TC Electronic Hall of Fame Mini 2
A compact powerhouse.
£105 at andertons.co.uk | £105 at thomann.de
The TC Electronic Hall of Fame 2 Mini brings all the quality and versatility of its well-regarded larger version into a compact, pedalboard-friendly format. This scaled-down version of one of today's most popular reverb pedals offers the same high-quality sounds and versatility, offboarding some of the controls to the TC Electronic TonePrint app.
The reduced footprint does come with some sacrifices. The Hall of Fame 2 Mini forgoes the ability to power it with a 9V battery and lacks an onboard reverb type selector. These changes make it a perfect candidate for an “always-on” reverb effect.
Despite its small size, the Hall of Fame 2 Mini compensates for its lack of physical controls with a wealth of digital flexibility. The caveat is that to unleash this power, you'll need to hook it up to a computer or mobile app. This will be an instant deal breaker for many, but the power it unlocks is quite impressive. You gain precise control over every parameter – from the reverb type, pre-delay time, and EQ, to complex pitch-shifting and modulation effects.
Setting it up via a computer requires an outdated mini-USB connector. Luckily the cable is included with the pedal. The mobile app offers all the same functionalities and lets you wirelessly beam custom toneprint settings to the pedal. You can set up your chosen settings in the app, place your phone near your guitar pickup, and watch as your pedal magically acquires the desired settings. The onboard Tone, Decay, and Level controls let you fine-tune your sound, and can be reconfigured to control any parameter or even multiple parameters simultaneously.
The Hall of Fame Mini 2 sounds incredible. It superbly replicates the staple spring, plate, and hall modes and takes things a step further with octave and modulation options for creating lush and atmospheric reverbs. The sonic quality rivals big-name competitors like Eventide – an impressive feat considering its price and size. The Hall of Fame mini also comes with a best-in-class buffer (1 Mohm input and 100 ohm output). This is exactly what you want from the last pedal in your signal chain. The pedal can also be set to true bypass using the TonePrint software.
The unique 'Mash' feature is a staple of TC Electronic. Hold down the footswitch for a few seconds and it becomes a pressure-sensitive expression pedal. You can get real-time control over any assignable parameter. It's a fantastic tool for ramping up the reverb decay for a song's climactic ending or dramatic breakdown.
If you can live with using the app for detailed controls, the Hall of Fame 2 Mini is going to be hard to beat. The only point of comparison lies with its larger sibling – the full-sized Hall of Fame 2. For a marginal price difference, the bigger version offers preset saving and on-pedal reverb type selection. Once the input/output jacks are taken into account, the size difference is less substantial than you might think.
Bottom Line
The TC Electronic Hall of Fame 2 Mini is a mighty compact reverb pedal, colossal in its sonic possibilities. If you're after a top-quality reverb and don't mind trading physical controls for digital power, it's worth a serious look.