gear giveaway

Pedal Line: Catalinbread Elements

The latest trend among boutique builders seems to be to release... lines of pedals, a bunch at a time! Following (probably) JHS's lead, the Catalinbread Elements is a new line of rather inexpensive yet hand-made one-knob pedals comprising - for now - three devices: Fuzz, Distortion and Overdrive. While we'll…... Click for more

Pedal Line: Catalinbread Elements

Shnobel Tone Mid Driver

YouTuber Roman from Shnobel started manufacturing guitar pedals in the early '20s under the Shnobel Tone label. The Shnobel Tone Mid Driver, unveiled just before the NAMM 2022 show, is his take on the "mid-rich" overdrive a-la Tube-Screamer, although it's not a clone. The pedal's circuit is a variant on…... Click for more

Shnobel Tone Mid Driver

Lauren Audio Mustang V2 Preamp

Run by a recording engineer, Lauren Audio is a one-man builder based in California that offers custom amplifiers and preamps and, also a bunch of pedals, among which a preamp stompbox emulating the most legendary channel strip, the Neve 1073: enter the Lauren Audio Mustang V2. The Mustang has a…... Click for more

Lauren Audio Mustang V2 Preamp

New Pedal: Davey Design Electronics 1979/1990

Hand-made in Australia, the Davey Design Electronics 1979/1990 is a high quality, cool-looking, uber-tweakable double overdrive blending a TS-style circuit with a Klon-style one. The two circuits have their own footswitch so that they can be activated separately or stacked on top of each other. The order of the drives…... Click for more

New Pedal: Davey Design Electronics 1979/1990

UAFX Dream ’65 Reverb Ovedrive

Part of a three amp-in-a-box pedal addition to the Universal Audio pedal line, the UAFX Dream '65 Reverb is an authentic emulation of a Fender Deluxe Reverb, with several added features. Like the previous three pedals in the series, this is a multi-mode, studio-grade, stereo stompbox with presets and deep…... Click for more

UAFX Dream ’65 Reverb Ovedrive

MXR Super Badass Dynamic Overdrive

The MXR Super Badass line already includes a very popular distortion pedal (that made our list of the best 10 distortions of all time) and a fuzz. A Guitar Center exclusive, the MXR Super Badass Dynamic Overdrive is presented as a touch-sensitive overdrive that sounds like a revved-up tube amp…... Click for more

MXR Super Badass Dynamic Overdrive

New Pedals: One Control Tornado Drive

The One Control Tornado Drive is a new collaboration between pedal designer Björn Juhl with Japanese celebrity guitarist TK (Tory Kitajima), part of a new line of pedals called TORNADO Fx. There are two versions of this original, non-clone, high-gain overdrive circuit: Aluminum and Brass, with the latter featuring a…... Click for more

New Pedals: One Control Tornado Drive

Ami Effects Umami

Made in France, the Ami Effects Umami aims - we guess - at being to tone what umami is to food: delicious. It's a rather transparent device that can do boost and overdrive and features a carefully designed set of controls including two gain stages and a 2-way EQ section…... Click for more

Ami Effects Umami

Great Eastern FX Small Speaker Overdrive

The Small Speaker Overdrive is the first pedal of Cambridge, UK based Great Eastern FX. It's a stompbox that cleverly offers something that goes against the hype of "fat" overdrives delivering the tone of big amps, the premise being that it's common knowledge that some of the best-sounding guitar parts…... Click for more

Great Eastern FX Small Speaker Overdrive

Forest Effects Onça

Now discontinued, the Forest Effects Onça is a natural-sounding, JFET-based amp-in-a-box made in the UK. There's also a mini version of it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-ATMtw4eE8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPS9CYAkT9Y Forest Effects Onça, Builder's Notes Onça is a class A single ended amplifier in a box, using a pair of JFET's in the place of tubes.…... Click for more

Forest Effects Onça

Electronic Audio Experiments Dagger V2

The Electronic Audio Experiments Dagger V2 is a simplified version of the company's own Longsword op-amp drive, featuring only the original's gain stages and dual band shelving EQ. This new version adds a series of improvements, including a shift toggle that delivers thicker or tighter overdrive. The 2-knob EQ section…... Click for more

Electronic Audio Experiments Dagger V2

Electronic Audio Experiments Model feT V3

The Electronic Audio Experiments Model feT V3 is a transistor-based preamplifier designed around the Sunn Model T amplifier. While it excels at heavy tones when pushed, it is far more than just an amp for stoner rock and doom metal. On its own, it is a rather clean amplifier with…... Click for more

Electronic Audio Experiments Model feT V3