ThorpyFX and Chris Buck launch Electric Lightning valve overdrive and boost

May 2, 2024 · 3 sources

ThorpyFX and Chris Buck released the Electric Lightning on May 2, 2024, a signature overdrive and boost pedal with a preamp tube inside¹. MusicRadar reported the pedal as available now¹.

The pedal is a dual-sided design that runs a footswitchable boost into a drive section, with an actual preamp tube under the hood¹. The Boost side has its own footswitch, a Boost knob for gain and a Lows knob for fattening the tone; the overdrive side has a three-band EQ plus Volume and Gain dials¹. PedalPedia describes the drive as retaining clarity and articulation up to the upper reaches of the gain control, and the boost as a high-headroom circuit that can fatten cleans or add saturation to the valve overdrive section². Buck said the EQ section is loosely based on the classic Marshall setup, giving it what he called the slightly aggressive, visceral feel associated with early Plexis³.

Technical data listed by PedalPedia:

Buck said he road-tested the pedal for the better part of 18 months through various iterations and prototypes, and that he had been using it for his YouTube clips and live with Cardinal Black before the launch¹. He said the design aimed to keep the touch responsiveness of a real amp rather than rounding off the edges of familiar tones¹.

PedalPedia describes the pedal as designed specifically not to be a "one trick pony," with both Buck and Thorpy wanting it to suit any playing style². Buck said the name came from a suggestion by Adrian Thorpe, after the two batted around ideas around voltage and electricity; Electric Lightning is an old British fighter jet³.