The Warden V2 is an optical compressor pedal from EarthQuaker Devices, the Akron, Ohio builder that makes its pedals by hand. An optical compressor uses a light-dependent element to control gain reduction rather than the voltage-controlled amplifier of a VCA design, and EarthQuaker describes the Warden as "an optical compressor with a feature set usually reserved for studio grade units"1. Premier Guitar's compressor buying guide put it in similar terms: "Packed with studio-quality controls, this optical comp offers more coloration of your tone than VCA or FET designs"2.
The range runs from one extreme to the other. The maker says the Warden "will allow everything from a heavy squash with fast attack and release to 'barely there' subtle compression"1. It is a feedback-style compressor, meaning the hotter the incoming signal, the more active the compression1. The pedal was designed to slightly color your tone1, which is worth knowing if you want a compressor that stays fully transparent.
EarthQuaker Devices states that the Warden is no longer in production1. It carried a list price of $199.00 at the maker's site32, and Premier Guitar listed it at $199 street in December 20212.
What an optical compressor does here
Optical compression reads the signal with a light element and responds with the smoothing character that players associate with classic studio units. In the Warden the topology is feedback-style: the circuit senses its own output, so the hotter the signal, the more active the compression1. That makes the Sustain knob, which sets how hot the signal is, the main driver of how much compression you actually hear.
Premier Guitar's reviewer noted the trade-off that comes with the design compared with the alternatives: an optical comp like this offers more coloration of your tone than VCA or FET designs2. For a player comparing compressor types, that is the practical difference: the Warden leans toward character and sustain rather than transparency. See Compressor Pedals for the wider landscape.
The controls
The Warden gives you six knobs, a control set EarthQuaker has carried since the original pedal launched ahead of NAMM 2013 with "complete control over Tone, Attack, Release, Level, Sustain/Compression, and Ratio"5.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Sustain | Controls how hot the signal is, which changes the dynamics of the compression. Very little Sustain means very little compression; max Sustain means heavy compression and longer sustain1. |
| Ratio | Determines how much the gain reduction affects the signal. All the way up is full compression; reduced counterclockwise. There are no defined ratios1. |
| Attack | Controls how quickly the compressor reacts and starts leveling the signal. Counterclockwise is fast; clockwise slows the reaction time1. |
| Release | Sets how quickly the compression lets go after the signal drops, from fast to slow67. |
| Tone | Counterclockwise is treble cut, clockwise is treble boost. The tone is nearly flat around 11 o'clock1. |
| Level | Controls the overall output and is affected by the Sustain and Ratio settings. There is no specific unity setting; adjust to taste1. |
Two things stand out against typical one- or two-knob compressor pedals. First, the Ratio control has no marked ratios, so you set it by ear rather than by numbers1. Second, the Level control interacts with Sustain and Ratio, so the maker's guidance is simply to adjust it to taste rather than hunting for a fixed unity point1.
Power: 9V in, 18V inside
The Warden takes a standard 9V DC power supply with a 2.1mm negative center barrel, and EarthQuaker says not to run it at higher voltages1. Inside the pedal, that 9V is boosted to 18V, which is where the headroom comes from. The maker says the Warden is "built with high grade components and internally powered by 18v" with "loads of gain and sustain on tap"1, and Premier Guitar's guide likewise notes it is "powered by 18 volts internally for extra headroom"2. When the pedal was announced in 2013, Premier Guitar described the same arrangement: powered by a standard 9V adapter and internally boosted up to 18V "for more precision, dynamics, and headroom"5.
At 31 mA1 the Warden is easy on a typical isolated supply. The relay-based switching is the one power caveat: because the footswitching is electronic rather than mechanical, the pedal will not pass audio at all without power1.
Do not feed the Warden more than 9V DC. The 18V figure describes the internal boost, not the input requirement, and the maker warns against higher input voltages1.
Where it came from
EarthQuaker Devices announced the Warden in January 2013 alongside the Disaster Transport SR dual delay, just before NAMM 20138. At launch it carried a MAP price of $195.008. The pedal's circuit has drawn enough interest that the Guitar FX Layouts blog published a stripboard layout for DIY builders in March 2020, based on a third-party schematic of the circuit7.
The V2 arrived in late 2017 as one of four EarthQuaker updates, alongside the Arpanoid V2, Grand Orbiter V3 and Palisades V29. MusicRadar reported that all four, including the Warden V2, gained soft-click relay switching systems, and listed the Warden V2 at £209 in the UK, available from November 20179. Gearnews covered the same round of updates and noted the Flexi-Switch footswitches across the range4.
V1 versus V2
The core compressor did not change between versions: the same optical, feedback-style circuit, the same six controls and the same 9V-to-18V internal power arrangement appear in both16. What the V2 update brought was switching. MusicRadar's Michael Astley-Brown reported that the V2 uses a soft-click relay switching system9, and Gearnews listed the Warden V2 among the pedals that gained Flexi-Switch footswitches, which let you latch or momentary-trigger the effect4. If you are comparing the two on the used market, the footswitch feel and the Flexi-Switch behavior are the practical differences. More detail on the earlier version is on the Warden V1 page.
What reviewers and players said
Premier Guitar's compressor buying guide treated the Warden as a studio-style option in pedal form, highlighting its control set and its extra coloration relative to VCA and FET designs, at $199 street2. On EarthQuaker's own rig rundown with producer Eric Palmquist, Palmquist said of the Warden: "gets used on a lot of records"10.
Videos
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Questions
Is the Warden V2 true bypass?
Yes. EarthQuaker Devices describes the pedal as true bypass with electronic relay-based switching, and MusicRadar reported that the V2 uses a soft-click relay switching system. Because the switching is relay based, the pedal needs power for the footswitch to work.
Does the EarthQuaker Warden pass signal without power?
No. The maker states plainly that audio will not pass without power. Unlike pedals with mechanical true bypass switches, the Warden's relay-based switching needs current to complete the bypass path, so it belongs on a powered supply whenever it is on your board.
Can I run the Warden at 18 volts?
No. The pedal takes a standard 9V DC supply with a 2.1mm negative center barrel, and the maker says not to run it at higher voltages. The 18V figure refers to what happens inside the pedal: the internal circuitry boosts the 9V input up to 18V for extra headroom.
What is the difference between the Warden V1 and V2?
The V2 update added Flexi-Switch footswitches and a soft-click relay switching system, alongside the Arpanoid V2, Grand Orbiter V3 and Palisades V2 updates in late 2017. The core optical compressor circuit, its control set and its 9V-to-18V internal power arrangement carried over.
Is the EarthQuaker Warden discontinued?
Yes. EarthQuaker Devices' product page states that the device is no longer in production. It carried a list price of $199.00 at the maker's site, and secondhand units are the main way to find one now.
Sources (10)
- The Warden Optical Compressor, EarthQuaker Devices
- 10 Compressors That Balance the Subtle With the Squish, Premier Guitar, 2021-12-10
- Compression, EarthQuaker Devices
- Earthquaker Devices pedals updated with Flexi-Switch system, gearnews.com, 2017-12-04
- New Disaster Transport SR & Warden Compressor by EQD, www.premierguitar.com, 2013-01-21
- Warden V1 by EarthQuaker Devices, RockBoard PedalPedia, 2026
- Guitar FX Layouts: EarthQuaker Devices The Warden, tagboardeffects.blogspot.com, 2020-03-18
- Guitar Pedal News: Earthquaker Devices' Disaster Transport SR And Warden Optical Compressor, Delicious Audio, 2013-01-25
- EarthQuaker Devices adds Flexi-switch and relay switching in updates to 4 popular pedals, MusicRadar, 2017-11-22
- Show Us Your Junk! Ep. 5, EarthQuaker Devices, 2017-09-18
