Have you ever connected all your FX boxes for a gig, tromped on the fuzz to give them the greatest sound since Hendrix, and got... nothing? In that split second of agonised torture one or two possibilities dash through your panic stricken brain, like: Has your trusty little nine volt battery failed at last? Have you connected your FX boxes incorrectly? Does anybody in the audience actually care? Chances are all three of the above apply, but what's the answer? Could be it's time to think about trying an FX modular system to help eliminate problems one and two. As for three: well, that's your problem John.

We know of three such modular systems that are on the market at this time and they come from H/H Electronic, Eurotec and Bell Electrolabs Ltd. The H/H boxes fit together with DIN plugs, are held rigid with a linkage bar and are powered through special leads from the amplifier. We've yet to get a close look at the Eurotec Black Box system but it seems that the units can be used individually with batteries or with the 'energiser' mains unit which powers the modules through their jack sockets and holds up to four boxes together at a time.

The third company, Bell Electrolabs, recently sent SI a selection of their FX modules. So we took the Mother, Sustain, Fuzz, Phaser, Flanger and ADT modules along to one of our gigs (the band's Route 66, plug, plug) to give them a try out on stage. Can the modular system take being splashed by numerous pints of Watneys Special (ugh!)? Can they stand up to being trampled by sex-crazed groupies lusting after my body? Relax Mr Bell, it didn't happen. Well not at this gig anyway, they only sell Trophy bitter.

All the units share the same shape and style of box, a rigid rolled metal construction covered in a black 'leather-grain' effect. They're around 6in x 5in in size and have a 5-pin DIN socket on the sides for interconnection and in/out sockets on the top end for jack leads. All the FX units except the ADT can be powered by PP3 batteries and used individually and together or, after the removal of the batteries, with the power unit - either way the most number of jack leads you need is two. All of which is a definite advantage over the mass of leads used to connect conventional non-modular boxes, but it is in exactly this area that our biggest criticism of the construction of these units arises. Dave Blake, in his review of the ADT/Mother combination (SI October '78), found fault with the flexible nature of the method of interconnection. Apart from the DIN plugs/sockets that are riveted on to the metal cases there are two nylon tabs to the right of each module and two spring-loaded clips on the left which help guide and hold the various FX boxes together. Although this flexible set-up caused no particular problem on the night of our practical test, it was evident that the DIN plugs underwent a fair amount of strain as one of them came adrift from its casing with both rivets broken in two.

The other major problem that this non-rigid system causes is that an accidental kick can disconnect a bank of modules at any point putting you right back into the agonised torture you were suffering in the opening paragraph, remember? Not good. Definitely room for improvement here, perhaps along the lines of that H/H system I mentioned earlier. But if you're an eager beaver DIY addict you could always permanently mount the Electrolabs modules of your choice on a stout piece of board.

However, should you decide to use your Electrolabs without the Mother power unit there are one or two other points to bear in mind. For some reason they all take two PP3 batteries to drive them, instead of one. This could get a little expensive if they don't last twice as long. Also on the samples that we tried there was nothing to stop the PP3s from rattling around inside the box, but this could have been because they were supplied for test with the Mother.

But before the men from Bell tear out the remnants of rapidly greying hair from their heads I'd better give you some of the good news. Like how the silver lettering on the face of the units is easy to read even on a darkish stage. Like how the inside layout is neat and tidy with the wiring clipped together in a loom keeping it away from sharp edges when changing batteries. Like how the controls are colour coded to avoid confusion and all but two operate on an identical 0-9 scale (though they actually turn as far as position 10). Like how they all have LED on/off indicator lights to show which FX are in use. Like how Electrolabs give you a dinky padded plastic envelope with a velcro seal to protect each unit when you pile the gear into the back of the van. And not a word yet about the sound!

But first the Mother, a definite must for all musos with an Oedipus complex or for anybody who has a careless disregard for the effective working life of a PP3. She looks almost identical to the rest of the family but has one or two distinguishing marks. At first glance the hand-operated on/off switch looks curiously odd next to a row of foot-switched FX units until you realise that it is extremely unlikely that you'd confuse the Mother for an effect when you're looking for a foot switch to jump on. She has an LED on/off indicator which, apart from the obvious, stays on when the unit is switched off to warn you that there is a battery in the system somewhere. There's almost ten feet of 3-core mains lead on the unit plus an automatic cut-out device to prevent damage to its insides in the event of a short circuit. Instead of the DIN plug and socket arrangement on the FX boxes the Mother has a DIN socket on both sides which can be used with DIN extension leads to power modules, or banks of modules, on other parts of the stage (the socket on the left being the one to use for contact connection with another box). This means that up to three different banks of modules containing an overall maximum of 15 FX can be powered simultaneously so that two or three musicians can share the same Mother - just like the Osmonds.

The ADT module (again, see SI October '78) has two controls, one being a four programme click-stop switch, the other a continuously variable pitch deviation control. Programmes one and four are for stereo use and split the original and effect sounds between two outlets. The sounds on one and four correspond to those of the mono channels two and three respectively - it was these two that we tried with vocals, guitar and electric piano. The makers supply a list of instructions with each module suggesting how the effect should be used and how to achieve different sounds. In the case of the mono programmes on the ADT they state that position two is best for vocals and that position three has been specifically designed for use with guitar or any electric instrument. We found that vocals on position two, with absolutely no pitch deviation, still sounded flangy and had the overall effect of somebody singing down a metal pipe. The unit also seemed to be on the verge of feeding back all the time; adding pitch deviation did nothing to improve the sound at all. But lo and behold on position three - which offers greater separation of the original and second image - we obtained a rich and distant double track vocal sound to which pitch deviation could be added according to taste. In direct comparison with the Electro Harmonix Clone Theory, which incidentally is half the price and self-powered, we found that the ADT was not only inherently cleaner with almost no hiss but also gave a much crisper vocal sound on programme three than did the more syrupy sounding Clone. But what a different story when we switched to the instruments.

We found that on either programme, and with and without pitch deviation, the ADT gave a strange percussive attack to each guitar note followed by a rumbling decay which tended to destroy any enhancement that the effect had to offer. Witha Fender Mustang six-string these by-products were unfortunate, but with a Wurlitzer piano they were bloody awful, especially as the Clone makes both instruments sound so sweet.

But all is not lost, 'cos after playing with the ADT we turned our attentions to the Flanger for a quick twiddle of the knobs, and guess what we found? Yup, we got a super double track effect for guitar and piano which, although only of the flange variety, sounded a damn sight better with instruments than the ADT did. The Flanger has three continuously variable controls: speed, which sets the frequency around which the Flanger varies courtesy of the second control, the Filter, and the Mix which blends the original and flanged sounds. The ADT sound was achieved via the instructions and involved turning the Speed and Filter up fairly high and the Mix to zero. Used on these settings the module can be easily switched, using the Mix, from double track to the spacey 'skying' sound which is so effective on guitar chords. Many other effects can be obtained including a fast tremolo just like the intro to the Beach Boys' You're So Good To Me, which sounded good on piano as well as guitar. The unit also has the overall effect of brightening the sound, in direct contrast to the rich and mellow properties that the Phaser has to offer.

Just two controls on the latter module, both continuously variable, change the speed and intensity of the effect. We found that the Phaser and Flanger could be used well together for the advantages that each has to offer. Our fave combination for both electric piano and guitar entailed keeping the Flanger on ADT effect and switching in a medium speed, high intensity Phaser to add richness and a subtle skying effect - super! There was more of a tendency to use the combined effects on guitar, but the Phaser really came into its own when used with the Wurli. I compared the unit with my trusty old Electro Harmonix Smallstone which I've always rated very highly, and the Bell didn't come out of it too badly. It sounded decidedly more mellow and bassy and didn't reduce the piano signal as the Smallstone does. But it was inherently noisier. The Intensity control is continuously variable as opposed to the Smallstone's two-position colour switch, but this doesn't turn out to be so great an advantage. Electro Harmonix seem to have selected exactly the right sounds for their two settings and in fact the unit produces a greater variety of silly noises at the top end of the controls than does the Bell. That's no big deal unless you're a freak for submarine sonar blips, but if a more subtle tremolo sound is more to your liking just turn the Bell's speed up full and take the intensity right down and, voila. By the way, the instructions tell you to do the opposite but I think their little diagram was the wrong way round. This tremolo sounded good on the Wurli as well, offering a pitch tremolo in contrast to the built-in vibrato. Altogether the Phaser turned out to be my fave module for the piano but I would only switch from my Smallstone if I were intending to use the Bell modular set-up.

There's less to say about the Fuzz and Sustain FX; one seems to be a more subtle version of the other. Both dirty up the sound quite a bit, the Fuzz obviously more so than the Sustain, and both offer a continuously variable sustain control. The main difference apart from the intensity of the effect is in the continuous bite that the Fuzz adds compared to the percussive attack that we got from the Sustain (just like the sound we got from the ADT). Both units have three controls, the Fuzz displaying volume, tone and sustain, while the Sustain module has range instead of tone. The range control has one setting for high volume stage use and a second for studio sound levels. Set for stage use the box gives a much dirtier sound, more sustain, and the possibility of controlled feedback, while for studio the sound is cleaner and needs a higher setting on sustain control. It is possible that, with a little more experimentation, we could have found more to recommend the Sustain, but for our money the ideal Bell Electrolabs guitar set-up would be Fuzz, Phaser and Flanger. For the Wurli we'd use the Phaser and possibly the Flanger, leaving the ADT for vocal use. And of course the whole lot could be powered by one Mother.

One general sound criticism that we had was that all the FX with the exception of the ADT had a high inherent noise level especially on extreme settings. But the system worked quite well on stage, despite reservations about the connectors. We experienced none of the annoying clicks and pops that we've had when switching unmatched FX units in and out and that, plus the delightful sound combinations that you can get, could be reason enough for you to think seriously about this modular system.

rrp:
Mother £24.95
Sustain £34.77
Fuzz £35.92 / system not available in US
Phaser £54.44
Flanger £53.47
ADT £99.08

Roger Phillips 8 Mark Stevens play in a semi-pro band.