SolidGoldFX SuperDrive Zeta

The SolidGoldFX SuperDrive Zeta is an overdrive pedal announced in October 2013 as "the continued evolution of the classic SuperDrive." It sits alongside the SuperDrive Beta, the company's first bass-oriented overdrive, and both were announced at a street price of $165 each¹.

Circuit and sound

The Zeta is built around a JFET preamp stage. SolidGoldFX described it as offering "a hint of sag and subtle compression giving the Zeta a pleasing push-pull feel"¹. Vintage Guitar's report on the pair of pedals put it the same way: "The Zeta's JFET-based preamp offers a hint of sag and compression"².

Both pedals in the SuperDrive launch "combine a JFET preamp stage and precise tuning of frequency response and control ranges," according to Vintage Guitar². For the player, SolidGoldFX described the Zeta's controls as helping the user "dial in light overdrive to medium-bodied saturation," which places it in the lower-to-middle gain range of the overdrive field rather than in high-gain² territory.

How it relates to the rest of the range

The Zeta is a variant of the classic SuperDrive, described by SolidGoldFX as its continued evolution¹. It was announced at the same time as the SuperDrive Beta, which the company positioned as its first bass-oriented overdrive². SolidGoldFX stated its design goal for the pair plainly: "make sure they sound great, make sure they look great and make sure they're affordable"¹.

SolidGoldFX has also offered other drive pedals alongside the Formula 69, including the Devil Drive and the Commodore.

Availability

As of the October 2013 announcement, the SuperDrive Zeta was to be available through SolidGoldFX dealers as well as direct from SolidGoldFX¹.

For where the Zeta sits among its neighbors, see the site's pages on Overdrive Pedals, Preamp Pedals and the Boss SD-1 vs Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer comparison.

Videos

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