Chase Bliss Audio teams up with Meris for the automated slider-equipped CXM 1978 Studio Reverb

(Image credit: Chase Bliss Audio)

Chase Bliss Audio launched its innovative Automatone line of pedals, featuring actual automated sliders, earlier this year with the Preamp MKII overdrive, a collaboration with Benson Amps.

Now Chase Bliss has introduced the newest Automatone addition, the CXM 1978, a collaboration with Meris , which recreates the classic 1978 studio reverb pedal.

In addition to those moving faders with presets and MIDI control, the pedal boasts 32 bit AD/DA, three classic algorithms, adjustable decay crossover for fully shapeable reverb tail, expression pedal control, optional fully balanced I/O, stereo input and output and internally boosted +/-15V rails for line level input.

(Image credit: Chase Bliss Audio)

According to Chase Bliss, the pedal harks back to an era that signaled “the dawn of sprawl, massive trails and infinite decay, allowing you to explore the charm of those late ’70s imperfections” but with a modern take.

The pedal has an expected release date of November 30, and due to COVID-related supply issues the first batch is available in limited numbers, and only directly from the Chase Bliss website.

You can preorder one now, for the not-insubstantial price of $899, at Chase Bliss Audio.

Richard Bienstock

Rich is the co-author of the best-selling Nöthin' But a Good Time: The Uncensored History of the '80s Hard Rock Explosion. He is also a recording and performing musician, and a former editor of Guitar World magazine and executive editor of Guitar Aficionado magazine. He has authored several additional books, among them Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, the companion to the documentary of the same name.