Barber

A hand-built pedal maker in York, Pennsylvania

Barber pedals are built at the company's York, Pennsylvania shop. David Barber describes the company's manufacturing method plainly: "our products are simply 'hand made'"¹. The product pages repeat this at the pedal level; the Midnight Standard is "hand-built and hand-soldered," and the Gain Changer SR uses "nothing but the best tried and true hand-built methods" inside the enclosure⁵³.

The company's tone goals, in its own words, apply across the range: "All Barber units tone hallmarks include clarity, note definition, and a wide range of tones, textures, flexibility and functions"¹.

Original circuits rather than copies

Barber's stated design philosophy is that "Our products are primarily unique designs not direct copies of older circuits"¹. The company's pedals mostly build on its own earlier work rather than on vintage circuits:

• The Gain Changer SR "incorporated sounds from our classic LTD, LTD SR and Unlimited pedals" into one unit².
• The Compact Direct Drive packs the sounds of the earlier Direct Drive, Direct Drive Low Gain and Super Sport into one pedal⁶.
• The B.U.S.S Five Watt World edition is "dedicated to the circuits of the B-Custom Super Sport and the Barber Burn Unit"⁷.
• The Midnight Standard starts from the Bluesbreaker circuit, which Barber felt "could favor lower-output single coils more than humbuckers," and reworks for a wider range of pickups⁵.

One pedal in the range does acknowledge outside lineage: the PLUS V2 "shares some design DNA with the classic BOSS OD-1 and the subsequent Clark Gainster"⁸. The FWW Plus, a collaboration with the Five Watt World YouTube channel, is described as an overdrive pedal that can serve as a clean boost, treble booster and tone conditioner⁹.

Barber's circuits have been influential enough that other builders offer circuit-board copies. PedalPCB sells DIY PCBs described as "Compare to Barber Electronics LTD," "Compare to Barber Compact Direct Drive" and a version of the FWW Plus, each carrying a disclaimer that the product is not manufactured or distributed by Barber Electronics and that PedalPCB is not affiliated with the company¹⁰¹¹¹².

The range

Barber's current and recent pedals, as its own pages describe them:

Pricing, buying direct and support

Barber sells direct rather than through dealers. On the Tone Press page the company explains the reasoning: "Buying direct helps Barber Electronics avoid marketplace fees, allowing us to put more into our pedals instead of third-" party marketplaces⁴. Orders are handled by secure PayPal invoice, with USPS priority shipping in the US³⁴.

On pricing, David Barber states the company's stance directly: "We are committed to musician friendly pricing and do not engage in extreme Boutique pricing, We also do not use the title 'Boutique' to sell pedals"¹.

Support is personal. The manuals direct buyers to email david@barberelectronics.com with questions², and the Gain Changer page invites players to email David directly for help choosing a pedal:

The range (14)