Quick Start
Introduction
Thank you for choosing the SOUTH ZOO VOICE SYNTH by Klowra.
SOUTH ZOO VOICE SYNTH: A curious menagerie hidden in your signal chain.
It is a bizarre auditory illusion: you strike a string as usual, but what emanates from your amp might be the animal-inspired synthesized vocal textures. SOUTH ZOO is far from a mere novelty/gimmick polyphonic synth; it is an animal-inspired synthesizer pedal that blends surreal character with sophisticated DSP architecture.
It abandons cold, clinical digital synthesis. Driven by a powerful triple-voice synthesis algorithm and smooth low latency polyphonic tracking, SOUTH ZOO acutely captures your picking dynamics, naturally blending bizarre animal vocal tracts with your guitar signal. This sound is no mechanical overlay; it interacts delicately with your notes, responding to every rise and fall through dynamic envelope decay.
Within this curious menagerie, you can adjust parameters to explore the textures of cat, frog, and horse synth voices, meticulously sculpting your ideal soundscape. By holding down the footswitch, you instantly trigger dramatic reverse pitch-swallows and infinite wails via signal freeze. This is more than a boundary-pushing experiment; it is a studio-quality pedal that translates emotional tension into pure musical expression.
Controls
Voice Button
Selects the core tonal character and modulation behavior of the effect. Click the button to cycle through three distinct animal-inspired sound profiles, indicated by the LED color:
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CAT (White LED): Delivers a vocal, wah-like effect. It provides a dynamic and expressive filter sweep that mimics a distinct "meow" character, adding a smooth, vocal quality to your playing.
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FROG (Blue LED): Features a unique modulation where the sustain or trails transform into rhythmic, repeating frog croaks. This adds a quirky, pulsating texture to your lingering notes.
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HORSE (Orange LED): Produces a sharper, more piercing tone. With an aggressive, high-frequency bite, this mode ensures your sound cuts clearly through the mix with a bright, distinct edge.
TAILS
Adjust the tails of the animal voice.
MIX
Adjusts how much animal sound is blended into your dry guitar signal.
SPEED
Adjusts the loop speed of the animal sound.
DETAIL
Adjust the specific character and details of the animal voice.
Footswitch
Control ON/OFF; Press and hold to trigger specific functions based on the current active mode. The LED turns purple when a specific function is engaged.
Toggle Switch
Select the tracking behavior (obedience level) of the Animal Singing Mode and assigns the specific function triggered by holding the footswitch.
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(Pitch Follow): Voices perfectly lock onto your guitar's pitch.
Specific Functions : Activates Inverted Pitch Follow—low notes trigger high-pitched screams, and high notes plunge into deep roars, creating a massive sonic landscape.
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(Normal/Flutter): Severs the tracking for flat, robotic, lo-fi noise.
Specific Functions: Freezes the animal voice into a continuous, grotesque wall of sound while randomizing the SPEED parameter.
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(Normal/Stretch): Severs the tracking for flat, robotic, lo-fi noise.
Specific Functions: Freezes the animal voice into a continuous, grotesque wall of sound while randomizing the TAILS parameter.
Indicator LED
The LED color indicates the selected VOICE type. In bypass, the LED is off.
Rear Panel I/O
9V DC
Connect to a 9V DC power supply with a center-negative polarity and a minimum current rating of 150mA.
Note: If the power supply is insufficient, the pedal may malfunction.
IN L (Mono)
1/4" mono (TS) unbalanced left input for mono setups.
OUT L (Mono)
1/4" mono (TS) unbalanced left output for mono setups.
CTRL
3.5mm TS input for connecting an external footswitch.
Note: This input only recognizes TS footswitch signals to trigger the specific function. Its operation is identical to a long press of the onboard footswitch (momentary trigger, no insertion detection).
Power-Up Modes
How To enter Power-Up Modes:
Press & hold the footswitch while powering on the pedal. A flashing LED indicates successful entry. Once your settings are configured, press the footswitch again to exit Power-Up Modes.
In this mode, you can adjust the following settings:
Bypass Modes
Switch between modes by short-press the VOICE button.
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True Bypass
The signal is routed directly through the pedal with no buffering or coloration.
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Green LED flashes to indicate True Bypass mode.
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Buffered Bypass
The signal is routed through a buffer with Analog Dry Through, allowing delay trails to continue after the effect is bypassed.
Red LED flashes to indicate Buffered Bypass mode.
LED Brightness
Adjust by rotating the SPEED knob.
- Turn fully left for dimmest.
- Turn fully right for brightest.
Inputs | 1 x 1/4" TS instrument jack Outputs 1 x 1/4" TS instrument jack |
Input Impedance | 500k Ohm |
Sampling Accuracy | 24-bit AD/DA Conversion & 32-bit Floating-Point DSP |
Power Source | 9V DC power supply required |
External Control | TS footswitch only |
Hardware Interface | USB-C |
Outputs | 1 x 1/4" TS instrument jack |
Output Impedance | 100 Ohm |
Max Input Level | +7 dBu |
Current | 150mA |
Bypass Mode | Bypass Mode Switchable: True Bypass, Buffered Bypass |
Dimensions | 51mm H x 92mm D x 38mm W
(2.0"H x 3.6"D x 1.5"W) |