The Ground Control Audio Amaterasu Bright Pre-Amp is a pre-amp, boost and tone enhancer in one compact pedal, built around a single Gain knob. Pedal of the Day reviewed it in December 2016 as the maker's latest offering, and by 2018 Premier Guitar was describing the Amaterasu Bright Pre-amp as Ground Control Audio's best-selling pedal.12
What it does
The Amaterasu sits in the boost and preamp territory of a pedalboard: it pushes volume into the signal path and shapes the overall character going into the amp. Pedal of the Day described it as "a pre-amp/boost/tone-enhancer rolled into one easy-to-use pedal."1
Its control layout is about as simple as a pedal gets:
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Gain | Adds volume into your signal path, from a slight boost in your tone to what the reviewer called a "balls-out pre-amp tone"1 |
Pedal of the Day's reviewer found the pedal "responsive at heart," and described its effect on an amp this way1:
"it just adds in that certain sparkle that we all look for in pedals of this nature, and really brings your amp to life"
The same review noted a particular use for players with quieter pickups: the Amaterasu "can bring your low-output single coil or filteron pickups to life, adding some extra juice and oomph" for a fuller tone. That makes it a candidate for a first pedalboard slot in front of an amp that needs pushing, or as a clean volume lift for guitars with low-output single coils or Filter'Tron-style pickups.1
Related pedals from Ground Control Audio
The Amaterasu is Ground Control Audio's Bright Pre-Amp Boost effects pedal, a pedal-format pre-amp boost that the maker describes as the Amaterasu Bright Pre-Amp.2
Videos
AndyDemos
Eirik Stordrange
Pedalboard of the Day
Sources (3)
- Ground Control Audio Amaterasu Bright Pre-Amp, Pedal of the Day, 2016-12-22
- Ground Control Unleashes Tsukuyomi Midrange Booster, Premier Guitar, 2018-11-21
- Ground Control Audio Amaterasu Pre-Amp, Pedal of the Day, 2016-12-19
