Zak Martin's second batch of the entirely custom Martian Sound Cydonia Germanium Harmonic Multiplier is up for preorders at 11am Pacific Time - just 30 more units

I meant to feature this pedal sooner - which was first launched back on May 21st. While the images available then alas weren’t at all suitable for my usual website visual / editorial style - so I had to wait until the second batch - which luckily has more suitable pictures that I could finally use!

This Germanium Preamp / Overdrive is an entirely custom build - with super high fidelity components onboard, including 2 x AC128 Germanium Transistors, 9 x Germanium Diodes, Custom Knobs, and Custom Highly-Polished Enclosure. There are so many interesting details within this design - including the Martian ’Script’ on the control labels - which I had a lot of fun in deciphering!

The Cydonia features 13dB of Clean Boost, plus 9dB of Harmonic Gain - which means over 25dB+ when combined. This is specifically a low compression device, with a very open and natural response.

"Consider Cydonia a harmonic exciter and sweetener, overflowing with richness, without adding an unnatural layer to your sound."

The Cydonia’s principal intended uses are as a tone-enhancing boost into an already cooking / over the edge of breakup amp. Or as a relatively low gain Germanium Overdrive into a cleaner rig.

The dimensions of the custom enclosure are not disclosed, while it looks slightly over-sized compared to say a 125B format enclosure.

This pedal is for sure beautifully designed and assembled from premium components, each of these pedals are in effect made to order.

In May the first batch of 30 went up for pre-orders and now we have the second batch of 30, with shipments due to begin as early as August 20th.

It’s a fantastic looking / sounding pedal - but intended for deeper pockets than mine. It was actually launched before the similarly priced 3-knob Sinvertek Imperium Drive, but I didn’t have the right collateral then to feature said pedal - so the Imperium ended up being featured first.

I stated that $550 is a lot to pay out on a 3-knob overdrive (for the Imperium), however impressive the resulting product design. I say you need to pick a lane - based on practicalities and budget availability - and this Cydonia is even more costly at $599. For UK customers like myself - you would have shipping charges of at least $50 on top of that, and would then need to pay customs and import charges on that total outlay - which would mean something in the region of $800+ - which is a lot!

As a Scandinavian I would struggle to justify that amount of outlay, I think it makes a lot more sense for interested parties located in the USA - especially those with slightly deeper pockets. It’s a fantastic pedal for sure, but just not really sufficiently practical for me to acquire. I would love to own one, but it’s going to be somewhat unlikely!

Pre-orders for the second batch of the Cydonia Germanium Harmonic Multiplier start on Thursday, August 6th at 11am Pacific Time - I.e. a little later in the day from when this feature will be posted live - the Cydonia goes for $599 on the Martian Sound Webstore.

There don’t appear to be any demos or sound samples available yet, while Zak Martin’s reputation is well established - you will need to decide for yourself if this Cydonia fits your purposes and your budget! I feel it’s a fantastic launch product for Zak’s new Martian Sound brand - it’s just a touch too hard to get for myself. Hopefully there will be some slightly more affordable releases in the future - or else this brand might be out of practical reach for most overseas prospects!