Based on the Marshall* Lead 100 MOSFET.
A mid-gain amplifier, with a lot of tonal similarities to the Plexi and JCM800 valve amps that Marshall was producing at the time. It provides a pretty wide sonic palette, thanks to its two channel design, the "Tone" control knob on the lead channel, and the ability to partially bypass the tonestack, resulting in a mid-heavy, crunchy tone.
* Marshall is a registered Trademark of Marshall Amplification Plc.
Product Details - Lead 100 Gold
Controls
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Bass, Mid, Treble - A classic 3-band tonestack.
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Presence - An additional control over the high frequency content, it works in tandem with the Tone knob on Channel 2 to give you a nice balance of top end between the two channels.
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Shift - Partially bypasses the tonestack. This is a very unique feature of the original amp; when you pushed in the Gain knob, a large resistor would be inserted into the circuit between the tonestack and ground, causing most (but not all) of its effects to be removed. This gives the amp a big mid-range bump. With the tonestack in, the amp has quite an aggressive mid-scoop.
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Gain - Controls the amount of gain in the circuit. Channel 1 goes from clean to crunchy, while Channel 2 goes from crunch to a relatively high gain hard rock sound.
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Tone - Affecting only channel 2, this knob rolls off the highest frequencies, resulting in a smoother sound. Turning it all the way down will give you a somewhat muffled, slightly fuzzy sound. Experiment with this control as it has a very different effect at high and low gain settings, and also interacts with the overall Presence control.
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Volume - Controls the output signal amplitude.
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Channel Switch - Switches between the two channels (originally named "normal" and "boost").
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Active Switch - Engages or bypasses the pedal with a relay (true bypass).
About Preamplifiers
This is a preamplifier, and not a distortion pedal. We do not recommend connecting this device to the input of a normal guitar amplifier. Instead, it is best used in one of the following ways:
Connected to the Effects Return / Power Amp Input of a guitar amp
Connect your guitar to the pedal input, and connect the pedal output to the effects return. This bypasses your amplifier's built-in preamp, and the signal goes through the pedal instead.
Connected to a dedicated power amp
Some examples include the Seymour Duncan Powerstage, Harley Benton GPA-100, or the Mooer Baby Bomb.
Connect the pedal directly to an audio interface
For recording purposes, the pedal can be connected to either an instrument or line-level input on your audio interface. Using a speaker cabinet simulation plugin, such as an Impulse Response (IR) loader, to emulate the effect of a speaker cab is highly recommended.
