The Mesa/Boogie Flux-Drive is an overdrive pedal aimed, in the maker's words, at players "who want more of all the best things from an overdrive"1. Mesa/Boogie, the California amplifier maker long known for amps like the Mark series, describes it as having more liquid gain and enhanced sustain that feeds into rich harmonic overtones, usable into a clean amp channel or to enhance a crunch or higher-gain channel1.
It sits in the company's line of drive pedals alongside the Grid Slammer, Tone-Burst and Throttle Box, and it is the one of the family built around extra gain and sustain rather than a cleaner boost. When the line was announced in December 2012, the Flux-Drive carried a list price of $1792.
What it does to your sound
Mesa/Boogie positions the Flux-Drive as the higher-gain, more sustaining option in its drive pedal range. The maker says its individual Treble and Bass controls make it "a more complete preamp than most overdrive pedals"1. Pedal of the Day's Mike B found it "opens up nicely when pushed, and emits those sought-after overdrive Boogie tones of yesteryear"3.
Guitar World's reviewers heard a family resemblance to the company's amps when the pedal is stacked onto an already driven amp4:
"Let this pedal drive your already crunchy tone and it's capable of transporting you..."4
Guitar World, 20134
Premier Guitar's reviewer placed it relative to its sibling: the Flux-Drive's "highly dynamic controls add more gain and EQ flexibility to the basic Grid Slammer sound," with a "powerful upper midrange boost" that suits hot-rodded, British-voiced hard rock. The same review flagged a trade-off: higher gain settings can compromise rhythm-playing clarity5.
The controls: Level, Gain, Treble and Bass
The pedal has four knobs. Guitar World found its "well-tuned level, gain, bass and treble circuits give the user immense control over the tone and gain structure"4.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Gain | Sets the drive character. Pedal of the Day found it covers everything from dynamic, pick-driven drive to big, fat, sustain-laden chords and notes, with a wide range between those two3 |
| Level | Controls the overall output, with up to +20dB of boost, enough to cut through a mix3 |
| Treble | Up to 12dB of EQ boost or cut1 |
| Bass | Up to 12dB of EQ boost or cut1 |
There is no Mid control. Pedal of the Day's Mike B wrote that "while there's no Mid control, there really doesn't need to be here," and found the Bass and Treble controls "provide plenty for you to work with"3. Vintage Guitar's reviewer agreed the two-band approach works: "The two-band tone control does a good job dialing in the right amount of attack and punch while not changing the overall flavor of the distortion"6.
Power, switching and connections
The Flux-Drive runs on a single 9V battery or an optional AC adaptor through an external power jack, drawing 15mA at 9VDC1. MusicRadar noted that "you get a good few hours off a nine-volter, or use an AC adaptor"7. Switching is true bypass, so the pedal is out of the signal path entirely when disengaged1.
Input impedance is 1M Ohm (500k Ohm minimum) and output impedance is 10k Ohm3.
The 15mA draw is low enough that the Flux-Drive is a comfortable fit for most multi-output pedal power supplies, and the true bypass switching means it will not load down your signal when off1.
Where it came from
What reviewers said
Videos
MESA/Boogie
MESA/Boogie
Bax-shop | Bax Music Goes
Questions
Is the Mesa Boogie Flux-Drive true bypass?
Yes. Mesa/Boogie lists the Flux-Drive's switching type as true bypass, meaning the signal passes straight through the pedal when it is off without the pedal's circuitry coloring the tone. Reviewers at Pedal of the Day confirmed the same true bypass switching in their 2015 review.
Does the Flux-Drive have a mid control?
No. The tone controls are Treble and Bass only, each offering up to 12dB of boost or cut. Pedal of the Day noted there is no Mid control but felt one was not needed, and Vintage Guitar found the two-band control did a good job setting attack and punch without changing the pedal's overall character.
How much boost does the Mesa Flux-Drive give?
The Level control sets the overall output and can boost the signal up to +20dB, enough to push an amp harder or cut through a mix. The Treble and Bass controls each add up to 12dB of EQ boost or cut on top of that.
Does the Flux-Drive run on a 9V battery?
Yes. The pedal runs on a single 9V battery or on an optional AC adaptor through an external power jack. Current draw is 15mA at 9VDC, and MusicRadar noted you get a good few hours from a nine-volt battery.
Sources (7)
- Mesa/Boogie Flux-Drive, Gibson (gibson.com)
- Pedal News: Mesa Boogie Announces 4 Overdrive Pedals, Delicious Audio, 2012-12-04
- Mesa/Boogie Engineering FLUX-DRIVE Overdrive+, Pedal of the Day, 2015-01-27
- Review: Mesa/Boogie Tone-Burst, Grid Slammer, Flux-Drive and Throttle Box Pedals, Guitar World, 2013-10-24
- Mesa/Boogie Pedal Reviews: Tone-Burst & More, Premier Guitar, 2012-12-18
- Mesa/Boogie Drive Pedals, Vintage Guitar magazine, 2014-12-19
- Mesa/Boogie Flux-Drive review, MusicRadar, 2013-03-09
