Barber Electronics Direct Drive

Relatively easy to get the sounds I'm looking for, although the pedal does require some tweaking depending on the guitar/amp, but that's to be expected. Very simple 3-knob setup with a pull-up on the tone knob for "fat harmonics"--excellent feature. There are many different sounds this pedal is capable of, and it covers a wide range of OD applications extremely well. The included one-page manual is very useful.

I use the Direct Drive with a few different combinations of guitars and amps. The best results I've gotten have been with a PRS McCarty and a Dr. Z Maz 18 Jr. amp for full-on high-quality plexi crank. I also use this pedal in more of a TS-808 role with a Fender Tele and a Rivera amp (and methinks it sounds better than any TS-type pedal I've owned, and I've had a lot of 'em). I almost always use the Fat Harmonics function--really adds to the "juicyness" of the pedal. This is perhaps the quietest OD pedal I've ever used, even when the gain is cranked a bit. And it doesn't feel like a pedal, either--just sounds and feels like you're plugged into the amp, the way it should be! No annoying TS mid-hump here, although I sometimes detect a slight drop in bass freq when the pedal is engaged, but it's VERY minor and doesn't really detract from the resulting blissful tones. Cleans up well when ya roll off the volume knob on yer guitar, and works well in conjunction with other pedals of all kinds.


My other main OD is a Fulltone Fulldrive 2, but this thing has gobs more useful gain and seems a bit more flexible, even without the FD2's Boost function. However, some of the FD2's sweet spots that I've grown accustomed to are somewhat elusive with the Direct Drive...but that still hasn't stopped the Direct Drive from becoming the main OD on my board. Very organic and open sounding, lots of subtleties: the amp and guitar/pickups still retain their characteristics even at the higher gain settings. This thing rules!

Have been gigging with it steadily for over a month now, and it shows zero signs of wear/tear. Rugged housing, top-notch components...this thing will last a good, long time. Eventually, switches do end up breaking on all effects. This thing is about as bulletproof as we could hope for.

David Barber actually answers the phone! I ordered this puppy directly from him...took less than a week turnaround time, but that was at the end of August I think, before the DD started going out to retailers and stuff. Still, he spent a considerable amount of time yammering with me about overdrives, my preferences, etc. It was educational and entertaining, he's just a gas to talk to. He also answered several of my emails, all within under 12 hours. I definitely wouldn't want to waste his time with piddlin' questions over the phone, but if anything ever went wrong with this pedal I would not hesitate to give him a shout. All I can say is this: Order with confidence, the dude is righteous and on top of his game, and totally gets off on getting his products perfect for us hard-to-please types.

I play old-school rock, blues, funk, and jamband-type stuff with several different bands, and I use different combinations of axes, amps, and effects depending on the gig--so far, I've been able to tweak this pedal for the individual settings appropriate to each gig, with excellent results. I've been playing live for over 20 years and have been through all kinds of gear--let's suffice it to say that if this pedal had arrived several years ago I probably could've saved some real $$$$! Amazing value for the money, definitely best overdrive bang for the buck right now, especially considering the sound quality, component quality, etc. Barber could easily charge substantially more for this puppy, so it's cool that he's pricing it within reach of most us working guitarmongers. Again, it's not really a TS clone, but it can cover those bases and more. The design is simple, the tone is just devastating. Oh yeah--if it were lost or stolen, I'd replace it immediately (duh!). I'm thoroughly impressed.

This is a fairly simple construct,3 knobs,tone pulls up for increase in harmonic content.

Very dynamic,easy to get the different sounds using Dave's instructions,Using a 1968 SFDR (with JBL K120), 52 Tele RI(Complete Vintique mod with 1st batch Bardens), Heritage H150CM with Seth Lovers ,Stock 92 LP Std....very open sounding OD with the premium being that it doesn't color the sound the way a TS9 or TS808 does-because it is a smple constuct,you can always just tweak to taste

Reliable-No backups

Dave Barber and Craig spent an hour each on the phone with me-I had initially balked but they assured me that if I had any issues with the pedal that they would make it right up to and including a refund if I wasn't satisfied.These are real world musicians and techs doing their collective damndest to make user friendly, affordable gear for the discerning guitarist...they are great people to deal with and get my recommendation.

Playing Blues,R&B,and Classic Rock...Have been playing 30 years and have been using Ibanez TS products since their inception(I remember buying a TS808 for 32$)NO MORE! I will be using the Direct Drive from here on out...if it were stolen,I would be on the phone in 30 seconds to get another.It is the best deal on the planet considering the cost and the issues surround the tonal coloring that most other OD units do-and I just tried a Landgraff unit and there is absolutely no way that it is even a dollar better than the Direct Drive,So ,that being said,the only thing I would change on this device is I would put a second foot switch for the harmonics boost as opposed to a push-pull pot...I'm sure Dave will come up with something regarding that after it's been on the market a while as he is known for wanting to build the best quality around-definitely a wonderful pedal at a wonderful price.

It's the basic 3-knob overdrive with the following catch: the Tone knob pulls up for a boost in lower midrange- to my ear, it simulates the effect of switching from high-watt Celestions to 25w Greenbacks. Overdrive clairty shifts along with this pull function, so players using a darker rig may find themselves turning the tone up a bit when the boost is engaged.

Guitars: '69 LP Custom, s'ash Tele with Antiquities, LP Special Historic. Amps include a RI Vox AC/30 with blues, '66 Pro Reverb and '62 Tremolux.

Very low noise for an overdrive, even with fairly dirty power direct from the wall. Sound quality is outstanding- unlike the dozens of TS-808 variants out there, this box cops real Old School Plexi preamp vibe and offers substantial volume boosting- even with the gain dialed low, you can pummel the input on a traditional non-MV tube amp without coating your basic guitar tone in sonic mud.

The DD is a very different beast from the old Barber Pump and Burn Unit (I haven't heard the newer 6-knob items) in that it's all about midrange clarity and complexity, even with the boost knob engaged, and the higher gain settings still preserve decent note separation for rhythm work, even with humbuckers.

Seems fiarly well built, about par for the course with the so-called "boutique" stuff I've seen, the best being MJM and SIB. I'm not expecting it to fail any time soon, and if it did, I suspect Dave Barber would stand behind it 100%.

Haven't dealt with Barber directly, but the couple of people I know who have weren't disappointed.

I'm using this box along with some analog delay and a Ross compressor clone, playing what's sometimes called "Cosmic American" music with an emphasis on traditional r&b. I'm playing with a really great keyboardist and 2 horns, so it's important that I find the right "seat" in the mix- any pedal which clogs up my sound prevents me from being able to do that, including a typical TS-9, is out. The DD is *in*, and in a big way- gives me anything from a slight edge for riffs and fills to big plexi lead tone, just with a twist of the gain knob. It maintains low end at parity volume, and the sustain/decay characteristics are as close to a high-voltage tube amp as any overdrive box I've heard in the past 20 years.

Add to it that the DD is 30-40% less expensive than alot of lesser circuits (including modded Ibanez boxes which don't offer true bypass switching), and you're looking at a great deal here.

Patches? We don' need no steenking patches.

This thing is easy to dial in, but also ultra versatile. The tone knob really only seems to be usable from noon plus.

Photcopied page "manual" gives good starting points.

It only gets an 8 because there was too little space in the box for the battery to fit well. I had to really work it to get the top back on.

Dang. Nothing I can say that hasn't already been said. I can hear most everything I do on the fretboard. Clarity.

Jes' gottit.

Dave Barber answers emails promptly.

Have to say that it has unparalleled clarity and crazy bang-for-buck value. With the clarity comes a bit of thin-ness, so I think I'll keep using my GS Wyllie fuzz pedals for high single note fatness. This is really the only pedal I've had that is so clear for chords and bass note riffs.

3 full-range, fully-functional, interative knobs. One is a push-pull tone knob for "fat harmonic boost".

G&L Legacy w/Dimarzio Virtual Vintage, or 335 w/Duncan 59's into: Carr Rambler, Princeton Reverb, or Victoria Bandmaster. It is a very quiet, well-controled, and extreamely versatile pedal. It is the best sounding overdrive I have ever tried/used. I have/had Klon, FD2, TS-808, Super Duper, Dirty Blonde, TBIC, '69, ect. The most important point I can make about it is: it really does what Dave Barber
claims it does on his web site (www.barberelectronics.com). You can hear the pick hitting the strings and play full chords, even up on the Robben Ford Dumble setting! Amazing!!!

A1 build quality and components.

The best.

30 year professional. Blues, R&B , Rock, Funk. I'm buying another this week to use as a stand-alone unit (the one I have now is on my board). It is the "bomb" for a single "Swiss Army knife" pedal. I played Santana's "Europa" out last night and it killed. It fed-back and sustained just like I wanted it to at a perfect volume for a
small club. The harmonics on this pedal are incredible, and jump out at you w/punch and clarity. For real. Thank you Dave Barber.

The Direct Drive is basically an overdrive unit. Three knobs, level tone, gain. Level knob can be pulled to fatten up the tone. The manual offers some suggested settings. Start there or twist till you hear what you want.

Les Paul clones with seymour duncan JBs into the Direct Drive into Egnater (Rocktron) TOL 50 all tube amp clean channel with gain set modestly high. The Direct Drive gives a nice, smooth sustain with a singing quality to it. It does not provide heavy distortion by itself. It is very liquid and musical with a varied selection of very useable settings.

Haven't had it long, but Barber products are very well made.

David Barber is very responsive to email, etc.

I play a lot of classic rock and pop music. This pedal is well suited for these styles. It it very reasonably priced for a high quality, boutiqe pedal. I own, or have owned a lot of boutique pedals, and this one is a good deal. You can spend a lot more and do a lot worse than getting the Direct Drive.

This pedal produces great tones at every setting. There are certain ones, though, that nail the best classic tones of Marshall, Tweed OD, TS-808, and there's some modern OD amp tones as well. Crank the pedal and pull the tone knob up - it has a push/pull. Do yourself a favor, though - take a shortcut and go to the manual for the settings that will knock you out. Barber has it all figured out. It will only take a minute to be floored by this pedal.

I use mostly clean Fenders and OD them w/ pedals. Primarily, I use these guitars: Suhr Classic, Suhr Classic T, Suhr Chambered T, and PRS Custom 22. The Direct Drive sounds more like an amp than any pedal - and some amps - I've ever played. If you like the cranked vintage Marshall tone - 100 watts through a 4x12 cab, or the modded/hot-rodded Marshall, the overdriven Tweed tone, or the super-modded TS tone, this pedal has it covered - and from every angle. The noise level of the DD, even when at full blast, is far lower than I've come to expect from any pedal - especially OD and distortion pedals. And, it never sounds furry, mushy, or grossly distorted. It interacts very well with other pedals, too - true bypass helps that, I suppose. It really doesn't take much tweaking to get the classic tonal flavors, of which there are many, out of this pedal; each small tweak puts the pedal in another realm. It's very responsive. Easy to dial in Jimi, SRV, Beck, Allmans, Page, Buchanan and, yes, there is the sweetest Robben Ford tone - when you discover the push/pull tone knob (or read the manual), you'll find it - it's blissful. The TS-808 setting is one of my favorite settings, though, because it can be used for a shimmering, sparkling, tingly tone or all out Voodoo Chile - without the noise and the crappy bass of a TS. I love the Barber pedal line, no doubt, but this pedal, from the moment I plugged into it and heard those first clear, driven, wailing notes, came to the fore as my favorite. $99 just blows my mind.

Only had it for 2 weeks, but, by the looks of the construction and materials, it's on par with the rest of his work - which means it's durable. Will use it w/out a backup.

Dave is the best at this. Told me when he would send it, arrived when he said it would. Pedal does what he says it will do. Manual is most helpful. Actually, even discussed this pedal - the concept - with me before he ever built it! All around nice guy who knows music, electronics and tone.

I play mostly guitar-based instrumental music which covers rock, jazz, blues, Spanish, Tex-Mex, soul, island, etc. I spend most of my playing time in a recording studio. This pedal makes it easy to change my Fender's into Marshall's (that sound better than my Marshall!), and more. It gives me many ooutstanding amps in a single box! I own too many pedals to count, but I can say that I have 12 OD boxes (7 Barbers), all of which I think are high quality, but this one rules the roost now. Besides sounding great, it works well for rhythm and lead and from sparkling clean to massive OD, while covering everything in between. I could not find a setting I didn't like! I would seek immediate replacement if lost.

Very easy to use. Many good settings that cover much ground. Most versatile.

I use as my main playing guitars Fender Custom Stratocaster and Gibson Les Paul. My amps are Fender Bassman for rhythm, ambience, clean lead and JCM 100 for heavy riffing and overdrive lead. I switch with an A/B box. Pedals are Barber Direct Drive, Teese RMC3 wah, Fuller Dejavibe, Line 6 delay modeler. I received the Barber pedal from an American fan who presented it while my band was on tour in USA. Because the Direct Drive is superior at Marshall overdrive tones, I sent home big JCM 100 amp and 4x10 speaker cabinet. The Barber pedal can perform the best Marshall,Tube Screamer, and overdrive tweed tones I have ever heard come from a pedal. And very unnoisy. Also, it is nice not to transport the big Marshall. Allman Brothers, SR Vaughn, Hendrix, Jeff Beck.

3 weeks on tour no problem

No contact with builder customer support.

We play heavy fusion including rock, jazz, blues, avant garde - Jeff Beck, Robin Trower, Dixie Dregs, Pekka Pajohla, Scott Henderson. I have been playing for 18 years since I was 8. I own many other gear. The new Direct Drive is my favorite pedal. I use it to replace my Fulltone, plus my JCM 100.

very easy, even easier than a Barber Burn Unit. The manual is very good..gives you good sample settings...

the sound is great. I gigged with this last weekend w/ my PRS Mccarty, Warmoth Ash Strat with alnico II;s and a jb jr., and my 1956 Historic Gibson Custom shop Gold Top with Duncan mimi humbuckers.i was able to get warren haynes/dickie bettes tones "liquid scream" sound . i set the vol. to 12 o'clock, the tone (w/ the fat pot pulled) at 12:30-2:00 and the gain to 11-2 o'clock. Into my Top Hat Club Deluxe (6v6's) the sound was unreal...my setup always changes, but i usually use a keeley compressor, my old 3 knob Tone pump, a Burn Unit, this Direct Drive and a custom clone chorus modded by alfonso hermida. i also use my customash start w/ lindy fralins and a barden bridge, a tokai love rock, andr a hamer eclipse. my amp is either the top hat, a fender super champ or a fender blues jr.

very reliable. i have 9 Barber pedals: a Edge Hog, Direct Drive, 2-6 knob Tone Pumps, 2-3 knob Tone Pumps, 2-4 knob Burn Units and a Dual Unit. I have never had a problem with any of them...

the best. kind, courteous, generous, prompt, "the customer is always right" attitude...on a par with Robert Keeley

i love my burn unit and tone pump, but this pedal has more gain than a burn unit but it is more complex, easier to dial in the tone and sounds more satisfying....a great compliment to the tone pump or a burn unit...set those units with lower gain and set the Direct Drive with higher gain...or just use the Direct Drive and use your volume pot on your guitar for gain changes....i have played blues and classic rock for over 28 years. i would replace this and might check out another for a dual set up...i like how it reacts to single coils and humbuckers equally well. ts-9s are too humpy in the mids for full humbuckers so this is a great overdrive for my les paul style guitars....

This unit is very simple to use, just three knobs, volume, tone and drive. The unit I got is actually a hand labeled prototype. There was no manual because this is a pre production unit, yet I am sure a child could operate this unit no problem!

I use a relic nocaster and a custom made frankenstrat with a bridge humbucker (holmes) and suhr v60 single coils. The direct drive gets me the best tones I have gotten from both my 66 Fender Deluxe reverb and my marshall 100 super trem. I already own and love a barber burn Unit but it worked best with the deluxe and was not a perfect match for the marshall, the direct drive sounds simply great with every tube amp I have tried it through, I am able to get cranked vintage marshall tones with either amp at any volume and tons of rich overdrive sounds from just a little juicy to nice sustaining lead tones. Best of all the tone control has a wider range than my Burn unit and this unit does NOT sound compressed like so many overdrives I have spent my hard earned gig money on! great overdrive tones from begining to end and of course true bypass for my clean tones.

This box looks plenty solid with a fulltone footswitch, even though it is a pre production I will be depending on it every weekend.

Dave is a nice guy who takes his time and returns emails and phone calls quickly.

I have been playing for 20+ years around the east coast, I have covered just about every type of music (mainly blues, rock and country these days) I am mainly a strat and tele player now but I played a les paul for years until my back said "no more!" I only play vintage tube amps, as a matter of fact when I got mine they were not vintage yet (I guess that makes me vintage). The direct drive has quickly become my favorite overdrive I have owned, it will be staying on my pedalboard next to my old ross compressor, teese wah and TC chorus, absolutely a best buy.