Hermida Audio Technology Zendrive 2

Sounds very bassy,very fake overdrive. Very much like the early Mesa Boogie tone.Think I`ll stick with my treble booster to get a more natural "peaky" Brian May/Rory Gallagher tone.Robben Ford sounded a whole lot better(the tone ,not the playing)when I heard him using the out of phase switch (on a 5 way) on a Strat,than his current toney Dumble sound.Maybe it`s me,John

Vintage WEM 25 Watts

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Blues rock,classic rock,slide.Pedal sounds like ****/fake for these styles.

I plugged it in and turned the knobs to midway and presto...had a good sound instantly. From there, it's all about tweaking to suit your gear's color and taste.

4 knobs that are pretty explanatory although, they don't use common terms like treble and bass. They use "Tone," which is common, but then there's the "Voice" knob.

I didn't get a manual as I bought it used.

I like Humbuckers and Single-Coils and this pedal is versatile enough to work well with them all. You know how sometimes a pedal sounds like itself no matter what instrument you use? This pedal is flexible enough that it allows the instruments to shine through. Strat is a strat. LP is a LP. Etc...

No noise except MAYBE when you crank the gain all the way. Typical.

I really struggle to make it sound bad. I suppose when all the knobs are cranked it can sound noisy and extreme, but man, this thing has so much range!!

I use lots of amps at different times. It sounds great across the board! Again, lots of range!

I don't know much about Hermida, but this pedal is built tough and the components look top notch.

No experience.

I own Cornish stuff. I own SIB!. I've used the lowliest of pedals and the best of pedals. This is one of the best because of this:

It has a wide range of sounds. It's not harsh. It allows the instruments to shine through. The sound is very pleasing for both live and recording. The pedal doesn't take over your whole rig.

I would replace it, absolutely.

I compared it with the regular ZenDriver and found this one to be more flexible and a bit less harsh..but again, I can dial this thing in to be harsher so really, it's a question of range and color, not of ability.

It frees me to make music.

I prefer pedals to have independent EQ adjustments..and though this has a "Voice" and "Tone" knobs, it is remarkable well voiced. I don't find myself wishing for more EQ options. Other pedals, EQ is a MUST! This one is very well done.

Very easy to get good sounds, and a wide variety of them. No manual needed if ou can turn 4 knobs.

Using with a Ceriatone OTS and it's a great complement to this Dumble clone. A little noisy (not like most OD's though) but I use a noise suppressor, no problem.

Always sounds great.

Does a good Robben Ford, Carlton, etc..

Yes, very dependable. Yes, no backup required.

Yes, Alf is a great guy and will answer any and all questions.

First let me say to the scammers on eBay trying to charge $320+ for this pedal. Shame on you! It's only $250 brand new and THERE IS NO "LONG" WAITING LIST! There is NO WAITING LIST AT ALL!!! You lie on eBay and say you were on a waiting list "forever". What a bunch of B.S. You order, you pay and about a week later it arrives.... That is "forever on a waiting list"? Give me a break.

I have had one stolen (probably from one of the eBay scammers!) and replaced it immediately. And it only took me 5 days after payment for it to arrive!

All I can say is this is the best OD pedal I've ever owned, and I've owned ALL of them at one time or another.

This is a fairly simple pedal to tweak with. It was fairly simple for me to dial in sound I wanted. Its a really sweet sounding and i couldnt get a bad sound out of the pedal. I stacked the pedal with my Keeley DS1 and it added a lot more sustain and fluidity to the tone.

I play a Fender Strat with a Seymour Custom5 on the bridge and Bareknuckle Apache pups on the neck / middle and run my setup through a Marshall JTM 30.

Frankly the Zendrive really made my amp sing. The tone sounds lush, warm and thick and makes everything I play sound good.

Too early to tell... But it looks very well made and solid. But only Time can tell.

Alf is very friendly and helpful. I have had no problems with my order whatsoever.

I play a lot of musical style - Progressive rock / Classic Rock, Blues, Jazz, Funk, Alternative,.... I dont regret the decision in investing in this pedal.

An 8 because the pedal is SO sensitive even the slightest turn of any knob changes the tone.This is a DEEP pedal and you can spend years dialing in dramatically different tones.I could find no bad tones except sharp and peircing when volume is turned up WAY to high.4 knobs with so much range in each will keep you happily playing with different tones for ages.

PRS Santana 3 to Buddha Wah to Carl Martin Quattro 2 with Zendrive 2 in effects loop to Alessandro 1x12 Working Dog Amp.Zendrive always on.With patience, multiple musical tones are possible.I set the Quattro for Echo,mild overdrive and I only manipulate the Zendrive and the guitar and Amp volumes and tones for different sounds.After much practice I can now start with chimmy chords and switch to sweet sustain or feedback drenched 1960's tones in milliseconds while still playing.Noise only when really cranked.I LOVE my tone now and have a hard time putting my guitar down.

Alphonso Hermida is at the top of his game.The pedal is bullet-proof

Buy from alfonso Hermida and you have a friend for life.He will back you up in a heartbeat.Buy without hesitation!!

Santana, Jimi,Frissel tones.Have been playing 32 years.Would not live without this pedal,an essential part of my tone.I have never played thru anything this touch sensitive.Close your eyes and let your fingers sing thru this pedal.

Well, it's touchy, what I mean is a little too much voice and it
it gets kind of chirpy. Too much gain (5) and it can get a bit splattery.
That's with my gear.

But with the voice at 1 or 2 and the gain at 3(9 oclock)Tone at 4
this things sounds great.

Like another poster said, this might just be a specialty pedal.
I don't see a wide range of sounds. For me that is.
But the adjustment range is very great.

My main point is, I did find my best sound, and it's easy to redial it in.

This is what really counts.

With the pedal dialed in, it just sings.

I don't hear Robben Ford but I do hear a very complimentary pedal
to my gear.

I guess it sounds a bit more like a Dumble, regardless it's very
musical. Notes are warm and chewy and beefy. Working the volume knob
on my guitar is the difference between playing chords and taking a singing solo.

But hit the gain and turn the tone down, find a good voice setting
and you've got radical Rat/Metal textures. Not really my thing.
The good blues magic is at the lower gain setting. That's what is going to sell this pedal, the blues/jazz electric thing.
Wonderful for that.

Time will tell

It took a long time, but Alphanzo is a good guy and came through.

I have to rate it high.

I'd have to be crazy not to hear the improvement
to my sound.

The role of the overdrive in my rig is here to stay.

But there are many good products out there
The MJM Blues Devil is as good a tone as I've heard in
an od. http://www.mjmguitarfx.com/mjm_bluesdevil.html

As good as the Blues Devil is, I think the Zendrive 2 is
in the same league and unmatchable for its tonal qualities.

I'd like to have a chain of ods, all with true bypass.

Anyway, the Zen is here to stay, it's a great pedal.
I feel I still need to work on the sonic possibilities,
and maybe I'll dial it in better so..

The difference between den Zendrive and Zendrive 2 is a little tube that acts like a filter that you can substitue for other tubes to alter the sound. I dont know if this works, havent tried it yet. I think it is pretty much the same as the original Zendrive.
Well, the waiting list.... I was on it for 10 monhts or so. Was it worth the wait? I guess so. It took me some time to adjust to it, it can sound a litty fuzzy and synthetic at times. It's a delicate pedal that doesn't like extreme settings on amp and pedal and your guitar strings needs a light and subtile touch, no Pete Townsend here. It works on a genuine 9 volt adapter.

This is very much a specialty overdrive. Wat works for me is to start with a great clean sound on a fender based amp (a Boogie studio series in my case) and slowly get the Zendrive in.
It has a smooth thick liquid sound with bold highs and even bolder lows. Too much perhaps so it wont do chords very well but that the nature of the beast. You can use the voice control to lower the bass but then it looses definition. The strenght of the Zendrive is the thick non grainy woody structure and still sounds clear and transparant. And his has that "cluck" when you hit the strings. Hit too hard and it will sound fizzy. This is no beginners tool who tend to set everything on ten.

I still like my trusty old Chandler tube driver but it took me 20 years to find me an overdrive that could earn it's place beside it.
Of course, both pedals sound different. I still think the Chandler sounds better -more natural- with single coils but the Zendrive does some Mojo with my Les Paul, 335 and P90 guitars. It is not for rectifier lovers but if you like a smooth sweet big Paf sound that "cracks and crumbles" when you dig in...
The only guitar that gets me in that Robben Ford ballpark is a Les Paul junior strangly enough.. not your average fusion axe.

I would rate it a ten if the basses were more usable.

I have the Zendrive just for a couple of weeks, cant say anything about reliabilty.

Alfons seems like a nice and honest guy, dont know about support though.

Before the Zendrive I had a Menatone Howie, first issue.
I sold the Howie because it had to much wooly bass, too fizzy and not very transparant. I couldn't get a very good sound out of it. Though the Zendrive has basicly the same sound, it is much better tuned and that makes a world of difference.

The Zendrive 2 has four knobs
Gain Voice Tone Volume

The voice and tone are very effective
If you push the voice , you might back off the tone,
and vise verse.

I just got it acouple hours ago so my experience has been my frontroom.

With my ASAT Special and my Blues Deluxe
I was in tone city in no time.
The voice knob is amazing, the tube reveals
all shades of color with it.
I most definately heard the Robben voice as I was
messing around.

I want to match this pedal with my Greenline od pedal.
The Greenline is a great pedal to play complex chord sounds.
It sounds good with jazz chords and such.
The Zen 2 will not be as kind to chords, as with most od pedals.
But that's not its role.

I'll add another entry when I know more about it.

So far, I'm stoked.

Al answered all my e-mails

After a two year wait, here it is.

When asked if I wanted it still, of course I jumped.

This baby starts at 10