If you are tired of the many 808 and TS-9 clones marketed as “so amp-like, you’ll swear you are smelling tubes!” put the Real Tube 901 on your G.A.S.

The enclosure, well…there is always the rack-mountable version! It has it’s quirks: an odd low-profile soft-touch switch that though comfortable can make it easy to “miss a shift”, it’s mains-powered only, and as sturdy as the enclosure is, it always seems to stick out from the other pedals on the board…but these are are small complaints really…The footswitch is frequently swapped out and rarely are pedals powered by batteries these days.

Is this the product of the vacuum tube…or just a all thought out design? B.K. Through all of this it remains warm and responsive to the volume knob. The Mid control in particular can really “voice” this pedal, giving you midrange honk and or super-scooped Thrash tones. It responds well to both subtle and extreme tweaking though set flat you can numerous sonic signatures just by adjusting the Gain and Output. The EQ is of the “active” variety, with both boost and cut. Swapping out tubes can vary the gain range and EQ, albeit to a certain degree: this is a starved-plate design so it has it’s limitations. It’s a studio essential for anyone who deals with recording sessions that need something just a bit more “real” than the usual plug-ins have to offer…without having to drag around a large stack or keep a large combo amp in the closet.Īdd to this the ability to change tubes to further shape the signal and you can spend hours in the studio with the Real Tube. With the wide range of the gain knob it can take you from Blues Rock to grinding Metal, all aided by it’s versatile EQ. It’s voice is reminiscent of a full-bore Marshall from the Seventies that has its guts hot-rodded to the limit just ready to explode. of course with the footswitch it can get from clean to mean quickly. It functions quite well as an always-on dirt pedal it is more of a preamp that you can ride from your volume knob than just an off/on type of affair. It’s thick grind is accompanied with a clarity that makes it hard to get lost within the mix. Because of its starved-plate design, it has an inherent “sag” that many find a comforting alternative to the hyper-quick sensitivity of silicon-diodes used in most pedals. Offering a bold and throaty voice that is weighty and responsive, this tube-based preamp can go from subtle overdrive to biting distortion. With a three band EQ and a wide range of “tube”gain, it can mimic many tones…but it’s true value lies in the variations it can achieve of its own tone signature.

Swappable Tubes for subtle Gain and Tone variationĪ tube-based design housed in a solid metal enclosure, the Real Tube Overdrive was a unique pedal when it entered the market and arguably still is.

Tube based O/D with Extensive Equalizer.

Tube driver pedal kit