Walrus returns with its first overdrive pedal in four years - packing five gain modes

Four years on from its 385 Overdrive pedal, Walrus has developed some superb modulation and wet effects but it's finally ready to return to drive – and its new Ages stompbox is making it count.

Versatility is a keyword here; "clean, sparkly and smooth gain to thick compressed overdrive," says Walrus. That's not an unusual claim but the five-position rotary knob offers offers the kind of quick access to flavours that's piqued our interest even more.

The five positions offer the following:

I. Low-gain mode with symmetric silicon soft clipping. Compressed and smooth.
II. Low-gain mode with symmetric LED soft clipping. Pushed, open, and sparkly.
III. High-gain mode with symmetric silicon soft clipping. Increased saturation and tight.
IV. High-gain mode with symmetric LED soft clipping. Saturated, punchy and big.
V. High-gain mode with symmetric silicon hard clipping. Heavy compression, thick and chewy. 

Those low gain modes sound articulate in the demo above. Will the higher gain modes be enough for this to be a do-it-all solution? Well it's a single switch affair so if you're a gain stacker you might want to align it with other pedals. But the idea of instant gain flavours here is promising. 

You can fine tune each mode with the pedal's Dry signal, Gain, Treble and Bass controls.

The Ages will retail for $199 / £179 and is available now at walrusaudio.com and dealers worldwide.