We review the Warm Audio Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive, Fuzz and Booster effects pedals: "For players seeking a classic U.K. palette”

Over the past 15 years, Bryce Young has made a name for Texas-based Warm Audio by effectively resurrecting legendary analog designs whose rarity and lofty prices put them out of the reach of everyday musicians. He began with studio gear (tube compressors, equalizers and such), then expanded into guitar pedals, including a host of affordable takes on “holy grail” units such as the Klon Centaur, Marshall Guv’nor and Moog Moogerfooger MF-102 Ring Modulator.

Warm Audio’s latest stomps are unique in that they aren’t recreations of long-lusted-after pedals but rather shrunken versions of collaborator Alex Saraceno’s larger Dirty Boy designs. The Warm Audio Dirty Boy Jr. series — the Fuzz, Overdrive and Booster — puts the circuits from Saraceno’s Afro Fuzz, Preamp and Ball Buster pedals into housings roughly half the size and half the price of the originals. Inside each unit, pedal innards are difficult to view, as they face away from the rear access panel, and while the input and output jacks appear to be PCB mounted, the soldering work is neat and all connections seem sturdy and tight.

Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive

Astute observers will quickly note that there’s a lot more to the Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive than its moniker might imply. In addition to the usual gain, volume and passive tone controls, it also features a unique Variac knob, as well as a second output featuring designer (and current Dirty Boy owner) Danny Gomez’s Tube Amp Emulation (T.A.E.) circuit. The latter is voiced to sound like a sealed 4x12 cabinet with Celestion Greenback speakers, while the former aims to mimic the sound of using a voltage regulator (a Variac) to reduce the voltage flowing through a tube amp, which can introduce more organic-feeling compression, “sag” and an overall spongier sound. (The late Eddie Van Halen famously attributed some of his most iconic recorded tones to using a Variac with his vintage Marshall amps.)

But while using a real-life Variac can be, for electrical-engineering reasons beyond the scope of this review, a dangerous undertaking, the Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive’s knob of the same name is a perfectly safe means of achieving glorious textures — turning the pedal into far more than just another moderate-gain machine. And though the emulated output is touted as a great tool for recording or performing direct to a board, I found that, in tandem with the Variac control, it also easily imbued a clean amp with the fantastic tones of yesteryear. (I used silver-panel Fender Vibrolux Reverb and Vibro Champ combos.)

Contrary to what the product manual indicates, at maximum Variac is effectively disengaged, but as you turn the control counterclockwise the tones begin to sound airier and feel more amp-like. With gain around 12 o’clock, nudging Variac back before the noon mark made it crazy easy for my P-90-outfitted Les Paul Special double-cut to conjure sounds reminiscent of classic British amps (think old Hiwatts, Voxes and Marshalls), but at a fraction of the volume those amps required before giving up the goods. One never would’ve known the difference between my miked-up Vibro Champ and what Pete Townshend plugged into way back when.

Dirty Boy Jr. Fuzz

Envisioned as a more versatile take on the vaunted Arbiter Fuzz Face of yore (whose users include Hendrix, Gilmour and Eric Johnson), the Dirty Boy Jr. Fuzz uses one germanium and one silicon transistor (in place of the original Fuzz Face’s dual-germanium design), ostensibly in an effort to both extend the range of filth and eliminate some of the temperature-related fussiness associated with a germanium-only circuit. Alongside the original Fuzz Face’s two-knob control scheme (level and fuzz), it adds a six-position freq knob similar to the Varitone control on certain Gibson ES-series guitars.

I tested the Fuzz with the previously mentioned Les Paul Special and Fender amps, as well as a Dunable Cyclops (stocked with Curtis Novak Phase III Humbuckers) driving a dimed early ’70s Ampeg V2 and closed-back 4x12. While it sounded very good through all test amps, it proved most flexible through the Ampeg, with burly violin-/cello-like passages being practically effortless when the freq knob was in its first or second (more bass-heavy) positions and the fuzz control was at low or moderate settings.

As you turn freq progressively through its six positions, you’ll likely want to turn the fuzz and volume knobs a bit more clockwise, as each position’s EQ profile progressively diminishes the aggressiveness of the fuzz. Even so, there’s plenty of nastiness to be had in the brighter freq positions — from skanktastically scooped midrange to subversively stabby treble emphasis.

Dirty Boy Jr. Booster

When one thinks “boost pedal,” one doesn’t typically picture quite as many controls as the Dirty Boy Jr. sports. In addition to dedicated drive, bass and treble knobs, it features a three-position freq control — although in the case of the Booster, freq is billed as a low-end voicing switch rather than the Fuzz’s Varitone-style affair. Position one bulks up low and low-mid frequencies, which can be useful for creating heavier sounds; position two delivers a more evenly balanced EQ, while three is the brightest.

Interestingly, the Booster’s manual points out that it was designed specifically for use with vintage, single-channel amps of the British persuasion (e.g., Marshall-, Vox- and Hiwatt-style amps). Plugged into an Ampeg V2 and 4x12 — which, while technically American, features an exceptionally dynamic EQ section capable of very “British” voices — the Booster proved potentially devastating. Not in a bowel-churning metal way, but in a wicked, harmonically rich sense.

I found the most utility in the freq knob’s more rotund first setting, which gave even chugging bridge-pickup power chord fantastic mass. In fact, I found myself reducing the bass control to about 2 o’clock (on our review model, the bass knob behaved more like a bass-cut control, reducing bass as it was turned clockwise). Players who favor middle and neck-position playing will likely feel more at home with freq in the second or third positions.

Conclusion

While some Warm Audio fans might scratch their heads a little at the Dirty Boy Jr. collaboration’s apparent MO departure (as well as the pedals’ somewhat lackluster visual aesthetics), plugging in reveals both worthy tones and careful thought and intent in their design. Aimed squarely at players seeking a classic U.K. palette, they bring welcome flexibility — particularly in high-end frequencies — while assuring simplicity of concept and execution.

For maximum bang for buck, the Overdrive is especially recommended for those not wanting (or able) to crank their amp for tonal payoff. Its Variac control and speaker-emulated output could be transformative for players seeking old-school tones without digital interfaces and menu diving.

SPECIFICATIONS

CONTACT warmaudio.com

MODEL Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive

PRICE $169 street

CONTROLS Gain, volume, Variac, tone

I/O Input, preamp out, emulated out, 9V DC center-negative adapter input

EXTRAS LED indicator

POWER 9V DC

DIMENSIONS 4.8”x2”x2.6” (LxWxH)

WEIGHT 0.6 lb.

PRO Fantastically useful Variac control and tube-amp-emulated output yield a host of classic British amp tones. Lots of oomph from volume control

CON Variac knob produces no audible change in the first quarter of its range

MODEL Dirty Boy Jr. Fuzz

PRICE $169 street

CONTROLS Fuzz, level, freq

I/O Input and output, 9V DC center-negative adapter input

EXTRAS LED indicator

POWER 9V DC

DIMENSIONS 4.8”x2”x2.6” (LxWxH)

WEIGHT 0.6 lb.

PRO Avails subtle-to-massive germanium flavors and nastier, more saturated silicon fuzz. Very useful six-position freq knob

CON Fuzz and freq controls are most effective through a cranked tube amp

MODEL Dirty Boy Jr. Booster

CONTACT warmaudio.com

PRICE $169 street

CONTROLS Drive, freq, bass, treble

I/O Input and output, 9V DC center-negative adapter input

EXTRAS LED indicator

POWER 9V DC

DIMENSIONS 4.8”x2”x2.6” (LxWxH)

WEIGHT 0.6 lb.

PRO Tons of clean gain on tap. Wide-ranging tone controls, particularly on the high end

CON Minimum drive setting is significantly higher than unity gain, which can make pairing it with other gain devices tricky. Dedicated midrange control might be more useful than 3-position freq knob