Sound Pure's Take
Wow, what can we say about this pedal? The Clean Boost is a super tool for either pushing the front end of the amp to enhance your tone, or a great extra kick for solos. The "Mean" is a really nice saturation overdrive that compliments a tube amp with slight gain adding the feel of a second channel.
This pedal color will trip you out! Is it yellow? Is it lime green? It's unique is what it is. But what it really comes down to is tone. and Flickinger pedals are free of gimmicks. Just musical tone machines.
From Flickinger Effects Pedals
chi-me-ra - noun \kī-'mir-ə, kə-\
LEFT FOOTSWITCH - CLEAN:
The left footswitch engages The Chimera. If the MEAN footswitch is on, both stages are engaged.
If the MEAN footswitch is off, only the CLEAN is engaged.
RIGHT FOOTSWITCH - MEAN:
The right footswitch engages the MEAN stage.
If the CLEAN footswitch is off, this will have no effect until the other footswitch is turned on.
CLEAN KNOB:
This controls the overall output volume of The Chimera. Be aware, this device is capable of a very large volume boost to your signal, especially with the MEAN switch engaged.
Make sure not to overload other effects or your amplifier!
TONE KNOB:
This is a passive low-pass tone control. Very similar to what is on your guitar/bass. Most of the time you will leave it wide open (full clockwise), just like most players do with their tone control on their instrument.
However, it can be very useful to tame the highs on a very bright amp, or if you just want a darker tone at higher gain settings.
MEAN KNOB:
This control is active only when the MEAN footswitch is engaged.
With lower output pickups at the lowest (counter-clockwise) setting, the MEAN stage is actually not very 'mean' at all. This setting provides some added sparkle with little clipping.
If you want more treble response while in CLEAN mode, add the MEAN switch with this knob at zero.
The 9 o'clock to 3 o'clock settings slowly increase the drive on the signal. In this range, The Chimera can also be used as a two channel boost, as there is a musical volume difference between the stages.
Use the MEAN control past 3 o'clock for a dirty, fuzzy boost that still cleans up with your guitar's volume knob and provides excellent response to the dynamics of your playing style.
9V:
The Chimera can use a standard 9V battery. Also, the jack on the rear accepts a standard 2.1mm (BOSS type) AC adapter. Make sure the center pin is negative.
Using the wrong polarity will not harm the pedal, however it will not function.
he pedal, however it will not function.
The Chimera Features:
True-bypass switching with two heavy-duty 3PDT push button switches with LEDs
Hand-wired construction
Hand-painted durable aluminum enclosure
Metal film resistors for low noise operation
Quality Switchcraft 1/4" jacks
Clean, Mean, and Tone controls
No Op-Amp chips, Discrete BJT and MOSFET transistors for more musical gain.
Free 3-Year Warranty
Sound Pure stands behind our products. Free three-year warranty on this item. Coverage exclusions live in Terms & Conditions, Section 27.
Level of support and expertise that simply isn't available at big-box megastores. Read the warranty →
Returns
Try Before You Buy: 48-hour audition. Program details →
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