Electro-Harmonix POG3

Twenty years since the launch of the original POG, the concept has been brought up to date, with features for guitarists and modular enthusiasts alike.

It seems like Electro‑Harmonix’s famous POG pedal has been around forever in one form or another. But in reality, it dates back only 20 years — the original POG was launched back in 2005, and was soon followed by the Micro POG and POG2. There is now even a Nano POG! I recently got my hands on the current full‑fat version, the POG3, which came out last year, and I have to say that, with its host of new features, it takes the POG concept to the next level.

Pretty Poly

The acronym POG stands for Polyphonic Octave Generator, and that pretty much sums up the core ethos of the original POG. On that pedal, sliders are used to add octaves both above and below the original sound. The additional voices are created by pitch‑shifting, and there are controls to shape them, so they allow for the creation of many effects, from bass‑heavy riffs and pseudo 12‑string sounds to organs and synth pads.

This latest versions adds a fifth‑interval slider and has an expanded filter section with adjustable parameters, including Q for the multi‑mode envelope filter and tweaked detune settings, as well as the existing envelope attack control. The POG3, which features a small OLED display for patch and editing information, can store 100 presets and also benefits from the free EHXport Mac/Windows software editor. EHXport supports preset transfer and backup to and from a computer, preset reordering, global settings and firmware updates. Its GUI mirrors the front panel of the POG3 with a parameter section running down the right‑hand side of the screen.

Housed in an aluminium case that has a more contemporary feel than that of the POG2, the controls are all located on the top panel, while the rear panel sports jack connections for the left and right outputs, direct out and Exp/CV in. The Exp/CV jack can be used not only with a conventional expression pedal as you’d expect, but also with control voltages from a modular synth system in the range 0V to 5V, which opens up all sorts of possibilities! MIDI in and out are provided too, on five‑pin DINs, and a USB‑C port facilitates...