The Caline Easy Driver Distortion EQ is a dual pedal from Chinese builder Caline that hosts two circuits in a single case: a distortion voiced after Mesa amplifiers, followed by a six-band graphic EQ with its own level control. Delicious Audio's Paolo De Gregorio called it "a great sounding distortion pedal which replicates that Mark 4 tone," referring to the Mesa Mark series amp voice1.
Because the two sides work individually and simultaneously, the pedal can serve as a distortion, as a standalone EQ, or as a distortion with the EQ shaping its output, all in one enclosure1.
The controls
The pedal carries two sets of controls, one for the distortion side and one for the EQ side1.
| Control | Side | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Gain1 | Distortion | Increases treble distortion, and adjusts to the former level of distortion1 |
| Gain2 | Distortion | Controls the amount of bass distortion, and adjusts to the saturation level of distortion1 |
| LEVEL | Distortion | Adjusts the output level1 |
| Six EQ bands | EQ | Graphic EQ bands shaping the tone1 |
| LEVEL | EQ | Controls the overall volume1 |
The two Gain knobs are the distinctive part of the distortion side: rather than one gain control, treble and bass distortion are set separately, which is how the pedal narrows in on that Mesa-style voice1.
Power and construction
The Easy Driver runs on either a 9v battery or a 9v power supply, so it can be used with a battery outside a board or from a standard pedal supply on one1. The case is metal, and Delicious Audio describes the pedal as durably constructed1.
The two sides can run at once, so if you use the EQ as a always-on shaper after the distortion, set the EQ's LEVEL for the overall volume and the distortion's LEVEL for how hard it drives the EQ side1.
Where it sits in Caline's range
Caline builds a wide line of dirt pedals, from the lower-gain Caline Midlander Overdrive and Caline American Sound to higher-gain boxes like the Caline CP-77 Bounty Hunter Heavy Metal Distortion and the Caline CP-15 Tantrum Heavy Metal. The Easy Driver's combination of a Mesa-style distortion with a full graphic EQ in one case is what sets it apart from single-circuit pedals like the Caline Red Devil or the Caline Rock Face Distortion1.
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Questions
Is the Caline Easy Driver Distortion EQ true bypass?
Yes. According to Delicious Audio's product page, the Easy Driver is a True Bypass design, so when the pedal is switched off your guitar's signal passes through without the pedal's circuitry loading it. That matters on a crowded pedalboard, where every pedal in the chain sits between your guitar and the amp even when it is off.
Can the distortion and EQ sides be used at the same time?
Yes. Delicious Audio notes that both sides work individually and simultaneously, so you can run the distortion alone, the EQ alone as a tone shaper or boost, or both together with the EQ sculpting the distorted signal. That flexibility is the main reason Caline built the two circuits into a single case.
Does the Caline Easy Driver run on a battery?
It can. The pedal works off either a 9v battery or a 9v power supply, so it can be tried out with a battery before it joins a board running on a shared supply. Check the current draw figure against your power supply's outputs if you plan to daisy chain it with other pedals.
What amp tone does the Easy Driver distortion side aim for?
Delicious Audio describes it as a Mesa-style distortion, and says the pedal replicates that Mark 4 tone, a reference to the Mesa/Boogie Mark IV amplifier voice. In practice that means a high-gain American amp style distortion, with the two Gain knobs letting you shape treble and bass distortion separately.
Sources (1)
- Caline Easy Driver Distortion + Graphic EQ, Delicious Audio, 2021-09-07
