DigiTech HammerOn Does The Riffing for You!
5,0 / 5,0 | 
Something new from the Whammy makers! DigiTech HammerOn seems to be aimed at two groups. First, it’s for those who find hammer-ons tricky. Second, it’s for math rock and metal aficionados who find their own speedy arpeggios insufficient. Sounds exciting!
DigiTech HammerOn: A Pedal for the Lazy Players?
Getting hammer-ons to sound tight and clean is a long process. But once you’ve practiced them long enough, every solo, every riff is instantly sounds more powerful, funkier, just better. But if you mess it up, especially on stage, it gets dissonant quick – and not the good kind. DigiTech HammerOn does the work for you!
For those familiar with DigiTech pedals: the HammerOn seems to be a kind of hybrid of the Drop and the Ricochet. It’s based on the pitch-shifting technology of the Whammy. The basic idea of the pedal is that each of the two footswitches can be assigned an interval. And the pedal then transposes to these as soon as you press and hold the respective footswitch.
A total of 27 pitches are possible, two octaves up and down, with a range of intervals (although, shouldn’t the downward intervals be called pull-offs?). The pedal also works in classic mode (as known from the classic Whammy) with single notes or chord mode (as known from the modern Whammy).
Seven Pedals in One
The DigiTech HammerOn has seven different operational modes. In mode 1, HAMMER-ON, the pedal produces an immediate pitch shift as soon as you hold down one of the footswitches and returns to the intial note once you let go. HAMMER-ON with TRILL, the second mode, rapidly jumps back and forth between the played note and the interval as long as you hold the footswitch. The speed of the trill is adjusted using the Select knob.
In the third mode, HARMONY-ON, the dry signal is added back in, creating different chords depending on the interval set. In IMPOSSIBLE mode, HammerOn jumps up or down a set interval each time footswitch 2 is held. There are also three modes with sequences.
In DROP/CAPO SEQUENCE mode, the pedal runs through a sequence of two, three or five set intervals, jumping from note to note each time one of the footswitches is pressed. This mode can then be combined with Trill, allowing you to fire entire riffs from the pedal. In mode 7, the sequence is combined with Trill and even the dry signal. Digitech calls the last mode an “Automatic Techno Guitar Sequencer.”
How Much does the DigiTech HammerON Cost?
Rarely have I longed more for a demo video. A pedal this unusual and creative without one, where, even thoroughly studying of the manual, you still not quite sure what the pedal sounds like? Mysterious, but also confusing. The manufacturer remains consistent with its secrecy as the price is not yet known either. One of the most exciting releases of NAMM 2025!
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