New Pedals: Orange Amps Two Stroke

Highly regarded British amplifier manufacturer Orange Amplification has recently stepped into the guitar pedal arena, and they are bringing their trademark innovation to the stompbox world. One of their first offerings comes in the form of a clean boost/equalizer appropriately dubbed the Two Stroke, capable of up to 12dB of crystal clean boost through the “Oil” knob.

But what really makes this stompbox worth a look is the equalizer part of it. The EQ section is semi-parametric, giving you a very flexible way to fine tune your tone’s frequencies. There are 2 bands available that cover the most vital frequencies for guitar, a ‘Lo’ controlling the 120Hz – 1.2kHz range, and a ‘Hi’ which controls 850Hz – 8.2kHz range. The EQ is not fully parametric, however, with a predefined Q (width of cut/boost), but does allow for up to 18dB of boost or attenuation.

Additional features include buffered bypass, and 18v operation level (most pedals run at 9v) for increased headroom and dynamics. Being both a boost and an EQ, the Two Stroke is an incredibly versatile clean boost pedal that fits right in with virtually any rig design. – Brandon Stoner