Jackson Audio Blossom

The Jackson Audio Blossom is an optical compressor pedal built around three ideas the maker lists on its face: optical compression, clean blend, and tilt EQ. Jackson Audio describes its goal as "Compression you feel. Not compression you hear," and says the pedal "adds smoothness, sustain, and balance while preserving the natural tone and response of your guitar."¹

The optical limiting circuit is inspired by classic studio compressors and has a flat frequency response. Jackson Audio says it "gently rounds rough edges" and balances your sound rather than flattening it, which is the usual appeal of optical compression compared with harder-clipping compressor designs.¹

Controls

The Blossom keeps its panel to three knobs, each with a single job:

The Mix knob is the heart of the design. Jackson Audio describes it as a clean blend that mixes the uncompressed signal back into the compressed signal to restore natural pick attack and playing dynamics. The maker's suggested approach: "Turn MIX toward compression for greater sustain. Turn it toward clean for more natural attack and openness." In practice that means you can dial in a stronger compression setting for sustain, then add clean signal back until the attack feels right, rather than choosing between squashed and untouched.¹

The EQ works as a tilt control, a single knob that leans the tonal balance one way or the other instead of separate bass and treble bands¹:

• Counterclockwise: reduces treble while increasing bass, for a warmer balance.
• At 12 o'clock: the EQ does not boost or cut your tone.
• Clockwise: increases treble while reducing low frequencies, for a brighter balance.¹

Power

The Blossom operates safely from 9V to 18V DC, center negative, and Jackson Audio warns not to exceed 18V. Current draw is 20mA maximum. The maker notes that running at 18V provides additional headroom and dynamic response, so players with an 18V supply on their board can take advantage of that, while a standard 9V output works fine.¹

Where it sits in Jackson Audio's range

The Blossom is the compact, straightforward end of Jackson Audio's compressor line. The maker's larger Bloom pedals add more features, such as the BLOOM v2 MIDI, which adds MIDI control over compression settings, and the Hour Glass Dual Studio Compressor, a dual-circuit design. For a player who wants optical compression with a clean blend and a tilt EQ in a small box, the Blossom covers that ground with three knobs. If you are comparing compressors more broadly, see the compressor pedals type page.

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