Loopy Demos

The Lava Booster Mk2 is one of those pedals that does way more than its simple single-knob interface suggests. This Class A MOSFET booster covers everything from transparent buffering at low settings to warm, tube-like overdrive when you crank it up.

I enjoy the Lava because it’s genuinely useful across its entire gain range. At unity gain, it acts as a high-quality buffer that keeps your tone alive through long cable runs and complex pedal chains. Roll it up to mid-gain and you get clean boost that pushes your amp without changing your core tone. Push it harder and the MOSFET circuitry starts to clip in this musical, soft way that resembles tube saturation more than typical solid-state harshness.

The Mk2 refinements make a real difference for live use. The soft-touch bypass switch works in both latching and momentary modes, so you can kick it on for solos or tap it for accent hits. The enhanced power filtering also cleaned up any noise issues from the original. At high input impedance and low output impedance, it minimizes signal loss and keeps everything in your chain playing nicely together.

What sets this apart from other boosters is how it handles dynamics. The MOSFET responds to your picking attack in a way that feels natural and musical, whether you’re using it clean or pushing it into overdrive territory. It’s not just a volume knob – it’s a proper preamp that can reshape how your entire rig responds to your playing.

Signal Chain

• Fidelity Guitars Stellarosa Lite II with Lollar Firebird pickups (bridge pickup)
• Lava Booster Mk2
• Mixwave Benson Chimera Plugin*
• A bit of room-like reverb from the Valhalla Vintage Verb plugin

Links

• Get detailed specs on Lateral Phonics' website

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