Barber Electronics LTD

Very easy, Just set all knobs half way, 12 o'clock then worh from the there, i found it very easy, much easier then most boss pedals.

Great it works very well for mild overdrive such as in blues and pop music, also i found the clean overdrive brilliant for adding sparkle and presence to your sound such as in Metallica Nothing else matters this is great to just leave on and let ring with a chorus pedal

But i mainly use this pedal to help bring out my distortion, contery to popular believes this pedal is great for metal, when ever i'm playing a song thast all distortion, i leave this on my settings are
Volume 11 o'clock - Tone 12 O'clock - Drive 12 o'clock

These settings are great for helping pitch harmonics ring out perfectly and helps with notes sustain especially if you have to use a noise gate in you're chain like me

N/A but Barber are renound for being great

A brilliant pedal for all the reasons i listed in the Sound quility box

I was the last reviewer so let me give this pedal a follow up.

Let me start by saying that I was wrong about the LP and humbucker equipped gtrs in general - the LTD is remarkable with all my gtrs, Strats, Teles, and LPs, plus various frankenstein gtrs, too.

I am even more impressed with this pedal today than when I did the last review.

It is a very 'clear' sounding overdrive pedal. How can this be? I don't have the answer to this question. Also, I said before, I am a very big fan of the 808 and have a very good sounding one. This having been said, in the short time since my last review, if given a choice for one or the other, hands down I would take the LTD.

It has such great cut, and yet it makes the gtr sing. Also, contrary to my last review, easily, the humbuckers sing more readily than the single coil equipped Strats, but it took a while for me to figure this out. Idiota.

It has to be an amp/pedal/gtr/player combination, of course, to get good tone, but this pedal is something else.

If I had to say such a thing, I would say that with the 808 and a Strat - given the right amp, amp volume, and a relatively bright sounding Strat - you couldn't go wrong. Still, taking the same amp, the same volume, the same bright sounding Strat, and the LTD, you would have something similar but a little different. Still good sustaing tone, but just clearer somehow.

OK, I guess you need to play one to see what I mean.

This pedal will last, I am convinced of it. However, after such a short time, this is still an opinion.

Still no desire to contact this company - except maybe to tell them they did a great job with this pedal.

OK, the easy part. Buy this pedal if you like a very natural sounding overdriven amp with singing sustain and great bloom. This pedal is unique and remarkable.

In simple terms, it sounds and behaves like a 'cleaned up' 808. IF you ever played an 808 and thought it was too nasily or too dark, this pedal is the end of the rainbow.

Mine is the black unit, FWIW. Straight ahead control features, three knobs like an 808.

Well, hang with me here. I think this is really great for a Strat, but I did give it a go with my LP. Both gtrs have Fralin pups. My real deal 808 works better for my LP, which actually seems kind of strange when you think about it, the 808 being a bit honky and my LP being the same.

But this is what I hear over here, I can't explain it. I ran only one amp with it, my modded SR with two Jensen C10Qs and two CTS 10s. It is fairly 'real deal' BF, but running EL34s which are less midrange than 6L6s.

Oddly enough, I had tried another LTD before, a friend's, and actually enjoyed it more with Class A circuits. But today I bought one and tried it with my SR. I was knocked out by it with my Strat.

I also run a Mojovibe, and FWIW, the LTD sounds way better in front of it than the 808. Go figure.

Well, as to the subject at hand, this pedal is very quiet. The build is totally first rate, with high quality poly caps and carbon comp resistors. It is a work of art, actually. Where you really notice the difference between it and the 808 sonically, is above the 12th fret. It has a great clarity to it that the 808 does not have, singing the notes like an opera soprano. Sweet stuff.

I just received it today, not idea. I can tell you it has less moving parts/circuitry than my 808 which keeps on working. I'm not worried about it.

Never talked or emailed the company. Frankly, I hope I meet the designer someday to tell him first hand what a great job he has done here. I really wasn't looking for another distortion pedal, I was very happy with the 808.

This is a unique and great pedal. I have a few amps, seven, and they all offer up a piece of the sonic pie. I have yet to run it down using the other amps as yet, but I did try my friend's briefly on a few of them a month ago. Hey, I started today with the SR because it is my main gig amp, and I also thought I would be disappointed. Well, I wasn't. The other amps are: tweed Champ, tweed Deluxe, tweed Super, tweed Bassman, 59 Silvertone Medalist, BJr, and my SR. I honestly think this pedal will make me a better gtr player. Why? Because it doesn't color the gtr as much as my 808. It will help me cut but keep my gtr tone in the open. Nuff said.

I won't lose the 808, no, but I won't lose this LTD either. The other distortion pedals I have played don't even compare and I have tried many. This was a total surprise, if my friend hadn't brought one over I would have completely missed it. Thank God for friends, I guess, eh?

Mine?s the new Silver LTD. Very straight forward drive stomper. Once you have the internal trims set to your liking inside, you just have the usual three knob layout of most overdrive boxes. The tone control works slightly differently than usual overdrives but in a very good way?for a start it actually does something constructive?from the twelve o?clock position (flat EQ) - turning it clockwise cuts bass and adds treble and turning it anti-clockwise cuts treble and adds bottom end ? very useful. The internal trims are very powerful tone shapers and you need to be careful to set them to match your guitar and amp at full and proper gigging volumes, then close it up and enjoy the ride.

I?ve said it before in a review for the direct drive and the same holds for this one?these barber pedals work like part of your amp and not at all like a pedal?sounds like an extra channel, retaining the character and feel of the original amp and guitar combination just adding power, articulation and break-up.

Now my working rig goes like this, ?72 Thinline Telecaster (Wide range humbuckers) and a ?69 Thinline Telecaster (Single coils), Crybaby Wah, Boss TU-2 Tuner, Silver LTD, Direct Drive, Ibanez TS-9, Marshall Vibratrem (Tremolo), Boss DD-3 delay, Electro Harmonix Holy Grail (Reverb) into Vox AC30tb.

As you would expect from any quality overdrive device, it is very, very responsive to your attack and is hugely dynamic?from lush cleans to a snarling growl just by your own attack on the guitar ? fantastic for rhythmic phrasing along with vocals.

I used to use a Boss BD-2 for this ?amp just breaking up? sound but always felt robbed of sustain and real tube amp like clipping. Using the old technique of shoehorning a higher gain device like the BD-2 or TS-9 to the first third or so of its drive range only works to a degree because at that drive range you wont get enough sustain and the pedal doesn?t dish up its full tone until the gain is at about half or so, and by then you are gone past the drive level you wanted. Plus the BD-2?s clipping was awful anyway ? it had great volume, decent tone but really shitty drive clipping?fizzy bastard!!!

This little beauty has the clean to dirty tube transition all wrapped up across the entire range of its drive pot and thus allows you to pin point accurately the exact break-up and feel point that you have been hearing in your head for years but just couldn?t quite find unless you cranked your old Class A, non master volume tube amp to volume levels that even the drummer gives out about!!!

Built like a tank. Strong durable case like the Direct Drive and insides like a beautifully oiled Rolls Royce. Plus that Silver Hammertone paint job looks great beside the Direct Drive. Don?t foresee any problems and I know David Barber will look after me if I need him to sort anything out. The pedal is as solid as a house though?wont need him. (Famous last words!!!)

Like I said, David Barber is very good to deal with customers and their queries. He has answered a lot of my questions and queries with rapid responses. I know he offers to fix any problems or mod pedals if you call upon him. Very good customer support. You can talk to him by posting on www.tpngear.com/forum if you have queries.

By far the best OD device for a low gain application. Brings a good tube amp to its knees. Very natural and organic sound of tubes just starting to jangle into drive territory and a little beyond. The only thing that pips this unit is when I turn up my Vox AC30tb to just over three quarters, now that?s the sound of my dreams but at that volume I am completely drowning out my bandmates and damaging my ears, plus there is no way any sound engineer will handle that kind of sonic mayhem from the backline on stage.
This pedal however gets me far closer to that feel and sound than any other stomper I have ever tried or ever heard used?fantastic!!!
Now the issue ?Classic or Silver LTD?, well the Silver LTD has a slightly more scooped EQ (very slightly), so if your amp has enough character in the midrange like my Vox AC30tb then the Silver is the way to go, but if your amp EQ is very scooped already then the Classic black LTD may be a better option to add some slight midrange to your EQ to keep your head above the water in a band situation. Overall, these Barber pedals are easily top of the pile.

This pedal was very simple to use. With just three knobs, anyone could get a good tone out of it.

I do recommend buying another overdrive to work in conjunction with this pedal though. I use a TS-808 re-issue along with the LTD. I have a fulltone wah in the front and an MXR 10 Band EQ in the back.

I play on a variety of strats and a les paul with an early '70s Fender Bassman 50.

My setup isn't that noisy but there is a slight hum proabably from using two overdrives together.

I can get a good Kenny Wayne Shepherd/Walter Trout/SRV/Gibbons Type Tone.

I do have to put this down, IF YOUR'RE A STRAT PLAYER BUY MOJO PICKS OFF EBAY!!! They increase sustain, add more clarity to your sound, and are completely bitchin' for lead work.

I bought this pedal off ebay, so I've never dealt the builder.

This pedal is an Overdrive, not too much distortion but enough to add grit to your sound. Every Blues player should have this pedal, it adds sustain, gives you a great base tone to work from, and a must have pedal.

If it were lost or stolen, I would definently buy again, direct from barber electronics this time.

It's so easy, I'm unloading my other distortion pedals. It has the usual three knobs - volume, tone, and drive - but all three sound good just about everywhere. The volume adds the presence and clarity I've only found in a clean boost pedal, and the drive adds sustain and overtones with less of the harshness and tone masking most other drive knobs are guilty of.

But the big surprise is the tone knob. Instead of just rolling off treble or bass, it simultaneously rolls one up as it rolls the other down. The result is a clear, balanced tone at every setting.

It has some internal trim pots I haven't tried yet, because as-is it's good for my Strat (ultra-light alder, rosewood board, Fralin Vintage Hots, Callaham vintage-style whammy bridge). My big complaint about the guitar had been it's seemingly incurable muddy low strings - but the LTD has given them clarity and chime without making the trebles shrill.

The LTD is kind of harsh on my Teles, but that seems to be what the internal trims are for.

The manual is short and sweet - there's not much to using this thing.

No pedal suits everyone. But if you dig blues and roots music but don't plan to shell out bookoo bucks for a booteek amp, this is the ticket.

Mostly using it with my parts Strat - makes it sound BIG, 3D, lush, articulate.

There's a small amount of noise - but compared to other distortion/overdrive boxes I've used, it's negligible.

As I said above, it's easy to dial up great sounds. The LTD is just a mass of sweet spots. I've been running it through a slightly modded reissue Vibroverb. I don't strive to sound like anyone else in particular - just like sounding good on my own terms.

I have a couple of (much more expensive) distortion boxes that have turned out to be way too aggressive for me.

I mostly play straight-to-amp and have been looking for a distortion/overdrive pedal that has a genuinely amp-like sound. This is as good as I've found.

My bet is that if, you want to sound like classic metal, fusion, or modern rock, the LTD won't get you beyond beyond. But if, like me, you enjoy fat Chicago/Memphis/Texas sounds, the LTD will bring it on home.

Like all booteek effects, built to battlefield specs. Don't think I'll need or want a backup. Haven't gigged it yet.

I mainly play blues, country, folk, and jam - American idiom-type stuff. Not a pro, but do gig occasionally. Been playing since around '68. If it were stolen, I'd get another.

The other distortion/overdrive stompboxes I've owned are the Ibanez TS-10, Bennett Brown Sound, and Hao Rumble Mod. I've played a few others. All are okay in their ways, but as an essentially clean player, they don't suit my purposes - they all have a very wide gain sweep, but these offer only a few sweet spots - I could practically glue the knobs in place.

But paradoxically, by having a narrowly limited (LTD) gain range, the LTD's knobs all function in a useful zone, making the box infinitely tweakable, with rich tones everywhere.

Very easy to use. Volume, tone, drive. Pretty self explanatory.

Quite simply the most useful overdrive pedal I've ever tried. Low gain, you won't get metal tones out of it but if you want just a little break-up that you can roll back with your guitar volume control, this will do it. It also adds some mid-range and attack in tandem with other distortion boxes that might be a little mushy on their own. I've used it with Top Hat, Marshall, Boogie and Dr.Z amps and all sorts of guitars. It always sounds good and is always the most used pedal on my board. I'm giving it a 9 because it still doesn't measure up to a cranked tube amp.

I've had it for over a year and have had no problem. I think you'd really have to work at hurting this pedal.

Haven't needed it but they have a great reputation.

I only use this pedal live, not in the studio but I'm sure it would be useful in the studio. I play primarily blues, country and 60's rock. If the Barber LTD was lost or stolen I'd have to replace it. I've been playing guitar for 40 years, I'm a session player and I've accumulated more gear than I can mention. This pedal worked it's way onto my pedal board and has stayed there. The cream floats to the top.

After adjusting the two internal trim pots, it's a snap to use.

This pedal sits in my pedal chain after my other overdrive/distortion units. It's great at giving my other units a little more "oomph." It's also a wonderfull light O/D by itself. I was telling my wife (she's the bass player in my band) the other day that I keep falling more in love with this pedal every time I turn it on. It reacts so well to pick attack, and your style of playing. I can get a nice bluesy sound, a good mild rock sound, or a nice "over the top" sound but at lower volumes, all without changing any of the settings. It's all about how you dig in to the strings. An absolute gem of an overdrive pedal.

Being that I leave my pedalboard stationary at my church most of the time, I would never worry about this thing being abused to the point of breaking; however, I would have no reservations about taking this thing on the road.

I asked some relatively strange questions abou the pedal, and I got a prompt reply.

I play primarily rock style music at my church. We are essentially a rock band that happens to lead worship at a church.

My Rig (currently) consists of a '95 PRS CE-22 maple, Homebrew CPR (compressor), Boss V-Wah, Fulltone Ultimate Octave, Fulltone Full-Drive 2, ProCo vintage Rat, Barber LTD, Mesa Boogie Trem-O-Verb, Homebrew Tramp, T. Miranda Rotor-Phase, Boss DD-3, Boss DM-2.

I bought this pedal becauase I really wanted a low gain overdrive. This was the only pedal I could find that said it was specifically designed as a low gain OD, so I gave it a try. As soon as I turned it on, I was in love, and I can't go a full set without using it at least twice. I would replace this thing immediately if it were ever lost or stolen. It's quite thi inspirational pedal. Great to turn on just for the fun of it, to see what happens.

it is simply impossible not to get a good result with the LTD. maybe if one forget's to put a battery or does not connetc it to external power? ..even then ... with the (real)bypass there is still sound ;-))

the hard thing is, this pedal does not have a 'sweet spot' it is a 'sweet spot' on its own ...there are so many combinations giving a perfect result.... maybe somebody prefers a 'one trick pony'??

I did own two 'Barber 'Tone Press' wich made me think, that if someone builds such a neutral, natural great sounding pedal, they must have more for me...so oredered one from the US and they are just right.....another perfect sounding pedal

maybe something to my equipment. I do play what someone might call 'silent recording'. the main soundsource is a Groove Tube soul-o-75 (actualla two of them) with loadbox (Koch LB120) and H&K Redbox Pro (a class on its own as whell).Then via a TC M1 and some DI i play direct to the PA and at home direct on my Mixer.
This leaves all the sound's (mostly Clean or a bit fatened with some overdrive)under my control and most of the time i do have almost a similar live sound.

The downside is (was) my leadsound with many compromises because 'silent recording' does show to much ugly sometimes harsh overtones. ...now i get to the point...this is history with that pedal in the chain.It is distorting the sound without distroting it...mhh... and having a fultone FD for lead sound it even makse the FD sound betther then with any OD in front of it.

I have a Klon, original 808 and on and on...they are all great. But this thing makes my live much easyer. I have seen descriptions that is was 808 like in it's effect, that is of course not the cas. BUT it replaces in my case the usage of he 808 because it hase a different dynamic range and the a different tonal range. the 808 is a bit on the nasal side, whilst the LTD is keeping so much of the original sound of the guitar.

i would buy 3 LTD's (or maybe it would be time to get other pedals of Barber, instead of a used $$$ 808, if i would have to start from scratch. simply because i get more AAA+ possibilities out of this box.

(this is not a stament against a 808 ... and i am full of respect for the people who deigned it xx years ago.

I will depend on it! to a certain extent...it is after all just a pedal..

Would you use it on a gig without a backup? yes i would ...it is after all just a pedal..

but i tend to have backups of almost all affordable parts

I do not have a backup on the 808 and the KLON

The manual is a basically A4 Paper and not very rich. also the BArber Homepage could offer a bit more information. But reffering to the chapter 'Ease of Use'

One thing: They offer them online on theyre HP ...but you can get them cheaper on from Music Toys, wich is a bit od??

a lot of clean or cleanish sound's 85% of the time playing

and therefor it is the pefect match. our singer just tild me, that he loves my new smooth and still very present sound.

you will find the band under www.uriginal.ch

It has 3 knobs. Easy to use but many tones when combined with your amp controls, guitar pickups and other pedals etc.

I had never had a Barber product before but always heard
good things about them. Go to their web site, they have sound files that give you an excellent idea of what this pedal does and sounds like. This pedal loves my Twin Reverb Reissue. I have a Klon, Landgraff, original 808 and on and on. But this thing makes the TR sing. I use the regular TR voice for clean and the LTD for overdrive. that's OVERDRIVE not distortion. I have seen descriptions that is was 808 like in it's effect, it is much better and Cleaner than any 808 I've heard. For what I was looking for with my Twin this pedal nails it. Iusually use an Analogman Mini Bicomp in front to squeeze that orange just a little bit more. I told Barber, for what I had paid for the above mentioned very over priced pedals, his was too cheap.

so far.

THEY WILL TALK TO YOU ON THE PHONE! IMAGINE

se blah above

Pretty straightforward to use but allowing you options at the same time (Bass and Presence internal trim pots). Removing the 4 screws is not that much of a hardship to get at the internal pots, and once you find a setting you like, you can "set 'em and forget 'em."

External controls: Volume, Tone Drive, on/off switch LED status light, 9v external jack (also able to run @18v). The main controls are effective and were useful through their entire ranges.

The short manual was to the point and easy to follow and gave a few tonal suggestons.

Seems more about the playing than the tweaking.

Effects chain (drive section): Marshall ED-1 Edward Compressor=> Barber Tone Press=> PedalworX Tour Pro Toggle=> Barber Direct Drive SS=> Barber LTD=> ZVEX SHO (borrowed from my other pedalboard)=> Ernie Ball Volume Pedal. Monster Rock cables and connectors. Used mostly with a Brian Moore i21 (Duncan Alnico II Pro neck/Pearly Gates bridge). Running through a Pod, Fender Stage 112SE, (at local studio): Roland JC120, Fender Roc Pro head/Marshall JCM 900 4x12 cab, silverface Bandmaster head/Mesa Boogie 2x12 cab.

With the DRIVE knob maxed, the distortion is on the lower side of medium (which is how this pedal is advertised). I replaced the DRIVE knob with an MXR knob to allow me to adjust the level with my foot. Running the pedal in front of things, it can easily boost your ovrdrive or your amp for soloing. I tend to use ther LTD in the same fashion as I use the FatBoost on my other pedalboard, as a "just that side of breakup" pedal into a clean amp, set at just above unity gain or line level. For "fat clean" playing, I engage the LTD and boost the signal with the SHO clean boost.

The LTD is a quiet pedal on it's own. When run in combination with the DDSS and the Tone Press, the cumulative noise floor begins to come up a bit as both the LTD and DDSS compress the signal just a bit (the DDSS just a bit more). The Fat Boost has even less compression and is just a bit more "open" than the LTD That said, the LTD on its own does retain nice dynamics and cleans up nicely when the guitar volume is rolled off a bit. The slight compression seems to even out the breakup just a bit without squashing dynamics. Running the pedal at 12.5v (Voodoo Labs Pedal Power 2 power supply) opens up the LTD just a bit more.

The FatBoost also has a larger bottom end than the LTD (even with it's bass trim pot maxed out) which should be a plus for those of you who find the FatBoost a bit too dark). The LTD can just about match the character and warmth of the FatBoost's upper end, high mid thickness by adjusting the tone knob and internal PRESENCE trim pot. I keep both trim pots wide open and can still darken things up nicely with the external tone pot just fine. Note that the tone control boosts the high end and de emphasises the bass a bit once you go past 12:00, and the reverse when the tone control is set before 12:00.

Rather than trying to match the FatBoost tone for tone, I went with what I heard as the pedal's strengths. With these settings, ONE: 2:00, DRIVE: 9:00 (internal pots maxed out) the LTD gives me a rather "transparent" tone with just a slight layer of warmth to the upper mids and a nice balanced bottom end that never get's overpowering. The character of the pickups always come through, and pick and finger dynamics are expressive. With the Tone Press engaged, I've got just enough gain boost and sustain to allow me to still control things from the volume control from clear crisp rhythm to soloing with good compression and light breakup, still with some pretty surprising dynamics depending upon pick pressure. Tonewise, (bridgepickup) it is definitely in the vein of Robben Ford/Larry Carlton. With the just the LTD and both compressors on, you get a "searing" lead with slight breakup, definitely an addictive sound!

Adding the Direct Drive SS (before the LTD in the signal chain), (also set up to be pretty transparent and with lower medium gain, just above line level) The LTD added both a bit of warmth to the DDSS as well as some aggressiveness to the breakup. Because all three pedals add some compression (Tone Press being a compressor), the accumulated sustain at playing volume is always present and very controlable.

The LTD and Tour Pro Toggle (set to no compression, medium gain, just above line level, tone at 3:00) is another winning sound. The LTD smooths out the TPT just a bit and the TPT adds highly dynamic breakup. The 2 tones are ve

Looks rock solid, all controls are nice and tight. I'm not worried. Expect it to last years.

Dave Barber answered my emails within 24 hours. Very pleasant to deal with and very accomodating. He explained a bit of how he designed the pedal and offered to modify it for me if I wanted.

I play just about every style, going on 30, 32 years, and this pedal seems to be able to fit in almost anywhere. Great for blues (I mean really good), even as a thickener for jazz or country. It makes a nice booster for rock as well, but is definitely not a high gain pedal.

This is definitely the type of pedal you can take with you if you want to throw just one into your gig bag. I love it's tone and it's versatility and really can't thnk of anythng I would change, finally understanding this pedal a little better with time. Had it for about 2 weeks and took into the studio and ended up using it on almost everything.

If lost or stolen, I'd definitely buy it again.

THough they migt not be everybody's "cup-o-tea," I think the LTD, DDSS, and Tone Press make a very versatile combination, and the LTD and the Tone Press should probably be "joined at the hip" or combined in one box, they work so well together, and the price should make a lot of people look twice.

Start with the level set at parity (roughly 9 o'clock for my rig), and the tone and drive set between noon and 1 o'clock. You should be able to find a sweet spot very quickly that will make you want to keep this one on all the time. Simply unbelievable how simple it is. If you really to tweak it perfectly, there are two trimpots inside, one each for bass and presence. I set the bass at half and the presence about 3/4. The result is nearly beyond words when it comes to emulating the old tweeds and blackfaces.

They might just as well have called this "Blackface In A Box". It's THAT good. I leave mine on nearly all the time, and use it as my fundamental tone over which all the other effects do their thing. Sometimes I run it last so I can really emulate running into a wide-open blackface Princeton. My chain currently comprises a 1982 '57 Vintage RI Strat or a late '70s L.P. Custom -> Budda Wah -> Mini-vibe -> Fulldrive II -> Boss CE-2 & PH-1r (on a Loooper A/B loop-switching true bypass unit) -> Ernie Ball volume -> E-H Deluxe Memory Man -> Barber LTD -> a pair of modded Carvin Vintage 33s running Sovtek 5751s in the preamp and JJ EL84s in the power section. Detune the strat and go straight through the LTD into any big, clean 2x12 combo for an amazing SRV tone; put it in front of your OD for an amazing sweetness with real string clarity on more complex chords. The difference is so clear yet subtle. You can set it for minimal tone coloration, or crank up the trimpots and tone control for a nice, mild midrange hump like some of the smaller old Fender combos. I could go on and on about how impressed I am with this gem.

Superb craftsmanship throughout. I wouldn't even worry about the footswitch that much (but I always end up carrying a spare switch or two in my gig bag anyway, just out of habit). With this unit, though, I wouldn't hesitate to gig without a backup. Very, very low battery usage too.

Bought used, though have had no problems yet. I don't anticipate any, but if the experience of others is any indication, getting real help if I ever need it should be a snap.

If you have any interest at all in getting a vintage tone pedal, even for just PART of your overall sonic arsenal, don't think twice about where to look for the right box to deliver the goods. If you really dig vintage tones you'll likely end up (like me) leaving this thing on virtually all the time. The Barber LTD is truly an amazing value for the price they're asking ($99 direct from Barber)...

I could go on and on and on and on....

Extremely easy to use - no manual required.

This is a superb overdrive that does precisely what it sez it'll do: offer a smooth, transparent boost that will not color the guitar tone and will allow the notes in chords to be clearly heard. It's dead quiet. I use it with a variety of small tube amps - 16 watt Winfield Harvard/EL84/15" Weber, 14 watt MMB/6V6/12" Weber, 5 watt B1uesboy/6V6/10" Weber - and feed it a variety of single coil and humbucker pickups. It stays on all the time and it works perfectly for fingerstyle jazz, bluez, pop, R&B. The LTD offers a range of boost from clean to buttery smooth "hair" to nasty bluez "grit", and it has true bypass.

Built like a Sherman tank, superb craftsmanship - one tough pedal.

N/A

Though I prefer the tone of a good, overdriven tube amp, there are too many times when a venue will not allow this to happen, so a good overdrive pedal is mandatory (or an amp with a master volume control). After a 3 year quest for the *right* overdrive, and about $2K later, I found the LTD. Now I have two, for when I run a pair of amps in stereo. I predominantly play Strats and Teles direct to the LTD, and direct to the amp - no other FX used or needed. The LTD offers the kind of tube-like overdrive I've been looking for, with quality build and components, all at a very reasonable price tag.

# controls and 2 internal pots that you set basically once and then don't change unless you change your equiptment.

Best pedal I have used. I don't like pedals in general but this one changes the sound of my guitar very little almost to the point of not at all. I set the internal pots this way; bass--all the way up, presence-- almost all the way up, result my Gibson ES 137 with 57 Classic humbuckers tone is changed hardly at all when tone control on the LTD is at 12:00 neutral. No big mids like a Tubescreamer, no bass drop out, no drop out of highs so the attack and tone remain almost completely unchanged, perhaps just a very small amount of clouding but very slight, this is the clearest most neutral pedal I have ever used. Drive is just what i needed, this is a low gain pedal so the overdrive is very much like a Vintage tubs amp, any where to just some "hair" on the note to cranked vintage amp overdrive. Just wonderful.

Don't know but the build quality is superb, probably will last forever.

Dave Barber will talk to you all day if you need help.

Most neutral, clear low gain pedal money can buy and it is only $99!If this is what you want clear, neutral sounding pedal with vintage tube like overdrive this is it, I don't think there is a second choice.

No brainer overdrive pedal. If you want to get really cerebral, open up the back and play with the internal trims.

I got a Barber Direct Drive Super Sport which I was really impressed with for a high-gain overdrive so I grabbed one of the LTD's to check out their "low gain" overdrive. I've been playing a Voodoo Lab
Sparkle Drive for a while now and really like that pedal as well, but the LTD is a little more sensitive to picking attack and seems to be a little more dynamic. The Sparkle Drive has a better clean boost capability though. The LTD actually cranks out a considerable amount of gain when the drive level is above 12:00, so it has quite a bit of range. I keep it around 11:00 to 1:00 for best results. This pedal, to my ears, is not as "transparent" as the Direct Drive SS, so I opened her up and adjusted the Bass trim down to 11:00 and bumped the Presence (or Harmonics, can't remember which one it was) up to about 1:00. This tweak helped (for me). Keep the LTD on my board now and gave the Sparkle Drive to our bass player. My board now looks like this; Clyde Deluxe Wah > LTD > Direct Drive SS > Voodoo Lab MicroVibe > Barber Launch Pad > Line6 DL4. George L's for everything and always into tube amps. It's worth noting that the LTD does not seem to bias single coils or hummers, sounds great with both.

Solid. No problems.

Haven't had to contact Barber, but if I did, they'll take care of me. Smaller companies, like Barber Electronics, Reverend and Carr Amps rule the customer service world. ( I did speak with Barber on the phone initially and he was very imformative and helpful ).

There's so many good overdrive pedals out there these days, it's hard to say any one is the best. Having said that, the LTD seems more dynamically senstive and articulate than most of the pedals I've tried, and at under 100 clams is a very good value. I don't always play through my pedalboard, but when I do I'm glad I have the LTD in the "low-gain" spot.

Can you dress yourself? great! then you will have no problem getting a usable sound out of this box.

My set up is Fender Voodoo strat.:Fulltone clyde deluxe wah: Fulltone Mini Deja vibe:rocktron Austin Gold: Barber Ltd running into a Fender vibro-king. There isn't much noise at all from this pedal when the volume is set below 12", however I find that most overdrive pedals only sound good with the volume at around 11 to 1, with these settings there is some background hum, but it's acceptable.I find it sounds good with a wah pdal as it adds a thickness to a strat. so you do not get those screechy highs.

The insides are point to point hand wired and very neat. I would use without a back up, but if you rely on any one pedal for your sound...always take a back up!

I did contact them about this pedal before I purchased it and after, and got a swift email response. They are very helpful in my opinion.

I play in the UK's top Hendrix trib. band and the Ltd pedal is a great asset for the slightly clean/slightly dirty sounds that I was looking for. When the soundman asks you to turn down, and your sound gets thin...kicking in this pedal goes some way to resolving the problem.I have tried most of the high end named overdrives, and none can get the sound that this pedal does.It will give you a cleanish boost to your amp, but the sound of this pedal whilst not being transparent, will not ruin your guitar or amp sound. Also,bear in mind that it is a LOW OVERDRIVE pedal! and as such will not hide your sloppy playing (or mine!)It will make you a more precise player, and lets face it, that can only be a good thing.I like to search the internet for info on different pedals, and have purchased Barber pedals before, Direct drive and the Super sport. however they were soon sold as I found the harmonic content in the overdrive too be overpowering for my needs. The Ltd fits the bill for me, but as with all things amp/pedal guitar, etc. try them first! don't be sold on something just cos' it's got a good review....use your own ears.

Very easy to use. 3 knobs. 2 internal trimpots, which are subtle, but they correct the problem of every tubescreamer: these pots lets you match bass response to YOUR liking, as well as add presence to match whatever amp/guitar combo your using.

In short: One of the best, low gain overdrives I've ever played.

First of all, it sounds great with single coils and humbuckers. It doesnt do that clean-note-with-buzzy-distortion-around it thing that tubescreamers do with humbuckers.

Note clarity: better than any tube-screamer or tube screamer clone I've played.

Barber just makes kick-ass pedals. He has perfected the art of how to have the perfect blend of extreme-note clarity and sweetness in one sound. I own a Barber DD SS, and that is the BEST high-gain OD I've ever played. Likewise, this is the best low gain OD I've ever played.

My setup now is a Baber Tone Press Compressor, Barber LTD, and a Barber DDSS. Those three pedals along with a decent tube amp, and you've got all you need to make some killer sounds.

If you need maximum note clarity and zero mid range humpiness, dump your Screamer and get this thing.

Solid as a rock. Pots, switches, and jacks mounted to the enclosure, NOT the PC board.

True bypass switch.

When I called, I talked to Mr. Barber himself, who chatted with me for a good 15 minutes on pedals, amps, custom orders, and other stuff. Very nice guy. Zero attitude. I don't doubt that he'd help out in a flash if anything happened.

Overall, Id say that this is my favorite low-gain overdrive I've ever owned. I would have paid twice as much for this pedal, but at 99 bucks, its a STEAL. Is it the only OD I own? No. sometimes, you just want that weird mid-bump TS type of sound. but in my mind, taht doesnt sound liek a REAL tube amp. This thing does.

Good Story: At a recent recording session, I had this LTD plugged into my bogner (set to dead clean), and I was playing some overdriven chords. The engineer looked and said "man, those Bogner overdrives sound amazing, don't they?" Little did he know that I was playing through the 99 dollar barber LTD. Nuff said.

Very nice low-gain overdrive. Very easy to use, as are most pedals. I started at 12 o'clock across the board and worked from there until I found the sweet spot. Didn't take long at all. Has a couple of spinners on the PCB inside that allow for finer adjustments to bass and "presence" output. Have not altered these yet, but may opt to do so just to see if I can draw a slightly deeper sound out of it.

Works very well with my Dr. Z Mazerati, where it succeeds in pushing what is already an excellent natural "gainy" tube amp just a little further...without being distorted or mushy in any way. I'm already a Barber Direct Drive owner and was so impressed with that box that I bought the LTD to replace my Boss Overdrive and Blues Driver pedals. While nothing is perfect, I do feel like this box is closer to what I'm looking for in the low-gain arena. I've heard the term "transparent" applied to this pedal and believe that of all the overdrive pedals I've owned, the LTD is the most deserving of that label. It doesn't really change the sound...just enhances it, thickens it up a bit, and gives it some steam. Good product!

Like the Direct Drive, the LTD is nicely built into a pretty rugged enclosure. Plunger switches are usually where I have the most trouble with breakages, so I'll hold back on a rating for now. But based on what I've seen so far from both of these pedals, I'm not worried about them dying anytime soon.

Have not dealt with them yet. So no rating here...

I play a little bit of everything - from metal to blues-rock to funk. I have quite a few pedals now, after having gone through so many that just didn't do anything for me over the long haul. I'm at a point now where I'm feeling fairly comfortable with my overdrive sound, thanks to a combination of the Barber DD and LTD. Of course, when playing metal, I still lean to the Tonebone Hot British for the "chunk". But for most everything else that isn't intended to pulverize bone and batter the crowd into submission...these little Barber pedals are quite nice. Oh yeah, and for $99 each, this is easily one of the best deals out there!

3 knobs, very simple.

No noise at all. I have a klon which is the best od I have heard but this pedal comes close. It is definately going to stay on my pedalboard. I have all high end equiptment - Keeley,Klon,Suhr guitar and so on. I have come to know good tone. This pedal is worth more than Barber charges. Outstanding pedal.

Only had it a month.

I have talked to Barber Electronics a couple of times and they were very helpful.

Been playying 20 years. I would definately get another one if stolen.
Inside is incredible. It is very professionaly wired. Most of all it sounds incredible. Very slight coloration but in a good way. In my opnion it is #2 in od's right now. I have had a lot of pedals. If you want a low to medium overdrive, this is the pedal for under $290 which is the price of the Klon.

Easy, as long as you take time playing with all the knobs,outside,and inside.

Once you have this thing dialed this thing, it is all golden. The main key is the fine adjustment of the two internal pots( presence,bass). As far as available gain goes, it semms there is just sufficient amount of it available for nice Rock solos a la ZZ top.(but then I run a compressor after it to increase the sustain). However,it's true forte is in the low-mid gain terrain. As it is well deserving of prisitine sound quality rating.

It looks durable, and I was quite impressed with the tidyness of all the internal parts upon opening the back cover. The only thing that I noticed that the 9 volt battery clip moves around when you shake the box.Probably no big deal unless you turn this thing into a percusive instrument by shaking it around!

I have two other pedals by them and it has always been an pleasant experience dealing with them. Their products seems to be no frills,just gobs of unadulterated pure tone emmiting boxes.

Great box, it is a sort of box that is most likely appreciated most by those guitatrist who can actually carry a tune on their own. Who places enphasis on the actual tone of their instrument rather than the effect sound. This thing can bring out all the musical nuances when required to do so.

Finding good sound was fairly easy - finding perfect sound combination took a while. Tone knob is fairly subtle so I found that I had to adjust bass and presence inside depending on guitar I was using.

At first I wanted this to give me very mild overdrive (for crunchy rhythm and more defined single notes) on my blues on rock guitars (Washburn HB35 and Gibson Firebird). I run it to Rivera S120 set to very clean and boosted presence. At first the sound was a bit dissapointing - sure it was growling very nicely with more attack and was clean when you play gentle. But it had slight trace of that midrange hump - which I rather dislike. Manipulating internal pots to adjust presence and bass helped and adding EQ after LTD almost took care of midrangeness. Don't get me wrong - it was NOTHING even close to TubeScreamer-like midrange hump - just a slight loss of bass and smaller loss of presence. I like the Drive set to 9-10 (depending on pickups) to get mostly clean tone (for more OD I use SIBs Varidrive) Results were good but not perfect. Then on a whim - I tried LTD with my jazz axe - Ibanez AS120 with flatwound 14s. Pickups on that guitar are not very hot so when plugged directly to amp it tends to sound a bit "plunky". And it is rather dark-sounding guitar so I thought that LTD would not do it any good. But I was wrong - LTD gave that guitar new voice - if you set the drive to about 9-10 you get only very nice sparse growl when you hit few notes. But single notes become very well defined - they feel maybe slightly compressed but o/w perfect. BTW - the effect is dead-quiet with true-bypass and noisless switch.

Looks very well built - all point to point wiring and hand-soldered.
Case, switch and pots are high quality. But I did not have it long enough to rate its reliability.

Customer support is perfect - they respond immediately to email and
answer phone call in very knowledgeable way. I bought the effect directly from them and it arrived 5 days later. They give you 48 hrs to evaluate it.

You can probably find more flexible overdrives there - LTD is indeed somewhat limited in what it does - I never turn the drive past 12 - for upper part of range either Varidrive or drive channel on Rivera sounds better.
I play jazz and some blues. Try to keep effects to minimum - other one I have are: Ernie Ball volume pedal (yes - it is a very musical effect!), Budda wah, SIB Varidrive, Holy Grail reverb and H2O chorus-delay. LTD was a perfect addition - it really gave much needed edge to my Ibanez AS120. If lost I would experiment with couple other pedals (LPB 2ube or Fatdrive) before buying it again.

This is so easy to use!There is not a bad sound to be found reguardless of where you set the controls.I like mine with the drive knob pointed to the led.Being able to go inside and adjust presence and bass is something i have always wished for.

I use this with a genetx2 in front with a tech 21 power engine for small places and 2 techs for large places with great results.People are always asking me what kind off tubes are in my amps and what is that little pedal in front of my pedal board.I know what all you true tone freaks are thinking by now if you are even still reading but i am fiftey years old and will not bore you with all the stuff i have but this ltd is the stuff.We do ZZ, Bad comp,Dire Straits,etc. and this LTD makes it so easy!

I have a tone pump also for a year but it stays in the case for back up.I dont feel i will ever need a back up.

i have not needed support but feel like it would be no problem if i did.

I play everything from hendrix to beach,been playing for 42 years,tried everthing out there,and this will do semi/clean boost to blooz and puts a little tube sound back in my sound.I only wish it had a blue led but for this kinda quality vs. price i aint complaining!

Three choices: volume, tone, drive - as with any pedal, you need to tweak the sound to best fit what yer playing. Doesn't get any easier or harder.

Strat with Rio Tallboys --> Barber LTD --> a Penn 40w tube amp. Extremely quiet pedal. This is a superbly toned OD device that adds the right amount of subtle "push" or "hair" or whatever you wanna call it that most of us look for to fatten up the tone for both chords and leads. This pedal does it all in spades, with smooth overdrive that doesn't hide the notes in chording nor leave a fizzy sonic aftertaste (yuk). Yes, like all pedals, your tone will get somewhat "cloaked" - this pedal does it in a very transparently subtle manner that's actually quite appealing. And, the in/out switch offers true bypassing - perfect. Interestingly, though this pedal works perfectly fine with a single 9v onboard batt, Dave Barber sez you can push the DC up to 18 volts (via an outboard wallwart AC/DC supply) for tone tweaking variations.

Looks like it's built to last, all metal constructon.

N/A

I keep the LTD plugged in and left on no matter whether we're playing R&B funk, blues, rock, or jazz ragtime fingerstyle picking. Been twanging the strings since '55 for all manner of guitar music. After going thru about 40 different OD peds over the decades, the LTD is here to stay.

Simple

For the money this is a great sounding OD. The controls are subtle but effective. All ODs take something away from your natural tone. A richness is lost. I don't care what unit you use, they all color the tone. This is no different. However with the gain at 12ock the OD is very light, like a pushed tube amp (really its very good) then as you add gain the mid hump comes in and the bottom goes its slight and acceptable. For the Money this is a great buy and a great idea

Absolute no-brainer!!If you've ever used a Tube Screamer or the like,you'll be more than familiar with the 3 controls -Gain, Tone, Level. The tone control is different to the run-of-the mill in that it seems to add low end once you turn it counter-clockwise from 12 o'clock instead of just rolling off the tops. Set 'em all at 12 o'clock and you're away with a great full-bodies low-medium gain rhythm/lead tone with subtle compression.

Fender CS '60 NOS Strat/SRV Strat/Stewart Male Custom Strat w/Suhr V60LP's ->Keeley-modded Vox V847 wah -> Barber LTD -> TIM -> Pete Cornish SS-2/G-2 Duplex -> Pete Cornish NB-2 clean boost -> Fender '59 Bassman LTD RI/'65 SRRI/THD Bivalve. The LTD provides a great low gain rhythm/lead tone with only a hint of mid-hump compared to my Keeley and AnalogMan-modded TS9's. Comparing these 2 pedal types, the LTD has so much more tonal clarity in the low-mids whilst still retaining a strong lead voice to cut through the stage mix. I know it sounds cliche but after using modded TS9's, the LTD really does sound like someone just pulled the bomb-proof blanket off of the amp. The range of gain available is more than useful for cleanish boosts right up to classic rock tones - think cranked non-master volume amps as opposed to Dual Rectifier buzz/crunch. There are 2 internal trim-pots for adjusting bass and presence but I haven't felt the need to adjust these as yet. The factory presets are spot-on for my tonal requirements.

Exemplary internal construction with high quality components and super-neat layout. Looks like it will be easy to service if that's ever required. I always gig with back-up OD's 'cos I'm always changing my pedal line-up like the Pedal-Ho I am!!

I found Craig very friendly and helpful when I rang Barber electronics. Sent a PayPal payment on a Thursday, received the LTD on the following Wednesday, all the way down here in Australia!! Fantastic service!!

Great for low-medium gain rhythm/lead tones with a musical Hi-Fi tonal quality. The Barber LTD has booted my modded TS9's off of the pedal board for the moment due to the amazing improvement in tonal clarity and more natural bottom end. Stacks very well with the TIM for higher gain, sustaining tones.
"Anything you wish it had?" - Gee wizz, how about a 2-stage LTD in the one box with separate controls for each side and the capability of running one side into the other!! What the hell, at $99 it's probably cheaper just to buy a 2nd LTD!! Thanks so much to David and Craig @ Barber Electronics!!