We've added a dedicated extra gain stage to this pedal so that it's truly the loudest it could possibly be without decimating the input of your amp in a negative way. You will never at any point say "I wish this was just a little bit louder" The Smash control also adds a bit of gain so at full settings it's the most brutal and vicious it could be. The Stab control not only adds in a truckload of bite and attack, but it also tightens as you increase it. Don't be fooled though, it's brighter and tighter than almost anything we've ever offered here at Airis Effects. The main goal with this pedal was to give players the absolute maximum amount of versatility in as few controls as possible. This gives you ALL great tones and zero bad tones with no effort at all to dial them in.