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The Plexi-Drive Deluxe builds on the foundation of the original Plexi-Drive but with more control to shape your tone. The 3 band active EQ, additional brightness control, and perfectly voiced pre-gain booster get almost any Plexi tone from virtually any amp. The unique gain structure can cover everything from ’68 style Plexi tones to the massive rock tones of a JTM-45 cranked to ten. The bass boost emulates the low-end thump of a 4×12”, and the bright switch adds plenty of high-end sparkle.
Matthew Vosburgh –
I previously tried one of the cheaper mini-sized Chinese-made Klon-type pedals from another manufacturer. It worked OK but this pedal is better, even if it does cost more. The normal pedal size form factor makes it more usable than a mini pedal – it stays put, the knobs are not crammed together, the markings on the knobs are clearer.In use it has a better clean boost tone, easily adjustable with the bass, mid and treble controls, another advantage. I could easily leave it on all the time just for this tone. Turn up the gain and you gradually get into that Klon-type tasteful overdrive realm. Nice. This is a very classy piece of US engineering, and I recommend it.
SHAWN –
Having gotten back into guitar over the last several years, and inevitably diving into the trap of “I must find the ultimate tone”, I have purchased quite a few overdrive/distortion pedals since my “re-inception” into this world. I’m SURE I will buy more ultimately, but this is by far one of the best sounding overdrive pedals I have ever heard or purchased…Being modeled after the supposed ultimate “transparent overdrive” that will run you upwards of several thousand dollars nowadays when you can find one on the used market, Wampler has created a pedal that FAR surpasses the pedal that the Tumnus Deluxe was based on. A revamped version of their original “Tumnus”, he has added a very well designed tone stack to let you shape your tone, as well as an awesome sounding buffer that you can engage to let you run the pedal in buffered mode instead of true bypass. Even when I am not running the pedal, I typically leave the pedal in buffered mode simply because the buffer makes my guitar’s tone just sound “better” (and I don’t run long enough cables to really effect the highs being rolled off because of cable resistance).. “Better” is just the only way I can describe it..Wampler hit this one OUT OF THE PARK and created an overdrive that greatly exceeds the original “transparent overdrive” circuit. If you are after that type of sound (or even some pretty heavy dirt tone), this pedal doesn’t disappoint.. By FAR my favorite overdrive pedal to date..
Tech –
I hate to say it, but I concur with other negative reviews that say it sounds like a 50.00 fuzz box. I was so disappointed that I couldn’t keep it.I expected so much from this well regarded pedal maker. I still can’t believe how disappointed I was. The Bottom line is that for this kind of money, it should blow your doors off, and it didn’t even interest me. I own many boutique pedals, and I find -the good- in all of them. I’m very puzzled that I couldn’t do that with this one.
Justin –
Ive purchased and returned the Wampler Triple Wreck, Dracarys, and Pinnacle Deluxe V2. Wampler is supposed to be the legends of dirt pedals, but I have sadly NOT seen that. Im hoping Im just the one in a million guy who has wierd taste, because I want to believe in the Legend that is Wampler. This pedal is pretty mediocre, has a mid heavy sound, and must be tamed with an EQ. The Distortion on modern channel isnt enough for most metal, and when you use the gain boost it gives obnoxious clipping, WAY too much noise. For all its dials, options, bells and whistles, I cant seem to find a combination of them that gives a superb sound. Sure its tone is sufficient, but for a $270 boutique pedal its got to have SUPERB tone, which it does not.
Amazon Customer –
This may actually be the second review I’ve given this pedal because I love it so much. Bar none, on the best volume boost/OD I have ever used, takes up very little space on my pedal board, but it’s unbelievable the clean boost I can get out of this, but I can also get a nice crunch to heavy distortion using the gain knob. Probably my fifth overdrive/boost pedal that I’ve used and by far and away the best one.
RPG Fan –
make no mistake, this pedal sounds AMAZING. the lead tone is easily the BEST lead tone i have ever heard (think joe satriani crystal planet) and i have played guitar since 1982.the problem is that when you engage the boost, and that is how you are going to use this pedal (boosted gain and compression for soaring crystaline clear lead with awesome pinch harmonics, easy glide legato runs and amazing sustain) it is so LOUD and HISSY that the noise is unbearable and it makes the pedal unusable. what sad thing this is because there is no better sounding 80’s shredder metal / lead pedal than this. that’s why it is called pinnacle, it’s the tippy top of all high gain lead pedals. it’s also the noisiest and most unusable as well.so understand that most high gain pedals have a little hiss and noise when the boos is engaged or the gain is turned up. that’s normal. and you can just kill that noise with a noise gate. but the pinnacle deluxe v2 is so crazy loud that there’s no way to use it in a functional way even WITH a noise gate.i bought this pedal not knowing how noisy it was and then spent another $130 on a isp decimator II to try and kill the noise and keep the pedal because it;s tone is just absolutely killer. but even THAT did not work because although it got rid of most of the hiss, it also killed the sustain and had no way of getting rid of the hiss that is produced when you rub your palm mute hand across the string. the noise is unbearable.it’s lead tone is so good it could have been a 11/10, but the noise makes it a 0/10 and unusable. so please come out with a quiet ver 3, brian wampler, i will give it another shot, the lead tone is amazing!
dylan –
If you’ve ever wanted those thick soaring lead tones, this guy will deliver. I plugged it in, did a whole step bend at the 15th fret, and instantly was sold. It’s got that buttery, full sound, but it’s not too warm at all, and it has a treble knob if you ever lose too much high end. This pedal is the great equalizer. It makes bad guitars sound good, great guitars sound better, and frankly it even made my cheap old practice amps sound ok. On low settings, it acts like a great boost pedal. Beefs up the tone without getting muddy or too driven. I don’t really ever turn it off, I just crank it for leads and dial back for other stuff. I included photos of my preferred lead and chord settings. If you’re looking for metal crunch, or Marshall stack in a box, look elsewhere. But if you want a rich, sustaining lead tone for blues, jazz or rock, this is your pedal.
Joe –
This is my first step into the world of pedals. I just wasn’t getting the crunch I was looking for from my solid-state amp anymore and decided it was time to embrace the abundance of pedals on the market.At the time of writing this I’ve only been using this pedal for two months, so I am still pretty new to pedals altogether.When I started looking for a pedal to improve my sound I was all over the place, but eventually narrowed it down to this and the mxr evh 5150. I ended choosing this one because it seemed as if there was just more flexibility and control over the end result.This pedal gives you so much control of your sound. While it’s a nice thing, you have to be more careful because you can make an undesirable tone if you don’t know some basics.I like this pedal because I can a nice modern high gain sound, or I can get a classic crunch from it.One thing I’d like to see different would be making the toggle switches into foot switches. Though it would be to crowded with the size of box it’s in.Overall I’m extremely happy with this pedal. Or sounds great in front of any solid state amp, as well as with a plexi tube amp. I recommend you consider this pedal.
S. Rogers –
Back in the day I had a Marshall JCM800 with channel switching. There were two basic tonal options on that model – clean or one preset gain channel available via footswitch. As I’ve matured, I have really come to appreciate having a broader range of gain. The Tumnus from Wampler really fits the bill in a small footprint. It covers all of ranges in between clean and heavy distortion with a fullness that needs to be heard to be believed (especially in a stereo rig). I currently have 4 gain stages – pristine clean, a soft overdrive for blues and low gain tones (the “Timmy” also in a mini-pedal), the Tumnus for moderate overdrive, and tube amp gain set at 7 on a Friedman amp. It’s no wonder my family has to pry me away from my guitar to go out for dinner.
Jefferson –
I love this pedal. I was going to write an article-length review, but it’s the best “clone” of that mythologically-themed man-beast pedal from the 90s. Three-band EQ, higher-gain setting waiting with the switch of a toggle. Brian Wampler went there. We were all thinking it. We all knew it needed to happen, so he went and did it. Thank you, Mr Wampler. Just when I was getting tone fatigue out of my pedalboard, I got the Tumnus Deluxe and I suddenly fell in love with my guitar and amp again. I remembered that I actually like the sound of my guitar, pickups, amp, etc. I plug in, stomp on the Tumnus and hear this . . . well, the image that always comes to mind is that clarity of a pre-dawn morning where everything is covered in dew and the air has such a sweet purity that every breath you take is deep and mindful. It’s such a fresh sound, without preservatives, weed killers or insecticides. I never realized just how much my other pedals were affecting the color of my sound, or that I could get so much variation just from using the tone and volume knobs on my guitar. I can throw on reverb and delay and it still sounds great drenched and trailing. If I could change anything about it, I’d love an extra footswitch for normal/high gain, or at least for a boost. The only real complaint I have is that it now I have to upgrade my other pedals because they all seem lacking.