Tube driver?

John_P

I'm tempted to try one but there are a few versions - 3 or 4 knob, mains powered or 9v etc 

Anything I should look out for or avoid with the various models? 

Jonathanthomas83

@Gassage and @philrob1 are good ones for this.

My advice would be to check out the Buffalo TD-X if you want an approximation (a good and usable approximation IMO) of that type of tone. Works off a regular 9v and can be easier to work with in low volume applications. May be easier to fit into your rig based on those two factors too.

ChrisMusic

Check this post out for info on the various incarnations, there are videos and comments in various parts of the thread too.

http://thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/319676/#Comment_319676

Main OP video is the Live Resolution performance

5th post has video demo by Andy of his whole rig and reasoning behind his choices, video 3 starts with the Tube Driver, end of video 2 demonstrates the clean amp tone for reference.
http://thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/229076/#Comment_229076

Mine is a 3 knob mains powered bought from lovely chap @swlabr , great pedal and does exactly what I wanted into my Stiletto Ace.  It is the same model Tube Driver as used by Andy Timmons.
@Gassage has had Tube Driver (s?) too, 4 knob I think.
There is info on the Gilmourish website too.

Gassage

OK, the current model is as good as you'll get. Non bias is fine. Very tube dependent- I use a vintage CV4003 in mine.

Some of the earlier ones are to be avoided.

I also have the BK/Chandler co-branded 9 band EQ rack model- which is very rare.

Fantastic things- but can be noisy (need to place the mains cable somewhere where it doesn't cause hum) and, unbeatable when you set them on low gain and you stack a higher gain pedal into them.

Will do mild to wild- like almost fuzz territory.

@philrob1 will mod one for you to take away the transformer issues.

John_P

Thanks chaps. Plenty more useful info there.  

Is the 9v version lacking compared to the mains powered models?

How about the one vs two tone controls - not sure I quite agree with his settings but Dan completely rolls back the bass and treble on the pedal show demo - which implies the single tone might be harder to dial in.    

Gassage

John_P said:

Thanks chaps. Plenty more useful info there.  

Is the 9v version lacking compared to the mains powered models?

How about the one vs two tone controls - not sure I quite agree with his settings but Dan completely rolls back the bass and treble on the pedal show demo - which implies the single tone might be harder to dial in.    

1. The 9v one has a walwart. There's more than one type.
2. 2 tones, always. I crank the bass alsmost to max

philrob1

Kit Rae has a section of his website dedicated to the different versions of the Tube Driver.

The current 4 knob and 4 with bias are very, very good. BK has recently moved to a new layout which do sound ever so slightly different to the previous layout. 

Tubes do make a difference, mostly in gain levels. As @gassage says, the CV4003 (12AU7) is a good place to start and Mullard ones can be had for fairly reasonable prices. 

Another modification to the Tube Driver that improves it greatly is removal of the internal transformer. Significantly lowers the noise of the unit.

Also important  to note that whilst the Tube Driver has a 1Mohm input impedance, it has no output buffer, so a buffer must be placed directly after it in the signal chain.