Dixon Cajon Pedal Plus review

A multi-purpose pedal for cajons and more!

  • £95
  • €129
  • $199
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The beater post clamp can be attached to virtually any stand, piece of hardware or cajon

MusicRadar Verdict

Dixon has the design of this pedal spot-on. It also happens to be fittingly affordable and should provide years of good service.

Pros

  • +

    Incredibly adaptable, well-built and solidly constructed. Good value for money.

Cons

  • -

    Not much to complain about here.

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While Dixon enjoys the success of its top of the range acoustic drums, its roots actually lie deep in the manufacture of competitively priced hardware. Dixon's Cajon Pedal Plus is a multi-functional, multi-purpose pedal aimed at the cajon player, percussionist or drummer.

Build

This cost-effective, competitively priced pedal package includes the beater post assembly (with integral clamp), cajon bracket, self-adhesive pads (used for packing under varying heights of cajon feet), and a remote foot pedal.

"It is also great fun experimenting with the pedal around our kit... opening-up whole new territories for our playing"

The remote linkage is provided by approximately a metre of top quality cable of the sort found on sports cycles.

The beater post clamp (located at the base of the assembly), is similar to those found on many multi-clamps. This features a single winged bolt and a wide opening jaw, allowing it to be attached to virtually any stand, piece of hardware or onto a cajon, via the specially designed cajon bracket.

This sports a pair of hefty spiked bolts to stop any creeping on a drum mat or carpeted surface and is flexible enough to allow the beater to be positioned laterally for optimum 'throw'.

Hands On

With the beater post attached to the cajon bracket, it is positioned at the tapa side of the cajon. The aforementioned spikes maintain a firm beater position and help us to give a confident performance without worrying about things wandering across the stage.

Playing with this is not only enjoyable but it quickly becomes apparent the extended rhythmic possibilities now readily available when playing our cajon.

It is also great fun experimenting with the pedal around our kit - attaching the beater post onto just about anything that is within reach of the cable! This includes virtually all of our stands, under/over crash cymbals, tom, cowbell etc, opening-up whole new territories for our playing.

With the pedal beater targeted at other percussion instruments, such as a shaker or tambourine, such is the flexibility of the pedal, the possibilities are endless.

While the soft beater head is absolutely ideal for striking a cymbal, gong etc, without causing them any harm, it isn't quite loud enough when going full-blast on the kit. Swapping it over for a hard plastic beater, the sound is louder and altogether more impressive.

Dave Holmes