Acoustic guitar players who want to fatten up their sound with a little distortion, add some roomy-sounding reverb or push out some delay can pop in a soundhole pickup and cable it up to pedals and an amp or route sounds captured by a microphone through and effects loop. With the Pulse, they can tap into such things from the instrument itself – no cables, no pedals, no amps.
The battery-powered Pulse is the creation of London startup Tonik Sound, founded by ex-Silicon Valley developer and keen musician Mike Coyle, who has worked on projects like the successfully crowdfunded Clug bike rack and the novel Onewheel electric street surfer.
The device attaches to the front of an acoustic guitar, with one end over the bridge pins and the other elastic end looped over the strap peg. Tonik stresses that no modification to the host instrument is required and that it won't leave any marks when removed.
Like 2014's ToneWoodAmp, the Pulse adds effects to the tones coming out of the soundhole without needing to be cabled up to a pedalboard or external amp, but the Pulse doesn't require the host instrument to have its own pickup.
The modifications are made in real time and controlled using four sliders within reach of the picking hand behind the bridge. Tonik has also included a palm switch for ease of activation, with an LED strip showing when the delay, distortion or reverb are engaged.
The Pulse is making its debut at the NAMM show in California this week ahead of a crowdfunding campaign in March to raise production funds. We've no word on likely retail price, but you can get a taste of what's on offer in the short demo video below.
Source: Tonik Sound
