We here at Pedal of the Day had the pleasure of reviewing the PreDrive from PettyJohn Electronics last year, and finally got to see what all the hype has been about. Continuing in the tradition of innovative and exquisitely built pedals, they have now brought us a completely different beast altogether, one that is destined to become a classic, just like their first flagship pedal. Let’s take a look at the PettyDrive, alright?
As with the PreDrive, the PettyDrive’s controls are a mystery at first glance, as none of them are labeled. It’s actually kind of fun to sit down and play with the pedal BEFORE checking out the manual, to see if you can guess what does what. After messing with it for a bit, the manual definitely puts you back on the right path, giving labels to the controls and insight into the pedal as well. This red monster is a studio-grade, dual channel analog overdrive pedal, and with both channels having the ability to function independently, you can have 2 individual tones to choose from, or stack them (in whichever order you’d like) to make a third incredible selection at your disposal.
Each channel features a Gain control, an Output Level control, a 3-way clipping toggle (Soft, LED and Hard clipping) and a 3-position Low Cut toggle, with each channel assigned to its own footswitch near the bottom of the pedal. Channel One was designed more as a boost or lower-gain drive, with Channel Two possessing more power and crunch for that boutique drive sound. Channel One also has a Tilt EQ knob assigned to it, that acts as a Tone control, while Channel Two features a tone control as well, but is a High Cut, allowing you to tame higher treble frequencies coming from your guitar’s pickups. Channel Two also has one more feature, a Clean Mix, which allows you to combine your clean and dirty signals, from 50% of each all the way up to 100% full on overdrive.
The PettyDrive also has a parallel Effects Loop, which lets you bypass the overdrive and run other effects clean, plus you have to control to blend the other effects in with the drive, for truly tonal control over the whole pedal. As with their other gear, the PettyJohn PettyDrive is built using only the highest-quality ingredients, in a tank-like housing that is sure to last for years and years. Thanks to Chris and the crew at PettyJohn for sending this magnificent drive to us to check out – make sure to head over to their site and grab one for yourself!
Specs:
Two Fully Independent, Stackable Overdrive Circuits
Channel 1/2 Order Flip
Unique Parallel Effects Loop on Channel 2 for New Pedal Combinations
Available with Standard or Deluxe Chip Set
Built with Highest Possible Quality, Audiophile Components for Excellent Reliability and Performance
Symmetrical Control Layout
Always-On Studio Grade Input Buffer for Zero-Loss Bypassed Tone
Internal True-Bypass Switching
Internal Charge Pump for Extra High Headroom
Easily Powered by Standard Pedal Power 9v-15v DC (-)
Current Draw: 100 mA
Cool Red Jewel Light Indicators
Made in the USA
Submitted by Mike B, Website
Demo Rock pedalboard by West Coast Pedalboard
