Replacing my Strymon Lex Leslie simulator - any recommendations?

[HamerHokie]

The Lex sounds good, but it has two issues I don't like - there is no way to control the intensity of the effect, and when it's engaged there's a noticable volume drop.

As for other models, I've heard good things about the newer Boss RT-2. What others do you guys recommend?

 

[RobB]

I’ve landed on two: Keeley Rotary and an EHX LesterG.

The Keeley is simply laid out doesn’t clobber you with secondary functions. It has a huge, “speed”, knob which can easily moved with your foot. 

My fave is the EHX. It has the cool compression function, and the drive sounds are very pleasing. It takes up a bit of pedalboard space, though.

All said, I’m sure I could replace both with an RT-2 and not miss either. 

Edited February 15 by RobB

[G Man]

https://neo-instruments.com/mini-vent-2/

This is the way I would go if I were looking for such a thing.  The keyboard player in one of my bands uses the larger full vent version when playing through his electric Hammond and raves about it.

[beezerboy]

I have the EHX and it does the simulation really well, including the lead/lag when changing speeds or when switching on/off.  I also have the real thing for comparison. the pedal sounds like a recorded Leslie for lack of a better way to put it. a real Leslie in person does some wheezing and whirling and sounds reflect off the walls and such... can't replicate true depth that it makes "in person". but it sounds like a well recorded Leslie, and without actual moving parts I don't think any pedal can do better than that.

it seems to prefer it's own power supply but I think mostly it just needs to have enough power if on a shared source

[geoff_hartwell]

The tech21 is terrific. I love my old Korg G4 but others don’t like the big footprint, for me it was better than the H&K rotosphere though both are top notch for guitar and keys.

Only my two cents, but I actually find Non-Leslie warbly sounds on guitar more pleasing in general; maybe the term is faux Leslie? I never liked how any Leslie simulator played with gain pedals going into it, and also never liked the gain from the Les sim themselves.

My earmark is the 80s Ibanez Sc10 oddly enough, with speed cranked and level at 40% or lower. They were meant to be used kinda the opposite way with a fat slow chorus (which canNot be beat in an 80s rock cover band setting lol) but I think far more useful the opposite way. The newer mini Ibanez chorus sounds pretty awesome like that, the mxr reissue yellow one-knob chorus sounds awesome for that John Scofield thing.

There are also a ton of cool tones to be had using a fast tremolo and slow chorus or flanger in tandem, ymmv.

That being said, the TC electronics one sounds dope if you’re going for Cold Shot etc 🤷🏼‍♂️😎👍

Have fun! 😁 Good luck on your search!

[shankyboy]

On 2/15/2026 at 12:48 AM, HamerHokie said:

The Lex sounds good, but it has two issues I don't like - there is no way to control the intensity of the effect, and when it's engaged there's a noticable volume drop.

As for other models, I've heard good things about the newer Boss RT-2. What others do you guys recommend?

 

My Lex has been a solid performer for me for many years. You can program it so the volume is louder. Looks like the V2 now has a Volume Control knob on top. Might be time to upgrade mine. 

[hamerhead]

If you needed to grunt another amp, find one of these:

Motion Sound AR-112 Sidewinder.

It's 100W (S.S.) with a rotating baffle, about 40 lbs., and does a great (but subtle) real-life Leslie without breaking your back. I've used one at every gig for about 20 years under a variety of Fender amps. You can set the stop, slow, fast and ramp speeds, and the EQ and gain controls are enough to let you find a sweet spot with whatever amp you're using. As a stand-alone amp, it's a little boxy (for my taste). But as an add-on, it literally adds another dimension. Underrated and overlooked.

It won't fit on your pedalboard, though.  

[django49]

1 hour ago, hamerhead said:

If you needed to grunt another amp, find one of these:

Motion Sound AR-112 Sidewinder.

It's 100W (S.S.) with a rotating baffle, about 40 lbs., and does a great (but subtle) real-life Leslie without breaking your back. I've used one at every gig for about 20 years under a variety of Fender amps. You can set the stop, slow, fast and ramp speeds, and the EQ and gain controls are enough to let you find a sweet spot with whatever amp you're using. As a stand-alone amp, it's a little boxy (for my taste). But as an add-on, it literally adds another dimension. Underrated and overlooked.

It won't fit on your pedalboard, though.  

Yes, thumbs up. Picked up one of these on a "scratch and dent" sale a long time ago. I did exactly the same thing, playing with a smaller combo amp (usually a Mesa Nomad of Blue Angel) stacked on it. Not that I carry around much more than minimum gear I can get by with these days......

[MPR]

On 2/15/2026 at 1:48 AM, HamerHokie said:

The Lex sounds good, but it has two issues I don't like - there is no way to control the intensity of the effect, and when it's engaged there's a noticable volume drop.

As for other models, I've heard good things about the newer Boss RT-2. What others do you guys recommend?

 

Lex V2 has both a volume knob and a "dry" knob to blend dry signal with the rotary effect, so it should address both your issues.

I used to have the Neo Mini Vent II, which sounded great but didn't have any control over the intensity or wet/dry mix, so I sold it and got a Keeley Rotary. I like the Keeley on slow speed with the blend knob set very low for a subtle chorus effect, or on fast with the blend set a bit higher for more of the Hammond organ thing. The knobs are big enough to turn with your toe mid-song. It doesn't have a volume control, though, and depending on how your rig is EQ'd you may perceive a slight change from your bypassed volume; I compensate by engaging a boost as needed. I've never tried the Lex, and while I know I checked out online demos of both before I bought the Keeley, I forget now what made me choose it over the Strymon.

[shankyboy]

This is a bit of a pain to haul around to gigs but it sounds so dang good. 

[RobB]

47 minutes ago, shankyboy said:

 

The fact that you still own this and it works properly is a testament to its quality. Boogie did not make very many of these, I don’t think they sold a lot of them. 

[WiskiTangoFoxtrot]

I dig my NUX Roctary. 

[shankyboy]

15 hours ago, RobB said:

The fact that you still own this and it works properly is a testament to its quality. Boogie did not make very many of these, I don’t think they sold a lot of them. 

True. I paid $1,600 for this one new and the dealer dumped two more for $700 each about 6 months later cause they stopped making them. It sounds fantastic. The only thing I've had to do to it is replace the drive belt. 

[Brooks]

I had a Rotosphere years back, sounded great

[shankyboy]

17 minutes ago, Brooks said:

I had a Rotosphere years back, sounded great

I had one of those and sold it after I got my Revolver. I have always regretted selling it because it did sound good. They are worth a lot of money these days. 

[HamerHokie]

To put a bow on this, I ended up with the Boss RT-2.  It sounds awesome, it has a small footprint.  The controls take a bit of muscle memory learning but once you get beyond that it really does the job.

 

[RobB]

Good choice. The RT-2 prolly has the best features:price ratio of all of them. 

Edited March 8 by RobB