KMA looks to transcend the overdrive pedal with the Logan Drive
The versatile stompbox works as a pre-amp, low to mid-gain drive, and can offer harmonically volatile cocked-wah tones
KMA Audio Machines' new Logan Drive pedal looks to offer all kinds of ways you can shape your gain stage.
Are you are looking for a preamp boost up to +25db, some low to mid-gain crunch, or do you need to dial in more hair-raising tones, a Schenker-esque cocked wah for instance? Then this might just be the pedal for you.
The enclosure has what looks like a dog cradling a narwhale and a whole host of controls. Confused? You might be. There is a lot you can tweak on this.
But KMA Audio Machines promises (or cautions) that, "Once you hear Logan’s sweet and graceful sounds you will be driven to find your own way into the transcendental tone kingdom."
And the first step in acquiring a visa for the transcendental tone kingdom is by mastering the Logan Drive's controls.
First you've got level controlling the pedal's output and drive controlling how much overdrive you want. It has an active three-band EQ. Bass and treble controls can boost or cut your signal by 15dB, while you can set your mid-range frequency anywhere between 100Hz and 2.5kHz with the mids control. You then use the mids boost/cut control to – you guessed it – boost or cut the midrange frequency by 12db The midrange EQ has its own footswitch to activate or deactivate it.
The pre/post switch allows you to position this midrange EQ section before or after your main gain stage. Placing it before saturates your signal and gives you an extra gain stage to play with, while placing it in the post-gain stage sees it work as a level boost.
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These switchable mids are huge for adding a little push to your solos, and an expression pedal input allows you to take control of these for on-the-fly filter sweeps and throaty wah tones.
You can even tweak the midrange EQ's trim pots within the enclosure for broader bandwidth, while a second trim pot can be accessed by removing the base plate so you can blend your clean signal with your overdrive.
The Logan Drive retails for $219/£175/€189.
See KMA Audio Machines for more details.
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Jonathan Horsley has been writing about guitars and guitar culture since 2005, playing them since 1990, and regularly contributes to MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitar World. He uses Jazz III nylon picks, 10s during the week, 9s at the weekend, and shamefully still struggles with rhythm figure one of Van Halen’s Panama.
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