Benson Amps Portable Distortion 424 MKII vs Electro-Harmonix Howitzer
The Benson Amps Portable Distortion 424 MKII and the Electro-Harmonix Howitzer are both pedals sharing saturated. The Benson Amps Portable Distortion 424 MKII leans edge of breakup and bright. The Electro-Harmonix Howitzer leans warm and dynamic. Current prices: $199 vs $136.89.
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Blended from circuit-archetype lineage, dynamic feel, tone-signal overlap and tone-vector distance — the tone vector itself is derived from editorial description text, not a measured acoustic signal, so this reflects how similarly the catalog copy describes the two, not a lab measurement. Shown only within a gear class, and only where there's enough evidence to be meaningful.35% — somewhat different
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Derived from overlapping tonal signals across both listings.- saturated
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Citation/mention fame — how often this gear is cited across artist rigs and gear discussion.$199via Reverb
$136.89via Reverb
The Benson Amps 424 MKII is a preamp and distortion pedal designed to recreate the saturation and harmonic character of the input stage of the Tascam Portastudio 424 MkII cassette four-track recorder. The circuit captures the non-linear behavior of cassette-era input electronics, spanning from subtle coloration and clean boost through compressed broadband distortion and unstable breakup. A switchable front-end buffer fundamentally alters the gain structure: engaged, it presents a high-impedance guitar input with tighter low end and increased headroom; bypassed, the circuit returns to a darker, fuzzier low-impedance cassette response. Four controls -- gain, trim, bass, treble -- cover a wide EQ range. Internal 18V operation provides increased headroom. Made by Benson Amps in Portland, Oregon.
The Electro-Harmonix 15W Howitzer is a compact guitar amplifier head delivering 15 watts of output power, designed for portability without sacrificing tonal quality. It features a clean channel and gain channel with independent EQ controls and an effects loop, making it suitable as a practice amp, recording head, and portable stage head. The Howitzer pairs with standard guitar speaker cabinets and produces a warm, touch-sensitive tone that responds naturally to playing dynamics. It fits blues, rock, and country applications where a compact and flexible head is practical.
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Genres this gear is documented as being used in.- Electronic
- Experimental
- Indie
- Indie Rock
- Classic Rock
- Blues Rock
- Alternative Rock
- Country
- Blues
- Rock
- edge of breakup
- bright
- fuzzy
- transparent
- warm
- dynamic