Like the namesake's explosive characteristics, this pedal comes out of the box ready to go off! A two knob single circuit design allows for a beautiful, textured boost mixed with a slight 60's distortion sound that works wonderfully with tube amps. This pedal is designed with the player that has his/her amplifier on the edge of breaking up. The volume knob of course controls the volume of the boost. The grit (c/fuzz on some earlier models) knob controls the amount of "hair" that is added. The grit knob is most useful when the player has the amp set on the verge of breakup and becomes more flexible the more the amp is driven, at low levels the grit knob is not so noticeable in effect. This pedal is truly loud, proud, and is not afraid of being mean!