As Westminster Effects' 2716 High Gain Distortion Pedal lands in the Reference Collection, they also introduce a limited White & Red colourway run for 2022

With my now having gotten proper hands-on with the 2716 I felt it was right to do a further follow-up with my overall impressions. Interestingly this is the 4th new Metal Distortion Pedal of mine which is somewhat Dual Rectifier themed - alongside the Tone Ink Raven (one of 3 voicings), MidValleyFX Peaks V3, and Aura Amps Diamond - and in fact a few more in very similar territory.

Of all of those I feel that the Aura Amps is the most similar to what I perceive to be the core tonality and texture of the classic MESA/Boogie Dual Rectifier Amp - but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best, or the most suitable for many players. The 2716 has a more powerful EQ, and a lot more Volume and Gain onboard for instance.

Each of that quartet is actually pretty distinct, and the Westminster 2716 is really closest to the MidValleyFX Peaks take. Both I feel are somewhat inspired-by, rather more than exacting authentic replications, and each has a fairly modern feel, with really flexible and powerful EQ.

In fact in the Cody Fields x Seth Morrison Westminster Doxology 2716 Launch Podcast - Cody and Seth discuss the incredibly interactive nature of the 4-Band EQ (including Presence) - which I can totally attest to - that aspect brings to mind the Zvex Fuzz Factory to a degree - because of how interactive all those controls are. With the 2716 - tweaking any of those individual tone controls - say Treble - impacts on the nature and character of the Bass and Middle response too - so you mostly need to work those knobs in tandem - which gives this pedal a genuine extended range versatility.

Controls - Gain, Presence, Volume, Bass, Middle, Treble.

The EQ for sure is really powerful and sounds great both Scooped, and Mids-Forward - with plenty of punch to the output. I’m also glad to report that Gain and Volume here is plentiful - so you should really be able to wring out every ounce of nuance here.

In terms of in comparison to the Aura Diamond - that has a slightly tighter and drier edge to it - probably a little more vintage in feel too. While the 2716 is rather more a High Gain Distortion with a strong flavour of the Dual Rectifier - and particularly in how Seth likes to set his up - but has added range - to take you into say 5150 territory also and similar.

Until you physically see the enclosure you don’t realise quite how pretty it is - as it has a gorgeous metallic bronze paint-job - with those scripted layers somewhat embossed on top - adding a lovely tactile quality.

It’s worth recapping on how the pedal got its name - and what we’re actually seeing on the pedal’s facia as I didn’t quite get those details right the first time around.

So the 2716 name came about as both Cody and Seth like to share their Christian roots - meaning of course that the source and reference is biblical. It also gives a subtle nod to the 5150 and the legacy of numerical heavy metal amps! While more specifically - Seth’s latest band (Skillet) album is called ’Dominion’ and he wanted to subtly allude to that - without making it too overt or too much of a tie-in. So a suitable Bible passage was sought out - which included the word ’Dominion’ - and Book 27 of the New Testament - i.e. Revelations 1:6 - goes something along the lines of "...to Him be the Glory and the Dominion forever and ever...". So that’s very specifically where the 2716 comes from - it’s a Bible reference!

While if you look closely at the facia you can also see some Greek script subtly covering the surface of the pedal - this is of course similarly Biblical too - supposedly taken from the earliest written Bible - the Codex Sinaiticus. Seth is a big fan of Uncharted, Indiana Jones, Tomb Raider and the like - where he loves the cryptic secret code based nature of those franchises - and wanted a certain flavour of that on his signature pedal too!

All in all - some solid development here with serious attention to detail - and lots of thought applied inside and out. I really like this pedal - even in the face of some very stiff competition. It’s not necessarily the most brutal in its output - but it’s incredibly potent, entirely worthy and distinct. The combination of plenty of Gain and Volume Output onboard with a really smart 4-Band EQ (including Presence), gives it a considerable kick.

My favourite current settings are Gain @ 4 o’c, Presence @ 2 o’c, Volume @ 4 o’c, Bass @ 3 o’c, Mids @ 8 o’c, and Treble @ 3 o’c. At those settings it’s full-on thunderous!

It’s fascinating how different and distinct the 2716, Aura Diamond, MidValleyFX Peaks, and Tone Ink Raven are - even though they’re all kind of mining similar territory. Each of those is rather potent, versatile and a joy to deploy - indeed each with its own character - which inspires different playing styles.

Both versions of the 2716 - the Classic / Standard and 2022 Limited Colourway are priced at a very reasonable $149.99 and are available right now from the Westminster Effects Webstore.