Cory Wong Partners With Jackson Audio for The Optimist

January 27, 2022 · 4 sources

Jackson Audio announced their latest guitar pedal, The Optimist, in collaboration with Cory Wong¹. Announced on January 25, 2022, it is a MIDI-controllable dual overdrive and EQ based on classic Klon and Timmy stompboxes².

The Optimist pairs a Klon replica circuit with a transparent Timmy-inspired circuit. MusicRadar's Jonathan Horsley described the OD1 circuit as offering a little magic in the midrange a la the Klon Centaur, while the OD2 is a transparent Timmy-esque affair with a flat response. Both overdrive circuits are voiced for low to mid-gain drives². Like the original Klon circuit, OD1 uses germanium diodes³.

The pedal adds a Baxandall-esque 3-band EQ with 12dB of boost or cut per band, affecting the signal after both overdrives. You can boost or cut 12dB from each bass, middle and treble band².

Controls and features as announced:

• Volume, tone and gain dials for each overdrive²
• Three mini-dials for the EQ section²
• MIDI control over all functions, with OD1, OD2 and EQ all controllable via MIDI²
• All jacks top-mounted in one compact enclosure²

For MIDI, the pedal receives MIDI information via the ring connection on a TRS connector, so using it requires a cable that converts a MIDI (DIN-5) connector to a TRS cable³.

The Optimist was available now at launch, priced at $349², a figure gearnews.com also reported as the USD RRP⁴. Gearnews' Jef called it "a pretty useful drive pedal, and I can see it being popular with players that like these style of boutique tones," noting it costs less than buying a Klon and a Timmy plus MIDI and a flexible EQ section⁴.