Trace Elliot Dirt Box

Simple and pretty self emplanatory. Manual gives some pointers, but not strictly necessary.

this is a two stage pedal, so feeding in a clean signal gives you the option of: Switch 1: slighly to medium hairy Add Switch 2: moderate to Van Halen 1 sound. Switch 2 with a moderate to high output bridge pickup gives that great Van Halen 1 sound- Chunking muted bass stings, fiery treble strings with the capability of pocupiney harmonics with musical feedback waiting in the wings should you sidle up to the front of your amp. I've always liked the high gain sound on trace amps and this delivers it. Mildly noisy at highest gain settings like any pedal of this type.

Built like tank. Should last for years if you don't abuse it. One downside is it takes 2 9V batteries so you need to find an 18V adaptor if yours doesn't come with one. Good news is that it doesn't go through batteries very quickly.

Since Gibson bought Trace out, I think you're on your own.

Versatile pedal that hardly anyone's ever heard of. Which means you can usually find them at a reasonable price.

The manual for this pedal opens as follows:

WARNING: We advise caution if any of the following apply:
1) You have a weak stomach
2) You are in labour
3) You iron creases in your jeans
4) You and your partner have matching anoraks
5) You eat chips with lasange

Further down the page it reads:

This product doesn't really need operating instructions, so if you can't wait to go and plug in your Dirt Box, just set all the knobs pointing upwards, tweak to taste and see what noises your Box can make. You can always return to boring operating instructions when your extremities are sore.


'Nuff said.

I bought this unit initially because I am a Trace collector, and this was the last of the seven pedals to be added to my stable. It also turned out to be the most useless, at least at first. This pedal is essentially the preamp section of Channel 2 on the original Trace Tramp amplifiers. It makes a decent distortion when coupled with the right power amp, but it can't compete with my Trace Trident. After a few months of non-use, I put it in my bass rig and discovered magic...

Splitting my signal with an A/B Box, I run one side to my Trace GP7SM-130. The other side runs through the Dirt Box, then to my Ampeg B-100R. This is modeled after John Entwistle's preferred setup through the late sixties and early seventies (one which most producers and engineers weren't hip to), and, depending on which gain level I'm using, the sound ranges from an Entwistle-esque tone up to a ballsier fuzz sound. The primary advantage of a rig like this is that you don't lose definition or bottom end when you kick in the OD. In this context, the pedal works great. It doesn't get muddy, flabby, or tinny. It sounds solid and full, moreso than just about any other bass OD I can think of.

I have had problems with other Trace pedals, but not this one. The circuitry here appears to be less complex, and therefore a little more failproof.

Gibson no longer services older Trace products. Go to Shane at www.britishaudioservice.com if you need help.

A good, simple pedal...what more could you ask for? I love mine.

5 knobs... 2 switches.. Nuff said.

Im not sure if the unit is a Bass pedal or for 6 stringers like myself but i use it through a Marshall 80 Valvestate with my les paul studio and the sound is just Amazing! I get screeches and artifcial harmonics that cut through in all the right places but sounds clear enough to keep tone and clarity ( think Crazy train/No more tears )

Never tried live so dont know if the thing would break down of if the battery power affects sound quality so cant really comment....But the fact that i found it in a damp room after a year of being neglected makes me think its a tough little cookie

I use a Boss GT5 mainly but the sheer ease of use and tonality of this small yet mighty device means that until the almighty POD pro is mine, the little black beastie will be acompanying me to rehearsal till im confident of its gigging power.

Very simple to use- 5 knobs, 2 switches. Knobs read L-R as follows- Gain, Bass, Mid, Treble, and Volume. As you may have guessed, it has a three band eq. If you really wanted to, and had a passive bass, this makes a nice preamp as well. Very easy to get good sound. For a good BASS overdrive/distortion tone, dial up the EQ section as you would guess, with LOTS of bass, a little mid, and a little hi. For gain, max it, and for volume, adjust until the bypass out is the same as the effect out in volume. NOTE: I ussually get a little bit of low-end clipping on this, as it was designed for guitar, HOWEVER, I am very picky about my sound, and it really shouldnt matter too much, as this is a distortion effect, and when used as designed, it kicks serious ass. I never got a manual, as I got it used, but I did email Customer support, see below. Oh yeah- the foot pedals- The right one bypasses the entire box, and the left one doubles the gain for the over-the-top overdrive tones.

Sound Quality, Hmm... well as I mentioned above, it clips a little of the VERY low end bass, and it also adds a SLIGHT hiss, when both foot pedals are used, but keep in mind that I use this with a studio reference system. A pair of 2-12 custom speakers, a Mits. 12 sub, which works nice for low-volume, a couple of horn and mid cabs, and a studio instrument pre. I also use an Ibanez Eurgodyne, and a Trace chorus, a DOD flange, a Boss TU-2, a EH wah, and a variety of other items, including a Vox Essex, a Vox Beatle, and a vox AC15.

I would deffinitely gig w/o a backup, however most of my work is studio stuff. I can deffinitely depend on it, as I take care of my equipment. It is made of a sturdy powder-coated Steel case, with sturdy switches and knobs. Nice firm jacks too.

Very helpful, up until it came to Gibson (Yes, I said GIBSON) spending 0.50$ on shipping postage for a manual. Ah, I hope that the founder of Trace Elliot is rolling over in his grave. Quick responce though- at most 2 hours.

I play this weird blend of Weezer, Sunny Day Real Estate, U2, and Radiohead- (in other words NERD ROCK EXPERIMENTALIST!) and this suits me nicely. When I set it up w/my flanger, it gives a nice overthetop Drive Flange. I LIKE. the only down side is the hiss, and the fact that the EQ is a Cut EQ, not a boost/cut, which means WHEN you use it as a pre-amp, which your not suppost to anyway, you get some distortion from cranking the gain. all in all very nice though. I've played on many items, and if this was stolen, I couldn't probably find a replacement, and so I would build myself a replica, as I have already marked the schematics, the day I got it.

Made in the UK. Very simple, dual FET cascading distortion box. Knobs are as follows L-R: Gain, Bass, Mid, Treble, Level. TWO buttons on the wide box, each controls one stage of gain. The EQ is engaged upon stage one, and stage mtwo just gets the sound even dirtier. LED's for each stage of activation. Runs on 2 9V's or 18V AC, and it actually came with the small Trace 18V wall-wart adaptor!

Very "quiet" as far as unwanted noise goes. The 1st gain stage can be used for an EQ and signal boost to overdrive your tube-amp if you set level at a moderate setting, or can be used for box distortion with the level cranked. The EQ is very nice on this pedal and actually works well to shape the sound without mangling the natural tone. The 2nd stage is great for a Pro-co RAT style fuzz, and there is a broad range of messy gain to be found here, all pretty transparent for stomp-box distortion.

For the record, I generally don't like stomp-boxes for distortion, but I do use a few for home-recording when songs call for the sound of a box. This pedal is by far one of the best I've found for the Marshall superfuzz thing, and is built like a tank as well. The 2-stage system is great for attaining a light tinge of fuzz, along with a high gain sound without using two different pedals.

VERY well constructed, heavy black metal casing, solid & reliable button switches, smooth pots behind all knobs, battery friendly, and easy to find with the feet. AC adaptor (included) works well and dosent take up 2 spaces on my power-strip. Buttons are spaced out on the fairly wide chasis so that you can hit one or both, even when the drinks are on the house.

Never dealt w/ them about this box, but I've had a good experience w/ Trace regarding my amps (2 velocettes and a SpeedTwin 100 head). They always fix them and return them quickly, and when they replaced a defective transformer on my Velocette amp, they even retubed it sent it back even cleaner than before. Always good about e-mailing answers to questions, and very friendly folks to deal with.

Very nice distortion pedal, versatile as hell, and a super price.