I can’t say this pedal was ever something I was on the hunt for and yet, being that is was just around St. Patrick’s Day, the visual design caught my eye and, the fact that there was some relation to U2 and the Edge, my interest was piqued.  After taking some time to learn about the pedal – a modified/enhanced version of the Boss FA-1 circuit – and considering it’s various functions and intended uses, I believed it could potentially be a good fit for my board to cover some utility roles. At the time, I was using the Buffalo TD-X for always on EQ sculpting which somewhat limited the use of it’s overdrive effect capabilities. My thought: the Clover could offer subtle signal boost with additional EQ adjustments, feeding into my drive/gain selection of pedals, thus freeing the TD-X to serve more as an OD option to go along with my Muffs.

As to my experience with the JHS Clover …

Solid construction and feel, fun and clean visual design, and simple control layout. The Boost is very sensitive with such expansive range — unity was just around 8pm on the dial for my setup and only rockets up from there (currently set just under 9pm for a slight boost). The EQ adjustments are solid; well targeted with respects to frequencies — speaks to the intended use/design of the circuit. I find it adds a bit of chime and clarity in the treble, reduces some muddiness in the middle, and tightens up the bass (or optionally expanding). The Full EQ setting allows the mids to be boosted which can introduce a touch of overdrive/breakup as the levels are increased. It can definitely serve as an always on pedal; bonus: I find that it restores a touch of presence and clarity to delay and modulation effects that sit after — perhaps speaking to one of the practical uses by the Edge and his love for dotted-eighth delays.

The JHS Clover/FA-1 Circuit feels very much, in a good way, like it is polishing, preparing, and then boosting the signal to effectively drive and successfully deliver your guitar’s voice through the effect chain without losing character, life, or clarity. It’s one of those pedals that makes important nuanced tweaks to the point that, turn off the pedal and you will feel like you are missing something important.

Editors Note: The context of this blog entry was originally posted as a response to a threaded discussion on theGearPage.net forums and subsequently has been edited/updated before re-sharing here. The link to the original thread can be found here: https://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/jhs-clover-anyone-seen-this-yet-boss-fa-1-style-pedal.2013478/