Andy Green offers “basic building blocks” of tone – a concise lineup of effects including distortion, overdrive, fuzz, and reverb.

One of those blocks measures 4.75″ x 2.5 x 1.625″ and is painted with a surf scene riffing on the iconic Endless Summer film poster. The Seaverb is a hand-assembled spring-reverb simulation with a slew of chassis-mounted components – pots, Switchcraft jacks, 9-volt power, and true-bypass footswitch with green LED. Controls include a Depth knob for dialing in the mix of reverb and dry signal, and a Shine knob for the reverb tone and dwell.

The Seaverb was tested with a Fender Custom Shop 1960 reissue Strat loaded with a trio of Custom Shop pickups and a 15-watt Fender Blues Junior 1×12, and its tone proved to be classic blackface-style spring reverb with a very authentic, slightly trashy splash to the top end and an abundance of clear smooth decay. The Depth control dives deeper into an ambient wash of cool, old-school reverb while maintaining the amp’s natural tone and clarity – without washing-out the sound or losing definition and presence. The Shine control acts like a dwell control on a traditional spring reverb unit and does a great job of controlling the top-end decay and reverb tone.

One thing missing from the Seaverb that’s prevalent on too many other reverb pedals is background noise. The Seaverb is very quiet, adding little or no background to the signal. Its overall analog flavor and tone give it a more-musical, “sweet” sound without that sterile digital vibe.

In all, the Andy Green Pedals Seaverb does an outstanding job of transforming a dry guitar tone into a thoroughly drenched day at the beach, thanks to a spot-on spring reverb simulation in a high-quality – and quiet – compact pedal.

This article originally appeared in VG February 2018 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.