Both of PedalPalFX's killer Marshall-style preamp duo are now in the Reference Collection - with the superb PAL987 Plexi Carrera Preamp just landed

May 22, 202408:00 by

Stefan Karlsson

DistortionMarshall Style DistortionOverdrivePedalPalFX+-

I picked up my first of these - the PAL800 Gold Overdrive V4 this past November (2023). Where it was originally Phillip McKnight (Know Your Gear!) that put me onto PedalPalFX - all the way back in March of 2018. I have covered this brand a few times on this site before my acquisitions - and always meant to get the two main ones into the collection - as they were so highly lauded, and I didn’t think any Marshall pedal collection could be complete without those two!

It’s one of those occasions that I’m actually really glad that I waited it out - as the recent iterations of those pedals are in my preferred compact enclosure form-factor, and with a richer feature set - including all the essential mods. These are hand-made in Caracas, Venezuela by one Luis Pena - who happens to be a really fantastic Marshall style circuit engineer. Utilising JFETs to wholly recreate those amps’ tube topologies. In fact he’s developed what looks like his own JFET Array - which he codenames the JF8R4 as pictured below!

So if you’re looking for dedicated Marshall 1987X Plexi style and JCM800 style pedals - with all the bells and whistles - then these are surely at the top tier for that job. I can’t say why I got the JCM800 first - I guess that one was just being advertised a little more at the time. My mood varies hugely, and sometimes I want maximum gain, while at other times, I prefer a more moderate gain, and it’s the overall Marshall texture and heft (low end and mids articulation) that is more important. These are both superb pedals of course - and I can rarely explain why necessarily, but on this occasion this PAL987 was more instantly impactful for me. I think it’s partly my mood during testing, and partly the good luck of dialling in the perfect sweet-spot.

Where the PAL800 made we work a tiny bit more on the dial-in than the instant hit of the PAL987 - it really is very much to do with luck to a degree for how easily your dials land at optimal positions. And I do spend an extraordinary amount of time exploring knob combinations - a little bit more of that one, a little less of the other etc. That said - the knob tapers are even and very predictable - and it really doesn’t take long to hit that signature chewy Marshall sound.

Controls - T.S. (Tone Structure) : Tight with Extra Bass / Tight / Standard Full Fat, Volume, Presence, Gain, Bass, Middle, Treble.

As I say - mood and prevailing taste is often so important - it depends a little on whether you last listened to Led Zeppelin or Iron Maiden say - as to which gain range currently appeals. At another time you may have come into your testing session with quite a different soundtrack - and of course that will influence the direction you take.

My Preferred Settings that I seem to have become attached to are - T.S. @ Standard (Down), Volume @ 3 o'c, Presence @ 3 o'c, Gain @ 1 o'c, Bass @ 2 o'c, Middle @ 10:30, Treble @ Max.

I really do tweak all those knobs and switches most systematically - exploring every degree of their output and soundstage - individually and in combination. I really do tweak the hell out of those knobs to arrive at the perfect texture/s for my current mood. It always involves hitting the peak amount of harmonics - the richer the soundstage, the better it is for me. And sometimes I really want to feel the gain, while at other times I just want to hit the optimal harmonic texture - which is kind of what these particular settings represent. I had every setting on Max at some stage - but often you get a little more compression that way - which can diminish some of those harmonics - so your need to safecracker-style tweak those dials until you hit peak texture territory.

Each of those pedals are distinctly their own thing, and while both are very obviously Marshall in style - they do have their differences in timbre and overall frequency range and response.

Interestingly I acquired another long-term wishlist target at the same time - the Dawner Prince Red Rox - which is also a fantastic sounding sort of Plexi type. The main difference between the PAL987 and that is how precisely you can dial The PAL987 in. In comparing the two pedals - I can dial the PAL987 precisely and exactly where I want it to be - while I always feel I'm missing a control or two on the Red Rox - I want to make some further refinements to its sound - but cannot. The PedalPalFX combines three essential facets for me - a killer Marshall texture, the incredible granularity / versatility enable by all those controls, and how easy overall each pedal is to dial in!

PedalPalFX's very own specially made JF8R4 JFET Array

I call these two 'Power House Pedals' in part because of the wide range they cover via those 6 dials. And the 3-way structure toggle-switches are important in setting the core timbre and character for that amp type. I typically lean a little more towards vintage Marshall sounds - with slightly more scooped mids, and a little saggy low-end at times - and I do love a high degree of elasticity and percussiveness in my preferred Marshall sound. While on each of these - I prefer the kind of 'Standard' structure setting the best - Tone Switch Down for the PAL987 and in the Middle for the PAL800.

I've said before that these are absolutely top tier for their chosen territory, and most likely the best sounding dedicated pair out there. I do have some pedals that cover both Plexi and JCM800, in fact some that cover all the key Marshall Amp types in the one enclosure - but often it's essential to experience the best of one type in a more stand-alone fashion.

I can't see how anyone could fail but be impressed be these two titans of the scene. Today I very slightly prefer the PAL987, while at another time it will for sure be its PAL800 sibling. There are distinct differences in core timbre / character / frequency reponse - and each has a slightly different gain range too.

These are fantastic value at $200 - and wholly worth investing in. I'm amazed that Luis can do such fantastically consistent high quality work from Caracas, Venezuela - considering the civil unrest that happens there from time to time. I'm very glad that I can support him from the UK, and more of you should surely do so too! I know these are pretty popular in the USA, while more should definitely be making their way across the Atlantic to European Pedalboards.

I acquired both of mine from the Reverb.com PedalPalFX Store Page. And they were both with me in just a little over a week from when the order was placed. You really can't go wrong with either one of these - they look so appealing in their soft gold finish, and their versatility in dial-in is pretty much second to none - with that 4-band EQ allowing you to very precisely dial in your preferred tones and textures.

Would be great to hear from any of you who've snagged a pair of these too!