Fake Klon Centaur pedals are being sold “for big money”, warns designer Bill Finnegan
The legendary overdrive pedal is worth up to $5,000 on the used market – and now copycats are taking advantage
Klon Centaur designer Bill Finnegan has warned that fake versions of his legendary overdrive pedal are going up for sale – sometimes with huge price tags.
Since its launch in 1994, the Klon Centaur has become one of the most sought-after pedals in all of guitar-dom, in part because of its transparent, articulate tone, but also because of its scarcity and mythology. The pedals were produced by hand in limited numbers, with used examples of both silver and gold versions now fetching up to – and sometimes in excess of – $5,000.
Given the mark-up, it’s perhaps unsurprising that fakes are out there, but Finnegan has now personally drawn guitarists’ attention to the fact.
“Hi everyone - recently someone emailed me with these two photos, asking if they were of a genuine Klon Centaur unit,” the designer posted on Instagram.
“They are absolutely NOT of a genuine Klon Centaur unit. To avoid giving the fraudsters any tips, I will not go into the details - this post is simply to alert all of you that there are intentionally-fraudulent units out there that people are trying to sell for big money.”
A post shared by Bill Finnegan (@klonllc)
A photo posted by on
At first glance, the copycat pedal’s internals certainly appear Klon-like, complete with infamous ‘gooped’ circuit, concealing the components used. Yet a quick comparison with a real Klon’s insides flags up the discrepancies, with the fake pedal’s potentiometers a dead giveaway.
So, unless you’re completely up on Klon lore, you might want to run any potential purchase by Finnegan before buying, lest you get caught out by the scammers.
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If your budget won’t stretch to $5k, Finnegan has previously indicated he will make the Centaur in very limited batches – although information on future runs have been somewhat scarce, and the klonllc Instagram account has been overrun with requests for updates.
There’s no shortage of Klon clones to explore in the meantime – but then there’s no guarantee they’ll sound quite as magical as the real deal, either…
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Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master's degree in journalism from Cardiff University, and over a decade's experience writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as 20 years of recording and live experience in original and function bands. During his career, he has interviewed the likes of John Frusciante, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Matt Bellamy, Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell, Joe Satriani, Tom DeLonge, Ed O'Brien, Polyphia, Tosin Abasi, Yvette Young and many more. In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe.
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