I
f we’re being honest with ourselves,
I think we can all agree that most
overdrives are pretty boring. The
reason for this is, of course, because
they’re all secretly (or not so secretly)
Tube Screamers. I apologize if this
revelation shocks you, but I’m fairly
certain that the cat escaped the bag
long ago on this little industry secret.
Variations of this archetypal overdrive
circuit abound, making up the
overwhelming majority the OD market,
but no matter how many clipping
options are added, no matter the
fancy tone controls, bright switches,
buffered bypass, or boost channels
that have been tacked on, the truth is
that a Tube Screamer is a Tube
Screamer is a Tube Screamer.
I don’t mean to suggest that a TSbased pedal can’t sound good in the
right context, or that such a pedal has
no use. If that’s really the sound that
inspires you, then by all means, let
those tubes scream! For those of us
that are bored to tears with vanilla dirt
pedals, however, or just want a unique
alternate tone option, there does exist
another, somewhat overlooked realm
of overdrive—the magical world of
non-Tube Screamers. This world is
much smaller, and gets a lot less
attention from the mainstream guitar
community, but seekers of uncommon
dirty tones will find much to love there.
Here is a grip of my favorite non-Tube
Screamer overdrives.
*Note: For the purposes of this article, I
have left out overt amp-in-a-box pedals
and Klon clones. These pedals exist in
their own categories removed from
traditional overdrives like the Tube
Screamer, and we’ve covered both
extensively in other articles.
FAIRFIELD CIRCUITRY
BARBERSHOP OVERDRIVE:
Hull, Quebec’s Fairfield Circuitry is
tirelessly innovative, with each of the
company’s pedals offering a strikingly
original entry into the boutique effects
world. It’s no surprise then, that
Fairfield’s Barbershop Overdrive is unlike
any OD we’ve ever heard before, with a
vast swath of dynamic tones that range
from rich and sparkling, to brown sound
chunk, to biting, fuzz-tinged gnash. The
best part is, you can summon all of these
sounds just by varying your pick attack
in subtle ways. To call the Barbershop
“responsive” would be a massive
understatement. Its distinctive features
include a “Sag” control, which alters the
voltage to get a looser, vintage tube
amp sort of squish when turned counterclockwise, or a tighter, less colored
sound when turned the opposite way.
The pedal’s tone control is a threeposition switch that kicks in varying
degrees of high-cut, with the wide-open
middle position offering a uniquely hi-fi
kind of tone, the rightmost position
offering subtle treble roll-off, and the
leftmost position being fully dark and
dirty. The Fairfield Barbershop is an
excellent choice for the guitarist looking
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