2024 Best New Boost and Overdrive Pedals of the Year

Controls - Tone, Filter, Filter Off Switch, Volume, Drive 1, Drive 2.

An update to one of Aleks K's classic Twin Drive pedals - where you blend together two complementary circuits of different character. The Honey Moon Sweet is somewhat reminiscent of a Dumble Drive, with a hint of Carlos Santana and Ernie Isley. It's been recently upgraded and improved - with more verve now, and more output volume. Brett Kingman just named this his Overdrive of the Year! Aleks K normally emails me ahead of these releases, not sure why he didn't on this occasion - I own a number of his pedals, and I really love them - all this new Honey Moon Sweet Overdrive sound incredible - and I will definitely be looking to get one of these in the new year! It only just made the cut-off line for this year - by the skin of its teeth! There are still a few more releases to come next week, but I will already have published these articles by then - so those will need to be covered in 2025!

Controls - BOOST } Post, Pre, Boost Footswitch; ACTIVE 3-BAND EQ } Treb, Mid, Bass; SOFT-CLIPPING OPAMP DRIVE } Fuel (Output), Gain, Drive Footswitch.

A streamlined version of the Devil's Triad - with just the Overdrive part, and an expanded Pre / Post Boost section. Beautiful sounding versatile pedal - great for liquid distortion, but not as high gain as you might think it would be! Sounds glorious!

Controls - PEQ } Level, Q Width, Gain, Freq; FA-1 } Treble + Bass [BAX], Volume (+26dB), BAX Out button, PEQ / MID In button, Flat / Low-Cut switch.

Another worthy Australian brand to get to - which has mastered, evolved and expanded Boss's FA-1 FET Amplifier - I have 2 pedals from the range - this one and a Fourleaf with additional Fuzz onboard. Both units are excellent - with expansive degrees of range!

Controls - KLONE } Honey (Gain), Taste (Tone), Volume, Mode : 1 No Clean Blend / 2 Medium Blend / 3 Full Blend, Klone Footswitch; BLUESBREAKER } Honey (Gain), Taste (Tone), Volume, Mode : 1 Mid Boost / 2 Flat / Low Boost, Bluesbreaker Footswitch.

I was initially surprised that Beetronics would be doing such a vanilla dual-drive pedal - but it's nor really that vanilla at all - both circuits are among the best of those respective genres - and the additional EQ Modes really elevate this pedal. Actually a really brilliant execution - with superior sounds - really smartly engineered!

Controls - Volume, Gain, Treble.

One of the ones that got away from me this year - will definitely look to acquire it early next! I generally love Germanium Overdrives - for their fuzzy-dive textures, one of my very favourite genres - and this one sounds fantastic! Will undoubtedly be in the collection soon!

Controls - Volume, Gain (+40dB), Notched 8-way Low Frequency Filter, JFET Buffered unfiltered Clean Blend with boost, Top-End Smoothing.

I aim to get this one in the new year too - alongside the Slate - really elegant breakup on this one combined with smart expansive controls. I will look to pick up 3 of the Bleak District gain pedals together - all at the same time!

Controls - Gain (Ramp), Freq, Volume, Bass, Mids, LPF, Bass : Minimal / Moderate / Most, Mids Q : Wide / Moderate / Narrow, LPF : One-Pole / Two-Pole Moderate / Two-Pole Resonant, Presets : 1 / Manual / 2, Bypass Footswitch, Drive/Hold Footswitch. [+16 Dip-switches]

A neat modified circuit version - using the original noisier Condor chips - which have been slightly mis-biased for more interesting breakup textures! Alas this circuit still contains Vactrols / LDR's - which is an RoHS prohibited component in Europe - as it contains the carciongen Cadmium Sulphide! I'd quite like to get my hands on one of these - which were part of the recent Mystery Box promotion - but it's highly unlikely - as only 250 were made, and they're in high demand in the USA - which is the only place you can get them!

Controls - Drive, Level, Post-Drive Active Low, Post-Drive Active High, Pre-Drive Bass Boost, Pre-Drive 'Bright' Treble Boost.

The latest from my good friend AD Hauser - shrinks down one of my favourite everyday versatile overdrives - down to compact dimensions. Every bit as great sounding as the larger originals - really vibrant and exceptional breakup textures - which can be turned to many a purpose. A wonderful all-rounder really with very smart controls!

Controls - CHANNEL 1 } Volume, Tone, Drive, High Gain switch (+25%), Hard Clip switch, Soft Clip switch, Presence, Channel 1 Right Footswitch; CHANNEL 2 } Volume, Tone, Drive, High Gain switch (+25%), Hard Clip switch, Soft Clip switch, Presence, Channel 2 Left Footswitch; INTERNAL VOLTAGE : 18V (High Headroom) / 9V (Stock).

This was one of the great engineering achievements of the year - essentially shrinking a KOT down to compact dimensions - and adding in a whole load of unique mods to further elevate that format. Mine was a V2 edition - where the V3 got an additional bonus of an insert loop / fx-loop. This one is most definitely a triple-threat - it really looks the part, and has the performance to match!

Controls - Tone, Presence, Volume, Gain, Comp Switch : Less / More, HOT MODE } Volume (replacement), Gain (additional Hot Boost!).

Yes it's another screamer - but what a beautifully engineered candidate - one of the most handsome pedals ever created - with extraordinary details in every area. This is a next level tube screamer which sounds as good as it looks!

Controls - Level, Gain, Tone, Low-End Contour : More / Neutral / Most.

A really unique sounding overdrive, with a distinct and different kind of breakup character. Very amp-like with quite a lot of commissions and saturation. In use it didn't blow me away as much as expected - while it's still a very distinct sounding overdrive - with a high degree of versatility.

Controls - Gain, Level, Tone, Clip : Hard / None / Soft, Mode : Pre ’95 (more bass / less gain) / Post ’95 (more gain / less bass), Internal Gain Structure dual dip-switch : I (stock), II (More Gain), III (Most Gain).

Guillem at Decibelics does it yet again! Another superior mini pedal which challenges every size of BluesBreaker with smart controls superb dynamics and of course superior sounds!

Controls - Gain, Level, Clipping : Silicon / Lift / Germanium|Asymmetrical.

A cool limited and celebratory version of the DOD250 with some smart extras - the footswitch topper you get also is fabulous - a cool anniversary package for sure!

Controls - Volume, Resonance (500Hz + 800Hz Peak Filters Cut/Boost), Drive, Mode (Clipping) : Boost / LED / MOSFET / Si / Ge / Asym Si, Volts ≈ 18 / 30.

A fantastic proper evolution of the Screamer format - with unique EQ and High Voltage power generating superior textures. Those additional Clipping options really help too - a fabulous execution overall - where the first official release was actually a V3. I own an early V1 prototype too, where the Germanium Clipping was weak - while in the latest release - that's one of the best clipping options - and sounds superb!

Controls - Range, Master, Impedance (for Pickup Simulator), Pickup Simulator Off / On, Bias, Bias Volage Display (3.15 > 0.63).

Sharing the aesthetic of the above Forest Song - this is a superb extended range Treble Booster / RangeMaster with an absolutely killer feature-set and superior Germanium transistor onboard. A really smart execution.

Controls - Volume, Tone (from OD-3), Drive, Clipping : LED / None / Silicon.

Drunk Beaver's best gain pedal of the year was actually a limited Pedal Drop. Really smart execution of a 14-Leg Chip original Boss OD-1 type with added Boss OD-3 tone-stack. The addition of LED clipping then completes the package - for the most superb sounding vintage OD-1 - great concept and fantastic execution - which really does sound killer!

Alas there is no official demo for this one - so I've referenced an original 14-Leg OD-1 in its place!

Controls - Max Headroom : 33dB / 20dB, Q Bandwidth : High / Low, Boost, Mid Level ±, Treble, Pre-Gain, Mid Freq, Bass.

One that's managed to evade me still. Really well priced and so worth getting in - a great evolution of probably the most legendary boost of all time - alongside the Super Hard On and RangeMaster most likely. I obviously have my own favourite boosts already in place - but I recognise the quality of this one, and will add it to the reference collection at some stage!

Controls : Tone, Tone Stack Switch : BB (High Frequency Filter EQ) / OC (Active Midrange Boost and High Frequency Roll-Off EQ), Drive, Drive Clipping : BB (Soft) / OC (Hard), Level.

The 4-in-1 Series pedal with the best setting of all - the BluesBreaker with the OCD Tone Stack - really sounds superb. While in the head-to-head rankings overall - the Noble Screamer was my series champion - I of course say get both in - they'e both superb!

Controls - Tone, Tone Mods : AT (Low-Cut) / RK (Low Boost / Phat), Drive, Drive Clipping Mods : AT (Asymmetrical LED + Silicon Diodes) / RK (Dual Germanium Diodes), Level.

The latest and greatest iteration of the Andy Timmons Modified Blues Driver - really sounds superb, but then again I have so many clever Blues Driver types - and there are several that are more expansive than this. Either way a really great take on that genre - and I really love Robert's Fuzz voicing!

Controls - MAIN } Tone, Dynamics, Gain, Level, Boost, Blend, Bypass Footswitch; EQ } Bass, Lo-Mid, Hi-Mid, High, EQ Footswitch.

Daniel's latest pedal iteration see 10 fully granular controls - with a second footswitch to punch in a 4-Band EQ. This is a really smart extend range Klone - really quite distinct from most of the rest - and obviously way beyond the average 3-knob variety!

No demo exists yet for the new iteration - so I've referenced the best of the original ones!

Controls - Boost (+21 dB), Heat (Subtle Low Order Harmonics), Active Bass ±, Active Treble ±.

Colin's latest Transformer project is the most exquisite High Headroom Boost out there - with subtle low order harmonics. This one really can get earth-shatteringly loud - really impressive!

Controls - Bass Cut, Gain Boost, Drive, Spectrum, Level, True/Buffered Bypass (in battery bay).

This one has been a long time coming - with fully surfaced Bass Cut and Gain Boost controls. Those elements are something this pedal has long needed - and it's great that it's finally available in its optimal edition - this is how it should always have been. Nordland Electronics has take this format even further forward!

Controls - Loud (Volume), Gain, Treble, Plus Boost Level, Bass, Bypass Footswitch, Plus Boost Footswitch.

A beautifully engineered organic overdrive with super smart Plus Boost - which elevates Gain, Volume and EQ / Character. This is very roughly in BluesBreaker territory - but far more expansive and really ver much its own thing - just a beautifully versatile everyday overdrive!

Controls - Level, Drive, Tone.

A really impressive engineering achievement for sure - the world's smallest fully functional pedal - while it's open-sides construction means it's not up to the rigours of live playback or touring. It's part novelty, part engineering marvel. It's an OK sounding Screamer - not really up with the best of mine, but non too shabby either. This is fun to own, and it is wholly practically usable - and particularly within a tabletop environment. But it's not really a work horse stompbox in any fashion - will always be a nice-to-have rather than an essential!

Controls - Volume, Bright, Ratio (Distortion & Compression).

This one has been on my wishlist for such a long time, I'm so glad this is finally in the collection - and what a killer take on the Dumble Drive it is. It's not quite at Tanabe Zenkudo and Demon Pedals Kondo-Shifuku levels, but it runs them really close - and has a tonne of range onboard. Really sounds superb - and it is distinct from my other favourites!

Controls - Level, Preamp Tube (Emulation) : 12AY7 : Brighter/Cleaner / 12AX7 : Darker/Gainier, Drive, Post Gain EQ, Post EQ Mode / Profile : I Fended Black Panel / II Marshall style / III Flat, Tone (Dark>Bright).

This is definitely one that got away from me this year. It's for sure one of the very best sounding Tweedy drives I've encountered - and it for sure is a serious challenger to by True North and Tubesteader Eggnog varieties. Of course I need to get the Deluxe 55 in to see how well it compares to those - and if indeed it pips them to the title of ultimate Tweed Drive pedal! Definitely worthy of high consideration - it just sounds so good - but obviously I can't fully recommend it until I've properly road-tested it myself against the best of the rest!

Controls - AMP Types : Clean / Crunch / Destroy / Classic USA / Classic UK / Gen X / Bass, Presets : 1-8 per Category [Hold Number for Preset, Hold Again to Save] [Tap lit number for Secondary Params], Ample Triode Logo : Triple-tap for L/R Amp Channel Split, Hold for Fine Mode, Gain [LED Luminance], Volume [Boost Level], Bass [Mids], Treble [Room Reverb], ’A’ Boost Footswitch - Hold for Next Category / Set List, ’B’ Bypass Footswitch - Hold for Next Preset.

Rear Ports - TRS Stereo In, MIDI In & Out, USB-C for Updates / Set Lists / Presets, Power : 9V DC [-] 500mA, TRS Stereo Out.

Loki's latest is another fantastic achievement. On first encounter it doesn't hit quite as hard as it should - but that's really because the defaults are dialled in very neutrally - each of those needs more gain, more volume, and a little EQ finessing - once those have been tweaked to satisfaction - you have the most extraordinarily potent 56 Amps in a Box multi-gain pedal. Following on from the aesthetic and function of the Flat V and Verbs - this is another superior take on this genre. It still has some glitches in its boot-up routine, but really performs marvellously overall! Another brilliant execution - and one worthy of runner-up status for best pedal in this selection!

Controls - Gain, Volume, Tone (Post-Gain Passive Hi-Cut Filter), Voice (Pre-Gain Mid Frequency Filter), Mode / Voicing switch on side : Red - Marshall / Blue Dumkudo / Green Dumble.

These are all made to order - so while this model has been around for a while - there's not many in circulation. I acquired 3 Tanabe pedals this year - and still have the Sunkudo Fuzz (Buzzaround) to get - which may happen next year. The Zenkudo is simply the most dynamic and vibrant Dumble ODS Drive that I've experience to date. It's beautifully calibrated and delivers the most exquisite of tones with super touch sensitivity and feel - an exceptional pedal!

Controls - MAIN GAIN } Gain, Master Volume, Clip : Hard / Off [OpAmp] / Soft; MID BOOST } Boost : Min [some] / Off / Max [lots]; FUZZ / HARMONICS } Gate [Fuzz Character] : Some / Off / Lots, Overtone [Octave] : Some / Most / More, Drive / Fuzz / Overtone Gain; EQ } Filter [LPF], HPF : Some / Off / Lots, Active Treble, Active Bass.

This expansive Multi-Gain pedal is the very embodiment of my '12 Degrees of Saturation Methodology'. It has a vast scope of operation across each of the 12 categories that I typically reference. And while it doesn't always 100% accurately replicate every single voicing - it gets to at least 99%% on most - this is such a smart pedal! It could kind of do with a digital control layer - so you can save some of those fantastic voicings as presets - as you're often tweaking several knobs in tandem, and certain voicing are harder to come by than others. As an all-rounder gain pedal though - this one reigns supreme - which is why it takes the Gold this year!

Controls - MAIN } Volume, Treble, Mids, Gain, Bass, ACTIVE HIGH PASS FILTER / BOOST } Boost, Lows.

A fantastic Tube Preamp take on the Marshall Plexi - made as a signature pedal for Chris Buck - with all the touch sensitivity, feel and dynamics he needs for his virtuosic playing style. A really fantastic execution with a brilliant second independent low-end enhanced smooth Boost. Had the Tubesteader ROY not materialised this year - then this would be in that one's place. Both are utterly superb and authentic preamps - where for whatever reason the ROY just grabbed me a tiny fraction more!

Controls - Gain, Volume, Deep / Mids : Off / Switch Mode / Always On, Treble Boost : Off / Switch Mode / Always On, Treble, Mid, Bass, Deep / Boost Footswitch (Depending on toggles), Bypass Footswitch.

This is more on the 'Jazz' side for the Dumble ODS - but still a really great sounding take on that - somewhat overshadowed this year by the later ROY release - which for me was absolutely perfection for that genre. This Lightkeeper is still a really smart and elegant tube overdrive!

Controls - CHANNEL 1 } Gain, Volume; CHANNEL 2 } Gain, Volume; UNIVERSAL } Tone Cut (hi-cut on top), Bass, Treble, Channel 1/2 Footswitch, On/Bypass Footswitch, Channel 1/2 Remote port on side (1/8").

My very favourite take on the Vox AC30 Top Boost amp to-date. This not just looks and sounds the part - it also has all the touch sensitivity and dynamics of the original amp. This is not just a superb take on an AC30 amp it's a superior take on a superior sounding AC30 - I really love this one in case you did not get that already!

Controls - TOP BOOST } Gain, Bass, Treble, Boost Footswitch; BOOST TYPE } Treble Boost / Clean Boost; MASTER } Volume, High Cut, Main Bypass Footswitch. Plus internal Presence Trim-Pot (default set to Min / CCW).

A great sounding take on the AC30 Top Boost, while somewhat overshadowed by the Tubesteader ROY - which I somewhat prefer. I always felt that the Jangle Master could do with more output volume - it has considerably less than its Platinum Preamp sibling. The ROY somewhat outmuscles this Jangle Master in most departments - it's still pretty decent, but in the Top Boost switching AC30 category - I would place both the ROY and the Menatone TBIAC above this one!

Controls - Volume, Tone, Gain, Mid ±, Mid Freq. Focus : 350Hz / 550Hz / 2kHz, MODE : I. GE 1N34A / II. GE 1N34A + Bass Boost / III. Symmetric SI / IV. Asymmetric SI / V. Asymmetric SI + Bass Boost, Bypass Footswitch, Mid Footswitch.

This is the last of the ones I missed out on this year - I also need to catch up with Walrus's 385 MKII - which I missed out on last year. It's always a matter of juggling myriad priorities at the same time. This Voyager is a cool multi-clipping expanded range take on the humble 3-knob control - here with a much more expansive 6-knob topology. I will definitely be getting this one in next year - as I like to collect extended range Klones - they're definitely a favourite overdrive of mine!

Controls - Bass, Mids, Treble, Volume, Gain, Buffer push-button on side.

And here is Brian Wampler's extended range Klone - really decent sounding - and does everything it should, but was a little pricey to acquire - with all the usual shipping and import duties etc. Still really worth it, it has a more complex breakup texture than the Silicon original. While the footsmwitches on these pedals feel really cheap - which loses a point or two!

Controls - Volume, Tone, Gain, Low, Mid, Voicing / Mode : Fuzz / Normal.

A really fantastic take on the Boss BD-2 Blues Driver - with a fantastically textured Fuzz Mode onboard - similar to the above Keeley Muse Driver, but if anything a little richer sounding! This is truly one of my very favourite Blues Driver style Overdrives - beautifully calibrated!

• Aleks K Production Honey Moon Sweet Overdrive V3
• All-Pedal Jeff Looms signature Devil's Triad Essentials Boost + Drive
• Anasounds FX Teacher Blues Believer BluesBreaker style Overdrive / Distortion
• Audio Blend Edge EQ FA-1 FET Amplifier with Parametric EQ
• Audio Blend Fourleaf FET Amplifier
• Beetronics Wannabee Beelateral Buzz Klone + BluesBreakr Dual Overdrive
• Bispell Audio Tor V2 OC44 Emulating Silicon RangeMaster
• Bleak District Slate Discrete Germanium Preamplifier
• Bleak District Terra Earthly Overdriver
• Buzzing Bugs BB04 Full Range Drive
• Buzzing Bugs x Los Campesinos Mortal Joy Lo-Fi Overdrive, Fitler and Tape Saturation
• Cachalote Formiga Drive
• Cachalote Ushuaia Drive
• Chase Bliss (Condor) Dirt Bird
• Chase Bliss Condor Hi-Fi Analog EQ / Pre / Filter
• Colortone Parasite V2 Full Spectrum Overdrive
• Coriolis Effects Ultimate Hail To The King Dual Channel BluesBreaker
• Cornerstone Antique V3 Dual Channel Classic Drive
• Cusack Music Project 34 Selenium Rectifier Pre/Drive
• Decibelics Rivus BluesBreaker style Mini Overdrive
• DOD OD/Pre 250 50th Anniversary Edition
• Drunk Beaver Forest Song Resonant High Voltage Overdrive
• Drunk Beaver Hoverla NOS Germanium Treble Booster / RangeMaster
• Drunk Beaver Khelnytskyi OD (Boss OD-1 x OD-3 EQ)
• Drunk Beaver Lviv Liontaur Klone
• Drunk Beaver Lutsk Deluxe Tweed Tube Preamp
• Drunk Beaver Ternopil Pentode Tube Preamp
• Drunk Beaver XR Series OD-1 Over Drive
• Electro-Harmonix LPB.3 Linear Power Booster
• Electronic Audio Experiments The Bard MusicMan HD130 style Preamp
• Electronic Audio Experiments Surveyor Instrument Voicing Preamp
• Free The Tone Overdriveland Standard Dual Dumble Drive
• Hangman fx Lord GermFet Overdrive
• JHS Pedals Tacobolt Mason Stoops Edition
• Keeley 4-in-1 Series Blues Disorder BluesBreaker + OCD
• Keeley Andy Timmons signature Muse Driver / MK3 Driver Modified Blues Driver
• King Tone Blues Power V3 Timmy style Overdrive
• King Tone Heavy Hand V3 BluesBreaker style Overdrive
• King Tone Soloist V3 Screamer style Overdrive
• Land Devices Moonbow HPF / LPF + OD
• Lichtlaerm Audio Aquaria V2 Extended Range Klone
• LPD Pedal Lucent Overdrive + Boost
• Muir Audio Design Silicon Steel Boost
• MXR Gran Torino Boost Overdrive
• Mythos Pedals Envy Pro Overdrive NV-9
• Mythos Pedals Herculean Deluxe Overdrive Dumble + BluesBreaker
• Nobels ODR-1X Natural Overdrive
• Nobels ODR-Mini 2 Natural Overdrive
• Nordvang 1590B3 Altitude BluesBreaker style Overdrive + Boost
• Nordvang 1590B3 MidAir Sceamer style Overdrive + Bosot
• Nordvang 1590B3 Skyline Timmy style Overdrive + Boost
• NRG Effects Purrer Organic Overdrive with Plus Boost
• Nux '63 Diamond Preamp
• Obie Audio Great Raven 3-in-1 Full Spectrum Gain Platform
• Olinthus Cicada Tiny Classic Overdrive
• OneControl BJFE Series Blue Bee Custom Overdrive
• OneControl Golden Acorn Overdrive Special
• OneControl Strawberry Red Overdrive RC
• Oneder Effects Old Blue Overdrive
• Origin Effects Deluxe 55 Tweed Recreation
• Origin Effects Halcyon Blue BluesBreaker style Overdrive
• PastFX BLD Booster, Line Driver and Distortion
• Pelican NoiseWorks 50-50 Double OD V2
• Pedal Pawn Cowboy King Classic Overdrive
• Poly Effects Ample 56 Amps-in-a-box
• RudeTech Dude Alert! Classic Overdrive
• Sentimental Bob Albert Extended Range OCD + Boost
• Shnobel Tone Daily Driver + Boost Edition
• Silktone Overdrive+
• Tanabe Zenkudo Dumble Drive
• Tavysh HARM Multi-Gain Machine Harmonics, Saturation and EQ
• ThorpyFX Chris Buck signature Electric Lightning Plexi-style Tube Preamp + Boost
• Truenorth Tweed Jr Mini Drive
• Tsakalis AudioWorks Mothership Dual Channel Tube Overdrive / Preamp
• Tubesteader Lightkeeer V2 Dumble Drive Tube Preamp
• Tubesteader ROY Twin Channel Vox AC30 Top Boost style Tube Preamp
• UAFX Enigmatic '82 Overdrive Special Amp
• Vahlbruch Effects Kaluna II 250V High Voltage Tube Drive
• VS Audio Jangle Master Top Boosted Vox AC30 style Preamp
• Walrus Audio Voyager MKII Klone
• Wampler Brent Mason signature Re Wired Overdrive / Distortion
• Wampler Germanium Tumnus Deluxe Klone
• Way Huge Geisha Drive Smalls
• Winnipeg Electrical Co Homework Series Blues
• Zoom MultiStomp MS-200D+ Gain Workstation