Wampler Mofetta Overdrive Distortion Pedal

Wampler Mofetta Overdrive Distortion Pedal Overview

The Wampler Mofetta Overdrive / Distortion is Brian’s tribute to the MOSFET-driven magic of a 1990s classic - the MT10 MOSTORTION. A mainstay of countless top session players, the Mofetta honors the soul of that elusive yet classic circuit while revealing its untapped potential.

The Mofetta is a supercharged MOSTORTION, reborn and amplified that delivers the classic, amp-like overdrive, massive headroom, and versatile 3-band EQ that made the original so famous. Wampler wanted “more” and added a Texture Switch that introduces actual MOSFETs into the pedal’s overdrive section for a bolder, more articulate tone. The Mofetta preserves everything you love about the early '90s legend with a powerful new Wampler dimension.

The MT10 MOSTORTION

The original MT10 MOSTORTION was released in 1990 as part of a budget pedal series to meet the demand of a growing market. Despite the pedal’s “cheaper” qualities, guitarists began to take note of its amp-like low-gain tones, attributing them—arguably incorrectly—to the onboard MOSFET Op-amps. Though the pedals were discontinued a couple of years later, used ones command insane prices today and are extremely hard to find. The Mofetta is Wampler’s way of bringing it all back and re-creating those singing tones while diving even further into the amp-like world of MOSFETs.

Musical, Responsive Overdrive

Paying tribute to a pedal called the MOSTORTION, it’s easy to assume the Mofetta would be a high-gain beast. But like its predecessor, it’s the circuit’s low-to-mid-gain voice that the original circuit is most known for. From edge-of-breakup to fat, vintage amp-style crunch, the Mofetta blooms with tube-like compression, always retaining its musical warmth. And with its high-headroom output, it easily pushes your amp or modeler into harmonically-rich breakup.

3-Band EQ

Part of what makes the Mofetta so versatile is its unique 3-band EQ. While many overdrives before 1990 relied on a simple tone knob, the idea of a dirt pedal like the MOSTORTION with bass, middle, and treble controls was darn near revolutionary. It lets you dial in the Mofetta for a full-range drive or achieve transparent grit that complements your clean tone. If you dial up the mids and treble a bit, you can even use it as a focused boost to push your amp’s breakup, or stacking with another gain pedal, tightening its response and enhancing its character.

Is it truly MOSFET?

One of the original MOSTORTION’s little known “secrets” is that it doesn’t actually use MOSFETs for its overdrive. It uses a “MOSFET based op-amp”, but in reality uses clipping diodes to produce distortion. This left Brian thinking, “What if I built one that could actually use MOSFETs for the clipping, using multiple gain staging like a tube amp?” That’s what the Mofetta’s Texture feature is all about - it takes the pedal from smooth overdrive to fiery distortion with the flick of a Texture switch.

MOSFET clipping delivers a bolder, more articulate voice – louder, tighter, and slightly more aggressive than the original’s diode-driven dirt. While still not “Brutal High Gain” the Texture switch gives you a wider range of overdrive and even distortion that’s even more responsive to your playing dynamics. Is it better than the OG? That’s up to you, but for Wampler it’s what the MOSTORTION was always meant to be.

The secret is out on the original MS10 MOSTORTION pedals. Their blend of responsive, amp-like gain and flexible EQ make them some of the most elusive yet sought after dirt pedals out there. With the Wampler Mofetta you get that same tone and performance, now with a pure MOSFET enabled-version of the famed original.