Origin Effects adds Halcyon Blue Overdrive to Halcyon series

October 14, 2024 · 3 sources

Origin Effects has released the Halcyon Blue Overdrive, the third pedal in its Halcyon series, following the Halcyon Green and Halcyon Gold¹². Guitar Pedal X reported the launch on August 27, 2024²; Delicious Audio covered the pedal on October 14, 2024 and added it to its article on pedals inspired by the Marshall Blues Breaker¹.

The Halcyon Blue is a low-to-mid gain overdrive built around the company's Adaptive Circuitry, which Delicious Audio describes as a proprietary system that adjusts the pedal's voicing in response to pick attack and volume changes¹. Origin Effects says the pedal takes after the Marshall Blues Breaker, which it calls "a '90s classic that has been modded by countless pedal builders"³. The BB mode recreates the behavior and sound of the original Marshall pedal, while MOD is the company's own take on the circuit³. Origin Effects says the MOD mode came from collecting modded Blues Breaker pedals and produced "something with an altered clipping characteristic, higher gain, and a warmer response"³.

The controls, as listed by Guitar Pedal X, are Level, Drive, Dry (clean blend), Tone, an Adapt switch with settings 0, I (part) and II (full), and a Voice switch for BB (stock) or MOD². Delicious Audio says Adapt position 0 removes the Adaptive Circuitry altogether, position II is a subtler version that keeps some of the original circuit's tone with less bass and high end, and the Voice toggle adds bass and gain in the MOD position¹. Origin Effects lists DRIVE, TONE, OUTPUT and DRY level controls across the Halcyon range³.

Guitar Pedal X reported the pedal open for orders on the Origin Effects webstore and at international dealers at a list price of $299 USD, excluding tax². Delicious Audio describes the MOD voicing as "KOT-ish" in its summary of the controls, a comparison Origin Effects does not make in its own account¹².