JHS Pedals announces NOTAKLÖN solderless Klon-style DIY kit for $99

November 15, 2023 · 4 sources

JHS Pedals introduced the NOTAKLÖN, a solderless DIY overdrive pedal kit based on the Klon Centaur circuit, in a video published on November 15, 2023¹. The kit is priced at $99 and pre-orders opened with the announcement²¹.

The kit is a build-it-yourself overdrive that requires no soldering iron and ships with instructions, an enclosure, the circuit motherboard, the tools needed for assembly and a tube of what JHS calls "Goop" for concealing the circuit³⁴. JHS founder Josh Scott said the finished pedal carries a layout matching the original Klon, with Volume, Treble and Gain controls and a bypass footswitch on the right⁴. A mode switch engages the Shamrock mod, which JHS says adds more volume, mids and an additional gain stage; Guitar World reported the mod increases overall gain by 4dB and adds a stage of hard-edge clipping³⁴. The standard Centaur circuit remains available with the switch in its other position⁴.

JHS framed the kit as a return to Klon replica territory. The company discontinued its earlier Klon Replica in 2012 after Klon released the KTR². "You've asked me for over a decade to bring the JHS Klon replica back into our pedal lineup," Scott said in the announcement video. "And I only have one thing to say to that: make it yourself"⁴.

One of the first 1,000 shipments will include a "Golden Ticket" worth $1,500 toward any JHS Pedals order²³. Scott said the kit is not a limited release¹.

Availability accounts differ. Guitar.com reported pre-orders were open at announcement². MusicRadar reported the kit had already sold 3,000 pedals and that the next batch of pre-orders was said to ship in early 2024³. Guitar World reported the first batch of 3,000 had sold out and that more would ship in January⁴.