In Pictures: Tama unveils new Speed Cobra

Picking up where the popular Iron Cobra left off, the new pedal has taken up the challenge of improving (as its name suggests) pedal speed without loosing that all important power. Tama has attempted to tackle this thanks to all manner of new innovations and clever tweaks. We haven't played one yet, but it certainly looks like a clever piece of kit. Click through our gallery to see the new pedal in all its glory.

Tama has tinkered with the length of the foot board, making it slightly longer than you'll find on the Iron Cobra. In doing so, Tama claims they have increased precision by reducing friction between your foot and the pedal.

Another key tweak is the addition of the Fastball bearing (designed to ensure your pedal stays up to the task, no matter how hard you play) and LiteSprocket. The latter is 40 percent lighter than its Iron Cobra counterpart, allowing a smoother action, which gets the thumbs up from us.

In a case of evolution rather than revolution, the Paraclamp II helps keep your Cobra absolutely rock steady no matter what angle you set it at. Its side-tightening lock also means that you don't need to prod your fingers underneath the clamp, which is a nice touch.

According to Tama, the Cobra's Oiles offer greater durability than your average bearing hinges, thus reducing side-to-side movement. This shouldn't come as a great surprise as we're informed that similar technology is used by the aerospace industry.

As if that wasn’t reason enough to get your feet twitching, Tama has also worked on boosting projection and resonance with its Projector Beater, which has a convexed beater head, while all kinds of tweaks have been made to further improve the pedal’s playability.

And of course, Tama couldn't follow up the Iron Cobra (which has been adopted by metallers around the globe) without conjuring a double pedal version too. And here it is in all its glory. We can't wait to get our hands (well, feet) on one.

The pedals should be available around September. Keep your eyes peeled to Rhythm for a full review of both pedals later in the year. Is this the most versatile pedal on the market? As soon as we've had a go we'll let you know. For more info visit www.tamadrum.com