Celebrate a Decade of Heavenly Highland Grind
Boasting a refreshed voice and eye-grabbing aesthetic updates, the JHS Kilt 10 celebrates the best-selling distortion pedal’s first decade of existence with peerless panache. Its retooled clipping circuit delivers more headroom, a smoother attack, and an expanded breadth of Gain settings — everything we’ve pined for since the stompbox’s inaugural release. Moreover, its polished aluminum finish evokes the original V1 model, embellished with Expandora-style knobs and a revised, Scottish-flag-influenced “X” logo. All that said, the Kilt 10 features the same familiar control layout as its predecessor, with straightforward Volume, Gain, and Tone knobs and ultra-flexible Cut/Flat, G1, and G2 toggle switches, allowing for everything from transparent overdrive to muscular distortion to zipper-style fuzz. On top of that, this pedal is equipped with JHS’s proprietary Red Remote circuitry, enabling you to switch the G2 toggle on the fly for instant changes between overdrive and distortion or between distortion and fuzz. As far as dirt boxes go, this pedal is a laird of many crafts; no matter what kind of grind you’re aiming for, the Kilt 10 will serve it up like a steaming-hot plate of haggis.
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Why the Kilt became the guitarist’s secret weapon
Released in 2015, the original Kilt pedal was designed for Delirious? lead guitarist Stu G, who was searching for a stompbox that could cover the gamut of dirty textures, both onstage and in the studio. The Kilt’s foundational tone-sculpting controls comprise standard Volume, Gain, and Tone knobs. That said, its toggle switches are where things get interesting, as the G1 and G2 switches work in tandem to give you up to four different resistance clipping options. With both toggles down, the pedal behaves like a lower-gain dirty boost. With G1 down and G2 up, you get a higher-gain stage boost, enabling you to push the front end of your amp or stack seamlessly with a fuzz. Alternatively, you can flip both toggles up for a gargantuan wall of saturated, British-flavored drive. Finally, the Kilt’s Cut/Flat toggle switches between a flat EQ in the down position and a more cutting tone in the up position, which reduces your low end and allows you to sit at the top of a busy mix.
Refined, responsive, and ready for anything
Many guitarists at Sweetwater have been Kilt devotees since the stompbox’s original unveiling, swearing by its clarity, versatility, and musical responsiveness. As amazing as it is, however, many of us have requested an updated version with greater headroom for cleaner tones, a more pronounced Cut/Flat toggle, and expanded control over the low-gain textures. We’re pleased to report that the JHS Kilt 10 succeeds on all counts, all while maintaining the DNA that has kept the pedal on our boards for the past decade. To start, the range of the Gain knob has been updated for greater usability, unlocking new lower-gain textures and ensuring zero dead zones from whisper-quiet to full-on distortion. Furthermore, JHS refined the pedal’s top end for added definition and increased the available output to provide you with greater headroom. Additionally, the G1 and G2 toggles boast more usable gain parameters, and the Cut/Flat toggle features a more amp-friendly design, working effectively across a wider range of amplifiers and modelers. On top of that, the Kilt 10’s retooled clipping circuit gives you a more touch-sensitive feel without departing from the pedal’s core identity. It has slightly more compression and distortion on tap, as well as a smoother attack. Finally, this stellar stompbox flaunts a polished aluminum finish inspired by the original Kilt V1, paired with classic Expandora-style knobs and a modified, Scottish-flag-influenced logo brandishing the Roman numeral X to represent the pedal’s decade of dominance.
JHS Kilt 10 Features:
- 10th-anniversary iteration of JHS’s best-selling Kilt distortion pedal
- Retooled clipping circuit delivers more headroom, a smoother attack, and an expanded breadth of Gain settings
- Polished aluminum finish with Expandora-style knobs and a Scottish-flag-influenced “X” logo
- Familiar control layout with straightforward Volume, Gain, and Tone knobs
- G1 and G2 toggle switches give rise to everything from transparent overdrive to muscular distortion to zipper-style fuzz
- Cut/Flat toggle switches between a flat EQ and a more cutting tone
- Red Remote circuitry switches the G2 toggle for instant changes between overdrive and distortion or between distortion and fuzz
- True bypass switching preserves your tone when the effect is disabled
