Other guitar saturation effects

(Originally written by Dlz/translated from Audiofanzine FR) Same features as the V1 except for the switchable noise gate and a knob to control the bass boost intensity. UTILIZATION The overall configuration is simple and intuitive. The provided setting examples in the user's manual are very helpful (they also allow you to quickly understand the pedal limitations). SOUND QUALITY The overdrive is very good even though the mid boost is very obvious (much more than in a SD-1) so the effect isn't as honest regarding the frequency response. I have a problem with the distortion channel (Hyde) of this pedal. While the overdrive has an excellent quality, the distortion channel has no real character, it is ordinary and it even sounds bad with extreme settings. Considering the low quality of the distortion channel, the overdrive and distortion controls yield poor results especially because the distortion is placed before the overdrive in the signal path. So you end up with a distortion boosting an overdrive not an overdrive boosting a distortion. It's quite inventive but considering the result I yearn for a classic effect chain. I'd rather have the J&H in overdrive mode and then connect a distortion pedal to it. Overdrive: 9 Distortion: 4 OVERALL OPINION I've been using this pedal for one year and I use the overdrive channel almost exclusively. I'm really disappointed about this pedal (which indeed has excellent reviews) because its distortion channel is nothing but average. Compared to my MXR Double Shot, the MXR provides two very good and really different distortion sounds. The price tag is quite high considering the weak distortion channel. I would never choose this pedal again.

What guitarist doesn’t like effects? Certainly, there are some purists, including jazz or blues musicians (plug in an amp and play), but most of us like things that add some dazzle to our tones. My favorite are overdrive pedals, because they can make a good amp sound even better, and each OD pedal has its own characteristics and personality. The OVERDRIVE II by GREEDTONE is lip-smacking good, and in a number of ways, which I presented in the accompanying demo below, since words describe only so much. First, the overall tone quality of the OVERDRIVE II is very raw and grainy, with some distortion qualities. It has a slight breaking up attribute, whether set low or high, thus giving it that ‘tube amp breaking up’ trait (which you can hear, even with modelers or other digital gear). Obviously, this sound is more apparent with the Gain cranked, but it doesn’t get messy or super-saturated. The result is more detail, liveliness and harmonics, whether working with a 6+string rhythm/lead or bass. Second, the Volume increase is huge (4V), and makes for an incredible clean boost, but is so clear (due to the silver mica caps) that the tone tends to lose a touch bass or low-mids. However, that is where the Greed knob comes into play, adding in some tight bottom end. And if you crank the Greed, you get more of that thick Doom and Sludge result. Amazingly, even with the Gain and Greed up full tilt, the tone remains rich and vibrant – not muddy! Of course, with those dark amps and pickups, you may not want to get too Greedy and rely on the clear, cleaning-up effect of the OVERDRIVE II’s circuitry to add in those sparkling high ends. Next, the More switch could be used to provide extra oomph to rhythm, but it’s best used for lead, whereby it adds further energy, sustain and a hint of decibels (not much… very light volume increase to my ears, but with the added aggression the More function allows lead to pop through the mix better and without having to boost the signal excessively). The OVERDRIVE II does boast some other features, including being true bypass with built-in noise reduction circuitry, using a 4049 chip, high-quality pots and parts, and a rugged, yet lightweight, die-cast aluminum chassis. However, one of the best-selling features comes from the fact that it was designed and engineered by Greg Williamson, who has been an audio engineer since 1988, produced albums for over two decades, and has done live work with the Foo Fighters, Sunny Day Real Estate, The Presidents of the United States of America, Mike Watt, and others. Greg knows sound and it tells with the GREEDTONE OVERDRIVE II. This pedal plays well with cleans, but stands out in a huge way when coupled with a dirty signal, from crunch to hi-gain, thereby making it a real rock machine. For some, the price tag may seem a bit steep ($279.95 USD), but this is a boutique sounding and quality made pedal. If you already like your amp, wait until you hear the excitement and vivacity unleash with GREEDTONE’s OVERDRIVE II. The way I’m describing the OVERDRIVE II may sound like marketing, but it’s definitely a candid opinion from someone who has tried, tested and reviewed a few dozen ODs over the years – and the OVERDRIVE II definitely stands out.

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Christian Briére hit a homerun with the Drive Factory, and in a number of ways. First, the most important aspect of a drive is its sound, and the Drive Factory sounds darn good. It has a medium grain that sings classic rock, to my ears, although it doesn’t take much dialing in for a thicker and harder result. Second, although some musicians may require a single flavor of drive only, whether low, moderate or hi-gain, it’s good to have a variety of tone possibilities, and the Drive Factory offers enough variation that you wouldn’t think it was the same pedal. And so, let’s go over what the Drive Factory has to offer. There are two sides to the pedal – an on/off switch on the right and a Boost switch on the left – both of which are quiet during operation, e.g., no pops or clicks. The general overdriven sound and boost both are governed by the Drive and Volume controls. Both the main Drive and Boost increase volume and, therefore, need to be coordinated with the Volume control. The main Drive starts off with very little hair when turned all the way down, thus making the Drive Factory ideal for clean boosting (crank up the Treble knob and it becomes a great sounding treble boost). Once approaching the 10-o’clock mark, the Drive Factory produces a fantastic sounding crunch that really cuts through the mix with its pronounced note definition and harmonics. Once reaching 12-o’clock and beyond, the quality of the drive becomes more distorted and even slightly fuzz-like (particularly if you back off on the treble and increase the bass). The Boost function starts off rather clean when not too high (e.g., 9-o’clock or less), but does add some hair or sizzle once past that point. I’m uncertain of the dB increase of the Boost, but it must be at least 12dB minimum. Now, there are some toggle switches that adds even more tonal variations, starting with the Output Hard-clip switch that increases distortion and compression to the main Drive (when flipped on). This adds a modern flare to the overdriven quality of the drive, thus providing a greater sonic span when dialing in that ideal Rock to Hard Rock sound. Likewise, the Boost also has an extra Drive switch if looking for more grain in your soloing, but also a switch to add or cut compression. Combine both of these for very smooth and sustained lead. Overall, the Drive Factory needs far more attention than currently experiencing (its subdued reputation has much to do with it being a flagship pedal by a small Canadian boutique builder). It sounds fantastic, with both clean and hi-gain amps, and it makes everything sound better. That can be said about other drives, but the fact that you can dial into so many impressive tones, which vary significantly the more you tweak, places the Drive Factory into its own category from the usual drive pedals flooding the market. It is very touch sensitive, so that you hear varying levels of drive and note detail based on playing aggression, but it also cleans up nicely with a guitar’s volume. And regardless of the settings, the crispness of the drive makes it stand out in the mix as good as one would want and expect. Its build is solid, with noiseless switches and smooth turning pots, and I like the Steampunk design of the graphics, combining both vintage and modern appeal. At $180 Canadian, it not only is a fantastic buy, but a steal for US customers, or other countries, with a superior exchange rate.

SOUND: The Mystere, by Doc Music Station (France) is a fully analog preamp, allowing you to achieve the tone of a Marshall JCM800 in a pedal: The JCM800 is one of the most popular Marshall amps (used by Clapton, Hetfield, Wylde and many others) producing excellent singing highs for leads, but also unmistakable crunch tones. The Mystere is no exception. Turn up the Preamp just a little and you get a bit of bite, ideal for some dirty rhythm and some Blues leads. But as you crank the Preamp you get that in-your-face 1980s biting tone. The Presence knob seems to work very well with the Preamp, as you can have the Preamp rather high and it doesn’t sound nearly as dirty if the Presence is low or off, but as you increase the Presence to about 9-10 o’clock the Mystere really comes to life. I also was impressed with the Bass, Middle and Treble – not so much the range of each, but that nothing sounds excessive. For example, pushing the Bass and Middle up full does not produce a muddy signal and the Treble up high sounds clean and clear, as opposed to brittle. OVERALL IMPRESSION: Mystere can be translated as Mystery (or ‘a religious truth via divine revelation, hidden spiritual significance’), Denis over at Doc Music Station named the pedal after his dog, which I think I like better and shows how personal this pedal project is. Available for purchase direct from Doc Music Station (209 Euro) or via Reverb.com, the price is reasonable for the Mystere because of its sound (and it’s a lot smaller than a JCM800 head), while producing a very authentic tone with amp-like responses. You can place it direct to an amp (clean or dirty), but Doc Music Station indicates that it sounds best in the Effects Return Loop, or direct to a CAB simulator for direct send/mixing to a DAW (which is what I did in the demo video). One thing for certain is that the Mystere is a darn cool looking pedal with the grill and color matching of a Marshall head, as well as the same type of knobs. It operates on a standard 9V power supply. EASE OF USE: Easy enough to use, as though working with the JCM800 Marshall head, the Mystere does require some minor tweaking in order to get the degree of tone, crunch and sustain you want. No surprise there. The Master control allows you to crank into high-gain territory while keeping the overall levels as low (or as high) as you wish. This works in conjunction with the Preamp (since the Preamp increases volume as the drive/gain increases). However, as you up the Presence, Bass, Middle and Treble, there also is a modest increase in volume. Presence provides a surprising amount of dirt and bite to the tone and works in conjunction with the Preamp. A good dose of Preamp can sound good, but as you get the Presence to about 9-o’clock or a touch higher you really can hear the dirt kick in. As well, the Mystere functions wonderfully with other pedals, including Tube Screamers, fuzzes, distortions and overdrives – accordingly, you may need to adjust the Preamp level and/or the amount of output of the pedals to get the best mix. RELIABILITY & DURABILITY: The Mystere, measuring in at 3.75 x 4.75 inches (9.5 x 12.0 cm), has an obvious Marshall vibe with a smooth finish to its paint. The chassis feels heavy and is made of aluminum (a Hammond 1590BB aluminum case that provides shielding of the electronic card). The LED ‘on-off’ light is far situated from the foot switch and between two knobs (Preamp and Presence). The footswitch has a solid click to it and may be close to some of the knobs, but those are very heavy in construction and should not pose an issue with aggressive stomping. The guitar cable input and output both are located on the sides, but since the Mystere is a somewhat wide pedal there’s plenty of room for stomping without hitting any cables. The power input is located along the side and toward the front, although it does not appear to be an awkward place for strain when switching the Mystere on and off. The plastic knobs with aluminum toppers are of heavy construction and the pots are of good quality when turned. The true bypass Mystere contains some high quality audio components, including carbon resistors, capacitors a Panasonic SMF FC and Silver Mica, as well as PCB double sided plated through holes FR4 with front and back ground plane, Neutrik jacks, and Alpha 16mm faders. Finally, the pedal is protected against overvoltage and reverse polarity.

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SOUND: Below is a video demo that utilizes a Taurus amplifier, but also various amp simulations (via Positive Grid’s Bias 2), and later the Carvin Legacy (Vai) Drive. After listening I would be surprised if anyone cannot hear how the gear influences how the DC Drive interacts and vice versa. For instance, an Orange amp sounds like an Orange amp… but with the DC Drive it’s like an Orange on steroids or with some added personality. The same is true of a Marshall, Fender, etc., and I must add how responsive Fender amps are with the DC Drive… very impressive, as are Marshalls on their clean channels. When it comes to high-gain or Metal type amplifiers, turning on the DC Drive low (e.g., quarter way) often is more than enough to add additional grit, grind and definition to the notes… a little goes a long way and makes the tone stand out in the mix even more. The controls are very straight forward, with an ON-OFF switch, and a VOLUME, TONE and DRIVE knob. Surprisingly there are times when the Tone should be turned down quite a bit, for more bass response (typical with Orange amps, since they tend to be a bit more harsh or trebly). For other amps, as well, there tends to be a sweet spot, although I’ve found between 11 and 1 o’clock a typical range with very flat and clean sounding amps. The Drive does increase volume to some degree, and so you may have to back off the Volume knob a touch. The REGULAR/FAT switch is a very nice addition, particularly with amps that are a bit more trebly. The Regular setting is more flat and provides a typical overdrive, which ranges from slightly overdriven/distorted, to crunchy to sizzling hot. The Fat mode provides more bottom end (and some added mids) while boosting the signal slightly – the tone is more in-your-face as you feel and hear the ‘push’ generated… this mode is great for amps that sound a bit thin and less robust or if you want a more modern and edgy sound. OVERALL IMPRESSION: This is a new 2018 release – a revamping of the original DC Drive in a smaller footprint. The DC Drive is one of those straight forward pedals destined to become a classic, and I don’t say that lightly. I am thorough impressed how it encourages and brings to life the individual characteristics of the guitar and amp being played, thereby producing unique results from one guitar or amp to another… but without any extraneous coloring. EASE OF USE: The DC Drive is not difficult to use, and I suspect the biggest tweak going on with this pedal will be to match the Tone output of the pedal with that of your amp (presuming you want a similar, but beefier flavor). More shrill or trebly amps need the Tone knob turned down, whereas darker amps respond very nicely to increasing the Tone. As indicated, adjusting the Tone will maintain a particular amount of bass/mid/treble, but of course you can adjust to achieve a different effect (more bass or more treble than the original amp’s tone). The Drive also will require tweaking based on personal preference. Just a hint of Drive is more than enough if you want to give some edge to your Blues or Country licks , whereas pushing it beyond 2 o’clock begins getting into high-gain territory; right around 12 o’clock offers some very classic sounding Rock drive with many clean amps. And once you get into high-gain, Metal and insane type amps, having the DC Drive turned on low and in front of your chain adds that extra dimension in the tone – not unlike the effect an EQ or servo drive can have. RELIABILITY & DURABILITY: The DC Drive comes in a two-tone anodized die cast housing; it has a metal foot switch (for on and off) and plastic knobs. The foot switch is somewhat close to the plastic knobs (due to the compact size of the pedal), but you would have to be rather careless to stomp on and break the knobs. The Fat/Reg switch is housed within the three knobs and well protected. The standard 9v 40mA power input is located at the back, as are the cable input and output. You cannot use batteries with the DC Drive.

SOUND: Certain guitars and amps have become desired collectables because they just happen to have gotten something right. The 1966 Marshall JTM45 amp head is such a beast. If unfamiliar with this amp simply think of early Pete Townshend and Jimi Hendrix with their huge Marshall stacks. ZVEX landed on the map of guitar effects because of its Fuzz Factory, but continued to gain a following with its Box of Rock, which emulates the 1966 Marshall JTM45. Below is a YouTube demo that goes over the pedal’s sounds, but also and how it interacts with different bass, mid and treble amp settings. The ZVEX Box of Rock operates in a very straight forward manner. You have the VOLUME control (which needs to coordinate with the volume on your amp or other interface). There is a TONE control, which dictates how much bass or treble is in the signal. The DRIVE is also the distortion, giving that ‘tube breaking up’ quality… and ZVEX has done such an excellent job on mimicking a Marshall amp sound. A touch of Drive gives some warmth, but once you dial up to 50% the pedal begins to shine. Up full and you get a warm, but rich rumble as you wind-mill through some power chords, just like Townshend of yesteryear. The BOOST is a re-tooled ZVEX Super Hard-on, which gives you 50x boosting, but is more transparent and less glassy. Best yet you can use the Boost on its own or with the Drive. OVERALL IMPRESSION: Encased in steel, the Box of Rock has metal foot switches and plastic knobs. The foot switches are far enough removed from the knobs that there shouldn’t be an issue of damage caused by stomping. The standard 9v (3mA) power input is located at the back and far from harm’s way (it also works on a 9v battery, which comes with the pedal and lasts a long time since it requires such low power). If you’re looking for that classic rock sound so prevalent with groups from the mid 1960s to early 1970s, the Box of Rock will be up your alley. Similar to the ZVEX ’59 Sound (which emulates the 1959 Fender Bassman) it is not a diverse pedal, but does it’s one thing very well – true to its design and purpose – to sound like a 1966 Marshall JTM45. The Box of Rock is destined to become a classic, just like the amp it replicates. EASE OF USE: This pedal is about as straight forward as it gets. Set the VOLUME relative to the volume setting of your amp (or other device). Set your TONE relative to the settings on your amp, e.g., how much bass or treble do you want in the signal? Set the DRIVE to give you a warm ‘edge’ or crank it up for some classic rock tones (and by rolling off the guitar’s volume the Box of Rock cleans up very nicely so that you can keep your mini-Marshall up full all the time while controlling the dynamics from the guitar). The BOOST likely will be set around 25-40%, which is a very hefty kick in the pants when doing lead solos or wanting more emphasis on some rhythm chops.

Pure analog. Not true bypass but in a great way. UTILIZATION Straight forward. SOUND QUALITY Use it with Vox AC15 heritage hardwired amp with blue alnico speaker. Telecaster guitar, Gibson 339 guitar. I play rock, blues, country rock, punk and everything in between except for metal. Have had many ODs in my life, some more expensive, some less. Non as good as the MK3 HDB. Sound is addictive. I have compare it side by side with other good ODs and ended always trying to make the other pedals sound as this one. The boost option is just amazingly rich and useful. OVERALL OPINION I don't find the clear out plug useful, but that's me. I've had many ODs, as I've said, none like this one. I will never depart from it.

I'll preface this review saying that I'll never get rid of this pedal. It sounds so good, and is so useful, that it will never leave my possession, or even my pedalboard! This Hot Wired pedal from Wampler Pedals is the signature pedal for Nashville legend Brent Mason. He is a studio guitarist that has played on about everything you've ever heard coming out of Nashville since the early 90s, and he is required to get a huge variety of great tones in his sessions. This pedal, true to its necessity as a versatility machine, is a two-channel overdrive box, and each channel can be set to provide different tones. Either channel can be run separately, or both can be run at the same time. The tonal options are absolutely vast! I find it particularly useful to run the right side as a signal boost, with a touch of overdrive, and the left side as a distortion, for pure liquid lead tones. Each side has its own volume, gain, and tone controls, as well as low frequency boost switches. The manual provided with the pedal explains the functionality very well, and gives a good starter-tone setup to allow the user a base for springboarding into experimentation. The boost is invaluable - it can add that "extra" that one needs to let a solo cut right through. I feel like the boost channel is so nice that Wampler should make a less expensive version of the pedal that's just a one-channel unit, as I'm sure it would sell incredibly well! And the left side distortion is fantastically responsive, and adds a ton of sustain to the signal without getting too hairy. Overall, this pedal is a great addition to any pedal setup. I feel like I could take this pedal to any fill-in gig or jam night, and plug into an amp that isn't my own and still get "my" sound - that's how much I like this pedal.

• High grade film capacitors and resistors picked for their superior sound and response • Completely true bypass • Battery connection and 9v power jack (barrel plug like Boss) • Boost switch alters gain structure to take it from overdrive to distortion. • High gain, crunchy and dynamic pedal • Extremely tweakable EQ • Can do scooped mids to 'honky' mids to lo-fi • High boost switch for using with amps that are not very bright and sparkly clean • Ultra-bright LED's for ease of use • 2.5" x 4.5" • Powder coated durable finish • Designed to get the best EVH "brown sound" possible within a pedal design This is supposed to be an EVH in a box distortion pedal. To which, feature wise is great! Lots of knobs and the controls are all quite sensitive. Controls: Tone, Volume, Contour, Gain, and a vintage/modern switch. UTILIZATION Pretty easy to use, just like any other distortion pedal, just plug it in and tweak the knobs till you find something that sounds good. SOUND QUALITY This is where it fell short for me. I know a lot of people will flame me but I don't think anybody truly knows what the brown sound is, and neither do I. But I definitely think this pedal sounds like a pedal. The distortion does not sound like EVH to me whatsoever. I played this through a few amps just to make sure I wasn't crazy, and then I got the chance to A/B this to a 5150 III side by side and I can definitely say with complete confidence that this is nothing compared to the 5150 III. Yes of course it's a huge difference. An Amp vs a pedal, unfair right? I know. So why do some players keep claiming this is EVH in a box? Isn't that unfair too? On the plus side, yes it's a dynamic distortion pedal, very pick sensitive. It also cleans up OK, not so great but alright. And the distortion itself is not ice picky it's very smooth and vintage-esque sounding so it's great. I think it's a decent distortion pedal, but to my ears it still sounds like a pedal and doesn't sound like amp distortion, nor does it sound like the brown sound, but more like vintage distortion. OVERALL OPINION The build quality is good, the fact that it runs on a standard 9v operation is convenient. The distortion is smooth and not ice picky, it's also very tweakable and dynamic. Good stuff. Does it sound like EVH and the brown sound? No. Does it sound like natural amp distortion? No. It still sounds like a pedal to me.

Some distortions are warm, others are fat, and still others are chewy. The Fireman Distortion was meant to sizzle and cut through the mix. The grain is fine to medium overall, but the two channels do sound different from one another. Channel 1 has a slightly fatter, warmer and crunchier sound, whereas Channel 2 is sharper, punchier, bolder and with more bite. As you can tell, this was designed on purpose and to act as rhythm and lead channels. NUX indicates that the Fireman is based “on the legendary amplifier builder’s famous distortion pedal,” and I presume it may be the BE-OD by Friedman. If so, and I do have that pedal, it has similar tone characteristics, although different enough that it’s not an exact replica (the Friedman distortion sounds so much like a Friedman amp, whereas the Fireman is not as bold and aggressive, which makes it more suitable for lower gain distortion playing (or perhaps adding a touch of distortion to an already dirty amp, which is not something the BE-OD does very well). Regardless, turn up the Gain on either channel and it is modern rock/metal intense. Do note that the accompanying demo has the pedal set for 18v, via a toggle switch on the back (the Fireman requires a standard 9VDC power supply, but is capable of doubling the internal voltage to 18V for a wider dynamic sound). I did this as I prefer the slightly fatter sound of 18V vs. the thinner and tighter sound of 9V. As another bonus, you can select (via toggle switch) whether the Fireman operates as True Bypass or Buffered. Very nice! Now, you can set the Volume and Gain for each channel separately, although the EQ, Presence and Tight controls affect both channels. This does not seem to be an issue, since I like the same Presence and Tight controls for both channels, and once you set the EQ you can control the tone (if necessary) via a guitar’s tone knob. Generally, I like the same EQ settings for both channels, as well. The EQ has a decent range, in that taking away or adding Bass is not excessive and nearly any setting sounds pretty good. Unless you like a heavier bottom end, I find setting the bass around 12-noon or slightly more is good (with my gear and guitar). The really kicker is the Treble control, which sounds very much like a treble-boost as you dial it up. Right around 1-o’clock is about right, but bringing the Treble up more still sounds intense without being brittle or bright. The Presence control works in concert with the Treble, and when I have the Treble set just right, I like the Presence around 9-10 o’clock – just a hint and enough for added sparkle. The Tight removes flub in the signal, although the Fireman is pretty darn tight (and quiet) without this control. If you turn it up too much you will notice a thinning of the sound, as well as some compression/saturation and volume drop. A little goes a long way with the Tight knob, and so I find setting it around 8-9 o’clock sufficient for that chugging and biting note effect. General operation is easy enough, with the right footswitch turning the Fireman on or off, whereas the left footswitch flips channels (red for Channel 1 and green for Channel 2). If preferred, the Fireman has an external SW jack, so that you can plug in a foot controller (TRS cable) and control the two channels in that manner. The only downside to the Fireman maybe one’s preference in distortion sound. I have other distortions that are warmer or may be chewier or have more a chunkier sound quality, but that merely makes them different and not better. One of my favorite distortions is the Suhr Eclipse, but when side-to-side the Fireman cuts through the mix much better, likely making it superior for darker amps and pickups. My demo uses the Music Man Majesty guitar, which is middle-of-the-road, insofar as pickup tone dynamics (fairly broad-range with decent tightness), plugged into The Countess V4 preamp (clear, slightly warm and somewhat glassy cleans) and into a Line 6 Powercab (using the Lynchback 1 cab IR designed by Live Ready Sound), and so different gear obviously will behave differently with this or any other pedal. Overall, and for $115 USD, this is one of the better distortions I have tried, keeping up with NUX’s reputation for producing quality gear and great pricing.

BACKGROUND: Take two of the most popular drive pedals, the Klon Centaur and the Marshall Bluesbreaker, and combine them into one pedal that allows each to function separately or together and you have the Horse Breaker. There are a lot of tones emanating from this pedal and they vary even more whether working with a clean or dirty amp. Generally speaking, the drive ranges from modest and warm (Breaker) to medium-high-gain and edgy (Horse). What makes the Horse Breaker so diverse, however, is the ability to blend the two sides and in different amounts (via the Drive and the Volume/Output of each) and to cascade one into the other, e.g., Horse pushing Breaker or Breaker pushing Horse. SOUND & OPERATION: The Horse Breaker sounds great with any amp, and I used it with the AMP1 Iridium (all four channels) as well as all three Victory V4 Preamps. The Horse Breaker does not sound ostentatious, but tends to excite the tone already inherent in the amp. Consequently, if you like the tone of your amp, you will love it with the Horse Breaker trotting alongside. On a clean channel the Breaker side sounds thick and warm, and when pushing the Drive it has that amp-breaking-up quality. It offers some mild overdrive (just above a clean boost in quality) to some classic Rock tones. Also when working with a clean amp, the Horse side has a well-defined grain or dirt that has a harder Rock sound, although bordering on the modern; ideal for heavier crunch and lead. Neither side sounds over-saturated with its Drive up high, even when combined with higher-gain amps, which was surprising. When working with dirty amp channels, the Horse Breaker does an incredible job at supercharging the signal without creating a mess. It only takes a bit of Horse or Breaker (or both if you like to blend) to make a significant difference with a richer tone that pops in the mix. In the demo below I added the Horse Breaker to three Victory preamps: The Sheriff, The Countess and The Kraken. I kept the Horse Breaker at low levels to enhance the ‘cleans,’ but the quality and difference was as significant when pushing the dirty channels at slightly higher drive levels. Combining the two sides offers a lot of potential, particularly if you’re not quite sold on the Horse or the Breaker on their own. For example, if finding the Breaker side a touch subdued, adding a bit of Horse increases the tight mid and high-end sizzle. A hardened Breaker tone is more pronounced if you have the Breaker running into the Horse, whereas the Horse’s character shines through more when it runs into the Breaker. Obviously, then, if the Horse sounds too aggressive, you can add some Breaker to soften and fatten the edges. Just how much you blend varies considerably, since you can control the Drive and Level on each side. And so, the Horse may be dominant when running into the Breaker, but if you have more Breaker Drive and Level (and not much Horse), then the Breaker will dominate, but in a different way than if the Breaker ran into the Horse. If that seems unclear, do refer to the first demo of this review. Regardless of the combination, the Horse Breaker does not sound muddy or with unwanted saturation. Even at high drive levels the signal remains defined and clear. The Tone knobs on both sides are not excessive in range, offering some lower end or higher end, which sounds more like a broad mid-range EQ than it does full range with a lot of bass or treble potential. Nonetheless, a slight tweak makes a significant difference in tone, and so Ceriatone really nailed the electronics right, in how the Tone works with the Drive. Now, there are several ways to use the Horse Breaker, but one consideration is to use the Breaker side for a solid and thick rhythm tone and then engaging the Horse for more intense crunch tones and lead. In doing so, you can set the Horse side for a modest boost while also increasing the overall drive. The opposite can be done, in that the Horse can supercharge your rhythm and then adding the Breaker brings in some thick cream for those leads. And for those who like to stack pedals, the Horse Breaker plays very nicely. I added each side of the Horse Breaker independently and blended (low to moderate drive levels) with other drive pedals (at various mixes) and the clarity and quality of the Horse Breaker shone through brightly and vividly. The Horse Breaker is rugged in build, with a metal chassis powder-coated black with gold lettering (also available in gold with black lettering). You can operate it in Buffer or True Bypass mode at the flip of a switch. The Horse Breaker operates on a 9VDC battery or via a standard 9VDC (negative tip) power supply, drawing under 100mA. LIMITATIONS: The Horse Breaker sounds great, and so there is very little to fault with its tone (or should I say ‘tones’). However, if you’re not sold on either a Klon Centaur or a Marshall Bluesbreaker, you may not be satisfied – although you may be once you start blending the two. Measuring 5.5 (w) x 4.85 (d – including jacks) x 1.35 inches (h) or 139.7 x 123.19 x 34.29 mm, the Horse Breaker is larger than a standard pedal, although it is two pedals in one. If you’re tight for pedal board space, then the Horse Breaker may not be suitable, but you always could replace pedals you think are mediocre and make way for something truly awesome and tone-inspiring.

Lately I've really caught onto this Dwarfcraft stuff and as a collector of odd pedals it seems every one i get my hands on is more awesome than the last. Basically you have an on and off switch, a volume knob, a texture control for voicing purposes, and a starve knob which reduces the power and makes crazy noises. There are also two switched. One which creates upper octave tones in the sound and another which is a kind of squeel switch for the starve knob. It also has a switch to turn the starve circuit on and off. UTILIZATION At first glance this pedal is somewhat intimidating just because you aren't sure what everything does exactly. But after some trial and error it becomes apparent that there aren't any rules to this thing at all. It's totally a beast by itself. I run mine with a Les Paul Custom through a few pedals and a Bogner Shiva most of the time. I haven't had any issues with it. Seems very solid. SOUND QUALITY I'm not sure how to describe this thing. It really likes to oscillate...a lot. In fact, it's hard to get a sustained and not choppy signal out of it sometimes. If you like out of control rhythmic patterns this is the pedal for you. I can see this thing being used for a lot of obscure indie type rock. It's very synced up and melodic with the overtones but at the same time it's super noisy and has a sub bass thing going on. It's actually pretty easy to use. You really just plug in and start turning knobs to get results. OVERALL OPINION These Dcraft pedals keep surprising me by doing way more than I expect. I really had no idea what this was when I got it and it has turned out to be a lot more than another noisemaker. I think the great thing about it is its ability to be noisy and out of control while staying musical and melodic so it still has a use. I recommend it to anyone who does electro indie or crazy sounding rock stuff. It's totally sick.