Maxon VOP9

While the Maxon Vintage Overdrive Pro has definitely been developed with seasoned guitarists in mind, it's a worthy edition to the set-up of any guitarist, no matter their level. Rather than simply sitting in between, this pedal kind of enhances the collaboration between the guitarist, guitar, and the amplifier. For a start, the dynamic sensitivity of the VOP9 is incredibly high, meaning that every little nuance and variation in your paling is given full presence. Rather than a sharp and piercing distortion, this stompbox shapes a warm and sweet sound with a nice and thick bottom-end and a little light compression, which can be used just as comfortably with a clean amp as it can with an overdriven amp. In 9V mode, this pedal reacts just like traditional overdrive, but push it into 18V mode, then you'll immediately notice how much more headroom it provides - and even more dynamics. Set the Drive pot to '0', and you have yourself a solid clean boost.