New Electronic Audio Experiments Mirror House V2 Pitch-Shifting Modulator Guitar Effect Pedal

Mirror House creates two pitch-shifted copies of an incoming signal which veer off into equal and opposite directions. This diametric approach to pitch shifting is capable of weird detuning, disorienting microtonal clusters, chords of parallel harmony, or ugly, strange dissonance. (It can also be a chorus.)

The two pitch voices can be shifted both statically and dynamically, with a selection of ranges and behaviors. Envelope control creates dynamic vibrato, glissando, and divebomb effects as the voices pull apart and return to the center. In Flutter mode, Animate controls a random LFO, for a tastefully off-kilter chorus and vibrato. Detune and Flutter modes each have a static range of a semitone, while Shift mode is quantized up to an octave in both directions. Depending on your harmonic proclivities, this particular array of features is perhaps an invitation, perhaps a provocation.

This pedal was originally developed in collaboration with our friends in the band Pile, and Version 2 is now available as a steady offering in our product catalog. This new version features the new Flutter mode, improved envelope tracking, and a reduced noise floor compared to Version 1.

Controls

• Mix - relative level between the dry and affected signals. Turn clockwise to increase the amount of pitch-shifted signal. At maximum, no dry signal is present.
• Amount - amount of static pitch shifting. Turn clockwise to move the two voices symmetrically away from the original signal. The upper voice increases in pitch, while the lower voice decreases in pitch.
• Animate - additive modulation applied to the Amount control. Turn clockwise to increase the amount of modulation. In Shift and Detune modes, this is envelope-based. In Flutter mode, this is a random LFO.
• Voices - mix between higher and lower pitch voices. In the center position, this is an equal mix. Turn clockwise to focus on the higher voice, and turn counterclockwise to focus on the lower voice. This will also influence the directionality of envelope motion.
• Mode (toggle) - offers three modes: 
  • * Shift (Up): the Amount knob sets the amount of pitch shifting, in quantized semitone steps up to an octave.
  • * Flutter (Middle): functions similarly to Detune mode, but the Animate knob controls a random LFO. Good for chorus and vibrato sounds.
  • * Detune (Down): the Amount knob shifts each voice from unison up to a semitone.

V2 Changelog (2025)

• Updated bypass to use a relay
• Improved envelope tracking for the Shift and Detune modes, with a more clearly defined threshold
• Reduced noise in DSP signal path
• Artwork updated
• Added Flutter mode

• Power: 9V DC, center negative, <95mA current draw
• Bypass: true bypass with soft-touch relay switching
• Input impedance: 500kΩ
• Output impedance: <1kΩ
• Footprint: 4.77” x 2.58”
• The artwork was illustrated by Nicole Rifkin