Pedaltrain Nighlight Distortion

The Pedaltrain Nighlight Distortion is a distortion pedal and one of the first two effects pedals from Pedaltrain, the company best known for pedalboards. It debuted alongside the Daylight Overdrive, and Guitar Pedal X's review of the pair called them "a superb effects pedal debut"¹.

What it does

The Nighlight sits on the darker side of Pedaltrain's two-pedal debut. Guitar Pedal X's reviewer, Stefan Karlsson, described the contrast this way: "Where the Daylight is Brighter and more Open, the Nighlight is rather Darker and Denser - but still retains that similar" warmth and rich harmonics¹. Compression sets in after about 1 o'clock on the Drive control, so lower Drive settings leave the pedal cleaner and higher settings push it into compression¹.

Controls

The pedal carries three controls, labeled the same as its sibling overdrive:

Karlsson noted that all three have "even and predictable tapers", meaning the sweep of each knob behaves evenly rather than bunching its range at one end¹.

Price and the matched set

The Nighlight listed at $199 on the Pedaltrain Webstore as of July 2023¹. Pedaltrain also sold the Nighlight and the Daylight Overdrive together as an early serial number matched set, which cost a $100 premium on top of the individual prices¹.

What reviewers said

Guitar Pedal X reviewed the Nighlight at its debut in July 2023. Karlsson's verdict leaned toward the overdrive overall but made a case for the distortion: "don't discount the Nightlight which excels in its own way too - with the same gorgeous harmonic textures and cleanup dyn[amics]". He described it as a grower, saying he now spends more time with it overall¹.

Both pedals share "a cool black sparkly paint job as their base coat"¹.

Questions