Warm Audio Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive – Analog Preamp & Amp-Style Drive Pedal

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Warm Audio Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive

An amp-like analog overdrive and preamp that moves from clean boost to saturated vintage breakup, with adjustable Variac sag and a speaker-emulated output for direct recording or performance.

Professor’s Notes

The Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive feels more like a compact amplifier channel than a conventional drive pedal, with excellent clarity and an unusually easy path to great single-coil or humbucker tones. Run the Gain higher and control breakup from your guitar volume, then use the Variac to add compression, sag, and rougher voltage-starved textures. Separate preamp and speaker-emulated outputs make it equally useful on a pedalboard, in the studio, or as a compact direct rig.

Rig Role

The Dirty Boy Jr. works especially well as a flexible back-of-chain preamp, foundational edge of breakup or crunch sound, or more dramatic second-stage drive. Use it at lower Gain settings for clean boost and edge-of-breakup textures, or place it after a lower-gain foundation sound to add fuller saturation, compression, and amp-like movement.

At restrained Gain and Variac settings, it can function as a dynamic clean boost or lightly driven preamp. Increasing the Gain produces richer harmonic saturation, while the Variac control progressively introduces sag, compression, and voltage-starved fuzz character for a softer, more reactive attack.

The separate outputs expand its role beyond a standard overdrive. The raw preamp output can feed an amplifier, power amp, effects return, interface, or additional pedals, while the speaker-emulated output provides a closed-back 4x12-style voice for direct recording, front-of-house connection, or a compact amplifier-free setup.

Description

The Warm Audio Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive recreates the original Dirty Boy Preamp circuit in a compact, pedalboard-friendly format.

Its proprietary all-analog T.A.E. tube amp emulation circuit is designed to reproduce the response and harmonic behavior of a driven amplifier. The pedal moves from clean boost and low-gain breakup to saturated vintage-style overdrive while remaining responsive to pick attack and guitar-volume changes.

The Gain control determines preamp drive and harmonic saturation, while Volume acts as the circuit’s master output. Tone adjusts high-frequency presence, allowing the pedal to move from warmer and rounder to brighter and more articulate.

The Variac control simulates reducing the circuit’s operating voltage. Turning it clockwise adds sag, compression, and increasingly voltage-starved fuzz textures, giving the pedal a softer attack and more elastic response.

Two independent outputs make the Dirty Boy Jr. adaptable to traditional and direct rigs. The Pre Output delivers the raw analog preamp signal without cabinet emulation, while the Em Output adds a speaker voice modeled after a closed-back 4x12 cabinet loaded with Greenback-style speakers.

Quick Start Settings

Professor’s Starting Point

• Volume: Set for unity or a slight boost
• Gain: 11–12 o’clock
• Tone: 10 o’clock
• Variac: 12 o'clock

Start here for a clear, amp-like crunch sound. Set the pedal slightly dirtier than you need, then use your guitar volume to move between cleaner breakup and fuller saturation.

Edge of Breakup

• Volume: Slight boost
• Gain: 9–10 o’clock
• Tone: 10–11 o’clock
• Variac: 10–11 o’clock

A more restrained preamp sound for adding harmonic texture and touch-sensitive breakup without substantially changing the character of your guitar and amp.

Sag & Saturation

• Volume: Set to taste
• Gain: 2–3 o’clock
• Tone: 9 o’clock
• Variac: 11 o'clock, then decrease to taste

Higher Gain brings out the pedal’s richer saturation, while Variac progressively softens the attack and adds compression, sag, and rougher voltage-starved character.

Specifications

• Amp-like analog overdrive, preamp, and direct amp simulator
• Based on the original Dirty Boy Preamp circuit
• Proprietary all-analog T.A.E. tube amp emulation technology
• Gain range from clean boost to saturated vintage-style overdrive
• Variac simulation for adjustable sag, compression, and voltage-starved fuzz textures
• Touch-sensitive response with tube-like harmonic saturation and dynamic cleanup
• Controls: Gain, Volume, Variac, and Tone
• Raw analog preamp output without speaker emulation
• Speaker-emulated output voiced after a closed-back 4x12 Greenback-style cabinet
• True analog signal path
• True-bypass switching
• 1/4" instrument input
• 1/4" preamp output
• 1/4" speaker-emulated output
• Input impedance: 1 MΩ
• Output impedance: 6.5 kΩ
• Standard 9V DC center-negative power
• Dimensions: 4.8" × 2" × 2.6"
• Weight: 0.6 lb.
• Five-year limited manufacturer warranty

Why Buy from Professor Nigel’s?

Curated, Working-Player Gear

Every product at Professor Nigel’s earns its place by offering something genuinely useful, musically compelling, or creatively distinct—not simply by filling catalog space.

Authorized Dealer Confidence

Professor Nigel’s is an authorized Warm Audio dealer. This pedal is brand new, sourced through authorized distribution, and covered by the full manufacturer warranty.

Fast, Reliable Shipping from Phoenix, AZ

Orders are inspected, packed carefully, and shipped quickly from our shop in Phoenix, Arizona, with clear communication throughout the process.