Barber Electronics Direct Drive

simple enough, Don't like the push pull thing for the fat harmonics on the tone control. But no real complaints

I have a very good ts9 with the 808 mods and many other mods I have done myself. I run both pedals side by side into a Fender Hotrod Deville 4x10. I really do like the sound of the DD, however I have to admit that it is very TS9 like. There is just enough difference in the overall quality of the sound to make it stand out, at least to me. The DD is a smoother, with more harmonics, there are some sweet spots with this pedal that I just can't get with my TS9, and BTW my TS9 has the second harmonic mod, which should make it even closer to the DD. So I would think that the DD would stand out even better when comparing to a stock TS9.

One thing I did discover is the DD is very sensitive to low power, battery or other. So I would make sure that you have a fresh quality battery. This would lead me to belive that if you ran the DD at 18Vdc you should hear even more of a difference in sound making the pedal all that much smoother, but this is purly speculation.

I can't understand the 1 ratings for sound? This is a high quality pedal designed by a guy who knows what he is doing. Is it TS9 like, yes but this is not a bad thing. It is more transparent that the TS9 with better harmonics and less mid hump, however I think the compression is about the same.

I love the way this pedal sounds in the mix, the harmonics are what make it stand out. It has this sweet singing voice that just isn't the same as my TS9, for cording with both single coils and humbuckers it works well.

Should be fine, but some of the lettering is falling off?

Been playing 20 years,
Currently there is a lot of hipe around this pedal, and for good reason. It is inexpensive and it sounds great, making this pedal a bargain when compared to the competition.

If you own a TS9, save your money and get it modded, it will be 90% of what the DD is. If you don't and are looking for a great OD this is one pedal that you should definitely consider.

As other reviewers said, very straight forward. 3 knobs and a push/pull knob for emphasized 2nd harmonics. I've heard complaints about the tone knob not having a broad enough sweep, but I think the sweep is just fine.

Through my goldtone and my gibson lp classic, the direct drive sounds great. I find the mids are emphasized a bit, but it doesn't bother me at all, especially when I'm playing with the band. It helps me cut through a little. It certainly isn't as big of a mid hump as a tubescreamer. I don't think this pedal sounds artifical or buzzy at all. To me and my friends this pedal sounds like an amp that's been fronted really hard. I use it a higher voltage which changes the tonal characteristics a little. I'm not sure how to describe it, but it seems to make it sound fuller.

David Barber seems to have made this pretty well. I don't expect any problems.

I e-mailed David Barber about running the direct drive at a higher voltage and he responded the next day. Good enough for me.

I'm not really sure how anyone can think this sounds like they're playing through a telephone. Maybe this pedal is pretty setup sensitive, but through my rig it sounds fantastic. The direct drive took the place of a voodoo labs sparkle drive, which was also a pretty good pedal, but the direct drive has just so many more sweet spots. It seems like it would be a pretty good clean boost as well. Not as transparent as a Klon, but for $99 it can hold its own in that area. I really like the tones I get out of this box. If I lost this, I'd definately find a way to get another...I hate that 5-6 week backorder though.

Easy to use, not so easy to get a decent sound out of.

Very disappointing. You would think that a 6-8 week wait would be for something grand, but this is like playing through a transistor radio with a 2" speaker. Any more mid-range honk and it would be a goose. No highs or lows. I A/Bed it with my Route 66 and my TS-10, plus my new ZOOM PD-01. They all blew it away. The TS-10 was embarassingly better. Another reviewer said it was like playing through a telephone. Good call (no pun intended!). Certainly no Marshall roar here, more like the Nashville ultra mid-range honk.

Built like a tank. Beautiful handwired workmanship. For what, I don't know. Huge true-bypass switch. It will last somebody a long time.

Called while looking for one. barber told me they were backed-up two months and he was hiring more pepole to keep up with the demand. this further fueled my desire to get one. They seem very nice and eager to please. Sorry for the dis.

I am selling it. Keeping my TS-10 and Route 66, plus I got a ZOOM PD-01 and Hyper Lead on closeout. These are KILLER pedals. I fell victim to the Guitar Player magazine review hype and backorder situation on the Direct Drive. It HAD to be good. I have been very disappointed. For me, it was unusable.

3 nobs with a pull out boost, very easy to use as discribed by others

I am using the direct drive with a american standard strat. with fralin pick-ups into either a Budda Superdirve 30 or a Top Hat Club Royal. The DD is very much like a tube screamer with more gain and harmonics. The pedal pruduces a big fat round sound, however it is very, very dark. I'm a little disapointed by this procuct. The tone control is no help in dialing out the large mid-range hump. On the bright side the pedal seems to be built well and is reaonable for the quality.

Seems dependable, built well but I've only had it a month.

They were responsive in answering questions. They got the pedal to me a week early.

I play primarily blues and rock. I've been playing about 8 years. There are several products on the market that cover ground similar to the DD. There are several effects that I'm familiar with that I feel are superior (in no particular order)Tonebone Classic, Klon, Sparkle Drive, Fulldrive 2. If lost or stolen I wouldn't re-purchase. It's not a bad distortion effect (at $100) just not a great one. I really don't get the Guitar Player review on this thing.

Pretty easy, but, if you ignore the manual like I did, it takes a while to figure out. Many cool and authentic-sounding settings. This pedal has a lot going on. Shoulda read the manual first!

Too many sounds to cover, but what a useful pedal. The best tones are Marshall-like, nice and creamy, a surprisingly accurate Dumble, a nice overdriven Fender, a TS-killer for sure, and a beats-all clean drive. This is much more of an overdrive than a distortion pedal. Very sweet and smooth. Natural as can be. Between my Two Rock Custom and the Direct Drive with fat harmonics engaged through a loud Fender Vibrolux, it's a dead heat for the Dumble tone. This is the most capable pedal I've heard. This pedal can bark, bite, growl, and howl. Bass is full, mids are sweet and pronounced, highs are smooth, not rough-edged.

I have owned the Direct Drive for 4 months. Haven't even replaced the battery, but looked inside. It's immaculate and solid.

David Barber is the best. He talked me through my tone questions and guaranteed delivery by a specified date. Also promised to take back the pedal (unharmed) if it didn't do what he said it would. 10 is not high enough.

One of my favorite settings has to be the clean drive. It is so pure and devoid of noise. Sweet as can be. I wish the pedal came with 2 channels for rhythm/lead and I would like it if he moved the on light so I could see it better, but I'm not complaining. I can tell when it's on.

I own so many pedals now, maybe 40 - yes, a gear freak. Half are overdrives. The Direct Drive doesn't do everything, but it almost does - it does much more than any 3 overdrives put together. For Marshall, Tubescreamer, and Dumble tones, it kills the 3 Menatones and the Keeley I once had which were supposed to be improved direct-knock-offs! For $99, a lot of faux-boutique pedal builders should be looking at themselves in the mirror. The best overdrive pedal ever at a price that is 1/3 of inferior pedals. Yes, I'm diggin' it!

A no brainer! Three knobs, volume, tone, and drive. One pull pot on the tone knob for the "Fat Harmonics mode," true bypass, in , out, footswitch, and away you go.

Whoa! Wait! What happened! Beautiful looking pedal, SO easy to use, it just has to sound GREAT. Right? WRONG!!! Total waste of $99.00 plus shipping. A Tubescreamer eater? NOT!!! A reissue TS-9 with no mods sounds better than this pedal. I bought this pedal to augment my Custom Vibrolux Reverb and my soon to be delivered 64 Vibroverb Custom. I play an American Vintage 62 Strat and I use George L's for cables. When I plugged into this pedal and turned it on, my sound went from this gorgeous "on the edge" Fender clean with a great punchy bass and pristine sparkling highs, to this god awful "crunchy" bass WITH ABOUT 40db OF THE ORIGINAL BASS CUT OFF, (this pedal is NOT supposed to do that but it does it BIG TIME!), and these DARK sounding highs with NO sparkle or shimmer what so ever. I had the tone knob turned all the way up and it was still VERY dark! Basically, all that was left were the mids, and even they sounded like crap. Without a doubt this is the most BOXY sounding pedal I have ever used. Pull pot for "Fat Harmonics" to sound like a certain California boutique amp? Robben Ford Tone? Dare we say the word Dumble? Well I'll tell you what. I owned a K&M Custom and a Two-Rock Opal, both designed after the aforementioned amp, and this pedal does not sound anything like THAT amp, or the clones that I owned. This pedal is JUNK! Plain and simple.

Looks well made, but I'm not going to play it anymore so frankly I don't really care.

Well let's see. Dave answered all my e-mails VERY promply when I was initially inquiring about this pedal and ultimatley ordering it, but now that I have sent him 2 e-mails about my concerns, and the possibility of getting the pedal "modded," I haven't heard a peep out of him in over a week.

Nice!!

If you like your ORIGINAL tone and want a pedal to augment that tone, ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE USING A BLACKFACE FENDER AMP, look elsewhere! Do not buy this pedal!! It will impose it's own BOXY tone over top of your tone, and it will make your original tone sound like crap. Editor's Pick in Guitar Player Magazine?? That's funny. No, actually that's very sad, because I know for a fact that I am not the only one that was sucked in by the hype of this pedal, and is now just as disapointed as I am.

I think you get the idea

First off let me say that I really like this pedal. I has great chord definition, can go from very mild OD to supersaturated distortion. Most of the sounds are great and are even better with the Fat Harmonics switch pulled out.

BUT!
The tone of this pedal is squarely in the TS9 camp. Now I'm comparing it to a TS9DX that I have. My TS9 is modded for more distortion, asymmetric clipping, more base and the 808 mod. So it is a good sounding pedal. But the thing that really ticks me off is that before I purchased this pedal I asked Barber and many others the same thing. How does it compair to the TS9 and 808. Not one person told me that this pedal is just a better TS9 or slightly better 808 (modded TS9).

If it sounds like I'm disapointed in the pedal, I'm not, I really do like this pedal. I like it more than my TS9DX, not by much mind you, its just a little better. I would never have made this purchase had I known what I know now.

Areas where the DD is better - or not
better harmonics but you really need to listen
sounds better in the mix for some reason
definitly is a smoother pedal
better string clarity
still has compression like my TS9
still has the mid hump like my TS9
same base as my TS9 but cleaner and smoother
same level of distortion as my TS9

Areas of concern,
The tone response is not that great, moving the tone control from 0 to full doesn't change the tone that much. With the drive at 0 the tone control does almost nothing at all. The tone control works better the more drive you apply. I read the same thing at Steelbender.com.

I will give this pedal a 10 as I feel it is a great pedal.

The over all construction and workmanship is very good. Some of the lettering is falling off already so I don't think it will stay on long.

This is a hand made pedal made in a small place, each one is hand assembled and signed by the builder.

Only a 9 because of the letters falling off the first time I used it!

Great, Dave answered my emails. They answer the phone. However you need to separate the hipe from the reality. So take some of what they say with a grain of salt.

I've been playing for over 20 years. I own Fender tube amps and Line6 PODs. The pedal works equally well through both using my Strat or my Godin.

This is a great value. If you don't own a TS9 I would pick the Direct Drive as the clear winner. If you do own a TS9 then I would pay someone or make the mods my self, thats what I did.

99 bucks for a pedal of this quality is a great deal. The TS9 is the same price right now. As stated the DD is a better pedal in every way to an unmodded TS9.

Only 3 knobs - all of which are self-explanatory. About as simple as you can make it.

I use this with a Fender Super Reverb RI and vintage Strats/Teles as well as a PRS Custom 24. For bigger halls, I'll substitute the SR with a 72 Marshall Mark II Plexi Super Lead (usually control with the guitar volume). As you can probably imagine, the latter combination can get REALLY loud !

I bought this pedal because I was looking for something that will fatten my Strats & Teles without destroying their natural sound (particularly the bridge pickups). I'm primarily a devotee of the Fender blackface amp tones but sometimes need the Marshall roar and I didn't want to have to lug the plexi around to get it. This pedal does that in spades ! The neck PU screams & soars while the bridge one is very full and tight (i.e. Hendrix-esque). I'm not a big humbucker user, but my PRS sings like a bird. I actually like this pedal so much, I don't use any other OD pedal on top of it like a lot of people do. Just a little bit of compression in front of it from his Tone Press compressor. It cleans up beautifully when you roll back your guitar's volume so you can get clean tones as needed. I run my SR volume at about 4 1/2 and the DD settings as follows:

Level: 11 o'clock.
Tone: 2 o'clock (pulled out for fat boost)
Drive: 1-2 o'clock

On the Marshall, I back the level & drive down to about 9 o'clock & 10 o'clock respectively.

I've been playing for 25 years and used a lot of the well-known OD pedals (Fulltone, VoodooLabs, Ibanez TS-9 and TS-808). The only one I still have is the VL which is a decent pedal. But the DD still wins out.

I've had it for 6 months and used it on about 2-3 dozen gigs in that time with NO problems. I pretty much leave it on all night. Seems pretty well-built. I have a second unit on order as a back-up so I guess that tells you my feelings on trying to play without one !

Based on my experience thus far, I'll give it a 10 for reliability.

I've had several conversations & emails with Dave and he always responds promptly & politely. Unlike a certain other pedal manufacturer in CA whose name is on his products, he never cops an attitude or makes you feel like you're wasting his time (even though I know things are just crazy for him). He's always been helpful and answered my questions patiently. The man obviously loves his work !

I play a combination of current & classic rock with the occasional blues/country tune. This pedal works well with all styles. Its very versatile and doesn't get in the way of the guitar's sound at all. The price speaks for itself so the value is terrific.

I hate to say I'll never need another OD pedal but if there's ever one I could feel that way about, this is it.

Executive Summary: Mediocre tone that doesn't live up to the hype.

Volume, drive and tone. The tone knob pulls out to change the sound.
Very simple platform.

I don't understand all the people who rave about this pedal. I've been playing for years and tried 'em all. The sound rating is a 9.7 (before this review), so somebody must be hearing something. I had high expectations. I plugged in a Paul with Rio Grande pickups and a late 70s Marshall. Hard to go wrong with that rig. Before I bought it, I called Barber Electronics and told them I wanted something to make the Les Paul stand out on solos. They told me that's what it would do.

No. The tone is a bit like playing your guitar through a telephone; it shaves off the bass and highs and leaves only the midrange. It sounds like cardboard. It makes the Paul and JMP Marshall sound cheap. It does have lots of dynamics, very little compression, but that's the only thing to like about it. Pulling up the tone pot makes it sound more transistory, particularly with chords. With the tone pot pulled out, fifths are gritchy and solid-state sounding. There's no real Texas Tone here as in early ZZ Top. True, it only costs $99 plus shipping, but there are Boss pedals that sound way better for even less money. Any quality Overdrive pedal, Fulldrive 2, Maxon OD-808, Carl Martin, etc. will dust the Direct Drive's britches. A TS-9 reissue sounds better. I hate to beat up on it, but it was a big disappointment.

There's a setting in the manual called "Tube Screamer Eater." Well, at this or any other setting, my 808 ate the Direct Drive. And a Fulldrive is in a whole 'nother orbit from this thing. It doesn't sound bad, just Mediocre. I would not use this pedal in front of an audience.

Construction appears to be on a par with Fulltone. There's a fiberglass circuit board stuck firmly to the case, a 3-pole switch for true-bypass with LED, excellent soldering, high quality pots and jacks. Probably last years.

They'll answer phone calls. They talked for a while about it with me. Too bad the pedal didn't live up to the claims.

Considering only the quality of build, this is the best thing out there for $111. It appears to be aimed at blues and rock players like me. The tone is not bad, it's just average, and there are cheaper pedals that sound better (Boss SD-1, for instance). I understand that it's half the cost of a Fulldrive, but ultimately, it's about tone, not saving a hundred bucks. It also puts out about half the tone of the Fulldrive, so I reckon you get what you pay for. I haven't heard any other Barber products, but I'm now skeptical. Pass on this one and save up for a Fulldrive, the new one with the flatmids/vintage switch.

Bottom Line: Well made, but tones are only average at best. I'll either trade it or send it back for a refund.

This is simplicity itself to use...the standard volume, tone, drive controls; pulling up on the tone control gets a thicker, juicier, more harmonically rich overdrive.

So far I've used a '67 and a newer Strat--one with a Seymour Duncan Little '59 humbucking pickup in the bridge--as well as a friend's Epiphone semi hollow body with humbuckers--played through a Fender Dual Showman Reverb head and a Bandmaster 2-12 horizontal bottom with Jensen re-issue C-12N speakers. (These speakers are superb, by the way.)

It is now my favorite distortion pedal by far, and I've owned a boatload...Mesa V-Twin (which I still have as it does great supersaturated lead sounds and is a versatile preamp), MXR Distortion+, MXR Distortion II (never liked that one), Boss OD-1, Tube Driver, Hughes and Kettner Cream Machine, Marshall Drivemaster, Univox Super Fuzz, Fender Blender, Mosrite Fuzz-Rite, Fuzz Face and others I can't remember.

The pedal, as others have remarked, is unusually quiet for a distortion pedal.

The pedal sounds superb, very "natural," smooth, even distortion with excellent response and dynamics--it keeps the initial attack of the guitar, unlike other pedals that squash the initial attack. This aspect alone makes it superior to many others I've tried.

It really is quite natural-sounding, as noted, as opposed to pedals that sound more "canned," fuzzy and artificial and seem to proclaim: "I'm a pedal! I sound fake!" (If you're a veteran player, I think you know what I mean.) Note: this natural quality comes through much more when the amp is turned up to a moderate or high, as opposed to a low, level.

I see that someone criticized its lack of bass response. I just don't hear this in my setup. Although, I tend not to like a heavy "thunk" in my lead sound...I turn the bass down to around "3" on my amp because I'd rather hear more midrange, and present, but not overbearing, highs.

I have gone through tons of pedals and this is by far the best sound I've gotten yet...this quality comes through on tape as well as live--easily heard. It really does sound extremely close to a good overdriven tube amp, but more controllable. The distortion cleans up nicely when you back off on the volume control, in both normal and "hot" (pull boost) mode--making it extremely useful for live performance--this is how I like to control my rhythm/lead volume and tone. Although I don't think any pedal is "perfect," I'm giving it a 10 because it does just what David Barber said it would...and it's exactly what I need in my rig!

This pedal also interacts extremely well with my other pedals (I mostly use an original Cry Baby wah, Boss CE-2 chorus, Digi-Tech Two Second Delay, Fuzz Face and Mesa Boogie V-Twin).

I've only had it about a month. I must note the beautiful build quality--the components are soldered like little jewels and the workmanship is impeccable. No opinion as to long-term reliability yet 'cause I haven't had it long enough, but I'm well familiar with electronics (having worked in the industry for decades) and it appears to me that this is a solid unit that should cause no problems. My only incredibly minor quibble is that the battery rattles around a bit inside the enclosure...I stuck a piece of foam in the inside next to the battery to keep it in place.

David Barber has been terrific to deal with every step of the way.

I mostly play classic rock. The pedal an excellent match for what I do, giving me a rich, classic overdrive tone that has excellent attack, harmonics, tone, sustain and an even decay.

I've been playing for 35+ years.

Other guitar gear includes: Les Paul, Tele and Martin hollow body electric guitars; Fender Princeton Reverb, Fender Bandmaster and a few funky garage sale amps; the pedals listed above plus others including an MXR Phase 90, MXR Dyna Comp, Boss PH-1R phaser, and more.

I would buy another in a second if it was lost.

What I love about it: the sound! There's nothing I dislike about it. Favorite feature: the sound!

I chose this pedal based on the recent review in Guitar Player and the positive comments on Harmony Central. Although I like the sound of my V-Twin, I was looking for an alternative, less compressed, more classic rock-type overdrive sound, and I took a chance on the Direct Drive without hearing it (something I'd never done before), based on the reviews and a conversation with David Barber. I was also considering products like the Tonebones, various Fulltones, the Maxon Distortion Master and the like. However, now that I've gotten the Direct Drive, I feel zero need to look any further and am more satisfied with my lead sound than I have been in literally decades. I think the Direct Drive is a genuine bargain at $99.

The one nice additional feature it could have, as others have noted, is a footswitch to engage the boosted harmonics mode, rather than the pull-up tone knob. However, as others have also noted, that would undoubtedly add to the price (probably significantly considering the high quality of the switch).

Both overdrive modes are so good on this pedal that my biggest "problem" has been trying to decide which setting I like better.

It most definitely helps me to make music. The sound is inspiring and makes me want to play more. That's what it's all about!