The Pete Cornish GC-1 is a high-gain crunch drive and overdrive pedal, released new for 2021 to mark Pete Cornish's 45th year of designing and building professional stage equipment1. It is an overdrive, preamp and equalizer in one box, with a gain range the maker says is wider than any of its previous pedals1. Each unit is hand built, wired and tested by Pete, Lynda and Mingus Cornish2.
Pete Cornish describes the pedal's character as a smooth and transparent blues crunch at low gain settings, with what the maker calls "amazing Bottom End Retention," refined and warm without getting muddy1. At higher gain it moves toward the sound of a cranked amplifier, and at maximum gain it reaches what the maker calls High Energy Sustain13.
What it does: blues crunch to high-gain overdrive
The GC-1 covers a wide sweep of gain in one pedal. Pete Cornish maps its range onto the company's own back catalog: with the gain set to minimum (+20dB, which the maker describes as 10X), the pedal sits in the area of the Soft Sustain found on the SS-2 and SS-313. Increasing the gain takes the player gradually through the gain structures of the Cornish G-2 and P-21.
Delicious Audio, profiling the pedal in July 2021, summarized the range this way: it can deliver soft and transparent sustain at low gain levels, '70s Marshall-style overdrive at medium levels, and an intense overdrive at maximum gain2. The maker's own description of the higher gain settings is that the pedal "gives a higher level of overdrive for that classic cranked up Marshall sound found on most British rock records of the '70s"3.
The gain control sets the overall boost, and with both Gain and Volume at 100% the total boost is +56dB, which the maker expresses as 640X1. The pedal also features what the maker calls an "amazing clean up" using the guitar volume control, so rolling back the guitar's own volume knob tames the drive3.
The controls
The GC-1 carries a three-band active EQ alongside its gain and volume controls.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Gain | Sets overall boost from +20dB to +56dB; at minimum the pedal sits in the SS-2/SS-3 Soft Sustain area, at maximum it reaches High Energy Sustain13 |
| Bass, Middle, Treble | Active tone controls; the neutral position of all three is 12 o'clock, with equal amounts of Bass, Mid and Treble cut also available3 |
| Volume | Output level control; the Deluxe GC-1's Master Volume allows matching between the bypassed and boosted/EQ'd signal levels5 |
The pedal uses a heavy duty custom made all-metal footswitch plus a daylight visible LED2.
Power and connections
The GC-1 runs on a 9V DC adapter that Pete Cornish specifies should be noise free, fully stabilised at 9V DC, and capable of supplying 20mA1. The coax connector is 5.5/2.1mm with a negative center pin1. It also takes an internal 9V battery, preferred type MN1604, which is switched on when a plug is inserted into the IN/PWR ON jack1.
The battery is live whenever the input jack is inserted, so unplugging the pedal when it is not in use preserves battery life1.
The pedal is not true bypass. Its Class A input buffer (the LD-1) and a radio frequency suppressor are included, and the buffer remains fully active in bypass mode, which the maker says prevents losses associated with long cables and load impedances1. For players comparing buffered and true bypass designs, see buffer pedals.
History and versions
The GC-1 was introduced in 2021 as the pedal Pete Cornish chose to celebrate his 45th year of designing and building professional stage equipment2. Although a first version of the pedal already existed, the 2021 release was presented as a completely new, three-stage design2.
The line has since continued in the Deluxe GC-1, which adds a 9V battery replaced via a removable drawer and keeps the same power requirements: a noise free, fully stabilised 9V DC adapter capable of supplying 20mA, on a 5.5/2.1mm coax connector5. A Battery Free GC-1 version also exists, dropping the internal battery3.
The circuit, and the CC-1 comparison
Pete Cornish describes the GC-1 as a completely new, unique three-stage design featuring both hard and soft clipping stages with automatic switching between them as the gain increases3. Delicious Audio repeated this description in its 2021 profile2.
An independent circuit trace by Aion FX in 2023 tells a different story. Opening the pedal, Aion FX found a vintage-style etched single-sided PCB with epoxy-potted component blocks, and concluded:
"In the end it was a bit of a letdown: a CC-1 with several value swaps."
Aion FX, 20236
According to that trace, the GC-1's clipping is the same as the CC-1, which Pete Cornish describes, in Aion FX's words, "correctly" as having two soft clipping stages, with no hard clipping6. Aion FX's broader assessment of the design claims was blunt:
"To us, it goes beyond exaggeration to call it completely new."
The CC-1 itself dates to January 2013, when it became available to order7. Aion FX, which traced both the CC-1 and the GC-1, describes the CC-1 as a fully original circuit not based on anything else, designed primarily with op-amps, and found the GC-1 identical to it other than changes in component values8. Aion FX also notes that Cornish pedals are best known for being extremely expensive, attributed to build quality and reliability, the obscured circuit, and A-list clients8.
Videos
Simon Gotthelf Music
Electric Mojo Guitars
Simon Gotthelf Music
Questions
Does the Pete Cornish GC-1 take a battery?
Yes. It runs on an internal 9V battery, and the preferred type is an MN1604. The battery is switched on when a plug is inserted into the IN/PWR ON jack, so unplugging the input turns it off. It also accepts a 9V DC adapter on a 5.5/2.1mm coax connector with a negative center pin.
Is the Pete Cornish GC-1 true bypass?
No. The GC-1 uses a buffered bypass, and the buffer stays fully active in bypass mode. Pete Cornish fits its Class A LD-1 input buffer and a radio frequency suppressor in the pedal, which the maker says prevents signal losses from long cable runs and load impedances.
What is the difference between the Pete Cornish GC-1 and CC-1?
The CC-1 arrived first, available to order from January 2013. When Aion FX traced the GC-1 in 2023, it found the two pedals share the same PCB, with the GC-1 differing only in component values. Pete Cornish describes the GC-1 as a completely new three-stage design, a claim Aion FX disputes.
Who builds Pete Cornish pedals?
Each unit is hand built, wired and tested by Pete, Lynda and Mingus Cornish in the UK. Pete Cornish has been designing and building professional stage equipment since the mid-1970s, and the GC-1 was released in 2021 to mark the company's 45th year.
Is the Pete Cornish GC-1 hard or soft clipping?
Pete Cornish describes the GC-1 as a three-stage design with both hard and soft clipping stages and automatic switching between them as gain increases. However, Aion FX's circuit trace found the clipping is the same as the CC-1, which uses two soft clipping stages and no hard clipping.
Sources (8)
- Pete Cornish CC-1, Pete Cornish, 2021
- Pete Cornish GC-1 High Gain Crunch Drive, Delicious Audio, 2021-07-26
- PETE CORNISH Battery Free GC-1, Pete Cornish, 2021
- LP-2 by Pete Cornish, RockBoard PedalPedia, 2026
- Pete Cornish Deluxe GC-1, Pete Cornish, 2021
- Tracing Journal: Cornish GC-1, Aion FX, 2023-10-06
- Pete Cornish CC-1, Pete Cornish Partnership, 2014
- Cepheus Amp Overdrive / Cornish CC-1 & GC-1, Aion FX, 2020-09-11
