X2 Classic Overdrive £285

The X2 is a soft-clipping overdrive that offers different clipping options from a three-way toggle switch and has two tone knobs (Lows and Highs) to tailor your sound. Lows comes before the clipping and is useful for keeping your bottom-end under control – tighter and leaner – but it’s also good for adding a bit of girth to bolster single-coil pickups. Highs comes after the clipping and covers a useful range for brightening the sound or toning it down.

This is a great pedal for low-gain break-up, the centre setting of the Clip switch offering the cleanest option, with the Gain knob running from clean (with decent amounts of clean boost available from about two o’clock on the Level knob) through to much raunchier crunch. Turn to the lower Clip switch setting and you’ll find a subtly different vibe as the tone gets grittier with a touch more stridency. The dirtiest of the three, the upper position brings in asymmetrical clipping and with it a nice degree of compression.

VERDICT

Three voices with practical tonal shading make this a versatile source of boost and drive tones to complement a good amp