Cool new gear: Digitech Whammy DT

A new model Whammy with a cool drop and raised tuning effect.

I remember the first time I heard the Digitech Whammy, it was Rage Against the Machine‘s “Killing in the Name”. I didn’t quite know what was going on in the solo at first. All I knew was that when I played it in my high school cover I had no way of making it sound the same as the track as I didn’t have a pitch shifter effect. When I found out about the Whammy I always wanted one.

Digitech have released an awesome new model in the Whammy family, the Whammy DT. This pedal has the same now classic pitch shifting effect the Whammy is famous for, and now adds to it true-bypass switching to ensure no tonal colouring when the effect is off.  The big thing with the Whammy DT is ability to instantly modify the tuning of a guitar, giving players 7 1/2 steps to an octave up or down from where the guitar is tuned.

Another new feature is the momentary foot-switch which allows the player real time stepped pitch-shifting, creating pull-of and hammer-on type sounds.

Here’s what Digitech have to say about the Whammy DT:

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – DigiTech’s Whammy is one of the most iconic effects pedals ever created – and the new Whammy DT adds a host of mind-bending new capabilities including drop tuning, capo tuning, true bypass coupled with the famous Whammy.

The Whammy DT starts with the classic Whammy pitch shifting effects that have made the Whammy one of the most recognizable effects pedals in rock.  Featuring an expanded selection of pitch bending capabilities including 9 Whammy bending modes from 2-octaves up through 2-octives down, 9 harmony bending modes, 2 detune modes, and the popular Dive Bomb six octaves down effect.

The Whammy DT also lets guitar and bass players instantly modify their tuning without having to change instruments or break the musical mood with awkward tuning adjustments for the next song. The Whammy DT can drop down or capo up seven half-steps or an entire octave from where the guitar or bass is tuned. Thanks to the Whammy DT’s sophisticated digital signal processing and pitch shifting algorithms, chordal accuracy is perfectly maintained.

In addition, the Whammy DT features a momentary footswitch for real time stepped pitch shifting to create ”Hammer-On” and “Pull-Off” type effects. Players can instantly get a drop or raise in the pitch of the notes they are playing by stepping on and holding the footswitch – then releasing it to return to pitch for a dramatic effect during solos and riffs.

The various effects can be selected via the pedal’s two selector knobs and dual set of LEDs indicators. The Whammy DT includes ¼-inch guitar input and output, a MIDI input that allows control of the pedal from an external MIDI device, and an external 9 volt DC power adapter. The Whammy DT is built to take the demands of live performance, with a rugged all-metal chassis, pedal and footswitch. Its true bypass operation ensures it can be added to any rig without any adverse effect on sound quality, without the “tone suck” of some non-bypass pedals. The Whammy DT can be used with the optional DigiTech FS3X three-button footswitch controller for added expressive capabilities.

“It was no easy task to improve upon a product that has been as successful as the legendary Whammy,” said Rob Urry, Vice President and General Manager of HARMAN Professional Signal Processing Group.  “But we feel that we have exceeded this goal by expanding the feature set of the original Whammy with drop tuning and capo tuning capabilities, as well as true bypass operation now available in the Whammy DT.”

The DigiTech Whammy DT will be available in June 2011 at $449.95 MSRP.

DigiTech (www.digitech.com) is a unit of HARMAN.

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets – supported by 15 leading brands including AKG^®, Harman Kardon^®, Infinity^®, JBL^®, Lexicon^® and Mark Levinson^®. The Company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 20 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of about 11,800 people across the Americas, Europe and Asia, and reported sales of $3.5 billion for the twelve months ended December 31, 2010. The Company’s shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol NYSE:HAR.

The Whammy looks like a really fun pedal to play with, and a great upgrade from the original Whammy. I’d love to do a review of this pedal for sure!