Polyend Introduces MESS Multi-Effects Step Sequencer
Ahead of Superbooth 2025, being held May 8-10 at the FEZ-Berlin, Polish electronic music gear maker Polyend has introduced MESS, a multi-effect step sequencer.
Polyend says that MESS is designed to change how you think about effects.
MESS is a “texture box”, with all effects stack-able, in any combination, giving you a deep set of sound design options, including overdrive, filters, big crushing, fuzz, pitch-shifting, reverbs, tape style effects, granular effects and more.
The built-in sequencer expands your options, letting you create rhythmic patterns that transform your sounds. Dynamic effects can evolve over time, to add more life and interest than is possible with static effects. With built-in chance and probability controls, MESS can generate randomized glitches, stutters, repeats and more.
Features:
- With over 200 ready-to-play presets MESS provides instant creativity, and 1000 preset slots to store your own products.
- An intuitive knob-per-function interface and clear visual feedback make creating custom effects chains easy. You can quickly build sequences on the 16 step-grid pad, focusing only on the most important parameters.
- 4 Effect Tracks – Combine four effects for every preset to create your own unique multi-effect. No limits are placed on what effect each track contains.
- 125 Stereo Effects – With over 120 effects to assign to the four tracks, MESS opens the door to the unexpected.
- Effects Sequencing – Control per-track speed and length to create polyrhythmic or polymetric sequence. Use chance options to easily create complex generative effects that never sound the same twice. Reverbs bloom, delays evolve rhythmically, and modulations shift in sync with your tempo.
- Extravagant or Traditional Effects – Polyend says that MESS excels at in-your-face weirdness, while still covering all your pedalboard basics. You can use it as an avant-garde idea generator or a straightforward pedalboard replacement. Tapping the play switch to kick the sequencer into motion transforms MESS from a traditional FX processor to powerful rhythmic effects system.
- Reverbs & Delays – MESS features a extensive range of stereo reverb and delay modes. Explore lush ambient spaces, tight room simulations, and modulated plates with 7 core reverb types and dozens of sub-modes.
- Granular & Glitch – 9 modes for Granular and Glitcher engines break apart, blur or fragment any signal.
- Shapers, Drives & Filters – Shape your sound with effects from subtle saturation to natural overdrives to complete destruction, with bitcrushing and sample rate reduction.
- Pitch Shift & Spectralize – Spectral engines can warp, pitch shift and transform a large spectrum of sound. You can also used dedicated pitch-shifters with monophonic pitch tracking to re-harmonize your sound or sequence complete musical compositions from a single note.
- Slicers & Microloopers – A collection of repeater algorithms can be tightly sequenced for microlooping, repitching, arpeggiation, and tape-stop style effects. With per-step chance controls, MESS can also generate randomized loops, stutters.
An overview by David Hilowitz:
MESS is available to pre-order now for $599, with shipping planned to start at the end of June 2025.
