TwinStomp S21 Overdrive review

  • £189
The S21 is housed in a custom stainless steel casing.

MusicRadar Verdict

High-calibre 'drive pedal that's worthy of your attention.

Pros

  • +

    Excellent sound and build quality.

Cons

  • -

    Gain could be higher.

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The name TwinStomp might be new to us, but this UK-based company is gaining a reputation for its line of pedals. The most recent is the dual-channel S21 Overdrive.

Unlike a lot of boutique builders, TwinStomp makes its own pedal casings. So bid farewell to the generic project box, and say hello to a cast stainless steel lump of a housing. It has four rubber feet, which can be removed, turning the existing 'ears' into mounting holes if you want to bolt it to a pedalboard.

"We're impressed with the sound of the overdrives, which take you from a smooth clipping to a thicker blues sound."

TwinStomp has also designed a patent-applied-for battery holder, so getting the juice into the pedal doesn't involve any screwdrivers or fiddly battery flaps. Instead, there's a metal keyring-style loop attached to a plastic cable-tie.

The battery presses into place, and you pull the metal ring to pop it back out. Easy.

The S21's first channel offers less gain than the second, but both can give a clean boost if you want to drive the front of your amp harder. We're impressed with the sound of the overdrives too, which take you from a smooth clipping to a thicker blues sound. TwinStomp says that channel two has more 'edge', but it's a subtle difference to our ears.

It is an overdrive rather than a distortion, but the second channel could benefit from having slightly higher gain. But still, if you're after a 'drive pedal with character, this is worth a try.

Stuart Williams
Drums

Stuart has been working for guitar publications since 2008, beginning his career as Reviews Editor for Total Guitar before becoming Editor for six years. During this time, he and the team brought the magazine into the modern age with digital editions, a Youtube channel and the Apple chart-bothering Total Guitar Podcast. Stuart has also served as a freelance writer for Guitar World, Guitarist and MusicRadar reviewing hundreds of products spanning everything from acoustic guitars to valve amps, modelers and plugins. When not spouting his opinions on the best new gear, Stuart has been reminded on many occasions that the 'never meet your heroes' rule is entirely wrong, clocking-up interviews with the likes of Eddie Van Halen, Foo Fighters, Green Day and many, many more.