Hamstead Soundworks has added another astronomically inspired overdrive to its lineup of high end pedals. The Comet Interstellar Driver offers a wide range of drive tones, from subtle breakup to fuzz.
Featuring controls for Level, Bass, Treble and Gain, the Comet offers a simple but powerful solution for changing the character of the drive, with a handy toggle switch allowing you to place the drive circuit before the active 2-band EQ or after it, and changing the the circuit for the clipping and gain structure.
Placing the drive circuit before the EQ section yields a classic transparent drive that can then be shaped by what Hamstead describes as a "studio style" EQ stage. Alternatively, feed the EQ section into the drive circuit and give it a little extra push, taking it from juicy drive right on through to fuzz.
There's a no shortage of power under the hood. The Comet's Level control has up to 30dB of boost behind it, while the active 2-band EQ controls can boost or cut up to 15dB from your bass or treble.
This being a Hamstead Soundworks design, there are of course some easter eggs. Inside the enclosure you will find a switch to activate a high-gain mode plus a global Hi-Cut to adjust the treble response to your rig, which could come in handy when switching between bright and dark guitar amplifiers.
The Comet has an all-analogue circuit designed by Peter Hamstead, and uses silent optical switching and The GigRig’s OptoKick footswitch. It is priced $259 and is available now. See Hamstead Soundworks for more details.
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