As is always my way - I’ve taken time out to do a proper infographic of the new MGAT-1 variant, the 3rd of that line, and the most ’dialled in’ one yet. The topology looks the same from a distance and indeed we have the same number of knobs and switches, while uniquely to this version we have specific Amp types and values ascribed to each amp profile.

The pedal essentially covers 5 key Marshall amps - right through the gain range from relatively mild for the JTM45 to absolutely blistering ...

January has been a bumper start for the year - with lots of killer arrivals - especially the DSM & Humboldt Dumblifier which I’ve been hugely impressed with.

Also my most formidable NAMM coverage to-date - where I only started work properly on the 8th of January - but have managed to do 60 articles since that time - which is a record of course, as is the week of 20 posts.

I feel I covered all the key moments - and mixed up new and old in my usual inimitable fashion.

There was ...

This is the 2nd Iteration for this article - where we go from a selection of 13 to 16.

I landed 4 of these these last year - the Crazy Tube Circuits Heatseeker, Flattley Outlaw, Fortin Kali, and Tubesteader Gainlord.

And two early this year - the Car Martin PlexiRanger and Seymour Duncan Diamondhead

We have 4 distinct types of pedals here across 4 format sizes (Compact / Mid-Horizontal / Mid-Vertical / Large) :

1. Dedicated Dual Channel Plexi + JCM800 Overdrive / Distortion with

I first covered the Diamondhead back in November of 2019, and it’s been on the wishlist ever since. I guess I was never presented with the right opportunity - until I came across it during my Christmas visit to Reykjavik’s 2 main pedal shops - Tónastöðin and Hljóðfærahúsið.

It turns out that it was the only reasonably priced pedal that I encounter in Iceland - where it was priced at 32,500 ISK which amounts to around £192 equivalent. I had my father in tow - and he managed to wrangle a ...

Most are familiar with this format by now - as it’s near enough the same as MXR’s 5150 Overdrive. Obviously this Red edition is the 3rd Channel - the Red Lead Channel from that EVH 51510 III Amp.

Apart from the extra gain, sear and saturation we also have a new Bass Shift control - which gives you two options of the Bass Centre Frequency.

Controls - Gate, Output, Bass, Bass Shift : 55Hz / 80Hz, Mid, Treble, Gain, Boost.

I wonder how much this was influenced by the equally red Anti ...

Readers will know that I’m a huge fan of Sinvertek’s N5 / MGAT series - where I own each of the key editions released to date - since 2017.

This is the 3rd and ultimate edition of the MGAT-1 MIAB circuit - which retains the same topology as the other 2 MGAT-1’s - but slightly repurposes some of those controls - and aligns them more with specific Marshall Amp Profiles.

Controls - Volume, Marshall Amp Frequency Character : JCM / JTM / SLP & JVM, Gain, Low Frequency Response : Full / ...

I already thought we had witnessed Peak Full-Range Marshall back in 2022 with the original MGAT-1, then Mr Wu significantly improved that circuit in 2024, and the new one promises to be even better!

So far we’ve only had a teaser on Instagram - where I got the EVO pic from - while there is no web page yet or much in the way of further details.

Like the MGAT-5 - the first batch will contain especially mojo components - so it’s worth getting involved early on.

The actual control ...

New Pedals in the Class of 2025 Pedal-Chain Snapshot = 41

[OCTOBER]  = 9

[NOVEMBER] = 6

[MARCH] = 5

[SEPTEMBER] = 5

[AUGUST] = 4

[JANUARY] = 3

[FEBRUARY]  = 3

[APRIL] = 2

[JUNE] = 2

[MAY] = 1

[JULY] = 1

[A-Z by Brand]

1. Becos FX CompIQ Pro Yuna Soft Knee Blackmer VCA Studio Style Compressor [SEPTEMBER]
2. Blue Colander Grimrobe Dual Cascaded Super Rat [OCTOBER]
3. Blue FX Devices Fuzz Fields Ultimate Modulated Fuzz [SEPTEMBER]
4. Boss RT-2 Rotary Ensemble Leslie / Rotary Speaker

And so onto the Distortions of the year - the smallest group stage this year! There’s no particular logic as to why there are just 20 Disortions this year. There were a further couple of acquisitions that I was disappointed with - and I deliberately left out of this selection. It’s mostly a case of what appeals each year - and evidently there weren’t that many appealing ones beyond those I acquired. I’m not aware of any particular ones that are still in the wind. The last one in was the ...