Benson Amps Portable Distortion 424 MKII vs Mad Professor Simble Predriver
The Benson Amps Portable Distortion 424 MKII and the Mad Professor Simble Predriver are both pedals sharing harmonically rich. The Benson Amps Portable Distortion 424 MKII leans saturated and edge of breakup. Current prices: $199 vs $229.
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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.20% — quite different
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Derived from overlapping tonal signals across both listings.- harmonically rich
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Citation/mention fame — how often this gear is cited across artist rigs and gear discussion.$199via Reverb
$229via 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 Mad Professor Simble Predriver is a PCB version of a precursor or companion to the Simble Overdrive, providing Dumble-inspired preamp and drive character in a more accessible PCB construction format. Mad Professor's Simble platform encompasses the Simble Overdrive and related Dumble-inspired designs aimed at capturing the warmth and harmonic complexity of Alexander Dumble's legendary custom amplifiers.
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Genres this gear is documented as being used in.- Electronic
- Experimental
- Indie
- Indie Rock
- saturated
- edge of breakup
- bright
- fuzzy
- transparent