A while back, our buddy and fellow reviewer Kyle Ragan (check out his YouTube channel) introduced us, and probably most of you guys and gals out there, to a little company from the Czech Republic called HDR Amplification. Their Seastorm and Sunstorm Distortion pedals both looked and sounded incredible, so we were pretty stocked when an overseas box arrived on the front door not long ago sporting their name. Upon opening said box, we were introduced to a slick and rad-sounding overdrive, which we will check out today: The Bluerider.
Since this pedal is, in fact, based on the circuitry of a certain classic green overdrive box, the controls are really no surprise: Drive, Tone and Level. These are present on most overdrive pedals, in some form or another, regardless of what cool new name or clever way to describe them might come up in a builder’s meeting, and that’s ok, because they make up the overdrive world. HDR has taken it to another level, though, by increasing the overall range of the Drive knob, allowing for a multitude of styles, from rock to blues to light metal and more. The Bluerider is especially clean at any volume, too, making it that much more of a versatile weapon in your sonic arsenal.
In addition to the “usual suspects” control section, the Bluerider features a cool toggle switch, for even more diversity. The Lead position really cranks up the volume, giving your signal a big boost and pushing your amp right to the edge, and if you’re not careful, right past it. Crunch is a mellower setting, and while it can get crunchy if need be, it also works as an awesome clean(ish) boost when you dial back the Drive knob, too. Both of these toggle positions are extremely useful, and will work with the other controls to give you a great overdriven tone.
All-in-all, the Bluerider is an excellent take on a classic pedal, with some modern internal workings, better sonic ranges and a couple toggle options as well. With a nice collection of pedals to choose from so far, HDR Amplification (or the sub-company HDR Toneboxes) is slowly making a name fro themselves, so go check out their website to see more pedals of theirs, and keep an eye out for more reviews here in the near future!
Specs:
Dimensions (W/D/H): 70mm x 114mm x 50mm
Battery Type: 9V DC x 1
AC Adapter: 9-15V DC, Negative Center (Regulated Recommended)
Input Impedance: 500k Ohm (min)
Output Impedance: 10k Ohm
Power Consumption: 6mA (9V DC)
Submitted by Mike B, Website
Demo Rock pedalboard by West Coast Pedalboard
