TC Electronic Reinvents the Klon With the Zeus Drive

May 30, 2021 · 6 sources

TC Electronic announced the Zeus Drive, a compact overdrive pedal that takes its circuit from the Klon Centaur, the fabled gold-box overdrive whose originals sell for sums far beyond most players' reach. The Zeus Drive is a dynamic, transparent boost-to-mid-gain overdrive that, just like the original Klon Centaur, blends some of the clean signal back into the overdriven one, a topology Klon players know as the source of that pedal's touch responsiveness¹.

The all-analog circuit features a clipping stage that uses 1N34A germanium diodes, and the first 2000 units sold carried a pair of germanium clipping diodes as a launch feature³⁵. The pedal also steps up its internal voltage for improved headroom¹. Analog Man noted that the Zeus Drive uses the same green striped (Russian?) diodes found in Klon-style builds, and offers a mod service to change them⁶.

MusicRadar described the launch like this⁴:

Controls

The control layout follows the Klon template: three knobs plus TC Electronic's own FAT mod switch¹².

The maker says the sound with the Fat toggle engaged is perfect for "gut-wrenching, chugging, riffery"³. MusicRadar suggested three ways to use it: keep it on all the time to sweeten the tone, step on it when solos need some oomph, or crank it for hot mid-level drive crunch⁴.

Features and launch details

• All-analog circuit with 1N34A germanium clipping diodes³
• Clean signal blended back into the overdriven signal, Klon style¹
• Stepped-up internal voltage for improved headroom¹
• FAT mod switch for a thicker low end²
• Optional buffered bypass²
• First 2000 units sold with germanium clipping diodes⁵

The Zeus Drive retailed at launch for $59 in the US⁴, a price Delicious Audio called "a decimal fraction of the cost" of an original Klon, adding that the pedal "seems to be at least in part intended to deliver Klon-style gain goodness" for the money¹. Size-wise and price-wise it is a similar deal to the Magus Pro, TC Electronic's compact distortion released in the same wave of small-format pedals⁴.

The Zeus Drive joined a run of compact TC Electronic launches alongside the Impulse IR Loader and the Bucket Brigade Analog Delay. Delicious Audio later added it to its list of Best Klon Clones¹. Full details are on the Zeus Drive product page.