The Dredge OD is the newest version the original DredgeTone Overdrive. The OD responds dynamically to your playing style, and can go from a slightly overdriven, jangly tone to big and saturated and nasty.

• Great tone
• Top quality components
• Hand-built in USA
• No battery required, but you will need to use a standard wall type adapter (you know, the BOSS or Godlyke type).

Remember this was written by a recovering Pedal Phile, "it's been two months since my last stompbox." ;-)

I'll start this review with a few words from one of our fellow Gearheads, Michael Gearhead, who I fixed up with a Dredge overdrive (you can expect a full and detailed review in later issues).

"With the Dredge, it's sorta like there's an interesting texture that's added to the sound and not too much is taken away - the notes are fat, rich and furry!" Michael Gearhead.

Straight up I'll tell you that Doug and I are really blown away by John's Dredge Tone gear, The quality of the painted case is great and the workmanship inside looks neat as a pin, and the sounds are so damn good. Doug has a 4 channel Laney Combo and I've got a real Marshall Plexi Superlead (made in 1968 BTW) so we know what a good amps sound like and guess what? these little pedals sound like a good amp, no BS.

We tested them with a Blade Strat, Doug's 1970's SG and his Maton 335 copy set up for slide. Man the Dredge overdrive loved all three guitars, but I reckon that Bucker equipped guitars might just get the nod over single coil equipped guitars. Buckers just drive the pedal that little bit harder you see. It's not that the Dredgetone gear does not suit single coils, it does, just that the humbuckers drive the pedals so damn well. Single coil + Dredge Overdrive = FAT, Humbuckers + Dredge Overdrive = Super Fat Ass Tone.

The Dredge Overdrive has one knob, it never really gets clean unless you back off the guitar volume, and there is always some dirt in the signal, even at position 0 on the single control knob. The Dredge Overdrive is a dedicated overdrive unit and makes no pretence at being a clean booster, unlike the Z-Vex Super Hard On.

It is very natural sounding this Dredge Overdrive, very much like a crunch channel on a Marshall, I love pedals folks, but my one bugbear with pedals is that often they sound like a tacked on afterthought, often sounding one dimensional not natural. The Dredge overdrive on the other hand DOES NOT seem to narrow your guitars frequency range, it sounds like an amp naturally
going into overdrive. To put the sound in a picture box for you, think everything from early Clapton Bluesbreakers to ACDC, very much a crunchy Marshall sound not a Fender clean sound.

This box is not an in your face animal, look to Z-Vex for that sort of over the top uncontrollable vibe, rather it's very user and tone friendly. At lower levels it seems to roll off the highs whilst it still maintains a fine volume level. As you crank the single control knob to the right it gets louder, dirtier and seems to roll off the bass, but it never gets ice picky or shrill.

All in all a great Overdrive box, I've owned a Tubscreamer and this box sets a new standard for the term "natural overdrive" and as for the factory mass produced stuff from BOSS, well only the BOSS Bluesdriver gets within cooee IMHO.

Doug gave Creams "Sunshine of your love" a whirl and the Dredge Overdrive easily gave up that bassy fat Cream tone, it really is the "shit on a stick" for reeling off Clapton/Cream stuff. So fat is makes a Sumo wrestler look like Ally McBeal. Step on it and people in the audience will think you've stepped on the channel change switch of your amp, not stepped on a fuzzbox, and that's
just the way I like.

What a civilised pedal it is, last week we were trying out Zac's Z Vex stuff and Zac's pedals were scary (although the Super Hard On really is very natural sounding) The Fuzz Factory, the Woolly Mammoth et al really take a leaf out of the Electro Harmonix book, ie in your face, on the edge of control, idiosyncratic and well, just plain scary. The Dredge Tone pedals on the other hand follow a more Tubescreamer route to sonic bliss, ie very easy to control with very natural sounding breakup, all warm an fuzzy really. Z-Vex is 60's excess and DredgeTone is 70's hippie stoner rock n blues.