Way Huge and Joe Bonamassa launch limited Deep State overdrive

August 1, 2024 · 3 sources

Way Huge and Joe Bonamassa unveiled the Deep State, a limited-edition overdrive pedal, on August 1, 2024¹. Guitar World reported on August 2 that all 550 units had sold out².

The pedal is described as a "rare, modified version" of Way Huge's Conspiracy Theory Overdrive³, and Delicious Audio called it "born from a rib of the Conspiracy Theory"¹. According to Way Huge, the circuit came from a diode that resident tone expert Jeorge Tripps found to have "a truly magical-sounding voltage drop," which he then implanted into the Conspiracy Theory³. The maker says the result is "smooth, velvety clipping" that responds to playing dynamics³. Guitar World described the Deep State as Way Huge's second attempt to replicate the Klon sound, after the 2019 Conspiracy Theory².

Bonamassa made the remark while switching between a Klon Centaur and the Deep State in a comparison video². Guitar.com reported that he played a six-figure rig of a Klon Centaur, a vintage Burst and a Dumble against a $1,400 setup of the Deep State, an Epiphone Lazarus Burst and a Fender Sidekick Reverb 25²³. He added that the second-hand market for original Klons "has gotten out of hand"³.

The sources give the price as $189²¹ and $189.99³. It was sold exclusively through the Official Joe Bonamassa Reverb Shop²³. Each of the 550 pedals was to be numbered and hand-signed by Bonamassa on the inside³.