Morley PLA Steve Vai Little Alligator - Bringing a Simple Effect To a Whole New Level

In our humble opinion, the Morley PLA Steve Vai Little Alligator is the sexiest volume and expression pedal money can buy. But as tempting as the aesthetic side can get, the looks are far from the most important factor when buying a solid piece of musical equipment. Therefore, it's a great pleasure to point out that this thing is only smooth-looking, but it also operates pretty smooth too. We took this Vai-signature beast out for a test run, you can find our conclusions in the full review below.

Features

The gizmo features a futuristic, sci-fi appearance that elegantly combines the black foundation with the contrast of stark fluorescent green letters. We already said that looks are cool, so we'll just delve right into the other goodies. So, simplicity is the word of the day here, with not a whole lot of controls and all that jive. The device operates as a mono pedal, meaning all you get is a single input and one output, which happens to be everything the vast majority of users needs in the first place. The pedal utilizes electro optical circuitry, meaning that there are no pots to wear out or weak spots to constantly fix. Everything about this product was designed according to guitar virtuoso Steve Vai's detailed instructions, meaning you should expect the looks Mr. Vai is into and the overall sonic feel the man digs. The pedal was primarily crafted to be used in effects loop send and return or in front amp input. It comes with the company's standard two-year warranty.

Controls

As noted, very basic stuff, but the manufacturer did include a Minimum Volume knob, a very self-explanatory control which allows you to adjust the level of volume when the pedal is set to its lowest value, or lifted all the way up. Some users have reported that heavier stomping can cause the pedal to become less accurate and more loose after a while, so all you heavy stompers - pay attention on how you rock the pedal.

Performance

Pretty accurate, actually! We noticed a few complaints about the sweep not being as linear as they expected by Mr. Vai's standards, but we have to say that for the listed price this fella delivered everything we wanted, and then some. The pedal is smooth, the signal is uninterrupted and unchanged even with multiple other effects plugged in, and durability level is high. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbVT2Q18KG4

Value/Conclusion

For the listed price, this is a killer deal. In fact, we're a bit surprised that the manufacturer didn't crank it up another 25% just for the fact that Vai's name is attached to this device – which happens to be the main reason why we don't recommend some of the signature music gear in the first place. This is certainly a different type of device, and something that will draw the attention of all your fellow gear-heads. As the very conclusion, we have to stress that this is NOT an item that relies on good looks to draw customers, but a bonafide solid pedal that happens to look sexy as heck. Good stuff! For more info about the Morley PLA Steve Vai Little Alligator, click here. For more Volume Pedal Currently On The Market, click here.