The Drunk Beaver Kherson Drive Retro Edition is a limited-run overdrive pedal in the maker's series of small-batch releases. It reboots the company's very first Pedal Drop, the original Kherson Drive, with an updated layout and NOS (new old stock) Soviet op-amps. The circuit it revisits is the rare Ukrainian Sound JS DS-5, a 1990s take on the Boss SD-1 overdrive1.
Where it came from
Drunk Beaver's Kherson Drive Retro Edition is a reboot of its #1 Pedal Drop, the Kherson Drive, and revisits the rare Ukrainian Sound JS DS-5, a 1990s take on the Boss SD-1. Guitar Pedal X describes it as "almost the same as the PD-#1 Kherson Drive but with updated layout and NOS Soviet op-amps"1.
The Soviet parts are the point of the Retro Edition. The Stock setting of the gain stage uses a 1407УД2 programmable op-amp, described as the Soviet analog of the National Semiconductor LM4250, while the Modern op-amp option is a TL0821.
Controls
The control set carries over from the original pedal:
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Level | Output volume |
| Tone | Tonal balance |
| Drive | Amount of overdrive |
| EQ Stock/Fat switch | Alternates the EQ voicing |
| Op-Amp Classic/Modern switch | Selects the Soviet 1407УД2 (Classic/Stock) or TL082 (Modern) op-amp in the gain stage |
Controls remain "Level, Tone, Drive, EQ Stock/Fat, and Op-Amp Classic/Modern," as Guitar Pedal X reported at the release1.
Availability and price
The Retro Edition was a 40-unit run, put up for sale from the Drunk Beaver Rocks Webstore as soon as the June 13, 2025 announcement went live, at a list price of $1501. That price matches other Drunk Beaver drops such as the Khmelnytskyi OD and the Kharkiv Supercharged CMOS Overdrive, while fuller-release pedals like the Kavun MOS Drive and the Olbia Overdrive have listed higher1.
No demos exist for either the original Kherson Drive or this Retro Edition. Guitar Pedal X provided a similar sound sample for ballpark reference only, so there is no published recording of this exact pedal1.
Related pedals
Drunk Beaver's Pedal Drop series covers a wide range of overdrive designs, from the OD-1-style OD-1 to the Okhtyrka Honey Bee Overdrive and The Forest Song v3.01.
Questions
How many Kherson Drive Retro Editions were made?
The Retro Edition is a limited run of 40 units. Guitar Pedal X reported at the June 2025 release that the updated drop had 40 units, which went up for sale from the Drunk Beaver Rocks Webstore as soon as the announcement was published. Like the original 2022 Kherson Drive, which was a 10-unit run, it is a small batch release rather than a continuously produced pedal.
What is the Kherson Drive Retro Edition based on?
It revisits the rare Ukrainian Sound JS DS-5, a 1990s Ukrainian take on the Boss SD-1 overdrive circuit. Drunk Beaver first built that circuit as its original Pedal Drop, the Kherson Drive, in August 2022. The Retro Edition is almost the same pedal but with an updated layout and NOS Soviet op-amps in place of the original parts.
What does the Op-Amp Classic/Modern switch do?
It selects which op-amp sits in the gain stage. The Classic (Stock) setting uses a NOS Soviet 1407УД2 programmable op-amp, the Soviet analog of the National Semiconductor LM4250. The Modern setting swaps in a TL082, a common op-amp found in many overdrive designs. The switch lets a player choose between the Soviet-circuit character and a more conventional modern op-amp voicing.
What does the EQ Stock/Fat switch do?
It is one of two toggle switches on the pedal, alongside the Op-Amp Classic/Modern switch. The controls on the Retro Edition are Level, Tone and Drive knobs plus the EQ Stock/Fat and Op-Amp Classic/Modern toggles. The EQ switch alternates between the stock tone stack of the original circuit and a fat voicing, per the pedal's control layout as reported at its release.
What does the Kherson Drive Retro Edition cost?
The list price is $150, available from the Drunk Beaver Rocks Webstore when the pedal was released on June 13, 2025. That matches the pricing of several other Drunk Beaver Pedal Drops, such as the Khmelnytskyi OD and the Kharkiv Supercharged CMOS Overdrive, which also listed at $150.
Sources (1)
- Guitar Pedal X, Guitar Pedal X, 2025-06-13
