Silktone Expander

Silktone Expander is a pedal with a surprising number of sounds, from subtle harmonic enhancement to rich overdrive that feels like your amp sprang to life.

The pedal has three knobs and a voice switch unlock a massive palette of thick, textured drive. The design pulls inspiration from the aesthetic and vibe of the Micronaut line and the quirky magic of old Japanese dirt boxes. The look, the feel, and even some of the tonal DNA tip their hat to that era while pushing it into new territory.

The first stage is a JFET-based 2nd harmonic generator that immediately adds body and depth. At its heart, a germanium transistor stage delivers that unmistakable chewy, colorful character. And at the output, another JFET is voiced to emulate the first tube in an amp so even when the volume is rolled down, you still get that saturated first-tube sweetness.

The controls are minimal but deeply interactive.
• Gain takes you from low, asymmetric thickness to medium-gain grind that rounds into smoother odd-order harmonics as you push it.
• Choke sculpts the low end from huge and full to focused and aggressive.
• Volume balances it all without losing that amp-first-tube feel.

The three-way Voice switch fine-tunes the flavor:
• Left = dark and rolled off for higher gain settings.
• Right = bright, perfect for “always-on” sparkle.
• Center = the standard voice, colorful and balanced.

And here’s the kicker: while it can rip when you want it to, the Expander shines as an always-on pedal. With “choke” and “gain” set low and volume around noon, it just makes everything bigger, better, and more alive.

Silktone Expander demo video