2024 Medium Board

Cross Over Drive 

Compressor +

NMP-2 Footswitch

TS-10 Tube Screamer Classic

EV-5

Drop

ANDY WOOD: GEARBOX

Mini A/B

Horse Breaker

JP-05

When most people hear the name "Tonebender," they think Vox. Even though Sola Sound released the Tonebender from London in 1965, it was, in fact, Vox who a year later mass-produced the circuit from Italy. VOX mass distributed this pedal worldwide alongside their iconic products like the AC30 amplifier and Wah pedal, making it a recognized product for guitarists everywhere. The earliest version of the Vox Tonebender circuit (1966-1968) is very similar to the 1.5 Tonebender and the Arbiter Fuzz Face, but it is much more aggressive and sharp in tone. This circuit lies nicely between the thick and wooly Arbiter and the bright and cutting Rangemaster boost. Many consider this the perfect middle of the road germanium fuzz that can give you a powerful yet articulate fuzz tone. This circuit has a lower output volume than many fuzzes, so it is normal to have the volume near maxed.I advise maxing out the Attack control as well and using your guitar's volume as a gain control! As with most classic fuzz pedals, it loves a dirty amp or overdrive afterward in the signal path. Staying true to the original, I used high-grade carbon composition resistors, oversized capacitors, and two germanium transistors that I hand-matched to the circuit. 

Each small batch of Italy's will use different transistors as it is challenging to find reliable sources of these devices in large quantities. The circuit uses vintage positive ground voltage, so do not daisy chain your power with other pedals. Inside the pedal is a battery snap or use any isolated power supply with a normal polarity power cable like your other pedals as I have wired it internally to work that way. The Italy is identical to the original except that I adjusted the taper of the pots to feel more intuitive, I also added a single power supply filter capacitor to help with noise. The switching is true-bypass. Each pedal in this batch is built-in identical form, but because of parts tolerances and the slight variance in the transistors, they will all be a bit different while still being the same. Be sure to always have this pedal first in your signal chain; the guitar must be plugged into its input due to the impedance it requires on its input, no exceptions. 

Product Page 

Product Review 

Product Demo 

1966 Series Italy

 Inherently simple devices like fuzz circuits are extremely sensitive to the amount of voltage that they receive, thus any change in the voltage from your power supply will cause drastically different tones. Guitarists eventually caught on to this hack and began draining their batteries to try and find the sweet spot for their fuzz pedal. A good idea in theory, but who has time for that? Then, just a few years ago, a certain unnamed guitarist reached out to me for a practical solution for this technique– and the Volture was born. 

JHS Volture Manual French

JHS Volture Manual Czech

JHS Volture Manual German 

JHS Volture Manual Polish

JHS Volture Manual Dutch

JHS Volture Manual Englisch

JHS Volture Product Page 

Review by Pedal PCB

Review by reddit /guitarpedals

Demo by Pedal Stacking

Demo by Tellurite Music Co.

Volture

Der JHS Hard Drive ist der erste Versuch in der fünfzehnjährigen Geschichte des Unternehmens, ein vollwertiges und respektables modernes Distortion-Pedal zu entwickeln, das nicht auf einer früheren Schaltung oder klassischen Topologie basiert. Im Jahr 2016 hatte Josh die Idee, eine Schaltung zu entwickeln, die die besten High-Gain-Distortion-Sounds der 90er und 2000er Jahre abdeckt, einen Sound, der die Post-Grunge-Alternative-Rock-Bewegung verkörpert. Wir haben uns zunächst Pedale und dann Verstärker angeschaut, und nachdem wir die typischen Wege der Schaltung erkundet hatten, haben wir eine Kehrtwendung gemacht und bei Null angefangen. Acht Jahre später ist das Pedal fertig und bereit, dich auf ein höheres Level zu bringen. Der Hard Drive ist härter und weitreichender als alle Gain- und Distortion-Pedale, die wir bisher veröffentlicht haben.
Der Hard Drive bietet einen neuen Ansatz für High Gain Distortion im Pedalformat. Er verfügt über kaskadierte Gain-Stufen und eine Hard-Limiting-Schaltung, gefolgt von einer Class-AB-Verstärkersektion, die einen "sweepable midrange"-EQ und Baxandall-Bass- und Höhenregler antreibt. Mit seinen großzügigen externen Reglern lässt sich mit dem Hard Drive alles einstellen, vom knirschenden Röhrenverstärker-Crunch bis hin zu einer regelrechten Zerrwand, die sich mühelos durch jeden Bühnen- oder Studiomix ziehen lässt.
Der Hard Drive nimmt in der Geschichte von JHS einen besonderen Platz ein, da er das letzte Designwerk des ehemaligen Chefingenieurs Cliff Smith ist. Der Prototyp und das Design waren nur wenige Wochen vor seinem Tod im Jahr 2021 fertiggestellt worden.
"Ich weiß nicht, ob es jemals eine JHS-Schaltung gegeben hat, bei der wir mehr experimentiert haben. Es war immer eine lockere und ungezwungene Herangehensweise, um es richtig zu machen. Ich wusste, dass etwas Großartiges dabei herauskommen würde, also haben wir es einfach köcheln lassen... Cliff würde die Hard Drive-Schaltung als Köter bezeichnen, und ich stimme ihm zu - was bedeutet, dass diese Schaltung kein Klon von irgendetwas Bestimmtem ist, sondern eher eine originelle Iteration von Tonnen verschiedener Inspirationen und Ideen, ähnlich wie die Colour Box, die er und ich Jahre zuvor entwickelt haben. Ich kann mich lebhaft daran erinnern, wie Cliff ganze Wochenenden und Nächte damit verbrachte, an dieser Schaltung zu tüfteln und zu experimentieren. Er schickte mir am Wochenende Notizen, wenn er über etwas aufgeregt war, über das er gestolpert war. Dieses Pedal war für lange Zeit sein Hobby. Er liebte das große, komplizierte Gain Staging und die Herausforderung, eine Solid-State-Schaltung wie einen Röhrenverstärker reagieren zu lassen. Als leidenschaftliches Projekt, das durch Cliffs konsequente Arbeit zu einem echten Produkt wurde, kann ich mir keine passendere letzte Veröffentlichung von uns als Designteam vorstellen als den Hard Drive. Cliff liebte es zu lernen und dies war seine letzte Meisterklasse. Es ist eine Ehre, es endlich herauszubringen und die Leute an der Idee teilhaben zu lassen, die er zum Leben erweckt hat." - Josh Scott

The JHS Hard Drive is the first attempt in the company’s fifteen-year history at a full-blown and respectable modern distortion pedal that is not based on a previous circuit or classic topology. In 2016, Josh had the idea to develop a circuit that covered the best high-gain distortion tones of the ’90s and 2000s, a sound that embodied the post-grunge alternative rock movement. We started by looking at pedals, then amps, and after exploring the typical paths of circuitry, we took a sharp turn and started from scratch. Eight years later, the pedal is finished and ready to take you to the next level. The Hard Drive goes harder and further than any gain or distortion we’ve released so far.
A fresh approach to achieving high gain distortion in a pedal format, the Hard Drive includes cascaded gain stages and a hard limiting circuit, followed by a class AB amplifier section that drives a “sweepable midrange” EQ and Baxandall bass and treble controls. With its generous external controls, the Hard Drive lets you dial in everything from grinding tube amp crunch to a bona fide wall of distortion that can easily cut through any stage or studio mix.
The Hard Drive holds a special place in JHS history as the final design work of the former head engineer, Cliff Smith. The prototype and design had been finalized just weeks before he passed away in 2021.
“I don't know that there's ever been a JHS circuit where we experimented more. It was always a loose and casual approach to getting this right. I knew something great would come of it, so we just let it simmer…Cliff would call the Hard Drive circuit a mutt, and I agree– meaning this circuit is not a clone of anything in particular but rather an original iteration of tons of different inspirations and ideas, kind of like the Colour Box that he and I developed years earlier. I have vivid memories of Cliff spending entire weekends and nights tinkering and experimenting with this circuit. He would message me notes on the weekend when he got excited about something he stumbled into. This pedal was his hobby for a long time. He truly loved big, complicated gain staging and the challenge of making solid state circuitry respond like a valve amp. As a passion project that became a real product through Cliff’s consistent work, I can’t think of a more fitting last release from us as a design team than the Hard Drive. Cliff loved learning and this was his last masterclass. It’s an honor to finally put it out and let people enjoy the idea he brought to life.” - Josh Scott

Official Product Page

Manual

JHS Hard Drive - Review by Amazona.de, 09-2024

The JHS Hard Drive, Our Heaviest Pedal Yet! - JHS Pedals

Checking Out The JHS Hard Drive! -  Riffs, Beards & Gear

NO! IT'S NOT A METAL ZONE! - High Gain fun with the JHS HARD DRIVE -  60 Cycle Hum

Hard Drive Tan

Über die Jahre hat sich das Morning Glory zweifellos zum bekanntesten und meistgepriesenen JHS Pedal entwickelt. Er wurde ursprünglich in 2009 aus Bedarf an einem Overdrive Pedal entwickelt, das den Sound eines Amps nimmt und ihn aufs nächste Level katapultiert ohne Mitten und den Klangcharakter eines TS-Style Overdrives hinzuzufügen. Das Ziel war ein einfaches Pedal, verdammt transparent – nicht mehr nicht weniger. Egal ob du Strat oder Paula spielst, du wirst sofort feststellen wie gut das Morning Glory auf deine Spieldynamik anspricht und das Feel deines Instruments dabei 100 % intakt lässt.

Over the years the Morning Glory is undoubtedly JHS’ most known and praised overdrive pedal. It was created in 2009 out of a need for an overdrive pedal that simply took a guitar and amplifier’s tone to the next level without adding strong mid frequencies or any other characteristic that came along with the Tubescreamer style circuits on the market. Its goal was, and still is, to be incredibly easy to use and to be the most transparent overdrive out there. Whether you play a Stratocaster or a Les Paul, you will instantly recognize how the Morning Glory is touch sensitive and keeps 100% of your instrument’s feel in place.

JHS Morning Glory V4 Demo by Bonedo

JHS Morning Glory V4 - Livingroom Gear Demo

JHS Morning Glory V4 Review Bonedo DE

Morning Glory v4

Eine gute, solide A/B Box kann des Gitarristen bester Freund sein. JHS bauen ihre mit einem winzigen Hammond Gehäuse mit hochwertigen Buchsen und Schaltern. Außerdem ist eine Bi-Color LED (rot/blau) verbaut, sodass du sofort siehst, ob du A oder B nutz. Sehr nützlich für Live-Situationen

A good solid A/B box can be a guitarist's best friend. JHS make theirs from a Hammond 3.8 x 9.1 cm metal enclosure with high quality jacks and switch. JHS also includes a dual color (red/blue) LED to let you know by sight if you're using A or B. This is very practical in a live situation.

Mini A/B by JHS

Featured Artists

Mini A/B

Description

Media

Manuals

Links

Technical data

Boards with this pedal

2024 Medium Board

More pedals from JHS

JHS

1966 Series Italy

JHS

Volture

JHS

Hard Drive Tan

JHS

Morning Glory v4

Products

Build your own board

Services

Community