Sabbadius Electronics nails that late-60s Uni-Vibe sound in a smaller format with its newly unveiled Tiny-Vibe pedals

Argentina-based effects company Sabbadius Electronics has expanded its lineup of Uni-Vibe-inspired pedals with the release of the Tiny-Vibe 68 and Tiny-Vibe 69 pedals.

As the name suggests, these new Tiny-Vibes offer vintage Uni-Vibe sounds from a smaller format, with two related but distinct flavours on offer. For those looking for that giddy chew that helped give Jimi Hendrix find that extradimensional cosmic electric guitar tone, these are well worth checking out, and feature custom made photocells (LDR/CDS) and Matsushita 2sC828 and 2sC539 transistors in the preamp for an authentic, err, vibe.

You might already recognise these. Sabbadius has effectively taken the Funky-Vibe and shrunk it down, with the Tiny-Vibes weighing in in at 500 grams, around half the weight. 

Both Tiny-Vibes have a similar enclosure design, with two footswitches; one engages or bypasses the effect, the other effectively pauses the 'vibe effect but leaves the preamp section on so that you can still use the pedal as a tone-sweetener in front of your guitar amplifier.

On the top of the enclosure you'll find two chicken-head dials for Volume and Intensity, with a soft-rocker switch to select between chorus and vibrato modes. The Speed control has been moved to an over-sized knob on the side of the unit, allowing you to adjust the speed of the effect with your foot.

The Tiny-Vibe 68 is based on the original units from early 1968 that were built by Honey and used to great effect by Hendrix. The Tiny-Vibe 69, meanwhile, is based on Japanese Uni-Vibe that was made in 1969 by Shin-ei Companion. 

By comparison, the Tiny-Vibe 68 is a little more intense, with a faster maximum pulse speed, while the 69 version is a little warmer and wider, and was used by the likes of David Gilmour and Robin Trower.

At $399 plus $50, these Tiny-Vibes don't come cheap. But they are all-analogue, are handwired, and hand-welded, and use original 1960s stock Japanese bulbs, with no perceived volume drop when you turn them on. They take an 18V DC power supply with a high-current 200mA source recommended.

To order, head over to Sabbadius Electronics.