Bogner Wessex

The Bogner Wessex is an overdrive pedal from Bogner, the amplifier builder whose pedal line-up also includes pedals based on the Uberschall, Shiva and Ecstasy amps¹. It is the third pedal in a series of three Bogner drives that all feature transformers designed by Rupert Neve, alongside the Harlow boost and the Burnley distortion². Its 100% analog circuit is built around that Rupert Neve-designed transformer, and it covers ground from a low-gain, very subtle overdrive through to a mid-gain, modern, tough overdrive³².

Bogner describes the Wessex as bringing a classic low gain growl to lush contemporary scorch, and the V2 reissue was described as going from "low gain growl to rich modern scorch", making it a multi-role overdrive pedal that should cover most bases³⁴. A version with a Bubinga exotic wood faceplate is sold as the Bogner Wessex Bubinga³⁵.

The controls

The Wessex has four rotary controls and a toggle switch⁷. In the original Bogner demo video, Reinhold Bogner and Greg V. walked through them: the gain control sets the amount of overdrive, the level control is the volume, the bass control shapes the low end and also somewhat the feel (less bass for a tighter feel), and the treble control sets the high end or how smooth the sound is⁷.

Pete Thorn, demoing the pedal on his channel in September 2015, noted that the bass and treble controls are voiced really nicely, so you can fine-tune the tone of the pedal². He demoed it mostly into a clean Suhr Hedgehog amp, with a final run into a Suhr SL68 (an old plexi) set crunchy².

Enhance and Normal modes

The toggle switch in the middle of the control cluster chooses between Enhance and Neutral modes: Enhance brings a bit more character to the drive sound, while Neutral leaves the EQ profile alone⁸. In the original demo, Reinhold Bogner described the difference in his own words: the N position is the non-enhanced mode, and as soon as you switch to the enhanced mode you get a richer, fuller, juicier, 3D sound⁷.

Pete Thorn found the enhanced mode seems to give you a bit more bass and maybe bumps the gain up a little². Guitar World's review was more specific about what Enhance does to the EQ: the Enhance setting boosts both bass and treble without scooping out mids, to maintain a full-bodied tone and expressive midrange⁶. On the V2, Guitar Pedal X described the Enhanced mode as adding Resonance and Presence to the circuit for accentuated high and low frequencies, sort of like a full-range boost being applied⁹.

History and versions: the Neve transformer and the V2

The Wessex launched as part of the original 2014 trio of Bogner transformer pedals, each with its own unique custom transformer designed by Rupert Neve to provide incredibly dynamic and detailed boost, overdrive and distortion effects, inspired by the dynamic and detailed sounds of classic Neve mixing consoles¹⁰. MusicRadar described the Rupert Neve Designs audio transformers as setting the pedals apart with an ultra-dynamic studio-quality response, inspired by the revered Neve mixing consoles of the 1960s¹¹.

In April 2020, Bogner reissued all three pedals as V2 iterations, re-voiced and in smaller, more pedalboard-friendly sizes with rounded housings¹². Guitar Pedal X reported the new V2 enclosure as approximately 15% smaller than the V1⁹. The V2 Wessex is a gray box in a small, pedalboard-friendly format, and each pedal in the V2 series contains an audio transformer designed by Neve⁴. The V2 pedals listed at USD 179 each, or £199 in the UK⁴⁹.

How the Wessex compares to the Burnley and Harlow

The three pedals form a set by role: the Harlow is the boost, the Wessex the overdrive and the Burnley the distortion⁴⁹. All three share the same transformer concept, true bypass switching, mono inputs and outputs, and battery or 9V DC power at 50mA or more⁶. The Burnley's controls differ from the Wessex's: Level, Gain and Tone, alongside a Fat/Tight switch for a choice between an unrestrained bottom end or a more biting one⁸.

The Wessex's separate bass and treble controls are what distinguish it inside the lineup. Guitar World's reviewer found the Wessex offers the widest variety of tones and textures thanks to its individual treble and bass EQ controls, called it the most versatile pedal of the bunch, and recommended it as the first purchase for guitarists who can only afford one⁶.

What reviewers said

Guitar World's 2015 review of the trio concluded that the sound quality and performance of all three pedals is on another level compared to the average overdrive and distortion pedal¹². Pete Thorn's verdict on the Wessex was blunt:

In that demo, Thorn ran the Wessex from low-gain subtle overdrive through mid-gain modern tough overdrive². On the player side, Linda Taylor, in a Strymon pedalboard feature, said the Wessex gets changed out and switched frequently on her board, sometimes replaced by an Analog Man King Of Tone depending on the gig¹³.

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Thorn's video demo covers the controls, the Enhance mode, and the pedal's range into both a clean Suhr Hedgehog amp and a crunchy Suhr SL68 plexi-style amp².

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