A couple of years ago, popular YouTube guitar nerd Paul Davids visited a nuclear power station in search of the ultimate guitar reverb. Now an effects pedal inspired by these sonic discoveries has been launched.
There are lots of YouTube channels for folks interested in guitar tech, guitar music and guitar lore. One of the most successful is hosted by accomplished player and teacher Paul Davids from the Netherlands – which has more than 3.5 million subscribers.
In November 2022, Davids was invited to go into the heart of Zwentendorf Nuclear Power Plant in Austria, which was built in the 1970s but never actually went into operation. So, no need to climb inside a radiation suit or bury his guitars and amps deep underground after tasting the ludicrous reverb produced in the space above the reactor chamber.
Playing Guitar In A Nuclear Power Plant (sounds BEAUTIFUL!)
A while later, Davids was contacted by Emilio Massari from Italian boutique pedal outfit Cornerstone Music Gear and asked if he wanted to be involved in reproducing these “jaw-dropping” sounds from the monstrous spaces within the facility and cram them in a hand-made floor stomp. Plans were announced in December last year, and now the Nucleo has arrived.
Cornerstone Nucleo – Official Launch
“More than just a reverb pedal, Nucleo is a soundscape generator designed to inspire and transform your playing, from lush ambient textures to expansive cinematic tones,” reads the accompanying blurb. Davids chips in by saying that this stereo reverb pedal “builds on that sound but it goes so much further.”
The big dial on the left gives players access to the kind of reverb they want to experience – running from the sounds Davids experienced when set up in the control room at the nuclear facility to the enormous cooling chamber and then to the vast soundscape of the reaction chamber.
Cornerstone Music Gear
But there are also secondary reverb options available for lo-fi, vintage and regular modes. There’s a Blend control underneath to determine the mix of original signal and processed goodness. The panel to the right is where modulation, pitch, speed, decay, tone and freeze are controlled using faders or dials.
Up to 90-second decay times are on offer for ultra immersive ‘verb and trails. There are three available preset slots on the pedal for easy recall, and a total of 128 via MIDI.
The Paul Davids Nucleo signature reverb is available now for €359 direct from Cornerstone, and is shown at the pro-order stage from US retailers for around US$430. Davids himself has much more to say in the video below.
The Pedal Of My Dreams (WE DID IT!)
Product page: Cornerstone Nucleo
