For decades, the Tascam Portastudio 424 has been the secret weapon behind some of the most vibe-soaked guitar tones in indie rock. Now, JHS has bottled that unmistakable elastic snap and blown-out grit into the 424 Gain Stage pedal.
The 424 Gain Stage is a love letter to the elastic, lo-fi magic you get when you plug a guitar straight into a Tascam Portastudio 424. Yes, it nails the Mk.Gee “thing,” but it’s not a one-trick pony. From the woozy bedroom pop textures of D4vd, Steve Lacey, Malcolm Todd, and Omar Apollo to the seasoned indie tones of Mac Demarco, Spoon, and Radiohead, the 424 Gain Stage captures and expands upon the sonic palette of the Portastudio.
For this historically faithful recreation, JHS went deep — replicating the original 424 MKI circuit with the same UPC4570 and NJM4565 op-amps, retaining all the original controls to preserve the Portastudio’s distinctive character.
Like the original, the pedal’s gain structure – Trim, Channel Volume, and Master Volume – works in tandem to dial in your desired grit, from pristine clarity to tape-smudged fuzz. Bass and Treble EQs offer tonal fine-tuning, and for flexibility, the pedal serves up both a standard ¼” output and a balanced XLR output for direct-in recording or live setups.
Used as a DI, the 424 Gain Stage delivers the same gooey saturation and lo-fi grime you’d get from plugging into a 424 – minus the hassle of hauling one around. Park it on your desk for instant access, or get creative with an Active A/B/Y switcher to split your signal between an amp and the pedal’s XLR output for a mix-ready stereo spread. You can flip between amp and DI, or run them simultaneously for huge, layered tones.
Running the pedal into an amp opens up another dimension – pairing the Portastudio character with amp saturation for a unique blend of clarity and crunch. Use it as a boost, a colorful overdrive, or slam the gain for full-blown, overloaded fuzz that feels both broken and beautiful. And unlike the original recorder, this one is silent-switching, buffered bypass, and ready to slot seamlessly into any pedalboard.
Get the JHS 424 Gain Stage here for $249 and keep up with all our JHS coverage right here!
