PedalPalFx Silverhenge Overdrive

The PedalPalFx Silverhenge Overdrive is an analog overdrive pedal that reproduces the circuit of the Marshall JCM800 amplifier using transistors in place of vacuum tubes. PedalPalFx says it uses "exactly the same circuit of the JCM800 amp without modifications, replacing the vacuum tubes for very selected transistors"¹. It is a reissue of the maker's first model in its 800 series, the PAL800 JCM Emulator, known as "The Silver Version"¹.

Designer Luis Pena describes the range of the pedal as: "Go from Classic to Modern with our Silverhenge Overdrive…"¹. A three-way toggle switch selects between a classic JCM800 voicing, a modern one, and one of Pena's own mods from the 800 series¹.

A JCM800 amp circuit built with transistors

Most overdrive pedals generate their grit with clipping diodes or op-amps. The Silverhenge takes a different route: PedalPalFx states the pedal is "OP-Amps free, CMOS free and Clipping Diodes free"¹. Instead, the gain comes from a transistor reproduction of an actual amplifier circuit, the JCM800, with the tube stages replaced by what the maker calls "special selected transistors carefully setup for maximum performance" on an SMT (surface-mount technology) board¹.

The original PAL800 JCM Emulator, which the Silverhenge reissues, was built the same way, "using especially selected transistors instead of vacuum tubes" on "the same circuit schematic that you will find in the most famous British Amps from the 80's"¹³. For a player, this means the pedal behaves like a piece of an amp front end rather than a conventional clipping pedal.

The approach contrasts with PedalPalFx's later work. The PAL800-V4 Gold uses JFETs to recreate the amp's tube topology, including what Guitar Pedal X's Stefan Karlsson described as a JFET array developed by the builder⁴. Marshall itself also makes a JCM800-inspired overdrive pedal, described by the amp maker as "Inspired by the iconic JCM800 amp"⁵.

Controls and voicings

The front panel keeps things simple, with a Gain knob and a three-way toggle switch¹:

Guitar Pedal X's review of the compact PedalPalFx line noted that "the SILVERHENGE has MDR (Modern), #07 Mod, and JCM Modes in place of the PAL800's #34 / JCMII / #07"⁶.

Inside the case there is also a Master Tone trim-pot on the main circuit board, which PedalPalFx says "adjusts the final tone of the pedal" to suit your liking and gear¹. That is a set-and-forget internal adjustment rather than a knob you tweak mid-gig.

Power and connectivity

The pedal draws 7.5mA at 9V DC¹, a modest figure that leaves plenty of headroom on a typical pedalboard power supply. Input impedance is 1M ohm and output impedance is under 100K ohm¹, the standard pairing for a guitar-level pedal that sits comfortably first in a chain or after other pedals. Switching is true bypass hardwire¹, so the bypassed signal is not buffered.

Silverhenge versus the PAL800 Gold

The Silverhenge and the PAL800 Gold come from the same builder and the same JCM800 inspiration, but they are different circuits at different points in the maker's history²⁷¹.

Guitar Pedal X described the Silverhenge as "a limited Silverhenge edition doing the rounds - based on the earliest PAL800 circuit and more tuned towards the modern side of things", and flagged it as a "Limited Run Release"⁶. The PAL800 Gold, by contrast, is described by PedalPalFx as "the result of all our knowledge and experience with the most famous British amps tone and also with our PAL 800 JCM Emulator and PAL 959 PLEXI Emulator pedals"⁸, and its product page now carries a discontinued notice⁸.

Players weighing the two should also know the Gold's JCMII mode was the preference of Guitar Pedal X's reviewer among the compact PedalPalFx Marshall-style pedals⁶, while the Silverhenge leans modern through its MDR setting.

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