JHS Colour Box V2 Preamp Pedal

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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 Colour 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 Colour Box to use. Studio vocals, live vocals, kick drums, acoustic guitars, bass, keys, overhead drums, stereo buses, 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, The National, Spoon, Collective Soul, Muse, the War on Drugs, and Phantogram amongst others. As proud of this pedal as we were, we wanted to make it better, so we did. 

The Colour Box V2 has a buttery, musical, and harmonically complex character, derived, in part, from its Lundahl transformers — a favorite of Rupert Neve. With precise Baxandall-style tone controls, dual gain stages, and switchable Hi/Low settings, the Colour Box V2 can be a scalpel or a sledgehammer. Use it to enhance your tone at low gain settings subtly, push it for crunchy but intelligible distortion, or completely dime it for some of the nastiest fuzz you’ll ever hear.

• Preamp and EQ pedal for guitar, microphone, or line-level sources
• 100% analog signal path, based on the design of vintage mixing consoles
• Lundahl input and output transformers
• Dual gain stages with over 39dB of gain give you everything from subtle sweetening to full-on distortion
• Re-creates the classic sound of plugging a guitar directly into a mic preamp
• Powerful tone-shaping potential, featuring a 3-band EQ with Shift controls and a wide-ranging variable low-cut filter (60Hz–800Hz)
• Pass 48-volt phantom power to condenser mics, active ribbon mics, and mic activators

Why buy from Melody Music Shop, LLC?

Located in Bloomington, Indiana, Melody Music Shop strives to maintain a diverse, high quality inventory along with exceptional customer service. We carry a wide range of instruments and accessories, including new and used guitars, band and orchestral instruments, pianos, amps, sound systems, and so much more!

With certified technicians on staff and a century + of experience between them all, you can rest assured any instrument you purchase from Melody Music Shop LLC is in the best condition possible! Our ENTIRE STORE is maintained at 50% humidity year round per manufacturers stringent requirements. All items will be packaged carefully to ensure their safe arrival. Guitars will have their string tension lowered and packaged to manufacture specs or better. Melody Music Shop LLC guarantees quality products, fast shipping, and top-notch customer service!

Please contact us if you have any questions!

Layaway is an option!

• Layaway items require an initial down payment of 25%.
• Layaway items can be held here for up to 90 days.
• A payment of 25% (or more) is due on the 30th, 60th, and 90th day from the layaway start date (although payments may be made before the scheduled due date).
• The item will ship immediately following payment in full, which may be before the 90 day layaway period.
• There are no returns on layaway items. There are no refunds of payments towards a layaway item.
• Please contact us with any further questions regarding our layaway policy!

Shipping

Items purchased from our store will ship out within 1 business day of receiving payment. FedEX Ground or Home Delivery, fully insured, will be used for shipping instruments and large items. Items over $200 will require a signature. Accessories and other small items will be shipped via USPS Priority Mail.

Payment

Paypal

We accept PayPal and will only ship to confirmed ship-to addresses listed on the PayPal account.

Credit Cards

We accept Visa, Discover, Mastercard, and American Express. The shipping and billing address must match in order for us to ship the item to that address.

Payments via Reverb are safe and secure too!

Thank you for looking :)   

- We carry most items in inventory so we can ship your items without delay.

Most purchases leave our warehouse within 2 business-days of receipt of your order. Orders received on Friday, Saturday & Sunday will ship out Monday. (Our shipping department is closed on weekends & major US holidays.)

- Some of our items are shipped directly from the supplier. These items may require longer shipping times. Large orders, or orders which include items shipped directly from our suppliers, will arrive in multiple boxes.

- If you live within the continental US you will have the following options and associated shipping & handling costs at checkout:

• Orders up to $50 – $7.99
• Most orders over $50 – Free Shipping
• Some exclusions apply – contact us for expedited and large / heavyweight item shipping quotes

- If a package is not able to be delivered by for any reason and returned to us, the customer will be responsible for the original shipping cost, plus the cost of returned shipping, as well as shipping costs to be resent if you desire.

- Orders to Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, and APO addresses (AA & AP) are shipped the best way based on weight, package size, and location. Please refer below for International Shipping information.

- Once your order has been processed for shipment you will receive shipment notification from via the email you provided at checkout. This email will contain a tracking number and a link to the shipper’s website for your convenience. If you do not receive this notice, please check your spam folders.

- If you received the wrong product, or if it arrives defective or damaged in transit, please contact us within 2 days of receipt so we can assist you to resolve the problem.  All damages incurred during shipment will be the responsibility of the shipping company which delivered the item (Fedex, USPS, or UPS).

International Shipping: 

We proudly ship to countries outside the United States of America: International orders are shipped the best way based on weight, package size, and location.

- All products are charged in USD (United States Dollars). Need help figuring out the rate of our products in your country? This currency calculator is an excellent tool: http://www.xe.com/.

• All custom fees, taxes and duties are the sole responsibility of the customer.
• The value of our package will be listed directly on your package as required by custom authorities.
• The release of your package is at the sole discretion of custom agents.

Due to customs processing, some packages may be delayed delivery.

NOTE: Depending on the shipping that has been chosen, there may or may not be tracking available once your packaged leaves the US. Once the USPS verifies (via tracking/scanning information that is available at usps.com) that the package has left the country, we cannot be held responsible for any missing packages. If there is an issue It is the responsibility of the customer to provide the customer care team with solid, specific information from your countries postal service regarding an order for a refund to be issued. Please keep in mind that international orders may take a bit longer to be received by the customer as we have no control over customs. The buyer assumes all risk and responsibility when placing international orders.

Thanks for shopping at Melody Music Shop, LLC!

If you are not entirely satisfied with your purchase, we’re here to help.

Returns:

- You have 14 calendar days to return an item from the date you received it.

- To be eligible for a return, your item must be unused and in the same condition that you received it.

- Your item must be in the original packaging with all original contents.

- Your item needs to have the receipt or proof of purchase.

Exchanges:

If you need a different item including size or style and you are interested in returning an item in exchange for something else on the site, contact us and we’ll be glad to help you exchange your purchase or issue a store credit.

Refunds:

- Once we receive your item, we will inspect it and notify you that we have received your returned item. We will notify you on the status of your refund after inspecting the item.

- A restocking fee may be assessed if an item is not returned in it's originally sold condition.  If the customer wishes to return an item they received because they do not like the item (i.e. sound, feel, look), the customer is responsible for shipping costs to and from and those costs will be deducted from the refund amount.   

- If your return is approved, we will initiate a refund to your credit card (or original method of payment).

- You will receive the credit within a certain amount of days, depending on your payment method issuer’s policies.

- Kazoos, harmonicas, and microphones are non-returnable / non-refundable

Shipping:

- You will be responsible for paying the shipping costs to and from for returning an item that is not to your liking (see above). Shipping costs are non­refundable.