The Way Huge WH302 Drive is a limited edition overdrive and distortion pedal from Way Huge, built around a custom circuit that the maker describes as creating potent, versatile overdrive and distortion tones. It was limited to 500 units and had just come out when Delicious Audio covered it in December 20171.
From buttery overdrive to heavy distortion
The WH302 Drive covers a wide gain range from a single control. Delicious Audio's Paolo De Gregorio described the pedal's tones as ones that can be moved and shaped by the intensity of your attack and the volume of your guitar, meaning picking dynamics and guitar volume play a real part in how the drive responds1.
What the Drive knob does at each part of its range, as described by Delicious Audio1:
- Low Drive settings: a warm, buttery sound with a bit of velvet around the edges
- Midway Drive settings: thick, tubey overdrive
- End of the Drive range: gnarly thunder and lightning distortion
"At low Drive settings, you'll get a warm, buttery sound with a bit of velvet around the edges."
Because the pedal spans both overdrive and distortion territory, it sits in the space between a dedicated overdrive pedal and a dedicated distortion pedal, and players who want a single box for both jobs are the natural audience for a design like this1.
A limited edition release
The WH302 Drive is a limited edition pedal, capped at 500 units1. It is not a reissue or a copy of an earlier design: Delicious Audio noted that on the inside of the pedal is a custom circuit1, so it stands apart from Way Huge's regular lineup rather than revisiting one of the company's known designs.
The limited run also came with extras. The pedal comes with picks and a pick tin featuring custom artwork1, which makes the box contents part of the release itself rather than an afterthought.
With only 500 units made, the WH302 Drive was a short-run release. Availability after the initial run depends on remaining stock or the secondhand market.
Questions
How many Way Huge WH302 Drive pedals were made?
The WH302 Drive was a limited edition pedal limited to 500 units. Paolo De Gregorio of Delicious Audio described it as a limited edition pedal by Way Huge that had just come out when he covered it in December 2017, so the run was small by design and the pedal was positioned as a collector-friendly release from the start.
What comes in the box with the Way Huge WH302 Drive?
Along with the pedal itself, the WH302 Drive comes with picks and a pick tin featuring custom artwork. That makes the package part of the appeal of the limited edition run, since the tin and picks are specific to this release and not standard accessories included with Way Huge's regular production pedals.
Is the Way Huge WH302 Drive a copy of an existing circuit?
No. According to Delicious Audio, inside the WH302 Drive is a custom circuit rather than a clone or rework of a known design. Way Huge describes it as creating potent, versatile overdrive and distortion tones, which is why the pedal covers ground from low-gain warmth to heavy distortion.
Is the Way Huge WH302 Drive an overdrive or a distortion?
Both, depending on where the Drive knob is set. At low settings it gives a warm, buttery sound with a bit of velvet around the edges, at midway settings it produces thick, tubey overdrive, and cranked toward the end of its range it delivers what Delicious Audio called gnarly thunder and lightning distortion.
Sources (1)
- Way Huge WH302 Drive, Delicious Audio, 2017-12-06
