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Bass Direct Offer

£211 + £7 UK mainland p&p

£211 + £20 EU mainland p&p

1. •Use as preamp or overdrive pedal
   

2. •Vintage or modern tube sound
   

3. •All musical high-grade tube design
   

4. •Classic style passive filters
   

5. •”Class A” tube overdrive pedal
   

6. •Designed exclusively for best bass response
   

7. •True bypass
   

8. •12V Power Supply included
   

 

Check out the Pedal Snake stage solutions here

Quality pedal boards here

For connecting leads see here

Technical Specifications:

True Bypass

 

Nominal Input Level  - 8 or - 16 dBv (active/passive)

Input Impedance  1 Mohms

Frequency Response  +0 / -3 dB  35 - 20k Hz

Gain Range  -oo/+26 dB

Bass Filter Range  15 dB < 80 Hz

Middle Filter Range  12 dB @ 400 Hz

Treble Filter Range  6 dB @ 5 kHz

Output Impedance  > 500 kohms

Dimensions (L x W x H)  6.5” x 5.3” x 3.0”   (165 x 135 x 75 mm)

Weight  1.0 kg (2.2 lbs.)

Power Requirements  12 V AC, 500 mA (power supply included)

Subject to change without notice.

Manual (PDF)
Manual (839 kB)

Certificate of Origin (PDF)
Certificate (300 kB)

Reviews (PDF)
Bass Guitar 2007 (in English)
Bass Player 2006 (in English)
Fuzz Magazine 2005 (in English)
Musiker Magasinet 2005 (in English)

The Review in UK Bass Guitar Magazine:

The Swedes add yet another pedal to their already well stocked arsenal,

the new valve drive pedals. Distortion and basses, how do they mix?

As well as great amps, the name EBS has been synonymous with great effects pedals ever since the Swedish bass-meisters first arrived on UK shores. The original line up of six ‘Black Label’ stomp boxes has recently had a couple of new additions: the Wah One that took Mike Brooks by storm in Issue 24, and under the spotlight today, the Valve Drive pedal.

Intro & Background

Bass guitars and distortion have had a long, but at times rocky relationship, ever since our guitar-playing associates figured out you could get cool distorted sounds by overdriving amps and we wanted to get in on the act. The problem for bass is that distortion has often reduced the amount of low end in our sound, an issue exacerbated by the fact that most distortion pedals are designed for guitar. Within recent years more and more bass-specific distortion pedals have appeared, including EBS’ own Multi-Drive pedal. Their all new Valve Drive is more than just an update; it’s in a whole different league, which is obvious from the outset as it’s twice the size and almost twice the price. Let’s see if it’s worth the extra dosh.

Build Quality & Features

Valves are most often equated with warmth and a fat low end, so seeing one stuck on the top of this distortion pedal in a shiny chrome cage is reassuring to say the least, not to mention the wide-eyed wonder that all us gear nerds approach anything that glows with… The rest of the unit also instils confidence – finished in a rugged steel casing with chunky chrome switches and recessed Bakelite knobs, stampeding elephants would have trouble putting a dent in it.

There are two main sounds to choose from, Vintage or Modern, which are selected via the left-hand footswitch – the right one turns the effect on or off. The sound can then be tailored via the five controls on the top of the unit: Volume, Treble, Middle, Bass and Gain. Compared to what we’re used to on an amplifier, these may seem to be the wrong way round, but it does actually make sense as the signal flow in a pedal is always from right to left. The Input and Output are on the back of the pedal, along with AC power connection and two nifty switches; one introduces a –8dB pad for active instruments and the other selects between Bypass and

Mute when the pedal is deactivated. A feature included on this and other higher-end pedals is True Bypass, meaning that with the effect switched off there is absolutely no colouration or diminution to the sound, something you may notice when using cheaper units – especially more than one at a time.

The EQ takes the form of three passive filters and to achieve a flat or neutral frequency response the Treble and Bass controls should be set to minimum and the Middle control to maximum. Mostly we are used to 12 o’clock being the ‘flat’ position so this may seem like a strange concept, and the result is that Treble and Bass can only be boosted and Middle can only be cut. However, due to the nature of the change in sound when distortion is introduced, 12 o’clock on all three knobs is not a bad place to start.

Setting up a sound on the Valve Drive pedal is mainly a matter of balancing the Gain and Volume settings so as not to introduce a wild difference in volume between the clean and dirty sound, unless of course that’s what you’re after. The higher the Gain, the more distorted the sound and the lower the Volume needs to be set, and vice versa.

Impressions

The first thing to get to grips with was the difference between the Vintage and Modern sounds. Slightly confusing was the fact that the footswitch is simply labelled ‘Vintage’ but the LED glows yellow for Vintage and red for Modern, whereas the Active LED is red when it’s on. That aside, the difference in sound was clear and became even more noticeable at higher Gain settings. As you might expect, the Vintage sound was warmer with more of a low-mid boost that generally sounded smooth and full, only getting slightly fizzy when the Gain was almost maxed out. The Modern sound is more middly in character and gives your bass a buzzy rawness that can go all the way up to meltdown if you need it to. At lower Gain settings there is less perceivable difference in the two sounds, but there is a general increase in valve-type warmth that is ideal if you are using the pedal more as a preamp than as an effect.

As you turn the Gain up the distortion is most noticeable on the higher frequencies at first, and then as you push it higher, fuzz and nastiness  gradually overtake the whole of the sound.

As mentioned before, leave the EQ all set at 12 o’clock and there is already a certain amount of cut and boost going on. After fully experimenting with the EQ, the 12 o’clock position for all three controls was the easiest way to reliably get a great sound. Using this as a starting point I could then fine tune the sound in different venues to makes sure I was still cutting through. If it’s something more extreme or specific you’re after, then having a three-band EQ and the option of two main sounds gives you plenty of flexibility and scope for realising your distortion dreams. Even at extreme EQ and Gain settings the Valve Drive pedal still responds in a musical and dynamic way and I found it pretty hard to get a bad sound.

   

Using this pedal on a gig I opted for the Vintage sound and left the EQ at 12 o’clock, apart from the Middle control, which was at about 2 o’clock. I was already using a Sansamp Bass Driver DI as a preamp to give my sound extra girth and beefiness, so I left in a bit more mid on the distorted sound to help cut through. The setup worked like a dream and the Valve Drive pedal sounded fat and aggressive, perfect for rocking out some heavy riffs. The band had only one guitarist so it was really useful in keeping the whole band sounding heavy during epic guitar solos.

Test Results

All too often distortion pedals can just add mush and fizz to your sound, and at worst a complete lack of low-end response. It’s great to see the Valve Drive pedal performing so well in these critical areas and of all the distortion pedals I’ve tried over the years, this is definitely one of the best. The sheer quality of tone, along with the flexibility of the sounds and EQ, set this one apart from the crowd. It is more expensive than your average stomp box, but if you want a really great distortion sound then look no further. Once again, EBS have set the standard for great design and great tone – other makers take note!

Andrew McKinney