CATALINBREAD / Dirty Little Secret Deluxe

Catalinbread Dirty Little Secret Deluxe is the next step in British amp simulation. It goes beyond the preamp circuit of the popular Dirty Little Secret, which is a pedal that reproduces British sounds to a high level, and reproduces the sound of the entire amplifier in earnest.

The Dirty Little Secret circuit has been upgraded throughout, with a phase inverter, power amp simulator, output transformer and improved usability.
The switch to switch between Super Lead and Super Bass can now be operated at any time, and a ‘clean DLS’ boost circuit that can be used independently of the main circuit has been added. The boost and DLS can be switched in the order of connection using an internal switch.
You can use the boost in the front stage to push the amp, or you can use the boost in the back stage to make the amp sound even louder. Inside, there is a new Tightness control that can be used to suppress the sub-bass region to make it clearer, or to completely cut the low end to create a thrash metal tone.
The newly added line output has a +10dB output that is designed to be used with mixers and DAWs.

Dirty Little Secret Deluxe reproduces everything that makes up an amp head. It is an all-discrete circuit with a preamp, phase inverter, power amp simulator, and even an output transformer. It is a complete ‘amp in a box’ with a boost modelled on a clean British amp preamp.



Controls

Master: Adjusts the overall volume of the pedal. Turning clockwise increases the volume, and turning counter-clockwise decreases the volume. Adjusting the volume so that it is slightly louder than when the effect is off makes it easier to use. Unlike the master volume on most amplifiers, this knob is not located at the end of the circuit, but is placed before the phase inverter and output transformer. The output stage is designed so that it is not easily affected by input saturation, so turning up the master will not significantly change the tone, but if you use it in a way that is always on, you may notice that there is a gentle compression.

Preamp: Adjusts the amount of distortion. Clockwise increases distortion, counterclockwise decreases it. This also affects volume and tone.

Presence: Fine-tunes the top end of the tone. A strong low-pass filter, when set to minimum, attenuates 3dB above 1.59kHz. When set higher, the cutoff point is raised.

Treble, Middle, Bass: These controls are the tone stack values of a classic British amp, and they work in the same way as the original amp. The tone stack circuit is entirely passive, which means that none of the three knobs are flat at 12 o'clock. Adjust them to match the actual tone.

Boost Vol: This boost circuit is actually a component of the vacuum tube emulation that makes up the DLS itself. When the boost is placed in the front stage and turned on, it acts like a preamp tube added to the input section of the device, and the tone becomes closer to the ‘900’ tone. Even when set high, it is possible to boost without losing clarity.

SL/SB switch: Switches between SL (Super Lead) and SB (Super Bass) tones. You can switch between SL mode, which emphasises the mid-high range, and SB mode, which emphasises the mid-low range for a smooth, smoky sound.

Internal Controls

Tightness: Depending on the genre you want to play, you may want the amp to have more tightness. What is generally referred to as tightness is actually the damping of the low frequencies through a light high-pass filter. This high-pass filter does not cut anything when the trim pot is turned down, and can cut up to around 230Hz.

Effect Order: This switch changes the connection order of the Boost and DLS. If you place the Boost in the front stage, it will act as an additional gain stage, allowing you to saturate the amp sound. If you place the Boost in the back stage, you can use the Boost as a gain coupler for the amp. If you have the Boost in the second stage, when connecting to the amp, turn up the Boost Vol gradually from a low position to adjust the volume.
I think there are not many people who don't like the boosted tone of an amp. The Boost is set to the front of the DLS at the factory to enable stacking, which combines two gain-generating devices and allows the distortion of the second to be controlled by the level of the first. The boost itself is based on a clean British preamp, so by combining the boost you can create boosted ‘800’ and ‘900’ tones.

●Line Output
The Line Output is a +10dB output for direct recording or sending to a mixer. You can connect to both the normal output and the Line Output at the same time and output simultaneously. Note that the Line Output will also boost the effect-off (dry signal) to +10dB.

In addition, because the normal output and line output have been split, this pedal is equipped with an output buffer to maintain signal integrity. The Dirty Little Secret Deluxe is a buffered bypass.


●Power
The Dirty Little Secret Deluxe operates on a 9V DC adapter with a centre minus polarity. Batteries cannot be used. The current consumption is 7mA.