Lerxst Amps By-Tor Overdrive Boost

It’s always exciting diving into pedals from a company you’ve never worked with before, but when those pedals are a collaboration with one of your guitar heroes, that makes it just a bit more special. Today, we’re looking at the By-Tor Overdrive Boost from Lerxst Amplification, which pairs MojoTone with Mr. Alex Lifeson of the prog-rock band Rush. Seeking to exact his specific sounds on amps, cabs and now pedals, Lerxst brings some amazing signature sounds right into your living room…

The Lerxst OMEGA Guitar Head is a culmination of sound spanning Alex’s entire career, and the By-Tor seeks to shrink that same circuit and sound down into an effects pedal. The challenge was not merely to create another run-of-the-mill drive pedal; it was to engineer a pedal that could deliver the same growling intensity and seamless transition to clean tones as if you were cranking up the amp itself. After numerous iterations, circuit designs, and meticulous fine-tuning, Lerxst proudly presents the By-Tor.

The Overdrive side is voiced after the 50W OMEGA amplifier, and capable of going from light crunchy drive sounds to full out roar with sustaining lead tones. The Boost section is a JFET based gain stage, responding in a very similar way to a tube’s gain stage and designed to add a little extra shimmer and chime on the top end of your guitar tone. Both of these sides can be used independently or together, or you can pair this unit with another boost or overdrive pedal for extra gain staging and crunch options.

The lone toggle switch provides the ability to change the order of the boost and drive circuits in the pedal. With the toggle set to Boost First, your signal is first routed through the boost circuit which pushes the drive section into further saturation. With the toggle set to Drive First, your signal is routed through the drive section first, this transforms the boost control into a solo boost with up to 6db of gain on tap.

The By-Tor Overdrive Boost is powerful, right off the bat, with a ton of both volume and gain on tap. The versatility and range of the controls makes it easy to dial in a great sound in no time, ranging from a clean/slightly dirty boost to a rip-roaring overdrive feast for the senses. We’re so stoked to be working with Mojotone and Lerxst Amps – more to come from these guys, so stay tuned. There’s a lot more info on the By-Tor and the entire lineup of Lerxst Amps gear on their website, so be sure to head over and check that out. Be sure to check out our YouTube channel for our full demo video as well – like, comment and subscribe while you’re there, cheers!!

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