With stereo outputs, programmable controls and MIDI control, the Italian pedal maker has served up a modern take on boost pedals
(Image credit: OPFXS)
Italian pedal manufacturer OPFXS has announced the stereo-output Twin Boost, which brings digital control to an analog boost circuit.
It’s named after its dual mono and stereo outputs, which allows gain boosts to be sent to different amplifiers. The pedal’s analog boost is digitally controlled, meaning there are custom preset options and MIDI controllability which could make it a solid option for live rigs, both on pedalboards or at the back of the stage with a modeling rig.
The low-noise, high-output pedal provides up to a 24db push for driving tube amps, overdrives and distortions. It features a screen at its top left to clearly display settings, where the gain boost and the rate at which it engages are viewed and controlled.
Where your classic boost pedals offer just one pre-dialled in boost for when you need that extra push, the Twin Boost can step up through a number of increments, which can come in instantly, or be set to swell in, with the MIDI compatibility and presets coming into their own here.
Pushing that idea further, its separate channel mode effectively clones the pedal, with each channel featuring its own setting and preset controls. That means the split personality pedal can replicate having two booster pedals in a pedal chain.
A control knob will do much of the manual dirty work, operating the gain and preset transition changes, while presets can be saved and recalled via a footswitch.
Power-wise, it takes a standard 9V plug and for the neat freaks, it’s a standard size, fitting into the most anally symmetrical boards.
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La Spezia, where OPFXS are based, might better known for seafaring than stompbox building, but the manufacturer has a very interesting concept nevertheless, calling its latest invention “a groundbreaking digitally-controlled analog booster”.
It adds that the Twin Boost has a “flat frequency response”, and “low noise floor even at very high settings”, making for a neutral-sounding boost that focuses on shifting power rather than dramatically re-characterizing tones.
(Image credit: OPFXS)
There’s also a printed QR on its top surface, taking you to a quick online startup guide. While this was probably added to save on paper, it will no doubt be a hilarious anti-climax for curious pedalboard-oglers at gigs.
Thankfully, it also doesn’t come at an overdraft-necessitating price, starting at €150 (approximately $162/£130).
A freelance writer with a penchant for music that gets weird, Phil is a regular contributor to Prog, Guitar World, and Total Guitar magazines and is especially keen on shining a light on unknown artists. Outside of the journalism realm, you can find him writing angular riffs in progressive metal band, Prognosis, in which he slings an 8-string Strandberg Boden Original, churning that low string through a variety of tunings. He's also a published author and is currently penning his debut novel which chucks fantasy, mythology and humanity into a great big melting pot.
