A Brief History of Tube Overdrive Pedals: Classics vs. Modern

With the release of the Tube Drive Twin Triode Dual Overdrive by Keeley, it may be worth looking at the history of Tube Overdrive and Preamp pedals to see whether they still stand up to modern equivalents.

B.K. Butler Tube Driver

The big daddy of them all is the B.K. Butler Tube Driver has been in production under various guises, including a rack unit, since its original release under the Butronics name in 1979, then again in 1985 as its classic four-knob variant.

Luminaries such as David Gilmour, Eric Johnson, Billy Gibbons, and Joe Satriani have used it.  Basically, a mini 12AX7 driven tube preamp in a pedal it provides a pleasing smooth but textured fuzz-drive sound. 

They are still available direct from Butler Audio and cost $314.00.  However, they are big, taking up quite a lot of pedalboard real estate, and have a mains plug, so you can’t power one off your Pedal Power 2. 

Secondhand, they still command a high price, with examples on eBay ranging from about $300.00 to about $1000.00 depending on the manufacturer and age.   I have no experience with the B.K. Butler tube drive, but have owned a Lovepedal Dover Drive and now a Crazy Tube Circuits Venus, in my quest for Gilmour Tone.  I will look at the Dover Drive and the Venus in a future article,

Overlord

In late 1988, Dean Markley released the Overlord, another mains cable-powered 12AX7-driven overdrive/preamp pedal.  According to Kit Rae, “Dean Markley made this exact knockoff of Butler's Real Tube in the late 1988-1991. According to Butler, the Overlord was copied by DM out of spite after he left his company.”  A great budget choice: the Overlords are currently listed on eBay for as little as $200.00, with a boxed example for $295.00.

Hughes & Kettner

In 1991 Hughes & Kettner released Thomas Blug designed Tubeman Mk1 a 12volt dc powered tube preamp/overdrive pedal with four modes (Jazz, Funk, Blues and Rock), a three band eq and a master volume.  It featured dedicated outputs to go to either a guitar amp or straight into your mixer.  Currently, one is on Reverb for $240.00.

To understand the origins of the Hughes & Kettner tube pedals, we need to start in 1987 when they launched their half-rack Sound Machine series. 

It started with the Cream Machine, then in 1988 and 1990 with the Metal Master/Metal Shredder and Crunch Master/Blues Master. Ok, so not pedals, but very important in the evolution of Hughes & Kettner’s Tube Pedals. 

Not just preamps; Hughes & Kettner describes these as Micropower Tube amps. These are now talked about in hallowed tones in places such as The Gear Page, where they have a Cult following.

V-Twin

In 1993, Mesa Boogie released the V-Twin both as a pedal and in a rack format.  At the time I remember friends with single channel Marshalls who wanted the Rectifier sound buying the V-twin.

Having never owned a Rectifier because no one I knew could afford one, I thought it had the heaviest sound in the world.  The V-twin was a 12-volt DC-powered pedal with 2 x 12AX7 tubes, 2 foot-switchable channels, and three modes (Clean, Blues, and Solo). 

On release, they were $315.00. At the time, a Boss Metal Zone was $100.00.  A considerable investment for a 16-year-old metalhead with a paper round; now on eBay, they are listed for $250.00-400.00.

TK999 Tube King

Ibanez released the original TK999 Tube King in 1994/95 in Japan and later in the US/rest of the world.  In a Gold/Beige steel enclosure with five controls: Gain, Master, Bass, Mid, Treble, and a single footswitch. Powered by 9 to 10 V DC, so no mains lead.  The original Japanese market version has an onboard noise gate. When it was released in the US, it was priced at $150.00 to $200.00.  With sounds ranging from overdrive to full-on tube distortion, though it’s a great pedal. 

The later US-manufactured TK999US version was redesigned by BK Butler and dropped the internal noise gate. Currently on Reverb, the Made in Japan versions start at $150.00, with the Maxon ROD-801 Real Overdrive/Distortion starting at $100.00 and going up to $300.00, depending on condition.

Tubefactor

In 1996, Hughes & Kettner released the Tubefactor, a Two-foot switchable mode (or Factor, to use H&K’s terminology) overdrive pedal.  Factor 1 offers a warm, clean boost with soft clipping, and Factor 2 delivers saturated lead tones. 

I recently bought one used after watching Manuel Bastion’s great YouTube video. This does things to a Fender amp that someone who grew up with Marshalls can only dream about.  I use mine with a Fender Princeton and sometimes my Suhr Badger.  If I hadn’t been trying to use smaller pedalboards, I’d gig this, especially if I was taking out my Fender Princeton. 

A cult favorite, these are currently listed on eBay for between $190.00 and $212.00.

H&K Tubeman MKII

In 1999, Hughes & Kettner released the Tubeman MKII in the same format as their popular tube tools series that started with the Rotosphere.  Again, designed by Thomas Blug, the Tubeman Mark II built on the Tubeman MK I with separate volumes for all three channels, gain for channels two and three, and a voicing switch for channel three.  It had a shared three-band EQ and footswitches for each channel. 

My only experience of this was a friend who used one into his Tascam four-track (remember those) to demo his songs.  At the time, I’d moved onto a Mac G3 with Logic and a Johnson J-Station amp modeler (remember those) and was jealous of the sounds my mate got from the humble Tascam and the Tubeman.   Currently, they are listed on eBay for $100.00-$250.00, depending on condition.

Bottle Rocket

The Mesa Boogie V1 Bottle Rocket was released in 1991 as a simpler four-knob tube overdrive pedal, still with 2 12ax7’s, but with just one channel and a more vintage sound. 

At the time of writing, in the US, these are reaching $190.00-$300.00, depending on condition and whether they include the original power supply and box.  The V1 has a slightly smoother, more refined sound than the V-twin. 

I have had no personal experience of the V1 Bottle Rocket, as when they came out, I had entered my rack phase.  If it wasn’t rack mountable, I wasn’t interested.  In fact, I’m surprised I didn’t try to rack mount my wife and our cat at the time.

Behringer

In 2008, Behringer released their Vintage series, which included two tube pedals: the VT911 Vintage Tube Overdrive and the VT999 Vintage Tube Monster.

The VT911 Tube Overdrive was a simple single 12AX7-loaded tube overdrive with three simple controls: drive, tone, and level. Powered via either a 9-volt battery or an AC adapter. Essentially a Behringer copy of the BK Butler Tube Driver.  It was aimed at smooth blues and rock sounds but was noisy at higher gain settings.  You can still find these for around $75.00 - $125.00 on eBay.

The VT999 Tube Monster was an altogether different beast, still available today. Andertons describes the VT999 like so: “This high-quality stomp box has the warm sound of a hand-selected 12AX7 vacuum tube. In addition, the VT999 offers an integrated and switchable noise gate with an adjustable threshold that keeps your signal noise-free.

The VT999 provides the ultimate in distortion-laced tone shaping, with an onboard 3-band EQ and dedicated Gain and Master output level control.”  Used, they are available on eBay for just over $65.00-$110.00, but since they're still in production, Sweetwater has them for $139.00 and Thomann for €85.00- €88.00 (depending on the region's VAT). 

For me, Behringer makes some great cost-effective options and shouldn’t be dismissed. Both are great additions to your arsenal, even if you use them in the studio to layer with other tones.

Ibanez TK999HT Tube King

In 2008, Ibanez resurrected their Tube King line with the Ibanez TK999HT Tube King (High Voltage) and the TK999OD Overdrive.  Both featured a redesigned diamond-shaped metallic enclosure, with the HT in gold/orange and the OD in white. 

The TK999HT, with HT standing for High Tension, was envisaged as a modern Metal distortion. Sported a higher plate voltage than the original TK999US and Japan versions, powered by a 12-volt AC adaptor.

It features an adjustable noise gate dial labeled "Void" to clamp down aggressively on high-gain hiss, ideal for tight rhythmic playing, plus a 3-band active EQ and a high-end "Presence" toggle switch. 

Here’s Andy’s demo video at ProGuitarShop.com. On release, the TK999HT was around $249.00.  Current listings on eBay and Reverb.com range from $85.00 to $250.00, depending on condition and, as always, whether it comes with the original A.C. power adapter. 

If you want the icing on the cake to make your metal sound different, this is the pedal for you.  It is believed Mastodon used it to add to their wall-of-sound riff-layering approach.

TK999OD

The Ibanez TK999OD version was tailored for a smooth, more expressive modern overdrive rather than the tight, percussive modern metal sound of the HT version.  It is powered by 12 volts D.C. rather than a.c., but still uses a 12AX7 tube.  It features an active 3-band EQ (Bass, Mid, Treble) alongside an amplifier-style Presence control to manage the high end. 

It could go from subtle dynamic breakup to super-smooth high-gain saturation. It also featured a Hi/lo input switch to match the output of single coils or humbuckers. Today, listings on eBay and Reverb.com range from $ 119.00 to $175.00. 

Here’s Ibanez’s original demo video.

Friedman Motor City Drive

In 2017, Friedman released the Motor City Drive and the Fuzz Fiend.  A vintage-style overdrive and a Fuzz Pedal, both with a 12AX7 tube at their heart. Both can be powered with 9 volts, but they truly sound their best powered by 12 volts.  The Motor City Drive has controls for Drive, Bass, Middle, Treble, and Volume with a single footswitch. 

Fuzz Fiend

The Fuzz Fiend has controls for Fuzz, Bass, Middle, Treble, and Volume; however, it has an additional footswitch labeled Rage.  The Rage switch is a momentary switch that sustains notes and makes the pedal oscillate and descend into Fuzz Mayhem!

Even though out of production new Motor City Drives and Fuzz Fiends can be found in shops for around $249.00 to $319.00..  However, you can find both used on Reverb and eBay for $150.00 to $230.00.  I owned the Friedman Fuzz Fiend for a while, and it was one of the most unique fuzzes I have ever owned.  It could be warm and vintage, cleaning up nicely with the volume control, or heavy, aggressive, and modern. 

This is one of those pedals that for me falls into the “why did I sell it…….?” category.  Next month I am buying one of these again.  I haven’t owned the Motor City Drive, but from the videos I have seen, it is a fat modern/hot rodded Marshall sound that Dave Friedman excels at. If you want the Friedman sound but can’t afford one of their amps and are hell-bent for Tubes, these are a fantastic option.

Here are Pete Thorn’s original demo videos for the Friedman Motor City Drive and Friedman Fuzz Fiend.

Keeley Tube Drive Overdrive

So if $399.00 for the new Keeley Tube Drive Overdrive is a little rich for your palate, but you feel inspired to try some real tube overdrive on your board, there are some great used choices at lower prices.

Of course, you can mod them easily by trying different tubes.  You can easily swap a 12AX7 for a 12AT7, 12AY7, or 12AU7.

More Pedals articles