Jhs Pedals Colour Box V2 - 10 Year Anniversary

"Console" sound at your feet: the Colour Box DNA, version V2

The JHS Colour Box V2 was designed as a bridge between the pedalboard world and studios: the idea is to recreate the feel of a vintage console preamp like a Neve, with its unique way of adding depth, firmness, and a "mix-ready" presence right at the input.
This V2 version takes the concept further with a more precise EQ (thanks to Shift controls), a Hi/Lo switch to choose the clean headroom, and an output transformer that provides extra weight, especially appreciated in DI, on vocals, bass, or direct-recorded guitars.

A preamp for demanding musicians, producers, and guitarists

The Colour Box V2 is aimed at guitarists and bassists who want a solid sonic foundation before the amp, a "drive pedal like no other," or a sculpting tool capable of saving a backline in concert. It also shines with producers and home-studiers looking to nurture the source recording: vocals, acoustic guitar, keyboards, synths, drum machines, re-amping.
In terms of styles, it excels wherever dynamics and texture matter: blues, rock, indie, pop, funk, country, post-rock, ambient. Placed before delays and reverbs, it allows for a richer and clearer tone, with better-defined attacks and more "settled" mids.

Controls, modes, and connectivity: a true console channel strip in pedal format

The gain section works like a studio preamp: Master sets the overall volume, Pre-Vol controls the level between gain stages (and thus the amount of grit), and Step adds gain in increments (up to marked saturation, moving towards fuzz textures).
The EQ is one of the V2's strong points: you have a 3-band EQ (Treble, Middle, Bass) complemented by three Shift controls (Treble Shift, Mid Shift, Bass Shift) to move the targeted frequencies. Result: you can treat the Colour Box V2 as a surgical EQ (cleaning up muddy lows, scooping mids, adding sparkle) or as a musical EQ (boosting a band to thicken and highlight).
A Hi-Pass filter (switch-activated) controls low end at the input, very useful to clarify an acoustic guitar, a vocal, an overly boomy bass, or a direct-recorded guitar. The Hi/Lo switch adjusts the clean headroom: in Lo, you keep comfortable headroom to stay clean and detailed; in Hi, saturation comes faster and the character becomes more pronounced.
The connectivity is designed for the field: combo XLR / 6.35mm Jack input with INST/XLR selector to adapt impedance and level, -20 dB Pad switch to tame a hot mic source, XLR and 6.35mm Jack outputs to feed a console, interface, amp, or another gain stage. The pedal passes through 48V phantom power securely (it does not generate it), handy depending on your mic chain.

The sound

The Colour Box V2 does not just "boost": it transforms the signal. With moderate settings, you get a wider, more present clean with a sense of depth and a better-controlled high end. It's the kind of pedal that makes it feel like the sound is already "produced" even before adding reverb or compression in post.
When pushing Pre-Vol and Step, the saturation becomes very expressive: edge-of-breakup, dense overdrive, then more aggressive and gritty textures. Dynamics remain at the core: the pedal reacts strongly to attack, guitar volume, and pickups (single coils for clarity and bite, humbuckers for thickness and compression). On a pedalboard, it can serve as a main preamp, a high-end DI, or a character layer before distortion, delay, or reverb.
This "studio in a pedal" spirit is found with artists and productions associated with this type of coloration, and the Colour Box is notably cited in pro environments linked to names like U2, Wilco, The National, Spoon, Muse, The War on Drugs, or Phantogram.

Technical specifications

Effects	EQ, Bass, Preamp	Type	sector
Format	Pedal	Use	electric guitar
EQ	3 channels	Color	Blue

Technology	analog	XLR input Pad	-20 dB
Gain stages	2 (in series)	Footswitch	bypass
Output transformer	yes	LED	yes
Phantom power pass-through	48V (secure pass-through)	Switching	silent
Usage	electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass, keyboards, vocals, line sources	Bypass	buffered
Gain	Master, Pre-Vol, Step (incremental gain)	Input	combo XLR / 6.35mm Jack
Equalization	Treble, Middle, Bass	Outputs	XLR and 6.35mm mono Jack
Shift controls	Treble Shift, Mid Shift, Bass Shift	Dimensions (L x W x H)	120 x 110 x 60 mm
Filter	Hi-Pass (switch-activated)	Weight	approximately 480 g
Hi/Lo	yes (headroom and character management)	Power supply	not included
Input selector	INST/XLR