LERXST is partnering with Reverb as the exclusive launch partner for Alex Lifeson’s first signature pedal. The pedal will first be available through The Official Lerxst Reverb store, which will feature a limited number of pedals at launch.
“The BYTOR pedal sounds awesome and looks really scary . If you like awesome, scary stuff you need one of these. Or two!” ~Lerxst
Back in 2012, for Rush’s Clockwork Angels recording and touring cycle, Alex Lifeson partnered with Mojotone to develop a custom-built tube amp head that had all of the sonic characteristics that Lifeson has grown to love over the four-plus decades of his career. Years later, Mojotone debuted a limited run of 100 of the “Lerxst OMEGA” amp heads that have since been sold out.
Now, Lifeson and Mojotone are working together on a larger scale. The two-channel OMEGA head is coming to full production along with a slew of matchIng cabinets as well as a smaller head/combo option called the CHI. But that’s not all. Today, we’re focused on the new Lerxst By-Tor Drive pedal.
The Lexrst By-Tor is a compact, pedalboard-friendly version of the OMEGA that promises to replicate the head’s same intensity and growl that the tube amp is known for. The By-Tor is capable of jumping from light and crunchy drive sounds to tube-like overdriven chaos with the touch of a few controls. Its drive section features typical controls: drive (for setting the amount of desired distortion), tone (for adjusting top-end sparkle and treble), and level (for adjusting output).
To help really nail the tonal character of a tube amp, the By-Tor also features an onboard boost section—a JFET-based gain stage, which responds similarly to that of a tube amp’s. It’s designed to add some shimmer and chime to the top-end of your tone and can be used independently of the drive section or as an always-on gain stage.
There’s a boost knob for adjusting the circuit’s output, as well as a special order switch toggle that lets players choose which order to set the circuits in. Setting the toggle to boost first will push your drive section into further saturation, while the opposite way gives players more of a solo boost with tons of gain potential on tap.