The OWL: open-source, programmable effects pedal

The OWL is ready to take flight.
The OWL is ready to take flight.

The OWL is an effects pedal with a difference - an open-source 'shell' that contains its own DSP and can be programmed to do pretty much whatever you want.

Currently being launched via a Kickstarter campaign, The OWL contains an ARM Cortex M4 chip and can have new patches loaded into it over USB. These patches are created using the supplied C++ framework; if you don't want to (or can't) create your own you can choose from the growing number that have been programmed by others.

You can find out more about The Owl - and back it should you so wish - on its Kickstarter page.

Ben Rogerson

I’m the Deputy Editor of MusicRadar, having worked on the site since its launch in 2007. I previously spent eight years working on our sister magazine, Computer Music. I’ve been playing the piano, gigging in bands and failing to finish tracks at home for more than 30 years, 24 of which I’ve also spent writing about music and the ever-changing technology used to make it.