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JHS Pedals Jhs Colour Box V2 Preamp

  • Based on 85 reviews
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Availability: Only 3 left in stock, order soon!
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Arrives Dec 1 – Dec 3
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Features

  • A full-fledged studio-grade preamplifier, EQ, and distortion generator with multi-instrument and microphone compatibility
  • The Gain section controls the overall volume of the unit, the amount of gain between the two internal gain stages, and the gain of each preamp stage in five stages
  • Using the new Hi/Lo switch, get ultra clean sounds without breakup when distortion is not needed or achieve a broad spectrum of overdrive, distortion, and fuzz sounds
  • A -20dB pad switch on the right side of the unit tame the volume for high output microphones when in XLR input mode
  • The new Shift knobs in the EQ section adjust the range of frequencies that the Treble, Middle, and Bass knobs control to give you precision control over the EQ
  • The Hi-Pass section spans from 60Hz to 800Hz with a 6dB per octave slope
  • Offers 100% clean signal even on acoustic guitar, silent switching to eliminate "switch-pop", and passing phantom power to condenser mics

Description

In 2012, I had a crazy idea for a tone shaping device that had never been done before in the world of guitar pedals. I wanted to create an effects Pedal that replicated The hard to achieve sounds of "direct-in" Electric guitar recordings that I loved. Bands like the Beatles, Spoon, Wilco, and Steely Dan had used This technique for years, but it was nearly impossible to recreate live. I wanted this pedal to transform My guitar rig into the tonal equivalent of a Neve studio console, and that was no small task. After lots of trial and error, experimentation, and re-works, this concept evolved into something far beyond what we had imagined. In 2014 as we filmed the first demo videos at Abbey road studios in London and this Idea had evolved into the most unique product we had ever made. The color box was a full-fledged studio-grade preamplifier, EQ, and distortion generator with multi-instrument compatibility. It did what I had always wanted It to do, but it did so much more! On its release day, I wasn't quite sure how it would be accepted, but I knew that I loved it. As a few months went by, We saw something amazing begin to happen; this pedal was showing up in all types of environments. Producers, engineers, and artists were emailing us, tagging us on socials and showing how they had put the color box to use. Studio vocals, live vocals, kick drums, acoustic guitars, bass, keys, overhead drums, stereo bus's, room mics, synths, re-amps, and some incredibly large stage setups had it on almost every instrument! This unit can be heard on dozens of recordings from U2, Wilco, Beck, Mac demarco, St. Vincent, the National, Spoon, Collective soul, muse, to War on Drugs, foot fighters, and phantogram amongst others. As proud of this pedal as we were, we wanted to make it better, so we did. – Josh Scott The color box V2 has all the same functionality of the V1 with many new and improved additions like expanded EQ controls, a Hi/lo switch for massive clean headroom, and the ability to pass Phantom power to your condenser mics. The most significant improvements are: addition of an output transformer safely passes 48V phantom power EQ shift knobs for precision EQ control Hi/LO switch for ultra clean headroom 100% Available clean signal even on acoustic guitar silent switching, Aka no "switch-pop" Runs on standard 9V DC neg power let's take a look at the features and controls of the color box V2. The gain section in red has three controls: master, pre-vol, and step. The Master volume controls The overall volume of the unit. The pre-vol controls the amount of gain between the two internal gain stages. This acts as a "drive" Or "gain" Control, adding more grit, distortion, and even fuzz as you increase the gain. The step control increases the gain of each preamp stage in five stages. Rotating the step knob from Left-to-right will increase the gain by the following: 1st is +18 dB, 2nd is +23 dB, 3rd is +28 dB, 4th is +33 dB, 5th is +39 dB. The color box V2 has a new Hi/ LO switch to control the amount of clean headroom you have available. In the Lo mode, you will easily be able to get Ultra clean sounds without breakup. Lo mode is excellent for tone shaping when distortion is not needed. In the Hi mode, the color box V2 will distort much more readily, giving you a broad spectrum of overdrive, distortion, and fuzz sounds. In addition to the Hi/ LO gain switch, there is a -20dB pad switch on the right side of the color box V2. This function only works when in XLR input mode and can help tame the volume for high output microphones. The EQ section in blue has three new Shift controls correlating to its standard treble, middle and bass controls. The shift knobs adjust the range of frequencies that the treble, middle, and bass knobs control. The center frequencies for the shift knobs are treble 10kHz, middle 1kHz, and bass 120Hz, while the treble, middle, and bass knobs boost or cut with +/- 17dB of control. If you want to boost high-mid frequencies, turn the mid shift knob to 3 o'clock or above and increase the middle knob above 12 o'clock. If you want to cut upper treble frequencies, turn the treble shift knob to 3 o'clock or above and set the treble knob below 12 o'clock. The shift knobs give you precision control over the EQ for anything you put through the color box V2. The Hi-Pass section is enabled by the toggle switch below the Hi-Pass knob. Just flip it up to engage the Hi-Pass knob, which spans from 60Hz to 800Hz with a 6dB per octave slope. The color box V2 has a combination XLR and 1/4" Input jack to use either an instrument or microphone. Select your input with the input selector switch on the right side of the pedal labeled INST/XLR. The color box runs on standard 9V DC negative power and measures 5. 7” x 3. 75” x 1. 85".

Brand: JHS Pedals


Style: Acoustic,Bass,Distortion,Overdrive,Preamp


Color: Multicolor


Item Weight: 716 Grams


Voltage: 48 Volts, 9 Volts


Item Weight: 1.58 pounds


Product Dimensions: 6 x 4 x 2 inches


Country of Origin: USA


Item model number: CBOXV2


Is Discontinued By Manufacturer: No


Date First Available: November 18, 2019


Color Name: Multicolor


Hardware Interface: 1/4-inch Audio


Signal Format: Analog


Power Source: Electric


Voltage: 48 Volts, 9 Volts


Frequently asked questions

If you place your order now, the estimated arrival date for this product is: Dec 1 – Dec 3

Yes, absolutely! You may return this product for a full refund within 30 days of receiving it.

To initiate a return, please visit our Returns Center.

View our full returns policy here.

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Top Amazon Reviews


  • Stunningly Good!
I wasn't prepared for how incredible this is. I was looking for a way to practice and record direct. I had previously bought a Mooer cab/sim pedal (The JCM marshall voiced one), and that was pretty good. I saw this being used on the JHS Pedals channel and just decided to spring for something high end. And this is really a next level bit of engineering. All the knobs are useful and although it's an unconventional setup, it's really easy to get used to. The Mooer pedal took some tweaking just to get a realistic sound, but the Color Box is so much more flexible! Tones can be explored that all sound good, I don't have to work at finding the "sweet spot" and leaving it there. I haven't tried this with bass and vocals yet, but I can't imagine my experience being any less than how great it sounds for guitar. I'm not even using a cab sim. I don't think it's necessary now. I can put pedals in front of it for dirt, compression, whatever and it all works. I'm amazed. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 2020 by S.K.

  • Does what it says! (And it doesn't claim to be an ACTUAL Neve)
As long as you don't go in expected it to ACTUALLY be a Neve console in some miraculously small box, it's remarkably versatile! Similar in spirit, but definitely a departure with unique high-gain features. Pros: -Powerful-but-simple parametric EQ (minus a Q control I suppose) -XLR in, plus parallel XLR and 1/4 inch out. -Both input and output transformers (I view it as a nice little "mastering" kind of effect) -Step control and hi/lo toggle in addition to two volumes provide as wide a range of gain as you would ever really need. -No-nonsense hi-pass with on-off toggle is very useful for applying this pedal to a variety of instruments/microphones/pickups. I have recorded vocals and instruments through a variety of mics, and performed with it as a DI for acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and electric bass. *Once you learn how to use it* I have found it to be a wonderful catch-all EQ+D.I. Cons: -Significant monetary investment (ultimately worth the feature set, but admittedly steep) -Somewhat noisy 1/4inch output (XLR is remarkably noiseLESS, and I suspect this is a natural factor of the original intension of getting the "drive a console very hard like on x,y,z record!" sound live through your amp on a stage. I typically use this direct through XLR live, however, and have had no noise issues.) -Very bright LED (easy to fix by coloring or taping over) that makes it hard to see the controls in a lot of the lower-light situations of a typical stage. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2022 by Wolfgang

  • NOT A DIRT BOX!
People I think fail to understand that Jhs makes gear. Not just guitar pedals. This isn’t a fuzz or a distortion or a drive. This is a preamp (in guitarist that’s a “boost”) And This is a GREAT preamp with eq. The eq is musical and sounds good once dialed in on every source I’ve tried it on. It has high enough gain settings to power a dynamic mic and send it in line level without eating up a mic pre. And low enough gain settings to let you run line level signal out of a daw into it to reamp the signal. Either through the colour box alone or the colour box and guitar pedals. I honestly need a midi version that saves presets because of all the ways I use it. The only problem with mine is he’s getting lonely. Might have to order him a friend... ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2021 by MicWarr MicWarr

  • What an incredible pedal!
This isn't a guitar pedal for people just starting (get some dedicated dirt or delay pedals) or who can't really distinguish good tone. This pedal is very subtle, almost non-existent sounding, to the untrained ear. But if you care about tone and seek to hear raw emotions in sounds, this pedal is for you. It's honestly incredible. It begs me to throw more at it to see what it can do. Just an incredible boost to any chain. It's an always-on pedal on my board and should be for yours too. The hefty price is worth it. Sorry it cannot be explained in words by anyone giving a review but that's because it is such an unexplainable pedal. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2023 by Poo Poo

  • adds 'something'...but you have to hear it to understand
I'm working on a track that will post in a few days...'cogbern' on soundclick. I used the JHS unit on the vocal for 'Teardrops' which is posted now. Mic was an SM58. I don't have Sinatra's voice, but I was very pleased with the sound. If you listen to my track, use good headphones to really hear the subtleties and perhaps compare to any other track-they did not have the JHS. They are .wav files you can stream for free. If you have a budget studio like mine, I think you will be pleased with the 'added spark' to the sound the JHS gives. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on January 9, 2021 by cogbern

  • Truly a masterpiece!
It is a pricey pedal but, holy heck. Not only will this give you incredible control on your sound, but you can overdrive and distort it in such a great analogue sounding way. I use it for Bass, Vocals, guitar.... etc. It really lives up to the namesake "Colour box." Worth every penny. An indispensable piece of gear. It's like have a Neve preamp. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2020 by alex chilton

  • Great boost, od, fuzz or even just equalizer.
This pedal is so great. It’s like the preamp I’ve been waiting for, can do so many sounds and is so versatile.
Reviewed in the United States on May 23, 2021 by James Michael Whitney

  • Are You Trying To Derail My Daily Life??? TOO GOOD!!!
Ok ok ok this pedal is NOT as good as you expect, it's BETTER THAN YOU EXPECT. It's like dipping your ax in hot butter and then having just a touch of the sweetest and most musical overdrive I've ever heard... and that's the clean setup with the knobs in tame positions... This is OUT OF CONTROL. I've been using a Neve emulator for over a decade from SLATE and this is a DIFFERENT BEAST ENTIRELY. JHS - hats off to you brother!! ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2020 by Matt Powers

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