Red Panda Raster 2 Review
Our Verdict and Review Summary
The Raster takes some getting used to, and perhaps a bit of trial and error. But once you get the lay of the land, there are a TON of different sounds it can produce that are both musically usable and heavily ethereal (spaced out). I absolutely love this pedal and the vibe of Red Panda's sounds.
Red Panda is producing some incredibly unique and versatile guitar pedals, unlike anything I've ever played. This approach melds well with the more digitized and electronic edge that modern rock styles are going with these days. It means guitars need to be capable of more than just conventional lead and rhythm.
I was impressed with the Raster 2 for two main reasons:
- A lot of edgy sound effects that were more computer than musical
- Plenty of corresponding musical and usable sounds
Hopefully I captured this in the demo video below. I think there are a lot of examples that show both sides of this pedal.
I'll cover all the details in my firsthand Red Panda Raster 2 review.
Drop questions in the comments section.
Compare the Raster 2 to Other Delay Pedals
To start, this section gives you a simple comparison table so you can see the Raster 2 next to some other, similar delay pedals.
Pedal | Model | Rate | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Panda Raster 2 | 92.8 | |
 | Red Panda Particle 2 | 89.3 | |
 | Line 6 DL4 MK2 | n/a | |
 | Walrus Audio Fable Granular Delay | n/a |
Compare More Guitar Pedals
If you want to add some more pedals to the comparison bar at the bottom of this page, you can search our database for other inventory. We don't have everything, but we have a lot.
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Our disclosure↬
If you haven't used a Red Panda pedal, you're in for a lot of new sounds and some unique twists on ambient traditionalism.
For most of our product reviews we take our own photos, in-house. Thank goodness for portrait mode. For those interested in using these photos, that is completely fine with us as long as you give us credit and don't claim the work as your own. Simply linking to guitarchalk.com near the photo is totally fine.
Review Card
IDEAL FOR: Recording, electronic music, modern rock/metal, and anyone looking for unique delay tones and sounds.
TONE
92
CONTROL
95
VERSATILITY
95
PRICE/VALUE
89
- One of the most flexible delay pedals I've tried
- Lots of use on the abstract and electric side, along with the musical side.
- Easy to tame pitch and effect depth
- Tons of modes to experiment with
- A very versatile pedal, similar to the others in the Red Panda series.
- Expensive
- A bit of a learning curve
Red Panda Raster 2 Price Guide
Prices updated Mon, September 25th, 2023.
Sweetwater Pricing
Price Alert
Price History
Price History for Red Panda Raster 2 Digital Delay Pedal
Statistics
| Current Price | $279.65 | September 24, 2023 |
| Highest Price | $329.00 | June 11, 2023 |
| Lowest Price | $279.65 | August 29, 2023 |
Last price changes
| $279.65 | August 29, 2023 |
| $329.00 | June 11, 2023 |
Effects and Tone Quality
The Raster 2 applies heavy pitch shifting, detuning, and phase shifting, all on top of a digital delay base. So the sounds it produces are very unique, and not necessarily musical, depending on which waveforms and settings you're tinkering with. You can get warped detuned cascades, detuned echoes, percussive pulsing, ambient delay echoes and trails, and a ton of other sounds that you wouldn't think a guitar could produce.
Here's a summary of what I noticed during testing.
- Warped detuned cascades
- Detuned echoes
- Percussive pulsing
- Ambient delay/echoes/trails
At the same time, this pedal can be very musical, which you can hear in my demo below. I got around to all the waveforms, and was able to dial in plenty of spaced-out tones, as well as some very musical sounds and delays.
Note that this demo was recorded through a Boss Katana 50 and a Focusrite audio interface.
I don't really even know how to describe some of these sounds.
Some of it sounds glitchy or fluttery, like an electronic circuit board having serious problems.
Red Panda mentions the broken tape deck sound, which I hear in it as well.
It will certainly open up some new territory for you as a guitar player, giving you new material to experiment with. How much of it you will find use for is hard to say, but it's a great way to modernize a guitar rig, and build some chops in the world of electronic music.
The Raster 2 gives you a lot of digitized, electronic sounds, but also some very musical ambience.
Controls and Flexibility
Just as it's hard to cover all of the tones this pedal is capable of, it's also tough to get through all the customization options.
The high level view starts with the waveform selector plus the delay, shift, and blend controls.
Between those three functions you can get through a ton of variety.
There are a total of seven modulation waveforms. Once selected, they can be paired with the following:
- Delay/echoes
- Pitch shift (detuning)
- Amplitude
- Adjustment of base modulation waveforms
It takes me awhile to get used to the controls on these pedals, but once I isolated the most important functions, I was able to get through the sounds pretty quickly. The modulation waveforms are your starting point, then you can adjust delay, blend, and feedback.
All told, there are a ton of ways to manipulate these sounds.
Lots of waveforms to choose, and a ton of control for each one.
Price and Value
Red Panda pedals are all priced around the same amount, just over $300 at the time of writing this review. Check the price guide for updated numbers, though we'd expect them all to move at the same time and the same amount, including the Raster 2.
Since the Raster 2 gives you such a wide range of sounds on top of seven waveforms, there's plenty of value here for the $300+ price tag.
It's not cheap, but it's in-line with other high-end digital delay pedals with the same type of functionality.
The thing about the Raster 2 is that it gives you a lot more than the average multi-mode digital delay. I'm good with the price on this pedal, even if it's more of a niche sound and acquired taste.
Those with a bend towards electronic music, who are after a more non-traditional delay sound, will get a lot more value out of the Raster 2.
Not cheap, but there's still a ton of value here.
Wrap Up and Questions
Red Panda is definitely breaking some new ground with these stompboxes. They've allowed my guitar to make sounds that I've truly never heard come out of an electric guitar, while also keeping a sense of familiarity with the ambient delays and echoes.
I love the flexibility and the unique appeal, and would certainly recommend it for those who want to expand their stylistic range as a guitar player.
If you have questions, post them in the comments section below.
I'll help out as much as possible.
Thanks for trusting our reviews.
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