A bit of a mixed reaction here for the Ventris but I have just picked one up and I have to say I am really enjoying it.

I have dialed in a tone that is so close to my outboard Fender tank and for me I want to play surf tunes with it so that's what matters I guess.

Apart from the great spring settings, all the other reverbs are fantastic. The tremolo sounds I've managed to achieve so far are the best in a pedal I've heard since I picked up a Strymon Flint some 5 years ago.

From what I've heard so far, I'd say this is a great sounding, versatile reverb pedal with endless editing possibilities.

The price is quite high (especially when paying with Pacific Pesos here in Australia) but I doubt you could find anything better at this point.

Might be time to sell my Flint, MXR M300, RV500 and FRV-1....

See Rapt In Blue:
https://raptinblue.bandcamp.com

FYI, Roger from SA mentioned they are looking at doing a pedal that's focus is just the spring reverb algo's.

Tri Pedal Reviews

I might go play one this week if they haven’t sold out.
I’m looking forward to Ryan stacking it against his tube unit.

SixStringSurfer wrote:

Well guys, the True Spring reverb pedal is here. They basically took the spring reverb from the Ventris and put it in a pedal. What are your thoughts on it?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRq5j_BlG18

It sounds pretty good to my ear. I’m not saying that it’s a vintage tank, but it’s better than many pedals I’ve heard and I love the options.

On built-in reverb, I actually prefer the sound of a 9” pan, and this has that going for it. I find that sound works quite well for my needs, especially when I’m in a Bakersfield frame of mind.

FWIW, Liz’Beth, my Winfield Elizabeth amp, is pretty similar to a Pro Reverb circuit and has a 9” pan. It’s an excellent sounding amp and the reverb is superb. Anyhow, the point is, that the “short” setting on that pedal appeals to me a great deal. Frankly, every sound I heard from it was more than respectable.

There are some really great choices out there in reverb pedals, these days and it would seem that the DSP programmers are drawing an ever tighter bead on the sound of the real thing. The number of true vintage tanks is, unfortunately, only going to decrease. I have an RI, with a 6K6 in it and it’s pretty decent, but I certainly understand the significance of the real thing. However, as time goes one, there will not be enough vintage tanks to go around, and the alternatives will become more of a factor. I’m just glad that there are some good choices.

The artist formerly known as: Synchro

When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.

SixStringSurfer wrote:

Damn, I am really disappointed... My Source Audio True Spring pedal came in today and I have to say it doesn't sound as good as the Oceans 11 does to me. The Oceans is drippier and sounds closer to a tank to my ear. I have been adjusting the settings on my phone and I just can't get the sound I am after. I may just send it back tomorrow and get an Oceans 11 or a SurfyBear. Also, what type of USB does this thing take? Any thoughts or ideas before I send it back? Thanks in advance.

Not much to add of a constructive nature. I have thought about buying one myself and I know that on Big Ryan’s video review it sounded great, but nothing in life is guaranteed to be so simple. Maybe Ryan has some suggestions.

The artist formerly known as: Synchro

When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.

SixStringSurfer wrote:

I may keep it and give it a chance. Maybe when things settle down for Ryan he can give me some advice. I have tried every USB cable I have at my house and none of them seem to work . Thanks for the response, synchro.

It looks like a USB Mini from what I could see when I looked at the online copy of the manual. These are the least commonly used size, but the cables are easy enough to come by. USB Mini cable at Amazon.com...

Please, keep us informed. I am somewhat interested in this pedal myself. On the demos, it sounded exceptionally good and really stands apart from many of its competitors; at least the examples Ryan played.

This is doubly important now, because I am about to try yet another amp, which is a mystery I must not reveal until Saturday. I can say this much, it’s a grab & go amp with some Brownface DNA and will require external reverb. OTOH, it has tremolo which is incredibly rich and I could see this becoming a very useful little amp for my Surf Music efforts. But a dare not say any more until Saturday.

The artist formerly known as: Synchro

When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.

SixStringSurfer wrote:

Can't wait until tomorrow when you reveal this amazing amp! I realize a pedal isn't going to perfectly emulate an actual tank, I get that. Having said that, the Oceans 11 gets much closer in my opinion. I have a modded '63 RI that sounds amazing, but I need a back up for gigs.

As soon as Chicago Music Exchange opens, I am going to call them and begin the return process. If you or someone else wanted to give me $215 for it, I would happily ship it to you brand new in the box. It only has one hour of use on it. I know I am being picky, but I never settle on anything in life. Since your amp already has amazing tremolo, you may want to consider the Oceans. Again, look forward to hearing/seeing your new amp tomorrow!

To get a max drip, you need to select TANK with the toggle, turn the TONE up to around 3 o'clock or higher, set the MIX to around 2 o'clock, set the DWELL to taste (I usually have it around 3 o'clock). You might also try getting into the Neuro Desktop Editor and moving the Pre-Delay control just a tiny bit up from zero - this will create a touch of separation between your dry and reverb signal. BTW, I work at Source Audio, feel free to private message me with questions or reply to this comment. I'm not sure if SG101 dislikes gear companies getting in here. I apologize if it's an issue, I'm just trying to answer some questions about our gear.

I work at Source Audio, the effects pedal company out of Boston, MA.

SixStringSurfer wrote:

Hi, thanks for the reply. I am glad you are on the forum. You definitely have a well built, high quality pedal here. I am a surf guitar purist, I have a modded '63 RI Fender unit that sounds amazing.

I don't expect a pedal to sound exactly like an outboard unit, that would be ridiculous. Having said that, the rhythm guitar player in my band let me borrow his Oceans 11 pedal and while not perfect, the drip on it is amazing. It is very bright and very drippy.

I guess I had it in my head that the Source Audio True Spring would be as good or better than that pedal when it comes to drip. I do like the fact that the True Spring lets one edit the levels and adjust the hardware settings (I did a lot of tinkering with the app). I think it is a fantastic pedal, it's just not for me. Thanks again for reaching out.

We're all chasing that ideal drip. Thanks for the good words and for checking out the TSR.

I work at Source Audio, the effects pedal company out of Boston, MA.

Well, I have this pedal and think it sounds great.

Almost every guitar note on our latest album was played through this pedal. (using a variety of settings)...now, I wasn't going for a "perfect" simulation of a reverb tank but went for a semi-tank/modern/unique "verb" sound.

https://thesurfaces1.bandcamp.com/releases

One listener/fan stated that he thought the entire album sounded like it was recorded using a vintage studio...ymmv

Can I have everything louder than everything else!

https://thesurfaces1.bandcamp.com/releases

FWIW, I got the True Spring (the version with the additional tap switch) a couple of weeks ago and I dig it overall. It obviously won't beat a real tank and I don't have a Surfy Bear to compare it to, but I think it's good for what it is based on my own experiences with tube amps with built in reverb units (and a very short time with an actual tank).

My thoughts on the pedal are...

• The default sounds are kind of meh, and you absolutely have to use the app editor to really tweak the sounds more to your liking. You can swap functions of the knobs (such as changing the Dwell for the tremolo depth), but it's a trade off and you have to remember what the setting you assigned was. There also was no instruction manual for the editor that I could find - most of it was self-explanatory, but for a real beginner (or a person who just isn't app proficient) it might be a bit confusing.

• I had to use the editor to make the pedal recognize the tap switch so I could assign it to turn the tremolo on and off separately from the reverb. The way to do this as described in the manual (but without using the editor) was not completely correct and did not work at all. Granted it was a simple "check box" in the app, but that could affect the ability to make quick changes at a gig.

• I would also recommend updating the firmware immediately when you get the pedal before you do anything, as I think that was tied to the issue with the tap switch not synching correctly.

• There is a very well done "hidden features" video put out by Source Audio that was oddly not on their own website, but on You Tube (https://youtu.be/bB1kvcc16HQ) that was very helpful.

• The biggest issue to me though is that they just tried to put too much into a little pedal with only one 3-way switch and 4 knobs on it. I would have rather paid extra for a "dual" pedal version like the Ventris pedal, with reverb on one side and trem on the other. I'm fully computer proficient, but at the end of the day I'd rather reach over and twist a knob than be clicking buttons on a screen.

So again, it works for my purposes just fine. For those on the fence, I'd say give it a shot and absolutely connect it to the editor for deep tweaking before you give up on it entirely.

Side note: I also have the Vertigo Tremolo pedal, and as far as I can tell, the tremolo sounds between that pedal and the True Spring are completely identical, if that makes any difference to you.

Last edited: Feb 01, 2019 20:54:00