SIB Varidrive

Very easy to use - wanted something solid and simple.

Sound quality is excellent - put a good vintage or quality new tube into it and life is good! Very transparent yet rich tube overdrive, no tone suck. No noise, either. Very quiet pedal.
I have three strats; two parts-o-caster players set up vintage for the most part that I love, and a'66 re-fret/refin that sounds like butter.
Also have two '65 non-reverb deluxes; one is stock and the other has the output tube section modded to take two 6L6GC tubes and a higher-watt 12" speaker which makes it louder and gives it more clean overhead. Kind of like a Fender Pro amp or a Vibroverb sound. Was done by Harry Kolbe, I believe. Both amps were bought used. Both sound great.

Yes absolutely.
Did have one mystery problem where signal came out very faint when activated, and footswitch & tube were not suspect - sent back to SIB and came back sounding even better. Really.

Turned it right around when I needed it. Thanks, guys!

Being primarily a strat thru a fender deluxe amp player, playing mainly blues and blues-rock for 15+years this thing is unbelievable. Goes from tube screamer grind to very hard rock-crushing gain. It WONT do the real scooped-mid death metal rasp, so forget it. Besides, it sounds much better than that.
The Varidrive is perfect if you have a clean-sounding amp or play single coils or both and you rely on a pedal like I do for your overdrive. But get one, whatever your setup is.
I even demo'd it on my friend's '89 Soldano SLO 100 thru a 4x12" Marshall cab, cleaned up the gain on the amp and stuck the pedal in front and it had all the gain and roar of the Soldano, which is a very high-gain amp.
But it's also great for getting a nice fat low-gain boost when you back off on the drive. It's like putting a killer pre-amp/gain channel on your fender amp. Perfect for blues and rock. Big, fat, warm, transparent tube overdrive. People at gigs have told me they love they way it sounds. I never had a tube overdrive pedal, but I traded some gear for it and haven't regretted it.
I have and had some good solid state overdrive pedals like Homebrew Electronics Power Screamer and Fulltone's OCD pedal and Analogman's modded Tube Screamers, no slouches either, but they just DONT compare, really. It's the bomb. Stupid good.
Maybe I would like it more if it were a little smaller and lighter, but hey, it's quality and built like a tank.

very easy, all knobs are self explanatory.

Man...this is seriously Great, I have experienced some O/D pedals, fulldrive2, sparkle drive, tonebone hot british & classic, Tubescreamers, RAT Deucetone, Gt 2 sansamp, etc. this thing produces Natural sounding, tubey sound with highest quality possible. I borrowed this from a friend, and I bought one the next day from Ebay, God bless ebay.com. brand New (US201.5)new design with additional gain switch on one side, black color., still havent arrived yet. so I'm reviewing the one I borrowed, blue casing,no gain swith. with 12AX7 TUBE, wow, it sounds warm and full with pure tone.

just borrowed it for 6days... but it's the old model, prety beat up and still run perfectly. I hope it will last for a long time

A killer pedal.... I have been playing for 8 years, own some other nice gears, if stolen, I will buy 2 more the Next day, one for the Gig, one for "sitting quietly in my bedroom" back up. I'll post a review of the newer design once I get in my hand, hopefully it's as good or even better. I'm very happy.

Self explanatory controls. The size, weight, power cable and hi voltage, make it a bit awkward for cramped beer-soaked stages.

The Varidrive is one of the very few tube based pedals that actually uses the tube as the ONLY drive element while putting proper hi voltages across the plates (just like real tube amps). This approach has resulted in the most authentic tube drive, feel and texture of any pedal I have ever tried (and thats alot). This pedal really does sound like a distorting tube amp when plugged into ANY clean amp.

Unfortunately the pedals voicing and tone controls are less than perfect. The low end is big and loose and cannot be tightened up. This sounds fine at lower gain but with higher gains it gets too woofy. The midrange is a bit flat for my tastes I would have liked a little more snarl as it seems to get lost in the mix to my ears.

SIB deserves a 10 for putting REAL tube overdrive at your feet. It really is just head and shoulders above any other Tube or SS pedal I have tried in this respect. However the voicing and tone controls need some work. The price and size of this pedal are also daunting. My overall impression is "really close...but no cigar". I would be VERY interested in a Varidrive 2 with some of the tonal shortcomings addressed.

Really nothing complicated here, like an amp or any simple stompbox.

Now seriously, there's very little reason to trust HC reviews, but I have to really emphasize how good this pedal sounds (actually it's a tube preamp on the floor). I have tried many of the big ones, and the Varidrive is the bomb. I could have saved so much money if I had tried this earlier. Here is a quick list of the OD's (and boosts) I have had expecienece with: Klon Centaur, Fulltone OCD Distortin Pro and FatBoost, Tim and Timmy by Paul Cochrane, Clark/Barber Gainster, Menatone Kar Krash and King of the Brits (6 knob), Banzai Cold Fusion, Xotic BB preamp and RC Booster, Tonebone Hot British, Barber DDSS, Tube Works 901 and 903. There are a few others, but there are the more important ones. Don't take thsi with a grain of salt, take this at face value: the Varidrive is way more tubey and natural sounding than ANY of these pedals! Why should be obvious to you, since it's an all-tube class A preamp running at high(er) voltages like any preamp. It sounds fantastic. The switch on the side for 1/2 gain works beautifully. It makes more noise than your average SS pedal, but that's to be expected. The noise is nothing terrible (worse when you run it cranked).

On to the sound, it's "heaven" for blues playing in the low-medium drive settings, and at higher settings, it's pretty heavy Marshally grind, something like a JCM800, but a tad more tame. It doesn't have as much of a heavy sound as the Toenbone Hot Brit or the Menatone KOB6, but it does make up for it in tonefulness. There's more air and tube feel than the Tonebone because the TB is not running at realistic plate voltages and the majority of the sound is made by transistors (or SS technology anyway) then fed through a tube for warmth. The TB is still an excellent pedal, but pales in comparison to the Varidrive if you really want tube feel with the harmonics and response that go with it. Combined with a good boost, the Varidrive offers SO MANY tones! The tone controls work very well, with no bad spots, except the bass can get boomy (like any tube amp). I tried a few different tubes, and you definitely hear the difference in response curve, noise floor and breakup. The guy I bougt it from had a Mullard 12AU7 which was great, and I tried a JJ 12AX7, NOS JAN 5751, NOS Philips 12AU7 and the JJ(?) 12AT7 I have in it now. The 12AX7's offer more gain, but it's harder to obtain the "cleaner" tones and there's a bit more noise. I find it the best balance between gain and ccleanup ability. The 12AU7 was a bit too clean, and the breakup was more gritty, somewhat harsh to my ears.

A little side note, the 1/2 gain switch has a difference in volume when you engage it. You have to tame the volume knob if switching from low gain to high (and vice versa). Not a huge problem, but it's there. I wouldn't dock points for something like that. This thing gets loud by the way!

Mighty solid construction inside, wouldn't worry about it.

I will say this: I can't understand why the 1/2 gain switch is on the side -it should really be a second stomp switch on the top of the pedal!

Never contacted them.

Awesome, awesome pedal. Everyone should have one if they use a single-channel amp. I have only played it through my Allen Tonesavor so I don't know how well it would get along with other amps (Marshalls, Class A, etc). For my needs, it's perfect -blends right in with my amp's tone. Overall, this is a professional piece of gear that is only hindered by the size and the power plug (matbe the price but there's tons of more expensive pedals that don't sound half as good!). Regardless, I put it on my board because it's the most natural 2nd channel for my amp that I could find. Better than Tonebone (in fact the guy ho sold it to me had just been sponsored by Tonebone so he had to start using their stuff, but he prefers the SIB by a mile). Can't recommend this enough!

Simple to use... knobs are self explanatory.

I use it with my Marshall Plexi... through various Marshall cabs. I also put a vintage Ibanez tube screamer in front of the varidrive for som extra punch... I can get the brown sound dead on with this... The tube screamer gives it some more bite and is great to kick in for leads

Never had a problem yet

never called

The thing that really interests me is that there is not a setting that sucks on this pedal... changing the tone knobs the drive etc.. all change the sound but never in a bad way... just different.

I love it

This is my second review of this tube driven overdrive pedal. My gear has changed over the past 5 years (99). It is still as simple to operate as a can opener. 3 tone controls (treble, bass and middle). Mine is an original. If there is an upgrade, I would hope that it would be the led turning on and off with the switch

I am using 2 Les Pauls. A D/C (double cutaway). with Humbuckers 57's and a 98 model standard with 500T and 390s respectivly. I have a 64 model vibroverb and a 65 super reverb reissue. I use the varidrive into an SIB FatDrive and then the amp(s) I am a blues guitarist and I don't have any favorite blues guitarists but I have lways liked Herb Ellis and the guitarist from the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Like I said, Great overdrive

After 5 years, I have had a problem with the input jack lock nut stripping out. But it has never failed me

Called Rick one time and he answered my question

I have been playing for 35 years. I have a rack system also with a Mesa Formula preamp > T C Electronics "G Major" efects unit > Peavey Classic 50-50 Power amp > 2 Fane loaded 2X12 Cabinets. A great system that I might sell (I went back to combo amps for simplicity). With the 2 Blackfaced Fender amps the Varidrive is a great addition to my setup. I can play at any volume and still have great overdrive or incredable clean sound with the Fatdrive pushing the Guitar and od pedal. I would replace it if it were lost or stolen with haste. If anyone has any questions please feel free to email me.

I tried a new one in the store before purchasing my used one on line and found the store model a bit "spongy" for my taste. I prefer a little "edge" to my attack. However, upon receiving my model and trying it with my own gear, I found this to not be a problem. It could be that the previous owner performed the tube mods suggested elswhere on this page (I didn't open it up to find out) but I was able to get great tone with very little tweeking.

I play a Les Paul Classic, G&L S-500 and Fender Strat Floyd Rose Classic through an Orange AD1510. (Here's my chance to rant.) Before I knew any better, I owned a Marshall "two channel" twin amp. I thought I was getting a 2 channel amp with real tube overdrive. I learned later that it was, for all intents and purposes, actually a one channel amp with a built-in DOD overdrive pedal. If I wanted a one channel amp for my clean tone my first choice would NOT have been a Marshall and my first choice for an overdrive pedal would NOT have been a DOD. I'm very happy with the tone of my Orange and this pedal has given me the best overdrive tone I have ever had. I have a Class A tube signal all the way through my stream and the true-bypass on the Varidrive doesn't wreck my clean tone.

The only issue I had was the on/off switch was a little glitchy at first. I discovered that it was only a loose tube. It's no big deal but I'll knock off one point anyway.

Never dealt with them.

I would recomment this pedal for anyone looking for great rock tone. I personally am working on a one-man band featuring foot and hand activated drum triggers, foot activated bass module, Therimin, loops and pre-programmed material (ie: drum machines, prerecorded bass lines, etc.) In hopes of making my sound less like "space alien music" I have worked on my guitar tone striving for an earthy, organic quality. The SIB gets it done! I've been playing for 23 years and also own Electro-Harmonics Octave Multiplexer (for bass doubling) T-Rex Replica delay and a few other effects I'm selling or upgrading. I'd buy another Varidrive if stolen for sure. I compared it to the Fulltone Full Drive and preferred it. It was also far better than cheaper Tube Works overdrives I had in years past.

Very self explanatory controls.

I've owned 30 or 40 overdrives and distortion pedals over the years. The SIB is up at the top of the list with a few caveats. First, it needs a decent tube. I've found that a lower gain tube (12AU7 or 12AT7) brings out the harmonics and reduces the harshness, as does an NOS tube (I'm using an Amperex 12AT7). It means that it's truly and OD, doesn't really get into distortion territory. Secondly, it doesn't like all of my amps. For instance, with tweed or blackface Fenders, it's gorgeous-ringing harmonics, transparent to the sound of the guitar and the amp, just gives you more of what the amp is. Some of my european style amps seem to like it less (Bruno with EL84s, JCM800 with 6550s, TE Velocette). For them a Klon or a Tonebone Classic seems to work better. I wouldn't be without it, but it wouldn't be the only pedal I owned.

Occaisionally the footswitch has to be stomped a couple of times to get it to work. Otherwise rock solid.

Never tried

This is a great pedal in cases where it works, highly recommended if you can afford to own one expensive pedal...

Very easy to use---I have the newer Black box with the gain switch.
Very obvious how to set-up.

I use this in front of a Fender or Vox tube amp---single coil pick-ups. I changed the tube to a 12At7 to reduce the gain. Now the unit
can almost sound clean at min setting. Very natural sound and the EQ
is a big plus---An essential tool for recording electric guitar.

Unit was shipped with a bogus Chinese 12ax7a tube. Good tubes are
expensive, but for the price point SIB should watch it's tube quality.
The 1/4 jacks don't grab--even in studio the jack is a problem. I already had to tighten one jack---Should use a Nuetrik or Switchcraft
metal jack with grounding washer. Definitly recommend 90 jacks for live.

Seller was very helpful---tried to contact SIB for tube info, but
no response.

An essential tool---would replace. Industry standard. I like the switch for hi and lo gain. Sound quality is definitly enhanced with tube upgrade/mod.

No manual is really needed. Short almost useless notes on how to use it are given on the back of the unit. However no indications are given about the possibility of using different tubes to obtain different sounds. I had to look for them in the SIB home page. Strange, cause this is the best characteristic of this pedal.

Gibson ES-347 > Ernie Ball Volume > Ibanez GE9 Eq > MXR Dyna Comp > Varidrive > EH Electric Mistress > Boss CE2 > Boss DD5 > Aria AD10 (rare old analog delay)> VOX AC30. I also use a BOSS LS2 to switch between different pedal combinations and a Boss NS2 noise suppressor. The sound of the Varidrive is really impressive, but the best thing is that you can obtain very different sounds using different tubes. Other people have already said that the 12AX7 are pumped to high gain too quickly. The sound you obtain is full and fat but it is impossible to get a good crunchy sound at low gain. I found the best is to use a 12AU7. The gain control gets much more dynamic and the unit becomes more versatile with a wider range of sounds.
I agree with other people that the mid pot is too subtle.
Absolutely not noisy for an overdrive.
Blends well with the flanger and very well the analog delay. Not so much with the chorus, but i haven't really tried this combination seriously.

I have played for one year with no problem.

Extremely friendly. I asked Rick if he could make a 220-V version and he did it with no problems at no extra charge. He needed some time to find the right transformer and test it but now i have the very first 220-V varidrive in my rig!

I currently play in a contemporary gospel band, backing a 25-people choir. Our music is very varied, with a mix of rnb, funky, soul, and whatever you want to put in, so I need to use a very versatile rig, and the ES-347 (allows you to switch from HB to single-coils) does the job nicely. The varidrive helps me to obtain great crunch rythm and tube-driven lead without having to crank up my AC30, which the choir would not appreciate too much... The price is moderately high, but it's like having a new second channel in my amp. I decided to get this pedal after reading some reviews here saying that classical overdrives like the TS9 did not work well with the AC30 while the Varidrive could do a great job. Now I don't regret at all ! Take some time to swap tubes and eventually you'll much probably get the sound you want.

Vol, Drive, Bass, Mid Treble. very easy to use!

Awesome Sound! Very Clear Full frequency Tube Overdrive! I play a Don Grosh Strat through a Fender Vibrolux. I also use a Dunlop 535 Wah. The Varidrive sounds Great. I changed the Tube to a NOS Amperex Bugle Boy 12-AX7 and that helped a whole Bunch.

Very Solid Build! Should last a Long Time!

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Expensive but worth it! Extremly excellent sound Quality, and top quality constuction. Makes this a Must have pedal!

You really need to swap the tube out with a good 12AYT, then it's simple to use.

Use a 12AY7 tube with the gain switch down, gain knob -- 10::00 to 12:00, bass mid and treble -- 12:00, and you'll have the best mild overdrive sound available. Push the mids up for a more Tube Screamer-esque mid-hump.

Flip up the gain switch and set the gain knob -- 3:00, bass -- 9:00, mid -- full, treble -- 3:00 and you'll have a very good lead tone.

A tight, palm-muting tone does not seem to be available.

Into a very bright amp (Fender Twin, Showman, Vibrolux, Deluxe, etc) on the extreme settings it can be overly bright. I would suggest some sort of "presence" control for future revisions, and maybe a "bright" switch.

I had to replace the foot-switch with a TPDT (the same as those used in Perscription Electronics boxes). I've had to do this with ALL of the true-bypass boxes I own (except for the PE Experience) because they all use the same cheap switches. I wish all boutique stomp box makers would follow PE's lead on this issue, it would save them return repair time.

You want ABSOULUTELY transparent mild breakup, this is the only box to consider.

This pedal is set up the same as most distortion/overdrives and is a no-brainer. There is no manual, nor is one needed.

Whoa, overall tone is a tough thing to rate as this pedal is tube-based and the quality of the tube chosen makes all the difference.

At first I hated this pedal because I bought it based on the reviews written here. Some of the reviews spoke of this pedal as a very versatile clone machine that could cop a huge variety of tones including some that were Marshall-like. I find this not to be the case at all. Plugged straight into my amp it sounded more like an super saturated, compressed fuzz.

But...

Then I started playing with tubes. I hate using 12AX7 tubes because the VARIDRIVE just pummels the tubes too hard. This thing just slams tubes and the 12AX7 tubes have no chance to resist. 12AY7 and 12AU7 tubes atand up better and offer more complexity.

As far as the controls go the bass is voiced very aggressively and is way more than is needed. This control can knock your amp on it's ass if you are not careful. The mid controls are a bit too subtle for me and I set the treble at zero as I feel the pedal can get bright.


Marshall sounds? No. But I have never learned more about tube response than when I started playing around with the VARIDRIVE. I accidentally discovered how much I liked this thing while running it into my Sans Amp PSA-1 while recording. I was FLOORED! The complexity and response were stunning and I got Larry Carlton and Robben Ford tones through headphones. Amazing. I LOVE this pedal for sultry smooth lead playing. I never use it for rhythym, but for lead it is amazing. Roll back the volume and you get clean. Roll it up a bit and you get a nice clipping and full out nice sustain.

I really find that this pedal makes me want to play slower and really concentrate on my technique as it is VERY sensitive to picking changes. Ease up on the gain and add delay and you get Edge tones that are better than anything I have heard. This is where the class A design shines. Take off the bass and you can cop really cool lower gain Stevie ray sounds and with verb this pedal is stupid good.

As you can see I have many opinions of this pedal and i am learning more about it's potential every day. While I was initially disappointed that the crunchy shred tones were loose I now know how I will be able to use the pedal and for what it does it cannot be beat.

Very Unique.

Very tough casing. Much lighter than the previous reviewers stated but this thing is solid. If you can hurt this thing you are acting like an idiot.

AWESOME!

The treble pot pooped out and Rick replaced it no charge. Cool guy.

Tough to contact but he will stand by his stuff.

Try one.

If you like the full range of tube overdrive you will love this thing and tube freaks will play with this thing endlessly. Really cool.

If you want "Marshall in a box" or tight crunch this will not fit your style.

This is a very easy, It has volume, distortion, gain, bass, mid, and treble controls. What make this pedal unique is that it has a tube in it which can be swapped. This Pedal does not come with a owners manual and really doesn't need one.

I am using a Fender American Fat Strat and a Godin LGXT. These guitars are plugged directly into the Varidrive then into my THD Bi-Valve. The tone is outstanding. I can go from mild crunch to full marshal gain with just adjusting a few nobs. It turns my Class A amp into a two channel amp with adjustments at my feet. I can control the volume to match my clean volume which is cool. I have replaced the stock JJAX-7 tube for a Sylvania AT-7. The JJAX-7 sounds great, however it gets to high gain to quick. I found I had to keep the distortion and volume set at low levels other wise it gets to extreme high gain distortion like a plexi on steroids. Where as the AT-7 gives more of a nice gain sweep from light crunch to full blown Marshall Plexi gain.

Built like a tank A bit large and heavy. I don't think I would need a back up the internal components look top notch

I haven't needed any. Though others posted great support

I play a mix of blues/Rock originals and covers. Great match. I have been playing for 20 years. If it were lost or stolen I would replace it. What I love the most is the tone it simulates my natural tone of my amp. The THD Bi-valve is not a two channel amp but now it is with this pedal. I didn't really have the chance to compare it to other pedals. I was looking for a pedal which didn't color my tone and would push my Bi-Valve into its own natural gain stage which it does nicely.

Simple enough to not require a manual. Five knobs, as covered below. EQ knobs have a wide range and are very musical.

Setup = PRS Custom 24 / Fender Strat Plus / Fender Am Deluxe Tele -> Fulltone Clyde Deluxe wah -> SIB Varidrive -> Maxon OD808 Overdrive -> THD BiValve amp.

Very quiet pedal, even at max gain - quieter than the solid-state Maxon. The Drive control goes from slight OD through crunch all the way (IMHO) to high-gain lead and rhythm tones. Coupled with the EQ, I can get anything from a Rolling Stones edgy sound to a VH-esque brown sound to a pretty convincing Creed/nu-metal scooped-mid sound. I can even get a fine SRV-ish sound, although this is easier to achieve with the Maxon. The one thing this pedal won't do is a clean boost - even with the drive on the lowest setting, you get a little dirt. But dirt is what I paid for, so that's ok!

Every setting sounds great. No kidding, this is a very flexible, responsive, great sounding preamp that works very well with my BiValve amp.

As noted many times, this pedal is built exceptionally well, and will likely take a lot of abuse. I don't abuse my gear, so I believe this pedal may outlive me...

Outstanding! I called Rick with a perceived problem after having it about 2 years - he said "send it over, I'll take a look." Well, turns out I was hearing things - there was no problem with the pedal, but Rick gave it a thorough checkout and tested it with a variety of setups (and other players!) just to be sure. And didn't charge me a dime. I would certainly recommend SIB to anyone - wonderful to deal with.

Been playing for 15 years, and play everything from fingerstyle jazz to pretty heavy rock - I just wish I could play everything I listen to! Played several amps and effects units over the years - this unit sounded great in front of solid state amps I've owned, and just kills in front of a good tube amp. I'd buy another asap if I had to. I love the tone and the flexibility. It's not cheap (hence the 9 rating), but great gear rarely is.

Extremely easy-only 5 knobs. The eq is very dynamic-the gain stages are even. No manual as I can remember (I bought this about 2 years ago). I don't think there has been any upgrade to it.

Excellent. One of the most quiet overdrives I've used. Even when dimed, I don't get noise. I've experimented with different pre amp tubes and I like using a 12AX7 best although it can get a little buzzy. I found stock EH or GT12AX7R3 (I believe they are the same tube anyway) to sound best amongst the non NOS tubes. I like to use the pedal to get a real heavy overdrive. It can get almost metal, but not quite. With a JJECC83s tube rated hot by eurotubes and the gain dimed, the sound is thick and fierce but never muddy.

Here's where the marks get a little lower. It is built like a brick. But I did have one switch problem and the transformer blew also. Rick from SIB told me he had a batch of bad transformers and that was the reason for the problem. In any case, the reliability issue was taken care of by Rick (see below).

Rick is extremely helpful. I've owned this pedal for almost two years and felt compelled to write a review finally based on Rick's help. Rick always answers e-mails and takes telephone calls. He offered to fix my switch but I just had a local tech do the work since that was easy enough. When the transformer started acting up, he told me to send it to him. I did so and will be getting it back shortly. But in any case, he did not charge me a cent, not even for postage. Rick is first class all the way. He and Z Vex are the two best pedal makers I've ever dealt with in terms of customer service.

I love the varidrive (I also own the digital echodrive and used to own the fatdrive). I have owned other tube driven pedals (the Mesa v twin; the Tonebone Hot British and Tonebone Classic), tried out others (Tube Driver; GTO; and Budda Phatman) and currently own the JT Pedals Valveboy (another excellent pedal). The SIB is one of the best overdrives units (tube or non tube) I've ever played period. It's versatile in that you can change different pre amp tubes and doing so really affects the sound (I hated the 12AU7 tube but some people swear by the sound of this tube with the varidrive). I like the fact the sound is very articulate no matter how high you have the gain. Lots of bottom end and lot of gain. Overall, this is an excellent pedal. I note that I've owned this pedal for awhile, so I'm not basing my rating on initial hype or impression. Furthermore, as stated, Rick is truly a class act.

Where as most OD/Dist pedals feature a single tone knob, this has 3..bass, treble, and mid.
In addition, there are volume and drive controls.
These are all self-explanatory.

In a word, INCREDIBLE!!!!! I have tried many boutique OD/Dist pedals, including KLON, Fulltone, Stamps, Matchless' Hot Box (haven't been able to get my hands on a Dirt Box), Soldano GTO, Budda Phatman, and many others. This beats them all HANDS DOWN!!!
I could always find something I didn't like about all the others. I am, admittedly, a VERY picky SOB. Both the Soldano and the Budda pedals I found "splattery" and kind of fizzy. In addition, the GTO had a "painted on" quality, IMOH.
If I were to describe the distorted tone I am attempting to achieve, I would say a blend of Eric Johnson, Eddie Van Halen's "Fair Warning" tone, and a hint of Gary Moore's "Victims of the Future" era tone.
I utilize a number of guitars including G&L ASAT's, Legacy's, Fender RI 57 and Hendrix Voodoo Strats, and a Gibson 135 w/ P 90's. I run these into a Blues Pearl Verbasonic.
This pedal never fails to delight.
It is VERY capable of doing the light OD Keith Richards/Sheryl Crow tones, which, in my experience, most pedals are not.
I can't say whether it will do the nu-metal scooped mid death sound, but you never know.
The pedal sounds AND feels as though it's part of the amp. Hell, even by girlfriend liked the sound of it.
The tone knobs are tuned incredibly well, and having 3 knobs is a welcome additon.
One point worth mentioning is that the knobs all have detents. That is, they don't turn smoothly, but are "stepped", for lack of a better phrase. The advantage? You can always duplicate your favorite settings. A nice touch that has not been given enough metion.

This is my second SIB pedal, and while I have not had trouble with it, I have had trouble with the switch on my Echodrive.
This seems to be a common complaint, and I suspect I will have to be prepared should this happen with my Varidrive.

Anyone know what happened to the SIB website? Any way to contact them?

What happened to the website? What happens if this thing goes up in smoke?

I play country, rock, and blues. I would say without hesitation this pedal goes well with any of them (the exception being the aforementioned nu-metal). I have been playing for (god, I HATE doing the math) over 20 years, and I have played Mesa, Fender, Budda, Marshall, and Matchless amps over the years.
If this pedal were stolen, I would most certainly purchase another.

Just turn the knobs and away you go!

I used to use the varidrive for guitar, but now i use it for bass. i had the distortion stage adjusted so it is a little less "gainy" than the stock setup. i like that it allows the "un- distorted" tone of the bass to come through, as well as the distorted sound. most dist. pedals will make a bass sound like a bunch of fuzz. basically i just add a little growl to the sound- and it is HUGE!

currently i am playing a schecter scorpion bass, using an svt3 pro through 2 - 15" svt speakers. when i was using it for guitar i was playing a gibson firebird through a '71 marshall, 100w super lead head with a marshall bottom cab with 80w celestians. again, a HUGE sound.

i have played the varidrive through crappy guitar amps and it doesnt really sound great. but through a quality tube amp it is a sound i swear by.

the switch constantly cuases me problems. i always play with it on, so i dont click the switch on/off very often. i am told by the the owner of the company that the switch is self cleaning and needs to be switched on/off often to keep it working properly. the switch eventually works properly after i stomp on it a few times. however this is really annoying. i always have to mess with it before a gig.

i own one of the first varidrives ever built, i think its #4. i had the on/off switch replaced once and the gain stage adjusted. there was no charge for either service. the pedal is at least 6-7 years old and still going strong.

i currently play bass thrash metal band. the varidrive adds the perfect amount of growl to fill in the bottom in a 3 piece band for a huge sound. i used to play guitar in a band more in the STP/ soundgarden stlye. i find for that type of guitar sound (STP/Soundgarden) it works great. i dont care for it for a "grindy - metal" guitar sound.

The Varidrive is very easy to use. Just turn the knobs clockwise fo' extra spank or growl.

Using new 2001 American Standard Strat with Dimarzio HS-3, HS-2, HS-2, into the Varidrive, Klon Centaur, (for boost) ADA Flanger, 69 Vox Cybaby, to Peavey Classic 50 410. I was using a Tubeworks 911 Tubedriver but, wanted something with a lot more clarity. I guessed at the Varidrive that I seen on E-Bay and went for it. Now I'm glad I did because it nailed what I was looking for. I put in a Yugoslavian 12AX7 in it because the one that was in it was shot. I don't know if that was the factory tube or not. Seems Yugoslavian 12AX7's are warmer and fatter than all other 12AX7's. Anyway, the Tubedriver was noisy. This is a whole lot quieter unless of course you're a gain hog and have to turn the drive all the way up. It is a lot like the Tubedriver but with that extra mid control, better clarity, better sustain, and all round fatness and punch, and the fact that it is not noisy. I found my best sound after a few bendovers teaking it at the club like this: Drive: 1 o'clock Volume: 2 o'clock Bass: 9 o'clock Mid: 9 o'clock Treble: Off.

I haven't used the Varidrive for long yet but, from the looks of this pedal, it should still be working fine 30 years from now.

No problems yet.

I've been playing for 15 years. I play any kind of music that moves me. The Varidrive really helps making the notes and chords sing and sustain. I have a lot more enjoyment now since I'm hearing phatass guitar coming from behind me. I would definitely buy another if it got lost or stolen. I don't have any regrets about buying the Varidrive at all. Someone really knew what they were doing when they designed this one.

Pretty straightforward. I never really messed around with anything once i set some eq that i liked. i use it for both all-out distortion, and some light OD sounds, its really easy to make it work for both.

Excellent. Best pedal of its kind IMO. It sounds nice and thick when i play it all out (well, about 3oclock drive).
Marshall 800, Marshall 2x12(silver jub) les paul jr.(exact gtr Corgan recently rocked out with.) Love it.

Hmm, shady here. Have one problem: Switch is going pretty bad on this unit..though this thing is so so clean on the inside. Looks like a quality piece of rockin equipment. Anyway, the switch. Im getting it not to bypass about half the time, and i lose of lot of signal. i have to stomp on it a few times to get it to go through all the way. Needless to say, i havent gigged with it for a while. Anyone else ever that problem? Otherwise, its been great.

Never dealt with em, though it seems its a very small company, maybe even only one guy. Not sure though..

In some guitar mag a while back, in the STP issue, they were saying that they really liked this pedal though.

9.5

It just sounds real damn good.
Thats all i really got to say bout it.

no sweat! vol., drive, bass, mid, high. you can switch out the 12ax7 for a lower distortion tube if you like. cool!

my setup... epiphone les paul classic 7-string + crybaby Q-zone + crybaby bass wah + sib varidrive + mxr noise gate + boss ps-2 delay/pitchshifter + soldano hotrod 50xl amp head. no doubt, the soldano has an awsome overdrive sound but it gets a little to noisy when i back off the volume to get a cleaner sound. i realize this is due to the fact that when you back it (volume) off you lose a lot of headroom and therefore allow the niose floor to rise. so my quest began for an overdrive pedal that would not color the sound of my amp and guitar but would allow me the convenience of a two-channel amp. actually, what i really wanted was to have pretty much the same driven sound of my soldano in a pedal. well, let me tell you, sometimes you get what you pay for. unbelievable! with all the settings at noon (amp and pedal) there was very little tonal differences... and believe it or not it actually improved my amp sound!?!? the soldano's pre-amp has a tendency to become darker the harder you push it. the varidrive tightened up the low end and put some sparkle back in the highs. i would have to say that the mid setting is a little weird. the negitive settings seem to cut out a lot more of the mids than the positive settings boost them. it doesn't take much cut to get a heavy scoop. also, at high volumes the pedal can be a bit noisy... hence the noise gate in my rig... and i should mention that the soldano is also slightly driven which will account for some of the noise. also, don't plan on using the varidrive straight to the board because it sounds nothing like it does in front of the amp (haven't tried it with a redbox yet). anywho, the sib goes from mellow drive to very thick creamy distortion and anywhere in between. sounds great!

it had better last!!!

i like to dabble with all kinds of musical genres from atmospheric and etheral to super heavy. i've had numorous rig setups including a mesa duel recto, rocktron voodu valve (big mistake), sunn solaris (nice clean amp), and countless pedal and rack fx rigs until i got the soldano which i consider the best sounding amp i have owned to date. so..., i needed an overdrive pedal that would remain transparent and give me a little more depth with a wider range of distortion. enter the sib varidrive! it's basically an extension of the soldano pre-amp as it is wired class A which allows the circuit to use the full potential of the ax7. good job sib! i could have gone through a handful of cheapo run-of-the-mill pedals and spent just as much without getting even close to the real deal. i also must thank harmony central's reviewers on this pedal. i've never seen such great reviews from people who actually seem to know what they're talking about. i don't think that the varidrive had one negative reviewer in the whole bunch. i knew there must be something to it!!!

Just the standard knobs to twist to get a variety of wonderful sounds.

Goodness gracious!!! I am playing an Am Std Tele through a Mesa Blue Angel 1-12 and had just about quit using my TS9 because it just seemed to take away some of the mojo of the amp. The varidrive is a mojo enhancer if there ever was one. The amp just sings and cuts through the mix like I would never have expected. The other guitar player in my band didn't notice the new pedal when we first practiced with it but as soon as I stomped on it he stopped playing and said "What the hell are you doing different!?!?!" He plays a Strat through a Pitbull and can't wait to get a Varidrive. The tonal complexity and incredible responsiveness of this pedal are in a class of their own IMHO. Turn your guitar down and it cleans right up; crank the guitar's volume and hear the 100lb violin begin to sing. The last time I was this excited about a piece of gear was when I was playing through a 55 Bassman at the local emporioum and the varidrive is a little cheaper than that baby was!

I bought the pedal used and have had it for about 6 months. The tube just died, but other than that this thing is rock solid.

Ne need to contact them. Although I really want to try the echodrive.

I play blues, soul, country, and pop. I would replace this jewel in a heartbeat if it were stolen, lost or died. I've tried the Hotbox, Dirtbox, Vtwin etc. and this is the pedal for me. The only thing I don't like about it is the cord setup- it will sneak loose if you don't watch it.

Very easy to get great tone out of, just turn it on.

Best tube pedal ever. OK i haven't tried em all but I'm stopping with this one. The gain control adds (besides gain, duh) a FATness that is uniquely tube, even through a solid state amp! Sounds like SIB reverse engineered the Custom Audio 3+ SE preamp because it sounds very similar to my ears.

Looks well built, but I just got it so I can't comment.

N/A

Great for blues, rock, fusion. I wanted something that would make any amp sound great and this is it. I got a fulltone FD-2 also; I use it when I need 2 gain settings AND don't feel like plugging in an AC cord. The varidrive (because its a tube device with probably a high plate voltage) has an AC cord dangling out of it. I haven't used it on a gig but I bet I'd probably kick that cord out at least once in the course of the night. Hmmm, hadn't thought about that before. I'm only giving it a 9 becuase it would be nice to have two different gain settings available via footswitch. There's just no pleasing some people :)

It has five knobs, Volume, Drive, Bass, Mids, Treble. All of the knobs are very responsive and have detents so you can find your favorite spots easily, but I'm not sure if I like that feature yet. I've been playing with thing for about 6 weeks now and I can't get it to sound bad. Sure, I've got my favorite sounds that I keep going back to, but everything else and everything in between is very musical.

I'm playing a Strat Plus and a Gibson Les Paul Custom Shop Historic Reissue '59 Flametop (2001, very sweet) into a TS9/808 by Analogman -->SIB Varidrive -->Clone Clone (Analogman)--> SIB EchoDrive -->into a Marshall Master Reverb 30 ( a SS practice amp that when clean sounds and responds remarkably like a tube amp - go figure) and occasionally into one of a couple of Fender amps (waiting for my Bogner).

The effect ranges from a subtle "just breaking up" to a completely over-the-top-string-melting tone. But it's more than just that. The sound is truely awe-inspiring. It's filled with rich and complex harmonics that makes the guitar not just sing, but actually lives and breathes as it responds to all the dynamics of your playing. The bass response is unbelievable and the highs are crystaline, never biting or harsh even when turned all the way up. I typically keep the drive under 12:00, but that's just my taste, there's lots of useful tone to be had between 12:00 and 5:00.

I often hit this with a clean boost from TS9/808 (another great pedal, but different in character) and the Varidrive really starts to give up the goods. Since it's a tube (12AX7 that can be switched out to Y7, T7 or U7s for less gain), pumping in more signal should have this affect and it is truly wonderful. The thing starts to sing like a violin. This is the perfect overdrive pedal. When run through a tube amp it it's like sex, but it puts a grin on my face even with the Marshall practice amp (that amp got really good reviews, so I know I'm not crazy - just surprised).

You must own this pedal.

I think I can depend on this more than I can depend on my playing. My performing days are over, so backups aren't really my concern. But having been there and done that, I would say that I could rely on this pedal, it's built like a brick and is very solid feeling. I would carry another tube of course.

I've been playing for nearly 30 years, blues, rock, pop, folk. For the last 10 years I've concentrated on acoustic guitar (Martin HD-28,Olson SJ) and am now returning to my roots and have picked up some of the stuff I haven't had to worry about over the years (effects, amps the LP). If it were lost or stolen it would be replaced immediately. I've never heard anything as full, rich, warm and complex as this and I couldn't imagine playing without it in my setup. I've compared it with a bunch of overdrive/distortion pedals from the big makers and it completely blows them away, no competition. It makes me want to play because it sounds so good and responds so well. It does not get in the way of my playing, nor does it change the sound of the guitars or amps that I use.

Simple to use. The eq is very effective. Dosen't come with a manual, just some indtructions which are screen printed to the back of the unit. It's not rocket science! Anyway this is a basic unit in that all you need to do is turn some knobs until it sounds good. Infact that's net even needed as the unit sounds fantastic at any setting, right out of the box, really!

Sounds fantastic! I have other boutique distortion/overdive pedals (FD2,Zvex, etc..)but non of them can do what the Varidrive can. This has't to be the hottest distortion/overdrive pedal. The distortion tones that come out of this thing are unreal! Very fat and warm sounding. Why do the words FAT and WARM always seem to be associated? I had girlfriend once, she was fat but she was a cold Bitch! explain that one! Anyway back to the review. This pedal is just a thing of beuty. The Vari can go from warm bluesy overdrive tones, all the way upto over the top scooped distortions. This pedal so so full of life! I currently use this pedal with two ,very different, amps using a switch box. The chain goes as follows: PRS Santana2 or Gibson Les Paul STD>>Fulltone Clyde Wah>>Fulltone FD2>>SIB Varidrive>> MXR Phase 100>>BOSS DD5>>ANALOG MAN Chourus >>Matchless DC-30 or Riveira Knuckle 100watt Head with 2/12 cab. The matchless sounds amazing on it's own but whan the SIB kicks in watch out! the tone becomes more heavenly. The riveira rig really makes the SIB shine in a different way. Scooped out mid tones are easily achieved. A clean amp with do very well with the Varidrive, howeve, this pedal will also make Class A's sing like an Angel. It's an all round great pedal.

Tough as Nails. Heavy as hell and built like a tank!

No experience.

Very awsome! Try one out if you get the chance. It's definately worth a try. I have never come accross such a full and rich sounding pedal. The distortion tones are massive and as smooth as butter. It's a keeper!