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Wampler Plexi-Drive Deluxe

Wampler introduces the Plexi-Drive Deluxe, an upgraded version of their popular overdrive pedal with improved tone shaping features.

Wampler Plexi-Drive Deluxe
Wampler Plexi-Drive Deluxe

This pedal carries over the same gain circuit design as the original but with extended sonic capabilities. With this pedal, you can get more Marshall Plexi flavors via tweaking the active 3-band equalizer, bass/bright boost, and the use of post and pre-gain circuits instead of just one.

Just like its predecessor, the Plexi-Drive Deluxe’s gain structure closely mimics the sound of old Marshall “Plexi” amps. With some minor tweaking, the pedal can reproduce overdriven tones in the style of vintage ’68 Super Lead amps, and can even go up to JTM-45 style crunch distortion. But since fans were requesting for more flexibility, Brian Wampler and his team added some interesting features that improves on the original design.

A cursory look at the Plexi-Drive Deluxe and the additions to the pedal become plainly obvious – more knobs, more switches. What these extensive controls does is make the pedal behave more like amplifiers in-a-box instead of merely being an overdrive pedal. Aside from tone shaping, these controls allow for easier matching with all sorts of guitars, amps and other pedals.

Wampler Plexi-Drive
Original Plexi-Drive

The most notable feature of the Deluxe version is its separate pre and post gain sections. Each section comes complete with independent gain knobs and foot switches, allowing you to engage one or the other, or better yet, combine the two for more complex plexi style tones. The post gain section behaves similar to the original, while the pre-gain section is described as being voiced like a “famous overdrive with pronounced mids” that help push the post gain section. They are basically saying that you are getting a Tube Screamer and Plexi packed in a convenient box.

The addition of 3-band EQ knobs complement the updated gain structure, allowing you to adjust the bass, mids and treble as you would on an actual amp head. Further tone control is provided by the bass and bridge boost switches. According to the company, ” the bass boost option, you can emulate the feeling of the low-end thump of a 4×12 cabinet (or two) at the flick of a switch.” You can use the bass boost to add low end to your tone when going for low volume gigs, or practice volume levels. The bright switch adds back high frequencies that can sometimes be lost due to effects or gain saturation. The EQ controls work together to allow for a wide variety of gain tones, and makes the pedal easily accommodate various combinations of guitars, pickups, amps and pedals.

Brian Wampler himself showcased what the Plexi-Drive Deluxe can do, and he considers it as a good replacement for the original Plexi-Drive that he built – which has stayed on his personal pedalboard through the years. Check out the video demo below:

The demo video showcased some pretty impressive Plexi crunch tones! Other features of the pedal include a level knob, top-mounted jacks and true bypass relay soft click switch.

Wampler concludes by saying, “The Plexi-Drive Deluxe will fill your Marshall void and give you the crunch, response, boost, and feeling that your rig begs for. Whether you are playing sold out shows or rocking out by yourself – the Plexi-Drive Deluxe will take your tone and allow you to create your own flavor of rock!

The new Wampler Plexi-Drive Deluxe is hand-built in the USA and will come with an MSRP of $239.97. For more information and other details, visit Wampler Pedals.

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