EHX Worm- worth it?

So I'm downsizing my pedalboard in preparation for an upcoming move... the goal is to have no more than 6-7 pedals that meet all my tonal needs. Fortunately, (most) gain pedals are no longer necessary, as my Mesa TA-30 more than takes care of all of my (non-fuzz) drive needs. I have a tuner, a wah, a massive fuzz, and a delay, and now I'm looking for some versatile, quirky, cheap modulation.

I really dig the versatility that the Worm provides, and I can see myself using all of the effects it has in all of my different musical projects/capacities- I even love that modulated wah. But I've heard both first and secondhand that it can be a little weak sounding, like the wet signal is overpowered by the dry. Demos on Youtube seem to vary in quality and mix. If money were no object, I'd go for a Kilpatrick Vibroman, a Pickle Vibe, and a Line 6 FM-4 for good measure, but alas... I gotta make due with one box.

So... thoughts on the Worm? Alternatives? Thanks in advance for all your insight!

So... thoughts on the Worm? Alternatives? Thanks in advance for all your insight!

I had the big box... and stupidly sold it for a few bucks. I miss it a lot! :cry::sad: The modulated wah is awesome! Phaser is ok... but I heard that it's only 2-stage. The main issue's the noise... there's a white noise when you engage it but, I read that they fixed it with the smaller XO WORM and a big plus with the expression pedal output. The big box WORM has more mojo though! :lol:

Thanks for the heads up on the noise... sounds like the XO is definitely the ticket for both quiet operation and space saving. Did you find yourself using it often live?

Imho XO is not that noise-free as you may think. TBH, noise is noticeable. However, I love mine XO Worm for all-analog warm goodness!

Thanks for the heads up on the noise... sounds like the XO is definitely the ticket for both quiet operation and space saving. Did you find yourself using it often live?

well of course, it depends on the music you play. I play in a church and I remember using the Modulated Wah for a short 10 seconds intro. The phaser as well for some funky stuff.

If you can try both the XO and the big box, much better so you can decide which is better especially considering the white noise they 'might' generate. I mentioned MIGHT now since I remember seeing a demo on YouTube that the bigbox is dead quite! :razz:

Oh yeah, that makes sense. I guess it's going to be sort of a specialty thing for most types of music. I'm also looking at the discontinued Marshall Regenerator, which has even more functionality and I might be able to get it at a lower price... so many decisions!

Is Regenerator analog?

Is the Line 6 M5 within reason? You'd have all the mods, plus delays, verbs, filters and anything else you can think of. I use one as my swiss army pedal. It's the only mod pedal I have. I love the thing. I use it for delay and verb more, but the mods are very good.

I'm pretty sure the Regenerator is digital, but the Echohead from the same series has been on my board for 4 years and it hasn't let me down in either tone or durability, so I'm hoping the RG-1 is in a similar vein. The demos sound fantastic to my ear.

Speaking of digital though... the M5 looks way cool. How good are the trem/vibrato models and, more importantly, how easy is it to switch between sounds on the fly?

I have a worm coming soon that I won off eBay, I'all have a review up after it comes. The peter stroud video sold me.

I have a worm coming soon that I won off eBay, I'all have a review up after it comes. The peter stroud video sold me.


Pretty much this. :razz: You can't go wrong with most of the EHX pedal!

Well, I hate to say it but I ended up pulling the trigger on the RG-1. The one that I found was $25 cheaper than the Worm and it has more features, including a Univibe and a crazy step phaser that I love. Peter Stroud is certainly the bomb though.

I have the WORM. It does add some noise but not too bad. Did not like having a TS808 in front, prefers to have the dirt after it.

All the effects are subtle but usable. The vibrato is the one I like the best

Well, I hate to say it but I ended up pulling the trigger on the RG-1. The one that I found was $25 cheaper than the Worm and it has more features, including a Univibe and a crazy step phaser that I love. Peter Stroud is certainly the bomb though.

That's cool man. Please do right a mini review of that Marshall RG-1! That's becoming really cheap here in my area. :razz:

I will indeed! After the obligatory cool-off period of course... it should be here by Monday. I really dig the Marshall pedals- never understood why they were discontinued. They are getting to be quite a steal though; guess that's the plus side. I have no shortage of good things to say about my Echohead.

I had the Worm XO and sold it. It did not hold value on CL very well, even though it was mint and with box.

My opinion: Yes, it's analog, but it is not an amazing pedal. It's great that it has 4 effects in one. None of them are that amazing on their own though. The MXR phasers are way better than the phaser. The garage tone (or even the Dano CoolCat) trems are better, the auto-wah was okay, but I didn't use it much. In the end, I just bought the single pedals that had the sound I wanted. The only multi that I've sold and regret would be the Line 6 M13 because it has so much functionality for gigging, for instance, being able to assign a pedal to bring back any part of any effect you want. It's great, even though it's digital.

I think the vibrato and tremelo are pretty good. The vibrato is probably my gave, can get kinda organish leslieish and can do a slower swirl

If it's as bad/noisy/tone-suckish as the "Wiggler" - then no...