Description
Production Update
Standard Black Sparkle Ceres™ high-gain guitar preamp pedals are in stock. We have several colors and fades in stock as well. Inquire for stock status, or order and we’ll ship ASAP.
User Manual
Power Supply
NOTE — Power Supply Not Included! Here’s a compatible (9V, center negative, 500 mA) power supply for all our pedals:
Overview
The Ceres™ preamp, contains our signature tones from three of our amplifiers – the Ares, the Artemis/Gemini, and the Colossus.
Ultimately, the Ceres™ preamp distills our KSR sound into a small package. At only 5.7″ x 4.7″, it features many of the same functions present on all our amps — such as the Mode, Feel, and Bright switches. Moreover, this pedal provides the ultimate mobile tone versatility from weekend gigs to fly rigs. It also delivers the KSR signature sound to any board or interface for live and studio applications.
Hookup
Top mounted jacks allow for easy integration into your existing pedal board. Unique to our pedal operation, we include 3 bypass modes — True Bypass, Buffered Bypass, and Clean Bypass. In True and Buffered bypass the pedal operates as expected, no tonal coloration. The Clean Bypass mode enables the top row of Tone and Volume knobs accessing the Clean channel. These various Bypass Modes allow for integration into any style of rig — from driving a power amp directly (Clean mode), hitting a clean amp down the chain on your pedal board (True Bypass mode), or at the start of your pedal board, driving your other pedals into a clean amp (Buffered mode).
The preferred operating method is to run the Ceres™ into the input of the effects loop return of any amplifier head or directly into a power amp, but it will also work just as well when run into a clean channel with some EQ tweaking.
Time based effects (delay, chorus, flange, etc) should be placed after the Ceres™, before the power amp. A simple loop switcher can even be used to create effects loop(s) between the Ceres™ and power amp.
Controls
The Ceres™ includes two integrated footswitch buttons to activate the 3 channels. The left button toggles between Bypass and Rhythm/Lead. The right button toggles between Rhythm and Lead. With the Bypass Mode switch set to Clean, bypassing the pedal actually activates the Clean channel.
The gain controls in all channels feature the same range from clean to saturated signals and operate as close as possible to the full size KSR amps. They function without any unwanted top-end artifacts typically associated with solid-state circuits. The Ceres™ EQ options then make for a highly versatile Pre-Amp pedal giving you as much control.
Here is a quick overview of the switch functionality of the pedal, mirroring our signature amplifiers:
Bright:
Up = On, Down = Off. The switch works just like a typical Gain pot bright capacitor in that the lower the Gain setting, the more the effect.
Feel:
Up = Fat, Center = Tight, Down = Thick
Mode:
Up = Ares Crunch, Center = Artemis/Gemini Red Mode, Down = Colossus Lead
Connections
Looking at the front of the pedal, top-right is the external control input, then Guitar Input, 9V DC input, and finally Output to amp.
The 9V DC input requires at most 200 mA to function. This is accessible via the high-current output of a Voodoo Labs Pedal Power, or similar. Please do not exceed 9V as the pedal will shutdown to protect the internal electronics. We generate optimal voltages internally, so providing more than 9V is simply not necessary, or possible.
The Control port is a 3.5mm (1/8″ headphone) TRS jack that allows control of the pedal channels and future expansion. Simply use an 1/8″ to 1/4″ TRS cable / adapter to connect this to momentary contact closure relays, and you can completely control the pedal, just as you can with the two foot switches.
Manufacturing
We are proudly manufacturing this pedal completely in our Cincinnati facility. CNC machining, powder coating, laser etching, circuit board assembly are all performed under our roof — no outsourcing.
Demos
Additional information
| Weight | 2 lbs |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 7 × 7 × 3 in |
User Manual
21 reviews for Ceres – 3ch Preamp Pedal
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stitchshopjeff (verified owner) –
The Ceres is my new go to for just about everything. This pedal absolutely slays!!! \m/\m/
fretwizrd13 (verified owner) –
I’m blown away with preamp. Whether it’s in a live or recording environment it shines bright and strong. It’s seems that every time I purchase one of amps or gadgets it inspires me to become a better player. 5/5, great job once again, Kyle!
npmiller57 (verified owner) –
Could this pedal be any better? I don’t think so.
I break the KSR Mold as I’m not a high gain guy but its nice having it on tap.
Rhythm channel, Ares crunch mode, bright switch down, feel middle is unreal with single coils. I just adjust the gain to taste and I’m in business. I can go really bluesy but its never flubby or muddy.
I’m building an entire small board around the Ceres for direct to FOH settings (I do a lot of theater work). Stick the Ceres in front of your favorite IR box and run direct to the sound guy. Its perfect.
The clean channel, however, is the unsung hero. Spanky, tight, with a sweetness to it.. very smooth.
I haven’t used the lead channel much… I’m not really a lead player. But the tones I coaxed out of it would certainly be useful for people that are looking for that.
cwptacek (verified owner) –
I am still dialing this in for use without an amp at all, which I believe it will excel at. The issue I have, is that it sounds so dauntingly massive through the return on my Colossus that I don’t really want to power the amp off to go amp-free. I know I have to get around to it. It sounds huge with the Brit Green 3 IR on Wall of Sound in Cubase. There’s more of everything you need, on tap.
If there’s a weakness, I would say it’s that this pedal wants to be either clean (which sounds really good, strangely) or heavy. I haven’t stacked any OD or fuzz in front of it, but I prefer my real amps for the mid-gain thing.
But then there’s the heavy thing. I don’t even need my amp or other pedals to make brutality. The pedal does it in spades in a very useful, relatively wide tonal band. I’m playing a Korina guitar with Arcane pickups, and I am not noticing a huge difference on the feel switches, but every other control makes a very, very noticeable difference.
I think we’re going to hear this pedal as the primary tone on a bunch of metal albums in the near future. It’s BIG sounding. It plays well with standard tuning and super low tuning. Mine is orange. It’s a keeper.
louis –
After my buddy Justin RAVED about his KSR Gemini, I started researching the company and learned that a preamp pedal was in the works. After seeing a few videos from NAMM 2019, I knew I had to have one. Fast forward a few months and I finally get my KSR Ceres in the mail and instantly fall in love. I’ve uploaded a few videos on YouTube raving about my Ceres and feel that everyone should own one. It is the ONLY preamp pedal you’ll ever need and I have a bunch of different preamp pedals in my arsenal, but this KSR monster is without question my all time favorite!! Get it! Trust that you’ll make hundreds of thousands of dollars over the rest of your life!! This KSR Ceres is worth every penny, get it now! You’re going to LOVE it!!! Thanks Kyle!!
Tjep Meindersma (verified owner) –
After watching some youtube videos i pulled the trigger and ordered one. All i can say is WOW. It has great tube like feel distortion. I plugged it in at band practice and the drummer stopped , what the #$! is that. That is the sound we were looking for.
Another thing i was blown away by was the great customer support by Kyle. I never received such an in depth answer about my inquiries.
Keep up the good work!!
Tjep
The Netherlands
talhauzun (verified owner) –
I have been playing with many amps including Mesa, Marshall, EVH, Peavey, VHT, Krank for over 20 years and I had never been able to find a pedal that gave me a tone that could replace my amps. That was until I played with KSR Ceres! This pedal absolutely rocks, I can easily get the metal rhythm and lead sounds that I like and the clean channel is also pristine. For either live playing or recording, I highly recommend this pedal, I think it is worth every penny. Kyle is also great at customer service, he is very responsive. I am completely satisfied with this purchase.
Ren (verified owner) –
I was in search of a preamp that would allow me to switch between my 100w amp’s clean channel to high gain metal tones that my amp couldn’t achieve. I even heard competitors such as the Victory Kraken, Amptweaker TightMetal, Megalith Delta, etc. After I hooked up the KSR Ceres to the effects loop and turned it on the competition ceased to exist.
The sound this pedal produces can go from hard rock to raw metal and that flexibility is a part of what makes the Ceres so awe-inspiring. I love how the pedal’s clean channel may be switched to buffered or true bypass in case I want to use my own amp’s clean channel. Nevertheless, The clean channel of the pedal is straightforward sounding amazingly sweet, and the Rhythm/Lead channels unleash absolute destruction once initiated. From riffs that slay to smooth solo licks, this preamp does it all. The numerous knobs and switches for each rhythm/lead channel give me complete control over the tone of the Ceres. I was entrapped by this pedal tweaking it to the point where the high gain sound I imagined in my head would be perfectly replicated by this small box as opposed to buying a brand new expensive amplifier.
Customer service left me impressed. Kyle is very responsive and will answer ANY question you have in the process of ordering a Ceres. His immeasurable level of patience and communication is a rare feat in today’s market and I highly respect that.
Decided to choose a hunter green sparkle color with white knobs and it looks awesome. If you’re in search for a high gain preamp, I truly believe this is the closest you’ll get to what is considered a masterpiece in that category.
juanpablogracia –
While I own quite a few amps and digital devices, since I’ve plugged in the ceres my band is adamant that that’s what we wanna roll with. My bassist finds his space and I’m more than satisfied with the sound as well as the convinience of having such huge sound in such a small and light box.
Thanks guys!
Chris (verified owner) –
Simply amazing.
Colin M. (verified owner) –
Sounds incredible and very easy to use and configure.
Andy (verified owner) –
Love this pedel – sounds amazing! it chugs!!!
Barry Copestake (verified owner) –
I’ve previously owned several preamp pedals (AmpMan, LeLead, Revolt) and was never as satisfied with the feel or aggression as I am with the Ceres, the organic tone and grinding crunch you can get out of the Ceres is bliss and the clean channel is fine too with some added reverb
Stephen L. (verified owner) –
This preamp is awesome. I’m going into a DAW direct using IRs with additional track fx and this unit sings with my other amped tracks. What really impresses me is the clarity and tightness on all my guitars ranging from 6,7,8 strings. I am enjoying it. Thanks KSR!
Dirk (verified owner) –
A 5 if you like high gain, it can sizzle but can be tamed. I love it. Crunch channel a lot of fun, sounds great. Clean, sounded nice but i only spec’d it. Ran it through a PW 200 all set to 12 o’clock through a Marshall 1960a 4×12 and it sounded awesome. I was surprised how it fed back similarly to a tube amp, even at a lowish volume. I had an old Vetta 2 Head that sounded great but didn’t feel super great. This does. I comp’d this against an Iridium, Two Notes Revolt, Humboldt deluxe and Simplifier Mk 2 and while they all sound great, if you want heavy rock, high gain this is what you want. I kept all of the above pedals, just fyi, for their additional features and different tones. I haven’t run it through the loop of a tube amp yet but if it feels this good SS then should feel better with tubes. I mainly use these pedals for practice and ideas. This is great. When cranked it delivers. Thank you KSR.
Kevin Applegate (verified owner) –
High quality build and the tones I’m getting are phenomenal!!
Josh Carlson (verified owner) –
Amazing quality and sound. Kyle and crew are simply the best!
Chris (verified owner) –
Absolutely love it. Great customer service. Great brand.
Scott S. (verified owner) –
Recently went from a 1000sq/ft guitar room to a 120 sq/ft space. Had an amazing experience owning a KSR Colossus for 10 years but had to go digital. Running the Ceres pedal into an AxeFX3 made me get back the KSR tone I was accustomed too. Fantastic pedal , really has that KSR tone.
Robert Crockett (verified owner) –
The Game Changer in my rig! Best customer service I have ever experienced! Even with the logistics of sending to South East Asia they came through.
Andrew Greene (verified owner) –
It’s a really awesome preamp! It has a lot of options and makes great distortion! I’m totally happy with it.