AchillesAmp Overdrive

From the vendor

A single-channel adaptation of the legendary King of Tone, with a few added features not found in the original dual-channel pedal.

The Achilles Amp Overdrive is based on the Analogman Prince of Tone, the single-channel adaptation of the King of Tone that was first released in 2012. Unlike the King of Tone, the Prince was designed for mass production and is assembled in China. As a result, it’s much more affordable as well as being readily available (the King of Tone has a 4½-year waiting list).

The Prince of Tone converts the internal diode DIP switch into an external toggle switch, allowing for soft clipping, hard clipping or no clipping to be selected without needing to open up the back. It also has the high gain mod from the King of Tone as standard.

Internally, in addition to the Presence control, there are two DIP switch settings that are new to this pedal. One of them adds low-mid frequencies to the first gain stage. The other is called “Turbo” mode that essentially doubles the gain of the second stage, meaning it reaches the clipping threshold sooner and has more apparent drive on tap.

The Achilles is a direct clone of the Prince of Tone with no modifications.

Note: The PCB-only version of this project uses a type of capacitor that has been temporarily discontinued by WIMA. Please see our news article about the issue and the substitution spreadsheet for project-specific recommendations. We are stocking a limited supply in the mean time. The build document has not yet been updated to reflect this. It does not impact the kits.