Kernom Ridge

The KERNOM RIDGE is an award winner, and for good reason; and the engineers just established a new precent that surely will be followed. When most guitarists are thinking what drive may be the best for certain sounds or applications, the Kernom people sought out a way to put nearly every drive pedal under one chassis. On that note, I’ll begin with the most important feature (although they all coordinate to establish specific OD characteristics), the MOOD dial.



MOOD establishing the clipping behavior of the pedal, of how it responds and interacts with the amp to give it a particular OD flavor, from soft to hard clipping, and from symmetrical to asymmetrical. There are five key sections from which to choose, and understand that each section has a ‘zone,’ which means within each section or zone, there are subtle and not-so-subtle differences (so do explore and do not simply place the dial in a section thinking it doesn’t matter). The first section is very clean and open sounding with no to little soft clipping – it really adds life and sparkle to an already existing tone. The second section is slightly more intense, with a transparent and highly dynamic overdrive. The third section is a colored overdrive, and is more pronounced still. Then we delve into the hi-gain section, which may sound as though it’s meant for hard rock or metal, but not necessarily (I’ll address that soon). The fifth section is heavy and thicker (woolier), with characteristics similar to (but not quite) that of a fuzz.
Now, the MOOD is only one component to all this, as the DRIVE knob then influences the extent to which the MOOD characteristics come through. As a simple example, you may like the qualities of the hi-gain section, but want to apply it to a clean signal for a moderate crunch. Well, if the DRIVE is low enough, it adds a low to moderate drive and may not sound hi-gain per se. In fact, nearly any OD pedal you can think of can be dialed into the KERNOM RIDGE because of this massive flexibility. There are several videos of musicians doing exactly that, and so, look into those for further clarification.

Once a basic OD sound is achieved, fine-tuning begins with the PRE TONE knob, which establishes how the pedal reacts to the guitar signal and before the clipping stage. Neutral position is 12-noon, whereas more ‘body’ is achieved by turning left, or more sparkle/presence if turned right. The POST TONE knob comes after the clipping stage and it allows you to customize the output sound, whether you want darker or brighter. Again, 12-noon is the neutral position. The MIDS shape the midrange frequencies, with 12-noon being the neutral position. This control better determines how the guitar signal sits in or cuts through the mix, for tones that are more scooped, darker, more cutting, etc. The VOLUME control does exactly that, and the KERNOM RIDGE does have a hefty amount of headroom under its hood, although requiring only a 9V input (300mA recommended). This is done by resetting the unit’s sensitivity (to maximize the signal to noise ratio) and to drive any amp imaginable. It is set automatically for guitar, but can be set for greater sensitivity if working with a keyboard or into a mixing desk.

There are some other key points to this landmark pedal. First, you can save a preset, which may not sound like a big deal, but many more presets can be saved and accessed via the MIDI control (I do not have experience in this as I compose and play in a studio setting and don’t require quick changes, as one would in a live/gig setting) and supports MIDI control changes, program changes, etc. For those not interested, KERNOM RIDGE offers another unique application via its Expression input. In effect, you can morph from one preset (e.g., clean and sparkly) to whatever knob settings you have on the pedal (e.g., hi-gain, heavy crunch/lead tone), thus providing all the unique flavors from a toe-down to a heel-down position (and you can reverse the toe-to-heel effect, e.g., clean with heel down and driven with heel up). Factor in the use of a guitar’s volume knob, and there are a lot of drive possibilities at your fingertips (and at your foot) without MIDI and without turning knobs while gigging.

Now, the KERNOM RIDGE is not a hi-gain distortion pedal, and Metal heads may be disappointed (presuming they want to drive a cleanish channel). This pedal can go from super clean and barely noticeable to hard rock and stoner rock, all in a clean channel (and more robust if the amp is slightly dirty or crunchy). For the hi-gain people, use those amps, turn down the gain and then add the KERNOM RIDGE and you will be pleasantly surprised. I believe the quality of the pedal’s signal and drive has much to do with the results, whether I play into a tube amp, solid state or a modeler/emulator. KERNOM RIDGE has very robust drive sections, but they still are smooth and well-defined (rather than having a heavy growl) and this goes a long way in keeping the sound tight and detailed, no matter how much you crank the DRIVE. With some heavier playing and tones I use, this pedal produces a tighter bottom end while making note harmonics pop exceptionally well.

And I should make comment on the pedal’s enclosure. First, I like the white color… so many pedals are black and I like that you do not see much dust or dirt on the KERNOM RIDGE. Second, some people remarked on the appearance, looking like something from the Stormtroopers in Star Wars. I think it looks modern, and the build quality is top notch. I supposed because it is white, it has a plastic look, but this is a solid aluminum chassis with a total weight of 1.8 pounds or 850g. The knobs have a solid, smooth feel, and the PRE TONE, POST TONE and MID knobs have 12-noon notches so that ‘flat’ can be clicked into fast and easy (this is key since a slight nudge in either direction makes a noticeable tone difference). A bit pricey and in the boutique range (299 Euro), but it’s like getting several (dozens of?) pedals under one hood, which is something most musicians (and pedalboard users) desire – definitely worth looking into! And I suspect the KERNOM RIDGE will maintain its popularity for a while yet because of its flexibility and output quality. Any complaints? None so far, and I can only imagine if they decide to do the same with distortion or even combine it into one massive OD-Distortion beast!