The Keeley Filaments was their first dedicated high gain distortion. it was build to answer the question “why do most high gain pedals sound like pedals rather than amplifiers”.
The answer they landed on is gain staging and EQ flexibility. Three cascading gain stages give the Filaments the same density and saturation of an amp rather than the clipped, static quality of a single stage circuit.
Seven layers of EQ, Bass, Body, Presence, Treble, Bright switch, Boost switch, and Crunch switch, give you the control to fit that distortion into any guitar, amp, and musical context. Premier Guitar gave it their Gear Award in 2017.
It runs on 9V to 18V DC. Running at 18V gives more headroom and a slightly different dynamic character. The CIOKS DC7 v2’s selectable voltage outputs make it easy to try both.
Controls
- Level: Output volume.
- Gain: Drive into the three-stage gain circuit. From crunch at lower settings to saturated, compressed high-gain at maximum.
- Bass: Low-frequency content. Add weight for large speaker configurations or cut for tight, focused tone through smaller speakers.
- Body: Shapes the low-mid punch of the distortion. If you’re playing through a large cabinet with plenty of resonance, pull it back to keep things tight. Through a smaller speaker, add Body to compensate for what the speaker can’t provide.
- Presence: Works with the Bright switch to add upper-midrange definition — useful for making any guitar and pickup combination cut clearly through a heavy band mix.
- Treble: High-frequency content. Adds sizzle and air or pulls back harsh frequencies.
- Boost switch: Adds a gain boost for more saturation and compression — useful for solos or heavier territory.
- Bright Switch: Gives an extra treble lift
- Crunch switch: Changes the compression character — more compressed and scooped for classic crunch tones.
Keeley Filaments Key Features
- Three cascaded gain stages — amp-like saturation density
- Seven layers of tone shaping — Bass, Body, Presence, Treble, Bright, Boost, Crunch
- Boost switch — added gain and compression for leads
- Crunch switch — alternative compression character
- True bypass
- 100% analogue
- 9V to 18V DC centre-negative, 10mA — 18V adds headroom
- No battery operation
- Winner of Premier Guitar Gear Award 2017
- Made in the USA
Power
9V to 18V DC centre-negative at 10mA. Running at 18V gives more headroom and a slightly different dynamic feel. The CIOKS DC7 v2 supports selectable voltages per outlet including 18V — easy to try both on the same supply.
Watch The Keeley Filaments In Action
FAQs
Three cascaded gain stages rather than one to get that valve / tube gain feel. A single-stage distortion circuit clips the signal at one point, giving a relatively static, compressed quality.
Boost adds a gain boost for more saturation and compression whereas Crunch changes the compression character of the distortion itself, adding a more compressed and scooped quality.
Body controls the low-mid punch and weight of the distortion. If you’re running through a large cabinet that already has plenty of resonance, pulling back Body keeps the sound tight and controlled.
Both work. At 9V it’s a capable high-gain distortion with a tight, focused character. At 18V the headroom increases and the dynamics open up.
Yes — true bypass throughout. 100% analogue signal path.
9V to 18V DC centre-negative, 2.1mm barrel, 10mA. No battery operation.
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