a deal breaker for me, I am wondering if swapping to a soft-touch type might be worth it. 2. Even though I'm not really using this as delay, I could see tap tempo being useful for adjusting modulation for live playing. 3. I could really see a lot of use for incorporating an EXP jack to adjust playing on the fly.

I've been eyeing this pedal for quite some time. I finally bit the bullet and picked one up. This is a really sweet delay with some features my other delays do not have. The pedal has a great range and can do traditional delay sounds but can also get into weird and crazy territory easily by a few knob adjustment while adjusting the envelope and sensitivity amounts.

The envelope control on this is pretty unique to me and can create tape delay sounding stops and stutters to your playing that can be adjusted to react to how hard you are playing. If you set the sensitivity just right, hard playing or abrupt stops in your playing cause it to detune and it sounds like its unraveling. All of the knobs are very interactive with one another so there are many different sounds that can be achieved. I appreciate the range that this can cover, and the ability to go from more traditional delay to whacked out pitch-shifted sounds. It also does a LUSH chorus/doubling affect as well. This was my first Mid-Fi pedal but it certainly won't be my last!

Clari(Pirate) is easy, versatile and quick to dial in when I want to add a layer of antique warble to my tone. I was up and running within a few minutes. I expect I'll reach for this pedal more often than some of the more feature-rich lo fi pedals I own because 1) a delay is right there 2) I almost never want to bother with the fine-tuning (VHS or transistor radio? Degraded tape or faulty wiring?) other pedals specialize in.

The Mid-Fi Electronics Clari(Pirate) was my first pedal from the brand, but certainly wasn’t be the last. If you read reviews or watch demos, you know there’s a quirky charm to Mid-Fi. For some, this is the draw as much as the anticipation of wonderfully inventive sounds. The Clari(Pirate) does not disappoint in either category. The build is solid and professional and the sounds are truly magical and inspiring.

Understood that the Clari Pirate is a combo of pitch Pirate and clari(not), but does anyone know that if it has all the capability of the deluxe pitch Pirate? Think it’s missing some knobs.