[Hands-On Review] Checking Out 6 Citadel Electronics Guitar Effects Pedals: Serious Performance with Studio-Quality Sound Condensed into a Simple Pedalboard Format!

In recent years, Citadel Electronics has been making its presence increasingly felt in the effects pedal world. Founded by key figures formerly associated with Marshall and Darkglass, the brand creates high-quality effects pedals that pack the precision of studio equipment into simple designs.

For more information about Citadel Electronics, please see below!
“Citadel Electronics: In Pursuit of High-Precision Tone” (Hook Up, Inc.)

This time, I put all six of the brand’s major guitar effects pedals through their paces. I take a look at the individual characteristics and sonic appeal of each model!
I hope you’ll use this as a reference when choosing your next effects pedal.

Citadel Electronics / Overtuber

Product Introduction

A notable pedal that takes the legendary Tube Driver, famously used by David Gilmour and Joe Satriani, and evolves it for modern use! Equipped with a genuine vacuum tube (ECC83/12AX7), it also features automatic bias adjustment, allowing you to enjoy superb tube sound at all times.

The biggest highlights are the “GIRTH” and “BODY” knobs, which allow you to adjust the low end before and after distortion. From tight backing tones to thick, fuzz-like sounds, you can shape it freely. It is also easy to use with a standard 9V/500mA power supply, and another nice feature is the Initial State function, which remembers the pedal’s state when the power is turned on, making it convenient when incorporating it into a pedalboard.
*The Initial State function is also featured on some other models! For players who primarily operate their pedals via a switcher, this is a very useful feature.

Sound Impression

As you can see by looking at the Overtuber, this pedal is equipped with a vacuum tube in its amplification section! This makes it possible to produce a truly amp-like, natural overdrive sound. I was able to enjoy a juicy drive feel, similar to what you get when connecting to a stack amp and playing through it.
As mentioned in the product introduction, one of the defining features of this pedal is its Girth and Body knobs. I felt that the Girth knob allows you to adjust the center of the distortion, while Body lets you further adjust the overall character. Personally, I found the Girth knob very interesting. The idea is that you can adjust the thickness and strength of the sound without changing the character of the distortion. It felt almost as though I was adjusting the more intuitive aspects of the actual sound coming out of the amp. I think this is a control that is unique to this pedal!

(My Personal) Recommended Setting!

I turned down Girth slightly to create an easy-to-use distortion with plenty of thickness while retaining a sense of the original tone.
Conversely, I also set Body slightly higher with the intention of reinforcing the low end!

Citadel Electronics / Particle Drive

Product Introduction

An amp-like high-gain distortion pedal that completely recreates the response of a modern British-made high-gain amp at your feet. It covers a wide range of sounds, from crunch to full-throttle, high-resolution drive.
One of its highlights is the built-in Adaptive Noise Gate, which incorporates the know-how behind the company’s Dynazero noise gate. Even with deep distortion, it effectively cuts unwanted noise, while delivering excellent articulation even with fast, tightly picked riffs. Another welcome feature is the Character switch, which lets you switch between three tonal characteristics.

Sound Impression

This was my first time using an overdrive pedal equipped with a Gate knob, and I found it extremely convenient! In my setup, the gate started to engage firmly from around the 2 o’clock position. I think it will be very useful when playing aggressive riffs and the like. Conversely, when set lightly, the Gate engages softly, so even players who are not familiar with noise gates should be able to dial in a setting they like.
As for the distortion character, Balanced has the flattest sound and seems well suited to backing parts in pop songs and the like. Classic has a stronger overdrive character, with a sparkling sound and well-defined notes. Modern has a scooped-mid character, giving me the impression that it would be a perfect fit for modern metal and similar styles. As someone who likes alternative rock and guitar pop, I personally liked the sound of Classic the most!

(My Personal) Recommended Setting!

I set Gate around 12 o’clock, aiming for a natural response.
By setting Drive slightly higher and keeping Tone slightly restrained, I was able to create an excellent distortion that was juicy while also having a sense of compression!
For the character, I selected Classic. It has a sparkling quality and is a very satisfying distortion to play!

Citadel Electronics / Vector

Product Introduction

An octave fuzz pedal that delivers a raging flow of raw, harmonically rich distortion, based on the wild sound of classic upper-octave fuzz.
Its hybrid silicon/germanium circuit provides a wide range of tones, from warm textures reminiscent of vintage gear to crunchy, synth-like square-wave sounds.
Another major feature is its functionality designed to meet the needs of modern players, including the variable Octave function and the Wear knob, which simulates the sound of a dying battery.

Sound Impression

I personally like fuzz, but embarrassingly enough, I hadn’t really used octave fuzz all that extensively until now. However, even as an octave fuzz beginner, I was able to smoothly produce sounds and enjoy playing the Vector!
There was almost none of the sound cutting out that can often occur with octave fuzz, and I felt that the natural octave was blended in very smoothly.
I also give high marks to the fact that the Wear knob allows you to adjust the internal voltage! For all of you fuzz enthusiasts with an extraordinary commitment to the idea that “fuzz absolutely has to use a manganese battery!”, this is sure to be a major attraction. As you turn it clockwise, it produces a psychedelic sound with an increasingly pronounced sputtering character.

(My Personal) Recommended Setting!

It’s a fuzz pedal, so I set Fuzz to maximum!
I lowered Tone slightly, aiming for a sound with softer edges.
Since I prefer thick-sounding fuzz, I set Wear almost all the way counterclockwise.

Citadel Electronics / Bus Driver

Product Introduction

A serious pedal modeled after legendary VCA bus compressors such as the famous SSL consoles.
By employing a VCA with a fast response and stable behavior, it offers a wide range of sounds, from transparent, natural tones to heavy compression. Operation has also been carefully designed to provide recording-studio-quality sound in a form that is truly easy for players to use. Another appealing feature is the highly visible LED meter, which allows you to shape your sound intuitively regardless of where you are.

Sound Impression

First of all, when I turned it on, I felt that it transformed the sound into something clear and punchy while retaining the character of the original tone. Once I turned it on, I found myself feeling that something was missing when I turned it off again, and I hesitated to turn it off lol.
What I particularly liked was the Makeup knob. By increasing it, the natural distortion increases while maintaining the sense of compression. It can add quite a bit of distortion, so for a small session or something similar, I felt that this one pedal would be more than enough.
I also found the SC HPF button, which allows you to control the low end, very useful. As you increase the setting, the low end becomes stronger, so I think it would be good to adjust it according to how well it matches the guitar you are using.
There are also many other aspects that strongly impressed me as being designed for visual and intuitive sound shaping, such as the ability to switch the Ratio with a button, the Auto Release function that automatically adjusts the Release value, and the LED meter on the left side of the unit that displays the amount of gain reduction. I would say this is an ideal pedal even for players using a compressor for the first time.

(My Personal) Recommended Setting!

I set Compression fairly high to even out the note definition and aim for longer sustain, while setting Ratio to 2:1 to achieve a natural sense of compression.
For Release, I set it to Auto mode. I set Makeup to almost 12 o’clock, which allowed me to create a sound that works perfectly for use as a clean booster as well.

Citadel Electronics / Dynazero

Product Introduction

A new-generation adaptive noise gate that instantly removes only the noise without killing the nuances of the original tone.
Its biggest weapon is its support for a send/return configuration (4-cable method), allowing an amp preamp, distortion pedal, or other device to be placed in between. Because it detects the direct picking signal from the guitar and uses it to open and close the gate, you can achieve tight muting even with the gain turned up. It also features a galvanic isolation circuit using an isolation transformer, allowing it to fundamentally shut out even unpleasant noise caused by ground loops.
It also has a toggle switch for switching between Hard and Soft, perfectly covering everything from aggressive, tightly picked riffs to smooth, sustained lead tones.

Sound Impression

This time, I checked it using the 4-cable method, which allows for more precise dynamic control.
Of course, the noise was cleanly removed, but even when applying the gate relatively strongly, I felt that it naturally reduced unpleasant noise without compromising the original sense of distortion or sound character. The way the gate engages is also extremely natural. Unlike the unnatural decay often found with lower-priced noise gates, it can be used without any stress.
I also think it’s good that the LED color changes when the gate is engaged, as this allows you to visually keep track of how strongly it is working!

(My Personal) Recommended Setting!

The optimal setting varies greatly depending on the guitar being used and the amount of distortion from the effects pedals, but in the setup I tried this time, I felt that setting it around 1-2 o’clock provided a solid gate effect.
As mentioned above, the noise removal is extremely natural, so I was able to confidently enjoy playing a distortion sound without holding back!

Citadel Electronics / Planetary Phase

Product Introduction

A six-stage analog phaser featuring a proprietary VCA-based all-pass filter. It offers a high-quality, sophisticated modulation effect with a noiseless character that sets it apart from conventional phasers.
A major feature is the Offset knob, which changes the center frequency of the sweep. You can completely change its character by shifting it toward the low end for a deep, mysterious swirl, or toward the high end for a sparkling, light and lively tone.
It also features a switch that allows the footswitch to be changed to momentary operation. This is ideal for effects such as instantly applying the phaser to a single chord or just one phrase of a song.

Sound Impression

The first thing I noticed was the clarity of the modulation. Even when using a fairly strong, special-effect-like setting, the sound did not feel muddy at all, instead producing a very high-resolution, clear tone. In an interview with the developer, there was a comment that “I think it would be difficult to make this pedal sound bad lol.” The quality really was exactly as described!
I felt that the smoothest way to shape the sound was to first establish the foundation with Rate and Depth, and then fine-tune it with Offset and Resonance according to your preference and the sound you are aiming for.
Since it can also switch between latching and unlatching operations, it seems like it would be easy to instantly produce a flashy modulation effect and grab everyone’s attention.

(My Personal) Recommended Setting!

I preferred keeping Depth, Offset, and Resonance restrained to create a refreshing sound!
As for the Offset knob that particularly caught my attention, I felt that turning it clockwise added more thickness to the swirl. This time, I kept it relatively restrained, aiming for a light sound that would also work well for cutting!

In Closing

So, what did you think of this introduction to the six representative models from the up-and-coming effects brand Citadel Electronics?
One thing that can be said about all of the models is that, despite their simple designs, they thoroughly address the needs of modern users while also enabling high-quality sound shaping. I strongly felt that they offer the reassurance of reliably delivering more than sufficient performance in any situation, from the stage to recording!
I have high expectations for what Citadel Electronics will do next!!