Friedman Amplification has introduced the IR-D dual-channel tube preamp, an entire Friedman rig in a compact pedalboard-friendly package. The IR-D boasts two fully independent identical foot-switchable channels which are based on Dave Friedman’s legendary Dirty Shirley/Twin Sister designs. This Dave-modded JTM45circuit delivers the signature British tone that Friedman is known for.
Powered by two high-voltage 12AX7 preamp tubes, each channel delivers the harmonic richness and touch response of Dave Friedman's finest designs. DSP IR cabinet/power amp simulation sends a studio-quality mic'd-up tone to your DAWor Front-of-House. The IR-D provides easy-to-use controls without complex menus and 100-page manuals.
IR-D isn't simulating a Friedman tube preamp. It is one. While many available preamp pedals utilize tubes to 'warm up' their digital or solid-state circuit, two glowing hot 12AX7 preamp tubes, running at the proper high voltage, are this pedal's beating heart. A genuine preamp in every way, IR-D delivers all the tone, response, gain characteristics, and harmonic complexity you expect from a Friedman design. Both channels feature their own independent and highly tweakable Boost circuits. This essentially gives you four channels, accessible with the tap of your toe.
All great tube amps need a great speaker cabinet, and whether sending your signal straight to the board or silently playing through the onboard headphone output. IR-D gives you a selection of Dave Friedman’s favorite IRs. Select the IRper channel using the 3-way mini toggle switches or load your own quickly and easily via Friedman’s editing software. You can even disengage the onboard IRs entirely to use IR-D’s tube preamp with another IR loader.
The Friedman Editor software includes 13 free Friedman IRs to choose from. The first three listed below are the ones which are factory set to the hardware.
1. 6402 57 121
Dave Friedman's favorite 4x12 cab in bare wood. This is Dave's primary workshop cab and has been used to voice his amplifiers since the very beginning. It's fitted with four 6402 Greenback speakers and was captured with an SM57 and R-121 for a nice balance of cut and body.
2. 1960 GREEN 5757121
This cabinet IR is the classic 1960B cabinet from the 80's. Fitted with 20w British Greenbacks. It has a distinctive sonic signature that sings 80's to modern rock tones. Captured with a pair of SM57 on two speakers, along with a R-121 to help fill out the body of the sound. These were fed into a set of API preamps with a touch of EQ to enhance the presence.
3. DS112 57 1973
The Friedman Dirty Shirley 1x12 open-back speaker cabinet with a G12-50GL features a detailed top end with an airy bass and mid response. A perfect choice for clean tones or if you’re looking for a more bluesy sound. Captured with an SM57 and a Soyuz 1973 into API preamps.
The IR-D’s transparent effects loop allows you to easily integrate your favorite effects with everything from the most straightforward setups to the most complex digitally controlled rigs. IR-D is MIDI-capable. Whether pulling up presets with a pedalboard controller or switching channels with the laptop running your entire show, IR-D is ready for the job. It truly is the perfect marriage of modern control and classic tube tone.
IR-D gives you broad tonal control, but its included Friedman Editor software takes it to a new level. With it, you can tweak each channel’s power amp simulation via the Thump and Presence controls, load your favorite IRs, activate the Boost Lock feature, select loop ON/OFF, and save it all to 128 MIDI presets.
IR-D Features
- All-tube HIGH-VOLTAGE preamp – DI
- 2 x 12AX7 preamp tubes Two independent identical channels + boost
- Based on Friedman’s legendary Dirty Shirley/Twin Sister designs
- MIDI programmable features:
- Channel select / Boost
- IR select
- Thump and Presence – three-way switch per channel
- Effects loop ON/OFF
- Boost Lock
- Power amp simulation with software editable Presence and Thump (per channel)
- Low latency Impulse Response cabinet simulation (bypassable)
- Three-position CAB/IR select switch per channel (programmable via software)
- 13 free Friedman IRs or load your own Boost Volume and Gain controls (per channel)
- Volume and Gain controls (per channel)
- Full EQ consisting of Bass, Middle, and Treble (per channel)
- 2-way Bright switch (Per Channel)
- 3-way Structure switch (Per Channel)
- Three multi-function foot switches
- Ultra-transparent series FX loop (bypassable)
- TRS balanced output, Headphone output
- MIDI 5-pin standard connector and USB MIDI
- USB software editor – powered by SYNERGY
- Universal 12V Power Supply Included
The Friedman IR-D carries a street price of $499.99.
For more information, please visit friedmanamplification.com.
Wrapped in a sleek black 100% cotton croc textile (that ages beautifully), this Slash-designed amp has the same, hand-built specs, components and features of the limited edition green anaconda SL-100 Head and SL- 4×12 Speaker Cabinet, but comes out roaring with its own Blackout attitude.
“I’ve become a big fan of the Magnatone sound, and it’s been an honor to help design a 100- watt amp with them. I think we put the Magnatone tone and clarity together with some raw power and crunch. The combination is aggressive and sweet simultaneously, it’s pretty awesome,” said Slash.
The Blackout Edition is powered by four EL-34 tubes, delivering exceptional headroom, clarity, and the grit-n-grind tone Slash has made his own, both live and in the studio. The SL-100 pre- amp uses four 12AX7/ECC83 tubes with two distinct gain modes. Players can switch between “LO” and “HI” settings via a control panel slide switch or one-button footswitch (included).
The LO gain mode is voiced with 60’s Classic Rock tones in mind, and they’re slightly tweaked to better control the icepick highs in today’s music. Using a guitar with humbuckers fully cranked, the low gain control has a medium crunch that is sublime in depth and tonal quality.
The HI gain mode is designed with a cascaded gain pre-amp style that’ll bring back some 80’s modded memories, and it’s been fine-tuned to optimize the sound for Slash’s heavy-duty humbuckers sound. But, the gain doesn’t mask the guitarist’s tone (like some amps), so clarity and the voice of the guitar stay true. The treble control boosts the highs for pick clarity, but without being overly harsh.
Magnatone and Khan developed the SL-100 to meet SLASH’S needs. A lot of thought went into the mods, which were made using a stock Super Fifty-Nine M-80.
The control panel of the SL-100 is a easy-to-adjust-on-the-fly four-band EQ with Treble, Middle, Bass, and Presence, so any player of any level can dial their guitar voice easily. The 100-watt power amp allows the EQ to have clarity and focus – essential in sound tweaking.
The Blackout 4×12 speaker cabinet is loaded with four Celestion Vintage 30 speakers – Slash’s speaker of choice. They deliver warm tone, smooth and creamy breakup and gutsy upper mid’s that are what Celestion’s are known for. The cabinet is ¾” Baltic Birch wood, handmade in the USA using finger joint woodworking craftmanship. An internal sound post is used for the closed backboard design and the cool-as-hell Magnatone logo is lighted when connected to the midi jack on the back of the SL-100 head.
The Slash SL-100 and SL-412 Slash Signature Collection Blackout Edition is available to pre-order now, and will start shipping in July 2024.
For more information, please visit magnatoneusa.com.
