When I put together the design for the Quad Screamer my goal was to take that ubiquitous soft-clipping green overdrive circuit to the next level by providing a much wider range of tonal options in a very easy-to-use package.
I’m far from the first to think of allowing users to swap clipping diodes, but my design was unique in that it balanced the levels between diodes where other units would get radically quieter and louder in order to increase usability. I believe I may also be the first to daisy-chain diodes in a way that blends characteristics and increases headroom where others focus on complex, dirtier cascaded stages. The overall goal was usability, versatility and clarity and I was very satisfied with the result.
However, I’m always looking for ways to improve, and once I started selling the pedal I quickly realised I wasn’t happy with the two switches on the top because people often didn’t notice them, and when I explained them I didn’t get the enthusiasm I hoped for and they felt ‘extra’. I decided to transform their functionality into variable controls.
Instead of normal and hi-gain modes the Otherworld has a ‘gain’ control that sweeps from a Klon-esque low-gain with increased openness and warmth, through ‘normal’ and up to a high-gain range that is tighter and more aggressive. Used in conjunction with the traditional drive control the versatility and tonal range of the pedal is hugely increased.
Instead of the bright switch the Otherworld now adds a clarity control. This changes the fundamental tonal character of the pedal, allowing it to go from bright rock, through the ‘normal’ blues territory and down into a thick and syrupy territory. This can also make the Otherworld work really well with bass and extended range or detuned guitars.
In addition to this the updates include a number of small circuit changes moving further away from the classic green overdrive to improve the circuit and make it much more it’s own unique animal. Of course I’ve also added in soft switching and MDK support to bring the pedal in-line with our more recent releases.
And perhaps best of all, no price increase for all this extra functionality! How? Well I’m taking advantage of our own in-house assembly systems and a switch to surface mount parts which are smaller, cheaper, less labour-intensive to assemble and have lower noise.
A truckload of upgrades for no extra cost. That’s what I call a deal 😀