Maxon VOP-9 Vintage Overdrive Pro

Maxon VOP-9 Vintage Overdrive Pro has a warm, smooth overdrive tone without the “fizziness” or mid-spike associated with many solid state pedals. It accentuates the connection between your guitar and amp rather than getting in the way of it.

The VOP makes your fingers feel like they are working effortlessly – notes jump off the fretboard with vibrant, singing sustain and even the most subtle picking nuance is reproduced with exacting dynamic accuracy. It offers a tight, punchy bottom end with just a hint of mild compression and works equally well with clean or distorted amps to produce a rich, velvety guitar tone.

Based on Maxon’s legendary “808” circuit, the pedal has a few hidden tricks in the design that set it apart from your ordinary overdrive. The drive features an internal charge pump that allows it to run at 9 or 18 volts. In 9 volt setting the VOP reacts more like a traditional overdrive, while the 18-volt setting it offers increased headroom and a fuller frequency response for a more expressive, dynamic effect.

While most overdrive’s pass some degree of clean signal, this pedal allows you to control the amount via the dual-function Drive knob – a dual-ganged pot that controls the amount of Gain as well as the mix between clean and distorted signals. At zero Drive setting the VOP can function as a completely clean booster, perfect for boosting solos or driving a distorted amp.

Maxon VOP-9 Vintage Overdrive Pro demo video