Review: Ibanez CS9 Stereo Chorus

This is the Ibanez CS9 Stereo Chorus. For the price, it is probably the best bang for your buck out there. Don't get me wrong, there are better sounding choruses out there, but all things considered, this one takes the cake.

I have had two of these, and one of the subsequent "power series" CSL Stereo Chorus pedals, and they all sounded great, but this one is my favourite. It was made in 1981, but as far as I can tell, there's not too much difference between any of the ones from the original 9 series.

WARNING: The contemporary reissue of this pedal is NOT THE SAME!!!
                *Click Here for a comparison of these two pedals*

Recently, I started using a vintage Boss CE-2 pedal for chorus, but eventually switched back to the CS9. The Boss pedal sounded great with a clean sound, but not so great when distortion or overdrive was added to the signal. I tried adding gain before and after the pedal, but the only way I could get it to sound good loud was to turn the amp up. The CS9, on the other hand, sounds great clean and with distortion.

Highs:
-Solid construction
-Warm analog sound
-Stereo outputs

Lows:
-A little noisy
-Limited controls

Possible Modifications:
-True bypass wouldn't be a bad mod, although if you have a few 9-series pedals in your path, the buffers tend to work well together.

Rating: 7/10