Emilio at Cornerstore Gear has released a fair number of dual overdrive pedals but for the Cornerstone Colosseum he wanted to do something to please his company’s most involved fans, letting them choose the two types of drive included in the circuit. The response was overwhelming: they wanted a Klon and a Blues Breaker.
In the stompbox’s literature, the builder stresses the fact that these are not faithful clones of those two circuits, but personal reinterpretations voiced after those pedals and modified for improved performance and interaction.
The BB side of things (the right one) was deprived of clipping diodes, which, after extensive tweaking, delivered a BB-style circuit without the original’s issues related to low volume and overall darkness, although both channels also feature their dedicated Tone control. A smaller Clean knob was also introduced on the BB side to reintegrate the original signal for more versatility.
The Klon channel, confined to the left of the case, utilizes the original’s 1N34A Germanium diodes and is a rather faithful replica of the most expensive pedal of all time with the addition of a Clip blender knob which adds gradually to the circuit extra saturation produced by two hand-selected Silicon Diodes, adding an extra tone range.
A useful extra is an FX Loop on the back of the pedal which lets you use the two channels independently or put any other pedal in between.
Cornerstone Colosseum, Builder’s Notes
The Colosseum is the result of a series of polls taken amongst the Cornerstone followers and our supporters in the Cornerstone Community. We are incredibly proud to present this pedal in which the people have had a large role in it’s design process.
So, What is it?
It is a dual overdrive pedal based on my interpretation of the Blues Breaker and Klon circuits. While I used the original pedals to have an accurate sound reference (even an original Klon), the end result of Colosseum is not just these two circuits copied and stuck in the same box.The Blues Breaker circuit on another level:
On the BB side there is no clipping diodes. It is surprising how removing these elements and tweaking the tone controls can fix the common “issues” that affect a classic BB, such as low volume and dark tone.
I also added our “signature” Clean control taken from the Gladio, to add the clean sound on top of the overdriven signal for more tonal versatility. This will restore a lot of touch sensitivity, especially on pick attack, as well as restoring the bottom end from your original clean sound.The new Klon’s magic:
The Klon side stayed pretty much the same, except for one important detail: the clip blender.
We all know that the Klon has built quite a reputation around two “mythical” 1N34A Germanium diodes. We are still using them, measuring each one of them and picking the ones with the correct value of forward voltage, but… with the addition of a pair of hand selected silicon diodes. With this blend feature you have a wide range of tonal flexibility, an entirely new flavor of Klon at your feet, all while still being able to harness the sound of the original.Looper lovers unite!
At the back you have 4 jacks to connect each side of the pedal with your favorite looper. You can use the sides independently or put any other pedal in between.Anything else?
A little toggle switch will change the order of the two channels very easily for a lot of tone variations!
