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Walrus Audio MAKO Series ACS1 Amp + Cab Simulator Pedal

The Walrus Mako Series ACS1 is a compact full featured amp that further shrinks -- literally -- the perception of what a guitar amplifier really is. While "amp" is a bit of a misnomer as it's not meant to drive a cab; but more accurately be fed into a mixer or powered speaker using either the 1/4" jack output or a direct box. You can stick your pedals in front of it just like an amp, and it's got a headphone output if you want to practice in silence. The main controls are obvious and intuitive and you can get rolling with just a quick breeze through the manual. It has a Midi feature to store the requisite 128 different amp presets, but three of them can be stored and saved via the footswitches without Midi. Storing and editing takes a little bit of study, but with something this powerful you've got to do a little homework. You can make changes on the fly without disturbing your presets, and if you get lost in regard to your original settings, you can always call them back up.

The ACS1 has the triple crown of Fender/Marshall/Vox emulations, and given that our our own personal experience is mostly Fender, we can say they nailed the Blackface character quite nicely: Spanky, tight and just enough give to make it feel organically responsive. While there is a volume and gain control, think of gain more as "character" and not overdrive. You can get a little crunch, but anything more than a little you'll want a pedal. Besides the amp emulations you've got (6) cabinet simulations and you can download a bunch more from the Walrus site if you choose. Oh yeah, it's also stereo and you can send one "amp" to the left and the other "amp" to the right. This thing is a serious threat to roadies everywhere.

The Walrus ACS1 blends convincing tones, a high degree of tweak-ability, and for that level of control it's also pretty easy to use. You'll never be able to pry some players from their traditional amps, but for a lightweight travel rig, backup, practice/headphone amp, or your main squeeze the ACS1 is another challenger to the paradigm of tubes, transformers and plywood.

In the words of Walrus Audio:
The [ACS1]™ is an amplifier and speaker cab simulator delivering the sound and feel of world-class amplifiers, complimentary speaker cabinets, and controllable room size. With the ACS1, players have expansive options to deliver their tone whether it's on stage, in the studio, or practicing at home. Simple controls, stereo in and out, onboard presets, and MIDI support make the ACS1 an immeasurable tool in a guitarists arsenal.

Amplifiers
The ACS1 models three vintage amp styles crucial to music industry history designated by their places of origin. When running the ACS1 in stereo, one amp can be used through both channels or mix and match amps and cabinets on the left and right channels with the L + R switch. Simply choose the channel you want it to modify, select your amp and cab model, and set your levels. Then flip over to the other channel and choose your amp and cab settings. If you would like to use the same settings on both channels, set the switch to the middle or “+” and dial in all your settings. They will be duplicated on the left and right outputs.   
Volume and Gain work together, similar to how they would on an amp. For example, increasing gain levels will also raise overall volume output so adjust the volume knob accordingly. 
Fullerton is inspired by the classically bright and clear Fender® Deluxe Reverb®. Crisp clean tones with loads of headroom that players have come to love over the years.
London is inspired by a 1962 Marshall® Bluesbreaker® with a harmonically rich, valve-driven breakup. Articulate and sensitive response.
Dartford is inspired by the legendary jangly high-end tones from a 1960s Vox® AC30 with all the bite and chime from the British Invasion.
Cabinet IRs
The ACS1 holds six high-quality cabinet impulse responses (IRs). It ships pre-loaded with six custom cabinet IRs developed by Walrus Audio that sound great with each amp. Users also have the option to load their own IRs via our new customer web app found at walrusaudio.io.
Use the ABC Cab toggle switch to select your cab preference. Access the second set of cabs by holding down bypass while changing the cab toggle position.
Room Ambience
Simulate the size of the room that your amp and cabinet are in. At zero, it would resemble tracking your amp in an isolated environment with no reverb. At max would emulate a natural-sounding, large studio environment.
Presets
Save up to three presets onboard by dialing in your favorite sound then pressing and holding the bypass and boost switch simultaneously. Both LEDs will flash confirming your settings were saved. Cycle through presets by pressing and releasing bypass and boost simultaneously. The pedal will cycle through the three onboard presets - red, green, and blue. When power is removed from the pedal, it will boot up in the last used preset. Using MIDI, up to 128 presets can be saved and recalled.
Boost
A boost feature is available by pressing the boost switch. It allows you to quickly jump to a preset level of volume and/or gain. The boost LED will flash letting you know that it is active. To set the boost, simply click the switch on and adjust the volume and gain knobs to taste. Pressing the boost switch again will save your boost settings and return the pedal to its normal level of volume and gain. 

Specs
  • The ACS1 comes in an anodized gold finish with black and green ink.
  • The enclosure’s exact size with knobs is 4.9” x 2.52” x 2.64”.
  • Power requirements are 9VDC (300mA minimum).
  • The use of an isolated power supply is recommended for powering all Walrus Audio Pedals. Daisy chain power supplies are not recommended. Power supply not included.
  • 24-bit 48kHz A/D and D/A converters for high quality audio.
  • 32-Bit floating point processing.
  • Sharc & ARM co-processors.