United States · Est. 1994
Klon
The most mythologised pedal in guitar history. The original Centaur is the most sought-after and copied overdrive ever made.
About the brand
Klon was founded by Bill Finnegan in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1994. Finnegan spent three years developing the Centaur circuit before it went on sale in 1994. He hand-built every unit himself, producing approximately 8,000 Centaurs over the next decade before discontinuing them in 2000.
The Centaur's circuit is obsessively documented and analysed by the pedal community. Its unique charge pump doubles the internal voltage to 18V, its germanium clipping diodes produce asymmetric saturation, and the blend control mixes clean signal with the driven signal rather than using a conventional tone control. The result is a clarity and touch-sensitivity that players find addictive.
Original Centaurs now sell for thousands of dollars on the used market. Finnegan released the KTR as an official successor in 2012. Hundreds of 'Klone' pedals have been built attempting to replicate the Centaur circuit — the Tumnus, the Archer, and the Soul Food are the most successful. The Centaur remains the most analysed, debated, and copied pedal in history.
Key facts
- Original Centaur: the most sought-after pedal in the used market
- Only approximately 8,000 units made, all hand-built by Bill Finnegan
- The most analysed and cloned pedal circuit in history
- KTR: the official successor released in 2012
Iconic pedals
Centaur
The most mythologised pedal in history. Transparent overdrive with exclusive blend, germanium diodes, and internal 18V charge pump. Only 8,000 units made by hand.
KTR
The official Centaur successor, manufactured in small batches by Bill Finnegan. The same circuit in a more compact enclosure, with the internal components covered.
Notable musicians
- John Mayer · Klon Centaur
- Jeff Beck · Klon Centaur
- Nels Cline · Klon Centaur
- Warren Haynes · Klon Centaur