Tosin Abasi’s Pathos overdrive pedal is “several dirt boxes in one”

Tosin Abasi, perhaps today’s pre-eminent guitar hero, has announced the first product to appear under his new Abasi Concepts brand, the Pathos overdrive.

A collaboration with pedal guru Brian Wampler, the Pathos is designed to function as “several dirt boxes in one”: a push to an overdriven amp, an all-out distortion pedal, or a boost in front of a digital modeller. And, yes, it most definitely djents - just listen to that insane demo above.

Abasi says the pedal is designed to capture the feel of an American-style tube amp channel, with versatility coming from the ‘smooth’ and ‘edge’ voicing and three-band EQ.

This will be the first in a line of electronics, according to Abasi, so it sounds like we can expect more pedals down the line, along with further releases from Abasi Guitars.

The Pathos is available now for $199/£199/€231 - head over to Abasi Guitars for more info.

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Michael Astley-Brown

Mike has been Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com since 2019, and an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict for far longer. He has a master's degree in journalism from Cardiff University, and 15 years' experience writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as 20 years of recording and live experience in original and function bands. During his career, he has interviewed the likes of John Frusciante, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Matt Bellamy, Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell, Joe Satriani, Tom DeLonge, Radiohead's Ed O'Brien, Polyphia, Tosin Abasi, Yvette Young and many more. His writing also appears in the The Cambridge Companion to the Electric Guitar. In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock as Maebe.