Strymon Riverside

Riverside is the culmination of a thorough analysis of numerous analog and vacuum tube circuits. Our goal? To deliver a new world of harmonically rich, incredibly versatile, tube-inspired drive sounds. We didn’t want to build just another distortion or overdrive. We knew we must examine what has been done, and bring a new approach to the world of drive sounds.

Riverside’s cascading gain stages create harmonically rich tones that are immensely musical and natural—from silky clean overdrive to colossal distortion, and all points between. Our analog JFET front-end ensures that Riverside responds to your guitar with uncompromised dynamics and feel. The precision crafted DSP generates dynamic complexity and pleasing harmonics at every stage, letting your amp shine at any gain level. Riverside takes your amp to places you never knew it could go.

Riverside’s continuously variable circuit tuning dynamically tweaks multiple parameters under the hood so that the sweet spot follows you at any gain setting. As you turn the Drive knob, Riverside makes continuous adjustments, tuning the circuit for optimum tone. This results in an incredibly versatile drive pedal that is equally capable of providing sparking cleans, mild overdrives, high-gain leads, and heavy saturated distortions.

Your amp choice has a large influence on the sound of any drive pedal connected to it. Riverside’s musical 3-band EQ, with independent Bass, Middle and Treble knobs, is designed to complement your amp’s tone with the flexibility needed to dial in your sound effectively and efficiently.  The three-position Presence switch tailors the highest frequencies, allowing Riverside to integrate perfectly with any amp or setup, no matter how dark or bright.

The first stage of Riverside’s custom multistage drive topology is an all-analog, ultra low noise, discrete, class-A JFET circuit. This gain stage is digitally controlled to maximize headroom while adding as much as 20dB of pure analog gain, with tight integration to the subsequent DSP gain stages.

With our hybrid approach you get the best of both analog and digital worlds: The JFET stage provides exceptional touch sensitivity and dynamic interaction with your guitar, while the incredibly powerful SHARC DSP facilitates the great level of detailed complexity and responsiveness you’ll want to hear.

Sound Design

• Custom cascading multistage distortion topology provides a wide range of tube-inspired drive tones
• Digitally controlled analog class A JFET input gain stage maximizes headroom while adding up to 20dB of pure analog gain
• Precision crafted DSP gain stages provide detailed complexity and responsiveness
• Low gain channel for smooth classic overdrive
• High gain channel for modern saturated distortion
• 3-band EQ with independent Bass, Middle and Treble controls
• Selectable post-analog gain mid-band EQ push
• Presence switch to tailor the sound for use with all amplifiers from dark to bright
• Optional variable-threshold noise reduction helps tame noisy guitar pickups

Ins, Outs, Switches

• High impedance mono input
• Mono output
• Favorite footswitch to save a favorite setting
• Expression pedal input allows the connection an expression pedal for simultaneous morphing control over multiple parameters (Expression mode), or logarithmic taper for smooth volume control (Volume mode)
• Boost pedal input allows connection of an external footswitch for up to +6dB of analog boost, or to toggle the Favorite preset on other Strymon pedals (Favorite Out mode)

Audio Quality

• Ultra low noise, high performance 24-bit 96kHz A/D and D/A converters provide uncompromising audio quality
• Premium analog front end and output section
• Super high performance SHARC DSP in a compact form factor
• 32-bit floating point processing

More

• True Bypass (electromechanical relay switching)
• Strong and lightweight anodized gold aluminum chassis
• 9V DC power supply included
• Power requirements: maximum 9 volts DC center-negative, with a minimum of 250mA of current
• Dimensions:
  • 4.5″ deep x 4″ wide x 1.75″ tall
  • 11.4 cm deep x 10.2 cm wide x 4.4 cm tall
• Designed and built in the USA