Shameless Clones

In this article, I'm going to show you several pedals that are just unashamed clones of other pedals. Let’s be honest. This is more for my own amusement than anything else, but it’s also an interesting peek into the pedal world, where plagiarism is straight up not a thing. You really can (shamelessly or not) completely clone another maker’s pedal, put your name on it, sell it, make some money, and retire like a king in Patagonia, a la the Dread Pirate Robert.

Look, I’m not saying you should. I’m just saying it’s an option.

Guitar pedals as we know them were invented in the early 1960s. Most pedals you see on the market today (including mine) are clones of circuits that were made 20, 30 years ago. That’s not bad. It’s just the way it is. We already have wah, distortion, reverb, and all these awesome effects. These days, the art of pedal making is more about finding your own unique stamp to put on an existing circuit, effect, or sound.

Think of it like me setting out across the Pacific Ocean in a boat, determined to find a new continent. There’s a (very, very small) chance that I might find something between here and Australia, but based on history and the work done by all these pilots, sailors, and cartographers before me, the legwork in finding new continents is pretty much done. I’d be putting my time to better use by mapping out the best skateboard parks in Kansas City.

Make sense? Cool.

That said, there’s a right way and a wrong way to clone another maker’s pedal. It’s the difference between making counterfeit ten dollar bills and writing the musical Hamilton. These pedals I'm about to show you are some of the most shamelessly cloned copies of pedals I've ever seen in my life. Like, amusingly so. You’re gonna enjoy this.

PSK Super Overdrive SD-1

Up first is one of my favorites, the PSK Super Overdrive SD-1. You'll never guess what it's a copy of. Go ahead. I dare you.

Okay, that was less challenging than I expected. You’re right. This is a clone of the BOSS Super Overdrive SD-1. On a 1 to 10 scale of sheer shamelessness, this is a solid 7. There are a few differences. They went for more of a bronze color instead of the original gold, and they do at least cop to the fact that the pedal is put out by PSK by placing the company name on the enclosure. PSK is a Japanese company, so it is probably still manufactured in the same neck of the woods as its BOSS counterpart.

Super Overdrive SD-1

No, that’s not a typo. This second pedal shares the exact same name as the PSK clone of the BOSS SD-1, and actually pulls off the clone deal a little better. The enclosure is the same color as the original BOSS unit -- gold -- but it was made in Korea, not Japan. Honestly, I’d say this was a solid 9.5 on the shameless clone-o-meter, if it weren’t for one thing: I don't know what company made this. There's no name on the pedal. No owner’s manual. Nothing. So, maybe they were slightly ashamed that they cloned a BOSS pedal? I really don’t know.

For the record, both of these pedals sound pretty great. If I had my eyes closed, I’m not sure I could differentiate between the BOSS original and the clone.

Monarch MCH-1 Stereo Chorus

Next up is the Monarch MCH-1 Stereo Chorus, which is a clone of the Arion SCH-1 Stereo Chorus. There are a few notable differences here between the clone and the original. The Arion brand pedal is made in Japan; it says so on the back. The Monarch clone is made in Taiwan. A lot of people have actually claimed that this Monarch MCH-1 pedal was made by Arion on the sly, but I don't buy it. This is a shameless clone.

That said, it does its job. It sounds exactly like the Arion SCH-1. I can’t really fault them for that.

DL-1 Delay

The DL-1 Delay is a clone of the BOSS DM-2. There’s no brand name for this clone, either, so it’s another case of “did they feel slightly bad about copying BOSS, or did the label maker just break before they could put their company name on the pedal?” We may never know. We do know this pedal was made in Korea, probably in the same facility that manufactured the nameless SD-1 clone that we mentioned above.

The DL-1 is almost the identical circuit board. The case is a little chubbier, a little more rounded, and it's plastic. Does it sound like the BOSS DM-2? You can go watch today’s episode of the JHS show and listen to our jam session if you want to make up your own mind about it, but I’m calling it: this is a pretty flawless clone.

Elk Super Fuzz Sustainar

Sometime in the early 1970s, Elk Incorporated made the Super Fuzz Sustainar. Not a Sustainer. A Sustainar. Yeah, this is a completely different pedal than a sustainer. I mean, it’s spelled differently, so how can you argue with that kind of logic?

This is a (pretty solid) clone of the Version 1 or Triangle Big Muff pedal. You’ve got the same exact enclosure shape, and it copies the original in almost every other aspect. To completely throw subtlety out the window, there’s another version of this clone that actually says “Big Muff” right on the pedal. You gotta give them props for sheer audacity on that. I mean, if I was rifling through a box of clearance pedals at Guitar Center, and I didn’t look at this one very carefully, I might buy it and not realize my mistake until I got home.

My friends at Wren and Cuff made a newer version of this pedal, not quite as shameless, a little more unique. Plus it’s so small you can throw this in your gear bag at the last minute, no problem. It’s called the White Elk Small Foot fuzz. Go check it out.

Daphon C8 Super Chorus

Next is a pedal that is still currently available on the market; I bought it for about $14 on Reverb. I’m talking about the Daphon C8 Super Chorus.

Look up a photo of this real quick. Does it look familiar to you? If you grew up in the ’90s, it should. This is a shameless clone of the SoundTank CS5 Super Chorus. And I want you to notice something. They didn't just clone it. They classed this up a little bit. On the top of the enclosure, instead of the dimples, you just kind of do like the bump. They inverted the footswitch dimple to a bump instead. On the unashamed scale, this is maybe a 6?

Coincidentally, this clone really does have a nice sound, kind of Leslie-esque.

POS DT-1 Distortion

There's another SoundTank clone by a company called POS, which I think stands for Piece of Shame. Either that or Penguins on Sabbatical. Or maybe Periodically Observant Soothsayers. Honestly, I could do this all day, but we have to finish the article at some point.

In any case, POS made some really interesting copies of the SoundTanks. This is a copy of the SoundTank CM-5 Classic Metal pedal, but it's called the POS DT-1 Distortion. It’s a pretty solid option. If you're looking for a cool pedal that's kind of like another pedal, but also unashamedly the same as another other pedal, then reach for the brand known as Piece of Shame

Also, if you fully understood that last sentence, you should apply for Mensa. They deserve you.

Crock DS-2 Distortion Pedal

Next up is a brand from Russia. I’m not quite sure the year this was released, which leaves a bit of a historical question there, but we do know that a brand called Crock released the DS-2 Distortion Pedal in the early 1990s/late 1980s. There's definitely some irony with this name, because in the English dictionary crock is defined as “nonsense, something that is a lie, hooey, etc.” It’s also a delicious brand of margarine. Either way, not a solid advertising track if you’re marketing this pedal to English-speakers.

Maybe crock is slang for “insanely cool pedal” in Russia? I wouldn’t know.

I actually have two versions of the Crock DS-2 Distortion. One is fairly standard, and the second is in a hardened styrofoam, plastic nightmare box and it looks a little cooler. The backs are different. This first version has English text (misspelled really badly, but you still get points for effort) and then the second version has writing on the back in Russian.

The real question here is: what are they cloning? Going off the name and the enclosure style, you’d probably guess the BOSS DS-2 Turbo Distortion, but the BOSS pedal has four knobs instead of three, and honestly it doesn't sound anything like this. I think they're going after the classic BOSS DS-1 Distortion. My theory here is that they didn't want it to be utterly shameless. I think they wanted to throw you off a little bit and make you think it's unique.

This pedal does produce some pretty epic sounds. It's abrasive. It's harsh, and in a totally metal, distortion-heavy way, it's nice. Bear in mind that the jacks are weird, and the DS-2 that I jammed with for this episode of the JHS show seriously had some bypass issues.

Sound JS Stereo Chorus CE-5

Next is a shameless clone from the Ukraine. I’m talking about the Sound JS Stereo Chorus CE-5, which is supposed to be a clone of the BOSS CE-5, but is actually closer to the BOSS CE-2. I’ve applauded a few different clones on this list as nearly perfect, but I’ll be the first to admit that the Sound JS Stereo Chorus CE-5 is not one of them.

There's a couple of problems here. First problem: this is the Stereo Chorus CE-5, but it has one input and one output, which means it’s labeled as stereo yet it has no access to any type of stereo jack? I don't know how that works. Second problem: it says it's a CE-5, but a BOSS CE-5 has five controls if you include the concentric pot on the side, and this clone only has two. My deduction? They aren’t copying the BOSS CE-5. They’re actually cloning the BOSS CE-2 Chorus Ensemble.

This pedal is super noisy, and I think the unit I have is actually a little broken, but it’s still really fun to play.

Yerasov Gamma GR-1 Grunge

The last shameless clone in the list joins us from a portal of interdimensional contact between two of the most beloved pedal brands of history: BOSS and DOD. A company has shamelessly cloned a DOD pedal, put it in a BOSS-style enclosure, and single-handedly melted the space-time continuum, the universe that we know and love, and probably some nacho cheese.

I’m talking about the Yerasov Gamma GR-1 Grunge, made in Russia. Let me break this down for you: it's a clone of the DOD Grunge, from Jason Lamb’s insane pedal series. It's a DOD Grunge, but they put it into a BOSS-style enclosure that's just too long. This case is weirdly long, like Mike Teavee at the end of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The controls are accurate: loud, butt, face, and grunge are there in the order, just as they should be.

But what does “gamma” mean? I don’t know. Probably a reference to the power source that brought this abomination to our universe.

I actually have the original box and manual for this pedal, and the manual is super interesting. The whole thing is written in Russian, naturally, and it has some date codes that I don’t totally understand. The DOD Grunge came out in the ’90s, but I have a feeling that this clone was released closer to the 2000s.

Here’s what’s important: it sounds great. If you like the DOD Grunge, but you always wished it was made by BOSS, then this bizarro pedal is for you.

*DOD Grunge & Yerasov Gamma GR-1 Grunge*

This is by no means an exhaustive list of shameless clones. I have a drawer full of these. This is just the tip of the iceberg. We could easily extend this into two or three articles, Peter Jackson style. Maybe we will.

At the end of the day, I want you guys to get out there, play guitar, and have fun. In fact, do me a solid and smile for at least five minutes today. Thanks.

Guest UserJuly 24, 2020