GEAR SPOTLIGHT
STRYMON
SUNSET DUAL
OVERDRIVE
REVIEW BY NICK RAMBO
STREET PRICE $299.00
On the surface, the
Sunset Dual Overdrive
from the team at Strymon
Engineering is a valiant
campaign into the world of
dirt, grit and filth. Under the
hood though, the Sunset
is loaded with the same
meticulous attention to
detail that you’d expect
from anything bearing the
Strymon name.
The Sunset features a
completely analog JFET
gain stage that’s paired with
precise, custom-voiced DSP
algorithms that capture the
nuances and character of
six classic overdrive circuit
designs. So in that way,
yes—it’s a digital overdrive.
But if you approach it
50
GEAR SPOTLIGHT //
without a digitally-adverse
preconception, I swear
you’d be hard pressed to
know any better. Genuinely,
it feels right under your
fingers. The tone is precise
and responsive, much as
you would expect from a
world-class overdrive.
Which, of course, says
nothing of the Sunset’s
ultra-flexible signal path
routing options—and
that’s where the unit
really differentiates itself
from other two-channel
overdrives. each drive. However, thanks
to a cleverly designed
switch on the back of the
pedal, you can run the
either side into the other in
series, or run them together
in parallel. So if you want
to cascade a snarling
mindrangey overdrive into
a punchy distortion for
leads—or the opposite of
that for heavier rhythm
tones—you can. Or you
can blend, say, two boosts
together for loads of clarity
and sparkle. There are lots
of possibilities here.
Each channel is fully
independent, meaning that
you can run Side A or Side
B by itself with unique tone,
volume and gain settings for I’ll level with you: the Sunset
is a fine overdrive. DSP or
otherwise, it gives you six
unique (and complimentary)
Strymon Sunset Dual Overdrive
S