LZ-129
Aggressive vintage dirty boost
Aggressive dirty boost with added, flexible clipping option
The LZ-129 is based on the circa 1969 Univox Uni-Drive*, which took the form of a volume pedal with a couple of controls on its front face. The two controls 1) set the drive level (by means of 6-way rotary switch that acted as a volume control for the incoming signal) and 2) the bottom range for the volume that was controlled by the treadle.
The original Uni-Drive was evidently intended to push a cranked, dirty amp into overdrive, seeing how it offered no clipping of its own, negligible added sustain (on the contrary; a very dynamic and un-compressed response), and a very loud output signal that was fuzzy when the gain was up high but with still very prominent signal peaks. So I added a unique clipping section that will help emulate some "cranked amp" softness, distortion, and compression into a clean amp that has plenty of headroom without the need to shatter windows or eardrums. I also added a gentle high-cut filter to its output.
Jimmy Page was typically seen with a Uni-Drive on stage and was almost certainly using one in the Madison Square Garden concerts filmed in "The Song Remains The Same."
* The terms "Univox" and "Uni-Drive" are only being used for comparison and are not owned or trademarked by Skreddy Pedals nor is this a claim that my product is identical.
"Tone is in your fingers"
Yes; especially when using a dirty boost instead of a fuzz. There is plenty of character in this pedal to give you more of what you want, more of that clean-yet-dirty sound, more power, more drive, more responsiveness, more articulation on high notes and more distortion on the low notes. It is full of vintage personality yet relies on you to actually make everything happen with your own fingers. It's not a sustainy fuzz! Much more focused on the attack.
Blast your amp hard, or use the built-in clipping to emulate a dirty amp's breakup and compression
You will get equal enjoyment out of the LZ-129 whether pushing a dirty amp into distortion or keeping your volume at unity gain into a clean amp.
You can control how much of the signal is clipped by the proprietary, amp-like clipping section by means of the "HEADROOM" control, and, if you like the full, loud signal peaks, you can take the clipping section completely out of the circuit via the mini toggle.
Power
Regular 9v negative ground, no special power requirements. 9v battery is not included. If you use a battery, then remember to un-plug the input cable from the pedal’s input jack when not in use to prevent draining (or you can also just plug in a power-supply, which disconnects the battery).
You may supply external power through an AC adapter. All Skreddy Pedals accept the industry-standard 9v DC plug (5.5mm barrel x 2.1mm center coax), negative tip. Please use a quality, regulated, filtered power supply.
