The Friedman IR-J is the third comer in the “IR” pedal tube preamp series recently launched by the US brand. The manufacturer is keen to stress that the two 12AX7 tubes inside the pedal aren’t there just to “warm up” a digital or solid-state circuit, but are the beating heart of these devices’ preamp circuit.
The functionality of the IR-J is the same as in the previous pedals in the series: dual channel with separate controls for everything, including footswitches, Gain/Level controls, Boost level, 3-way EQ, plus 3 cab sim options and 3-way bright toggles.
The noteworthy difference for this pedal is the collaboration with Ozzy Osbourne’s guitarist Jake E Lee, immediately visible in the extra Gain toggle on Channel 2. But the real scoop here is that the IR-J’s voice is based on the (expensive) Friedman Jake E-Lee JEL 20‘s signature amp.
The Boost is also slightly different from the previous model, being voiced after a Tubescreamer, and also featuring side controls for Tone and Volume (pictured below).
The pedal also sports presets, an effects loop, balanced out, headphones out and Midi and USB connections – the latter allowing editing of extra parameters via a free software editor.
