Barber Electronics Direct Drive

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!

1, 2, 3. Easy as pie. Instructive manual that gives good setting ideas.

Guitars: LP, ES-335, Strat. Amps: Fender Tweed, Marshall Silver Jubilee. Pedal is surprisingly quiet for this amount of distortion capability. Wide range of overdrive tones. Crunch, cream, sting, w/singing leads, even a nice clean-drive setting. Full bass and mids - very balanced pedal. Versatile beyond my expectation. Too good to be true. Marshall, Tweed OD, Dumble....what doesn't it do?!

Nicely built, inside and out. Solid. No stickers to peel off!

N/A Took 6 weeks to arrive. I feel lucky.

14 years playing experience - blues and blue-based rock. I prefer this pedal over all of my other overdrive pedals - that includes Fulldrive, Klon, Ibanez, Boss. My pedal board just got smaller by 3 pedals. What a value! While no pedal can do it all, this pedal does more for less. I wish it had 2 channels, but for $99, that's dreaming. Would replace in a heartbeat. Worth the wait.

Very easy. Three knobs, one of which is a push/pull. The "manual" was very helpful also

And now the bubble bursts...

;-)

I don't like it. I really expected something different when I bought it. To me, the Direct Drive sounds like a Tubescreamer with more gain and a "fat" switch. Not a crappy new Tubescreamer, but a Keeley.

This pedal, to my ears, sounds a *lot* like a keeley modded TS9 with perhaps about 15% more gain and a "fat" switch to allow you to get a more rounded sound.

The mids are emphasized. The tone control is very usuable and musical. There's plenty of volume to use as a clean boost, and the "fat" switch adds a nice roundness to the attack.

I don't like the bass response. I noticed the depth of my bass tones dissapeared w/ this pedal. I also don't like the emphasized mids.

If you're looking for a great TS type pedal w/ more versatility and less money than a boutique mod, this is your ticket.

Seems very reliable. The switching feels very sturdy and smooth as well.

They were very helpful on the phone when I placed the order. Though, the sound he described to me and what this pedal does aren't anywhere *near* close.

I've used a lot of ODs. This is a very good TSish unit if that's the sound you like. Honestly, I'd take this over the Keeley modded TS9 I used to have. Cheaper, better sound, and more versatility.

But, I hate the bass loss and mid hump.

My favorite OD so far is a Reverend Drivetrain. It adds grit, preserves your bass, and doesn't add any weird mid humps to your sound. Basically, it makes your guitar sound exactly like it did clean, only with grit.

I mentioned this to Barber when ordering the Direct Drive and asked how he would compare it to the Reverend. He said the Reverend was more of a TS clone and that the Direct Drive would preserve the bass sound better and not add a mid hump. It turns out to be the complete opposite!

It is easy to great sounds of this pedal, the Guitar Player review is right on the money when it comes to this pedal. I was able to get cool sounds with a variety of settings dialed in.

The tone is the best of any overdrive pedal I have played. The harmonics mode when you pull out the tone knob is great. Chords ring out smooth and clear at high drive settings. It can get really punchy if you want it to. A wide variety of top-quality overdriven sounds, it killed with a Fender Princeton, THD UniValve, and Fender Hot Rod DeVille 4x10. Nice as a clean boost, mild boost, medium OD, heavy OD, very versatile with the spectrum of Overdriven guitar sound. Hi-Fi sound.

I smiled when I opened it, the build quality is top-notch. Very nicely done. Boutique quality at a reasonable price.

Don't know.

This is the best overdrive I've played, doesn't get any better than this in my experience. Outstanding. Better overdrive sound and more versatile than any TS9 variation I've come across. This pedal totally kills.

it took no time at all to get a great tone, very straight forward pedal.

sound quality is fantastic,I play a PRS(ce-22)guitar through a fender deluxe reverb 22watt tube amp. I've tried fulltone fulldrive 2,boss o.d.-3,marshall overdrive 2,Ibanez Is-9. I ended up selling all of them.

only had it a short time but , have heard good things about it.

E-mailed dave 2 times with questions and he got right back with me.

what a deal at this price !!!! the only thing that would make it better would be if he sold a dual direct drive pedal so you could have 2 different settings set up,but i would excpect the price to go up as well, with something like that.

this is one of the easiest plug n play pedals ive ever owned. about the only thing that is not obvious is the pull-tone switch to add harmonics...this is in the manual.The manual is simple with some sample settings...but one word of advice...play with it youself! you will find your "tone" no problem!!

ok, i know harmony central says it will not print glowing reviews....well sorry folks at HC; this is the real deal. I could get into detail about my setup and everything, but ive only played this pedal for one hour through the clean channel of a cheapo 15 watt crate with my washburn p2(not my best guitar by any means...i have prs and ernie balls). the second i clicked this on, i started playing "steppin out". the setting that happened to be on it at the time had that same combo sound as clapton on the blues breakers album!!! on this little piece of crap crate nonetheless. i have been playing for eighteen years and this little one hour test has me sold.cant wait to throw this in my regular rig of an ada preamp into a power amp into two cabinets. I mean the versatility!!!! this does sound great straight in clean channel....with a little dirt on the front of the amp it sounds stellar!!!!(did i mention this was a little 15 watt crate???!!!)sounds surprisingly tube-ey...if all of these so called amp"modelers" used this tone as their base tone, they would all sound immensely better. digitech?? you should give dave a call!!! line 6? the same. barber is definitely on to something here.i whack out a chord and its balls out!! and i hear every note in the chord!! i can even play the infamous E7#9 hendrix chord with exceptional clarity! after this short test i can already attest that clapton(vintage),reverend billy g,and eric johnson(add alittle echo, which i did on the crate, forcing me into a few bars of cliffs of dover)among others are living somewhere in this box. anyone who cant find a tone should find their own in their fingers before plugging into any amplifier.im kicking the tubescreamer out of the pedalboard!!

built pretty rugged...ive only had it for a day. i have to vote no opinion

i dealt with dave checking the status of my order.I ended up in a 10-15 conversation about his company(which i initiated) he dealt all of my questions in a very friendly manner even though he is a busy man "he's getting swamped!" if this is any indication how he behaves with customer problems i would give it a 10 but i cannot respond with a rating at this time honestly...i will update this in the future as needed.They have a great website though where he shows you how to "mod" the pedal with minor soldering or op-amp changes....how may companies encourage you to tinker with the product? this is awesome!!!

i play modern rock, classic rock, some metal, jazz, you name it i play it(and yes i think you could play metal with this pedal also...maybe not the oversaturated mud you hear on the radio. but you could definitely play ozzy)...ive been playing for 18 years..if this were stolen or lost i would order three more from dave so i wouldnt have as long a wait if it happened again!!!. theres just one minor nitpick i have though; there is no easily accessible battery compatment...you have to pull all four screws off...again this is just a nitpick....AT THE PRICE THIS IS A HUUUUUUUUUUGGEEEEEE VALUE!

Very easy. Comes with a nice one page manual with some sample settings.

My setup: Heritage 150CM w/Duncan Antiquities, Barber Direct Drive, Fulltone Fat Boost, Holy Grail Reverb into a modifed Marshall JTM45 reissue with KT66's. This pedal is VERY quiet, noiseless switching. The effect is very amp like, it just seems to blend right in with my existing tone and add some more "brown" to the sound. I can definitely obtain the sounds that I desire with this pedal. Tones like Duane, Billy Gibbons, Early Clapton, even some smooth BB King or Mike Bloomfield tones are possible with this magic little box. The greatest thing is that it doesn't suck tone when its turned off, thanks to true bypass

I think so. This is however my second Direct Drive, my first one mysteriously "died" when I loned it to a friend for a blues gig. He stepped on the switch and nothing came on. However Dave Barber to the rescue. I really think my first one could've just had a bad switch or some other small fault, no problems at all with the second one, hey any product out there will have one bad apple.

I dealt with David after my first Direct Drive died, and he was very apologetic and ask me to describe the problem, he said if you have a good tech to take it to him and have him check the switch, so I did. Steve, my tech, said the switch was fine, so I called Dave back. Dave told me to send the pedal back to the dealer, Wildwood Guitars and he would send me a replacement pedal in the mail Priority Express at no charge to me. 2 Days later I had a brand new Direct Drive. Dave and Wildwood were a pleasure to do business with, and Dave actually pulled someone else's Direct Drive just so I could have a replacement in a hurry. So if I have any other problems in the future, I know Dave will provide assistance, as he stands by his products 100%. Great customer service!

I primarily play blues, and this pedal has really taken my tone to new levels. I really owe a lot of tone to how the Barber Direct Drive and JTM45 react with each other, they are incredibly dynamic. I love the fact that this pedal reacts like an amplifier in the fact that it responds to your pick attack. I compared this to my other overdrives (Route 66, TS9 modded, old DOD 250, Marshall Bluesbreaker, Boss Bluesdriver) and I ended up selling them all, as this thing covered all that they do. My ONLY complaint is that I wished the boost function was a button instead of a push pull knob, but hey for $99+ shipping and the kind of customer service that Dave provides, this pedal is a steal and I'll deal with the push pull knob.

three knobs. it took me less than a minute to find the sound i was looking for.

i am using this with an '89 strat or an '89 tele w/bardens into a RI marshall super lead 100 (plexi) with 4 greenbacks. i set the amp pretty dirty, a fair amount of amp overdrive on my clean sound. this pedal is silent. i use it to push the amp and it's amazing. i'm ritchie blackmore. articulate, round, responsive...it doesn't play like a pedal.my favorite part is my tone doesn't change when i turn it on. the bass is even, the mids don't bark, and the treble doesn't screech. it's like plugging into a hotter amp.

i have no backup for this pedal. i have an early one and i've been using it for months with no problems. it had a drink spilled on it once. built like a tank.

dave went out of his way to accomodate me. very friendly, very very helpful.

if this were stolen of lost i would definitely replace it. i use this and dave's new compressor pedal the tone press and that's it. this pedal has become very important to me. and the price? please...

Simple. 3 knobs with a push-pull tone knob for extra midrange.

Les Paul Jr. & Tele thru a Matchless Spitfire. Very quiet, noiseless switching. I barely ever turn the Drive control past the minimum as I'm just looking for a little extra crunch from an overdrive pedal. At this setting, it does a wonderful job of giving the Matchless the illusion of sounding louder without actually being louder. None of the cheesy sounding fuzziness that a TS9 gives. I was surprised at how well this pedal fattened my thin-sounding MIM Tele - it brought it to near-humbucker thickness. I haven't tried it live, but I expect it to sound great. I was able to A/B it with a VooDoo Labs Sparkle Drive (also a great pedal), and it was a much thicker, meatier, more natural and less fuzzy overdrive.

Very Sturdy.

I asked if it would be ready by the New Year. David emailed back the same day and said he'd try his best. It arrived 16 days early! Nice guy, fine product.

Definitely the most useful overdrive I've ever owned. I really still do like the Sparkle Drive, but the Direct Drive has that extra midrange that really pushes an amp nicely, and I think it will prove to be a better pedal for live use for my purposes.

Easy. Every setting works wonders. Manual is right on target.

Fender, Carr and Marshall amps. Fender, McInturff and Baker guitars. Very noise-free pedal, transparent, tru-bypass. Effects the DD is capable of are: Marshall classic, OD Fender-style, tube scream and, yes, RF. Just a great way to overdrive w/out too much distortion.

Ten so far.

The customer service world needs to study this guy and clone him.

I play classic rock, blues and fusion. This pedal is ideal for each of these styles and more.

Been playing for 16 years. Own Fulltone, Teese, Z-Vex, RX, Voodoo Labs, Line 6, Arbiter, Ibanez, and Barber effects.

Would seek immediate replacement if L or S.

Just bought it based on reviews. They were right - and so was the price!

Great sounds right out of the box. Barber's manual gives some sample settings which are fine for starters.

Into a Rivera R-55 this is the quietest overdrive unit I've ever heard. I use this with the tone control pulled out, and don't find much difference in gain from the 3/4s to full on gain settings. Very clean and articulate, and cuts through very well in the mix. Humbuckers sing and snarl, and strat type guitars get a little more of a Hendrixy kind of vibe. Maintains the guitar's character very well.

Appears very reliable, but then again I'm VERY gentle with my gear.n

In a previous encounter, purchasing a used 4 knob Burn Unit, Barber returned an email within an hour. On a Saturday.

Cover tunes and very occasional jazz fusion.I've been playing for 30 years now and have owned dozens of overdrive units; I also used amp only distortion for over a decade with a Mesa Mark III and a Budda Super Drive. Right now I also have a pair of Fulldrive IIs and a Reverend Drivetrain, along with a DOD 250, Morley JD10, and a mid '80s Rat. If this were stolen or lost I'd replace. Barber is working on some sort of 2 switch upgrade, so this may easily challenge the Fulldrive as a great two channel distortion once that happens. Right now in conjunction with the Drivetrain I can do anything I can with the Fulldrive. The Barber is clearer and more articulate than the FDII, far better than the Zinky True Grit. Far more natural sounding than the Bixonic pedals, far higher gain than the Mr Ed. If I'd been more patient I would have waited for the two button version, but this is fine. A very civilized pedal.

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.