The LPD Lucent is an overdrive pedal from Arizona-based builder LPD pedals, and it is the builder's take on the Marshall Blues Breaker style of overdrive1. Where a lot of pedals borrow loosely from that circuit, LPD is direct about the lineage: the builder calls the Lucent "my celebration of the classic Bluesbreaker circuit," with his own approach to the clipping diodes the original used, which have long been out of production, and an EQ tweaked toward his ideal Bluesbreaker sound1.
The pedal came in two versions. The original Lucent is a straightforward three-knob overdrive with a two-mode toggle. V2, released in 2024 as the Lucent Boost Overdrive '24 Edition, keeps that drive section and adds a footswitchable boost with flexible placement, covered in its own section below1.
A Bluesbreaker-style overdrive with a boost
The Marshall Bluesbreaker that the Lucent draws on is itself an overdrive booster pedal, made by Marshall, and its name traces back further: the Blues Breaker amp it honors is the combo version of the JTM4523. That pedal circuit has become one of the most copied overdrive designs among small builders, and Guitar Pedal X's Stefan Karlsson notes that LPD's Lawrence "makes no secret of the fact that this is a BluesBreaker derived circuit, but a highly modified and evolved one"4.
"The Lucent Overdrive is my celebration of the classic Bluesbreaker circuit. I've developed my own approach for the elusive out of production clipping diodes and tweaked the EQ to be more in line with my ideal BB sound."
The modifications are what separate the Lucent from a straight clone. The builder's own clipping approach replaces diodes that players cannot easily source anymore, and the EQ is voiced to his taste rather than copied1. For a player comparing Bluesbreaker-style pedals, that means the Lucent sits in the same family but is not a reproduction of the Marshall original, which Marshall itself has reissued in recent years5.
The controls and the two modes
The original Lucent keeps the control set familiar to anyone who has used a Bluesbreaker-style pedal: the classic tone, gain and level controls1. On top of those sits a toggle switch with two modes of operation1.
| Control or switch | What it does |
|---|---|
| Drive | Sets the gain of the overdrive1 |
| Tone | Shapes the treble response1 |
| Level | Sets the output volume1 |
| Toggle, down | The classic BB sound, feel and response1 |
| Toggle, up | Higher headroom, higher gain, smoother EQ and a different clipping recipe1 |
The toggle is where the two personalities live. Down is described as the classic Bluesbreaker sound, feel and response. Up changes more than one thing at once: higher headroom, higher gain, a smoother EQ and a different clipping recipe1. In practice that gives a player two voicings of the same circuit, one closer to the pedal the design honors and one that pushes harder and cleaner at once.
V1 and V2: the boost circuit
The second iteration, the LPD Pedals Lucent Boost Overdrive '24 Edition, adds a boost circuit with its own footswitch and Pre and Post volume controls1. Guitar Pedal X lays out the full control set, which splits into a drive section and a boost section4:
- Drive section: Level, Tone, Drive, and the bypass footswitch4
- Boost section: Post Level, Pre Level, and a Boost Mode switch4
The Boost Mode switch is the interesting part for boost placement. It offers three positions, Post, Both or Pre4. Pre puts the boost before the drive circuit, so it pushes the overdrive harder the way a clean boost driving a pedal's input would. Post puts it after the drive, adding volume without changing the drive's character. Both engages the two level controls together4. Between the Pre Level and Post Level knobs and that three-way switch, a player can set up a lead boost that slams the front of the overdrive, one that simply gets louder, or a combination of the two, all from one footswitch14.
Power, bypass and build
The Lucent runs on 9 to 18 volts, so it works within the range of common pedalboard supplies as well as higher voltage supplies up to 18 volts1. It is true bypass, so the circuit drops out of the signal path when switched off1. Delicious Audio describes the construction as tour worthy1.
The 9 to 18 volt operating range means the Lucent can run from a standard pedalboard power supply within that range. The exact current draw is not published, so players running tight isolated supplies should plan for a normal analog overdrive's draw rather than a digital pedal's.
What reviewers said
Guitar Pedal X reviewed the '24 Edition in October 2024, and the verdict carries weight because of the reviewer's reference points. Stefan Karlsson wrote that he has "a score or so BluesBreakers already in the reference collection, where this Lucent Boost Overdrive is interesting" enough to warrant consideration, and it went on his wishlist4. Coming from a writer who owns around twenty Bluesbreaker-derived pedals, that is a meaningful endorsement of how the Lucent's modified circuit holds up against the crowd of copies4.
Where it sits among Bluesbreaker-style pedals
The Bluesbreaker circuit has spawned a wide field of derivatives, and the Lucent's distinguishing features against that field are the two-mode toggle on the drive side and, in V2, the flexible boost placement14. The Marshall original has been reissued, with variants that retain the larger footprint of the original pedal56, while small-builder versions like the Lucent take the circuit further from its source. For a player weighing a Bluesbreaker-style pedal, the choice comes down to how close to the original voicing they want to stay and whether the boost placement options of the '24 Edition earn their spot on the board.
Videos
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Questions
Is the LPD Lucent true bypass?
Yes. The Lucent is built with true bypass switching, so when it is off the guitar signal passes through without the circuit in the way. Delicious Audio's writeup also describes the pedal's construction as tour worthy, so it is built to stand up to regular gigging rather than bedroom use only.
What power supply does the LPD Lucent need?
The Lucent operates on 9 to 18 volts, so a standard 9V DC pedalboard supply will run it, and a higher voltage supply up to 18 volts can also be used. The wider voltage range gives the builder room to voice the circuit for more headroom at higher voltages, though the exact behavior at each voltage is up to the maker's design.
Does the LPD Lucent have a separate boost?
The original Lucent does not. V2, released as the '24 Edition, adds a boost circuit with its own footswitch and Pre and Post volume controls, plus a Boost Mode switch that places the boost before the drive, after it, or both. Players who want the boost should look for the second iteration.
Is the LPD Lucent based on the Marshall Bluesbreaker?
Yes. LPD pedals describes the Lucent as a celebration of the classic Bluesbreaker circuit, with the builder's own approach to the out-of-production clipping diodes the original used and a tweaked EQ. Guitar Pedal X calls it a BluesBreaker-derived circuit, but a highly modified and evolved one rather than a clone.
Sources (6)
- LPD Lucent V2 Boost/Overdrive, Delicious Audio, 2024-10-10
- Bluesbreaker by Marshall, RockBoard PedalPedia, 2026
- Green, Gold & Blue, Origin Effects, 2026-09-08
- Guitar Pedal X, Guitar Pedal X, 2024-10-15
- Electro-Harmonix Spruce Goose review, Guitar World, 2024-03-14
- Revv's new Chatbreaker Overdrive pedal was designed using AI… sort of, Guitar World, 2023-06-22
