{"id":294555,"date":"2025-11-19T09:47:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-19T09:47:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/294555\/"},"modified":"2025-11-19T09:47:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T09:47:10","slug":"as-simple-or-complex-as-you-need-it-to-be","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/294555\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cas simple or complex as you need it to be\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>$229\/\u00a3219, <a href=\"https:\/\/warmaudio.com\/throne-of-tone\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">warmaudio.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Texas based <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/brands\/warm-audio\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Warm Audio<\/a> have earned a reputation for quality sonic hardware \u2013 based on classic <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/tag\/vintage\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">vintage<\/a> designs \u2013 with a look that often scrapes painfully close to the originals. Cheeky, but we will allow it. In the case of the new Throne of Tone this means a double wide anger box bristling with no less than eight knobs, seven toggle switches, and a heavy 1990s blue on black Marshall aesthetic. Oh Lord.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-184483\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Warm-Audio-Throne-of-Tone-1-credit-press@1400x1050.jpg\" alt=\"Throne of Tone, photo by press\" width=\"1400\" height=\"1050\"  \/>Image: PressWarm Audio Throne Of Tone \u2013 what is it?<\/p>\n<p>As the name and visuals might suggest, the Throne of Tone is an amalgam of the <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/brands\/marshall\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Marshall<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/products\/marshall-bluesbreaker-pedal\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Bluesbreaker pedal<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/brands\/analog-man\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Analog Man<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.analogman.com\/kingtone.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">King Of Tone<\/a> (itself a modified Bluesbreaker at heart) \u2013 not only that but you can double up on either option or run one circuit into the other. I\u2019ll explain.<\/p>\n<p>Each half of the Throne of Tone is identical and offers volume, gain, tone and presence controls with your choice of either the Bluesbreaker or KOT voicing. This can be further tweaked with a choice of Boost, <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/tag\/overdrive\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">OD<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/tag\/distortion\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Distortion<\/a> textures and a High or Low gain stage. A top-mounted toggle switch allows you to swap the pedal order in your chain and there\u2019s an internal effects loop too. Fun!<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-184485\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Warm-Audio-Throne-of-Tone-2-credit-press@1400x1050.jpg\" alt=\"Throne of Tone, photo by press\" width=\"1400\" height=\"1050\"  \/>Image: PressWarm Audio Throne of Tone \u2013 usability and sounds<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s the thing. For Warm Audio to be doing anything other than trolling classic IPs, this USA designed, Chinese made pedal had better be pretty bloody good. Time to plug in a <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/tag\/les-paul\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Les Paul<\/a>!<\/p>\n<p>The lower gain grumble of a Marshall JTM45 combo in the hands of <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/artists\/eric-clapton\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Eric Clapton<\/a> inspired the original Bluesbreaker pedal in the 1990s, and Marshall recently rereleased the Bluesbreaker pedal. We can thank a certain <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/artists\/john-mayer\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">John Mayer<\/a> for that. Having owned an original I can confirm that this is all but identical in voice but the additional tweaks offered here are very welcome.<\/p>\n<p>The KOT side of things is also extremely convincing \u2013 a little creamier and more detailed than the original Marshall unit as you\u2019d hope.<\/p>\n<p>The most interesting addition here is the presence knob, which is not available on either of the original units. And it makes a big difference \u2013 adding a slice of 500Hz-2.3kHz top end sizzle.<\/p>\n<p>The gain stage elements are also very immediate and intuitive in use. In particular the high gain option takes us off into <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/brands\/soldano\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Soldano<\/a> territory with corresponding pick squeal and feedback hilarity. Joyful.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-184487\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Warm-Audio-Throne-of-Tone-3-credit-press@1400x1050.jpg\" alt=\"Throne of Tone, photo by press\" width=\"1400\" height=\"1050\"  \/>Image: PressWarm Audio Throne of Tone \u2013 should I buy one?<\/p>\n<p>At its heart this pedal can be as simple or complex as you need it to be. If you want fuss-free low and high gain options from the same box then it has you covered. If your sonic desires lean more towards achingly precise timbral sculpture you will find that here too.<\/p>\n<p>The fact that you can tweak both sides of the pedal and\/or run them together makes this a very versatile and heavy hitting option. No doubt some players will still lust after an original Bluesbreaker pedal or sit on the KOT waiting list for years, and that\u2019s fine too. But now, there\u2019s this. And it\u2019s very good indeed.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Warm Audio Throne of Tone \u2013 alternatives<\/p>\n<p>Whether you\u2019re talking about the Bluesbreaker or the King Of Tone, there are various options out there that don\u2019t require a <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/brands\/reverb\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Reverb<\/a> deep dive or a years-long waiting list. Marshall reissued the <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/reviews\/effects-pedal\/the-big-review-marshall-vintage-reissue-pedals\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Bluesbreaker<\/a> ($199), complete with original enclosure, a few years back and it was very good indeed. For the KOT, you\u2019ve got options at both ends of the price spectrum \u2013 the <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/brands\/mxr\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">MXR<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/reviews\/effects-pedal\/the-big-review-mxr-duke-of-tone\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Duke Of Tone<\/a> ($159) offers one half of the original and sounds impressively close. If you want another \u2018enhanced\u2019 take on the format \u2013 albeit one that\u2019s made in partnership with the Analog Man himself \u2013 the <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/brands\/chase-bliss\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Chase Bliss<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/guitar.com\/reviews\/effects-pedal\/the-big-review-chase-bliss-brothers-am\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Brothers AM<\/a> adds presets, an extra boost circuit and various other under-the-hood shaping options.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/michael-watts-bio-400x400.jpg\" alt=\"Michael Watts\" height=\"64\" width=\"64\" class=\"w-16 h-16 rounded-full object-cover !my-0\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"leading-relaxed !my-0\">Michael is a guitarist, writer, educator, host and film-maker based in East Sussex, UK. In addition to being Guitar.com&#8217;s resident expert in high-end acoustic guitars, Michael regularly showcases priceless vintage instruments and the work of the world&#8217;s finest guitar makers at festivals around the world, and on his YouTube Channel. He&#8217;s also the host of the Fretboard Journal podcast, Life On The Fretboard.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"$229\/\u00a3219, warmaudio.com Texas based Warm Audio have earned a reputation for quality sonic hardware \u2013 based on classic&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":294556,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[64,63,12360,12361,75957,12362,105],"class_list":["post-294555","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-distortion","tag-effects","tag-overdrive","tag-pedals","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294555","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=294555"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294555\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294556"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=294555"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=294555"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=294555"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}