the S-Wave control , which , according to Mr . Turbino , shapes the first distortion stage of the pedal . Introducing more S-Wave will make the gain more aggressive and biting , while cranking the gain or volume while backing off on the S-Wave will create a lower-gain chunk with more bottom end heft . The sound of the pedal is very unrefined and raw ; the upper harmonics are bright and the midrange is very gamey and unkempt . I tried taming the splitting high-end transients with the Tone control , but the high-end rolloff only worked within a very small percentage of the pot — I almost had it all the way down . After fiddling for a few minutes , I found the sweet spot . With the Bias around 2 o ’ clock , the Gain and Volume almost cranked , and the Tone at around 9 o ’ clock , I was able to really dig in and discover the sounds of the tube . It was more touch sensitive and reined back , but it still had a lot of fire in it . With just a couple of changes in pick attack , I was able to go from subtle meaty throngs to wilder and more unpredictable lead tones , tinged with that characteristic tube character , response , and feel . It bounced back and reacted to my playing beautifully , accentuating the different shades of pressure I put into each strum with hollow focus .
For this review I reached into the coffers and ordered a few different tubes to try out with the Valve Age . To my complete surprise , the response of the pedal changed dramatically with each different tube . With a Mullard 12AU7 , the Bias control seemed to have much more of an effect on the tone , cutting or boosting certain parts of the frequency as I increased the pot . The Gain and Volume controls were much more sensitive , and didn ’ t require me to crank them as much to get the edge-of-breakup saturation I wanted . With an NOS RCA 12AX7 , the sound was harsher and squeakier than with the stock JJ 12AX7 . My favorite was the stock by far , even though it was the hardest to tame , because of its warmer midrange response and generally more balanced tone .
The Valve Age is a great pedal . It ’ s got a very raw and stripped-back tube character , but in my opinion it needs some tweaking before ascending into greatness . Firstly , tweak the Tone control to make it more usable for high-end rolloff . Secondly , refine the lows and the mids to be more rounded and warm , with more punch and size . Thirdly , make it play nicer with different types of tubes ; it didn ’ t particularly like anything I threw at it other than the stock tube , and refining the voicing of the circuit to better accept different tubes at different gain levels could make this a truly great tube distortion .
Raw and uncut tube character . Brash and dynamic with midrange gaminess and high end muscle . Great sweet spot with excellent tube response .
A little too unrefined , hard to dial in good settings . Tone control has small useable spectrum , doesn ’ t respond very well to tube rolling .
the S-Wave control , which , according to Mr . Turbino , shapes the first distortion stage of the pedal . Introducing more S-Wave will make the gain more aggressive and biting , while cranking the gain or volume while backing off on the S-Wave will create a lower-gain chunk with more bottom end heft . The sound of the pedal is very unrefined and raw ; the upper harmonics are bright and the midrange is very gamey and unkempt . I tried taming the splitting high-end transients with the Tone control , but the high-end rolloff only worked within a very small percentage of the pot — I almost had it all the way down . After fiddling for a few minutes , I found the sweet spot . With the Bias around 2 o ’ clock , the Gain and Volume almost cranked , and the Tone at around 9 o ’ clock , I was able to really dig in and discover the sounds of the tube . It was more touch sensitive and reined back , but it still had a lot of fire in it . With just a couple of changes in pick attack , I was able to go from subtle meaty throngs to wilder and more unpredictable lead tones , tinged with that characteristic tube character , response , and feel . It bounced back and reacted to my playing beautifully , accentuating the different shades of pressure I put into each strum with hollow focus .
For this review I reached into the coffers and ordered a few different tubes to try out with the Valve Age . To my complete surprise , the response of the pedal changed dramatically with each different tube . With a Mullard 12AU7 , the Bias control seemed to have much more of an effect on the tone , cutting or boosting certain parts of the frequency as I increased the pot . The Gain and Volume controls were much more sensitive , and didn ’ t require me to crank them as much to get the edge-of-breakup saturation I wanted . With an NOS RCA 12AX7 , the sound was harsher and squeakier than with the stock JJ 12AX7 . My favorite was the stock by far , even though it was the hardest to tame , because of its warmer midrange response and generally more balanced tone .
The Valve Age is a great pedal . It ’ s got a very raw and stripped-back tube character , but in my opinion it needs some tweaking before ascending into greatness . Firstly , tweak the Tone control to make it more usable for high-end rolloff . Secondly , refine the lows and the mids to be more rounded and warm , with more punch and size . Thirdly , make it play nicer with different types of tubes ; it didn ’ t particularly like anything I threw at it other than the stock tube , and refining the voicing of the circuit to better accept different tubes at different gain levels could make this a truly great tube distortion .
WHAT WE LIKE
Raw and uncut tube character . Brash and dynamic with midrange gaminess and high end muscle . Great sweet spot with excellent tube response .
CONCERNS
A little too unrefined , hard to dial in good settings . Tone control has small useable spectrum , doesn ’ t respond very well to tube rolling .