Electronic Audio Experiments / The Bard

The Bardは、Music Man HD130を再現。「チューブライク」ではない、鋭利なアンプドライブ。

A hybrid amp with a solid-state preamp and tube power amp, the Music Man HD130 is the beloved charm of this underrated cult classic.

Turn the gain down and you get a clean, dignified tone with a slightly subdued midrange. Turn the gain all the way up and you get a sharp distortion that is not in the slightest bit “tube-like,” and you get the full experience of the HD130's unique drive sound.

A passive tone stack is placed in front of the clipping stage, with High/Low controls for distortion texture. There is also a Bright/Normal Switch to control the edge of the sound.

By making full use of these organically related controls, it can be used not only as a stand-alone distortion, but also as a booster, tone enhancer, or even a preamp pedal. They can add a unique sparkle to any sound in any situation or setup.

It is a drive pedal that is utterly EAE-like and pays homage to forgotten technologies of the past.

The Music Man HD130, a cult classic amp that has been underrated. The charm of its solid-state preamp and tube power amp is fully expressed in the drive sound of The Bard.

Turn down the Drive and you get a dignified, clear clean tone. As you turn up the Drive, you get the shimmering, raspy tone of a solid-state amp.

If you turn up the Drive even more, you get the sharp distortion of an angry op-amp. The distortion is not in the slightest bit “tube-like,” and it may overturn your sense of value from the very bottom up.

Size: 121mm x 66mm x 40mm
Bypass: Relay switching (true bypass)
Input impedance @ 1 kHz: 200kΩ
Output impedance @ 1 kHz: 5kΩ or less
Power: 9VDC, 2.1 mm center-minus, 60mA