One Control has introduced the Baby Blue and Super Apricot overdrive pedals to its BJF collection of effects.
The Japanese switcher and effect pedal company created the new stompboxes in collaboration with pedal designer Björn Juhl, whose BJF series is rapidly growing. Both pedals are now shipping to dealers.
One Control says the Baby Blue OD is an original BJFe design (BJFE stands for Björn Juhl Förstärkarelektronik, which is Swedish for Björn Juhl Amplifier Electronics).
This original BJFe design dates back to 2000, when Björn first assembled the hand-made version in an attempt to capture a specific sound that was in his head but which he could not pinpoint to a specific amp. “It was the distorted guitar sound that I assumed the first Fender amp I ever saw would produce – though it turns out I was mistaken,” says Juhl of the inspiration.
Baby Blue OD straddles the line between overdrive and fuzz. The gain is heavy enough to handle hard rock, but it can also create overdriven amp sounds with Drive control dialed back. “I think of the sound as more that of an overdriven amplifier versus that of a device designed to overdrive amplifiers,” says Juhl.
A circuit that has seen several renditions over the years, Juhl considers the One Control version of Baby Blue his best yet. “It incorporates the best of all the various things I have tried over the 18 year history of the circuit. Also, we have ensured it can exist well into the future by using components that are readily available today.”
The Baby Blue OD is available for $249.
The Super Apricot OD is the newest of Juhl’s “Amp-in-a-Box” circuits, and is designed to produce the rustic, raw, gnarly tones of a classic Supro tube amp, with a surprising amount of dynamic control.
In comparing Super Apricot OD to another of his well-known circuits, the Honey Bee OD, Bjorn says, “Super Apricot is more of a ‘slightly after’ amp sound than Honey Bee OD. Though they share a point of inspiration, the circuits are entirely unique. Honey Bee OD is a true overdrive effect. Super Apricot OD delivers more of a natural amp sound. The tone is saturated, without feeling overly compressed.”
Gain is easily controlled via the DRIVE control, and the guitar’s volume control and picking intensity can be used to clean up the tone. There is an underlying feeling of saturation even in cleaner tones; it becomes more of a “hot clean.” Tone can also be strongly distorted by increasing the DRIVE and picking strongly. However, even at heavier distortion, it maintains a resolution more like a clean tone.
The Super Apricot OD is available for $180.
Visit One-Control.com for information on where to purchase their products. Be sure to check out the videos below to hear the Baby Blue OD and Super Apricot OD in action.
