Those of you who know me from other bass forums know that I’ve been the proud owner of a Stereo Electric Mistress since September last year. In this updated review, I’ll be discussing her features as well as juxtaposing some of them against the popular Boss BF-2 Flanger (which I used to own) and the EHX Clone Theory (one of my favorite chorus pedals).

POWER: 9VDC, 2.1mm center-negative DC jack. She uses your ordinary 9VDC Boss-style adapter. She conveniently comes with her own adapter, too, but for a good reason: she doesn’t run on batteries. My advice? Use a daisy chain or brick – she’s friendly with all the usual suspects.

CONTROLS: Like the other XO series pedals, she has three knobs to play with: Rate, Flanger Depth, and Chorus Depth.

I find it interesting that EHX opted to not use a toggle switch for the Filter Matrix mode (they used a switch on the XO Stereo Pulsar and the XO Octave Multiplexer, not surprisingly). Instead, 10:00 on the Rate knob is the switch point for the Filter Matrix: it takes you into the lowest rate settings of the normal flanging/chorus mode. The switch point is not detented, but it’s not an issue – the LED and the difference in sound will tell you that you’ve switched.

LED: The color-changing LED on the Mistress is awesome! I know you guys are always talking about blue LEDs being superior, but this blazing beauty is worth taking a look at! It changes colors from bright yellow (with a hint of lime) to bright red (on the verge of hot pink). In Filter Matrix mode, the LED does not shift; it’s fixed on a particular color that reflects the frequency of the sweep you’re honing in on. This provides a visual guide to remembering your favorite position in the Filter Matrix; in fact, if you find a section of the sweep that you love when in normal mode, just remember its color at the moment you heard that part, and dial that color in Filter Matrix mode. When in normal mode, the LED will cycle colors at a speed according to the Rate setting; it cycles through the colors faster as the Rate increases, again giving you a visual guide to your settings.

SOUND (FLANGER): The Electric Mistress was always famous for her dramatic sweeps and her Filter Matrix mode; both elements are still present in her new package, and after listening to clips of the originals on guitar, I can say that she seems to stay true to the Mistress legacy (whether or not she matches exactly is a subjective issue that I’m not qualified to comment on).

With the Flanger Depth at minimum, your tone is untouched. The flanging effect overall has distinctly metallic overtones, but is also liquidy; unlike the BF-2, it doesn’t “dry out” your tone. It certainly has that EHX “mojo”. With the Flanger Depth at low settings, it can be mellow, less metallic, less pronounced – perfect for quiet passages and slap bass jams. When cranked, it’s definitive and ever-present. On any setting, it’s more complimentary than the BF-2 to your tone, IMO. Her voice musical and hypnotic, like the song of a Siren.

When Filter Matrix mode is on, it’s a different story; this is where the bizarre, unforgiving stuff comes in. Depending on your Flanger Depth and Rate settings, you can get some subtle harmonic emphasis, or some really creepy metallic chime effects. As you adjust the rate, it focuses on a different part of the sweep, and retains the harmonics you would hear in that portion of the sweep. Subtle tweaks in the knob will make a significant difference. You can dial it in to better compliment your overdrive/distortion/fuzz pedal, or go against the grain for some really unusual ear-shattering rings. Filter Matrix mode is the dark side of the Mistress – like the shriek of a Siren after she’s lured you in. It kinda makes you want to tie your TV down so she can’t throw it out the third floor window.

SOUND (CHORUS): After A/B’ing it with the Clone Theory, I can definitely say that these two chorus effects are significantly different from each other. The Clone Theory is bright, articulate, and capable of crazy stuff; the chorus on the Mistress is more laid-back, less extreme, and a bit warmer, but still has a pleasant amount of lushness. It’s actually really nice alone, but you can tell its delay time is more akin to a flanger because of how the chorus sounds; on some Rate/Depth setting combinations, it’s a warm chorus, and on others, it feels more liquidy, like a mild flanger trying to be a chorus.

SOUND (COMBINED): She’s definitely seduced me. The two independent effects run in parallel and are blended together at the outputs. The parallel effect provided by the Mistress is very unique signature effect in the music I play.

NOISE: Surprisingly, it’s practically noiseless – no hum, no hiss. The Boss BF-2 is far worse in this department. It’s nice to know that she’s quiet when I want her to be.

STEREO MODE: It was a real joy to test her out in stereo. She cycles the flanger sweep between the two outputs; it’s as if your sound is literally swirling around you. This pedal sounds great in mono, but stereo is what really makes the Mistress sexy!

]PROBLEMS: Other than the fact that you can’t use batteries… I don’t really see any problems.

SUMMARY: A true treasure in Electro-Harmonix’s latest line of “updated” reissues, I’m still surprised by how amazing the she sounds on my bass for having so few controls available. If you leave your other flanger for her, I don’t blame you!