Danelectro Roebuck

The Danelectro Roebuck is an analog overdrive/distortion pedal that takes its circuit from the Ibanez MT10 Mostortion, a Japanese-made MOSFET distortion pedal from the Ibanez 10 Series¹. It is priced at $199². The company's own pitch is direct: "you will see the 1990's Ibanez® ­Mostortion™ again and again. Danelectro® brings back this awesome pedal"³.

What that means for a player is a MOSFET-based drive with tube-like touch responsiveness that varies its texture depending on pick attack⁴, a full three-band EQ, and two extra clipping modes the original Mostortion never had³. It sits in Danelectro's lineup as one of the brand's boutique-styled reissues of celebrated circuits, in the same family as the Nichols 66 fuzz drive.

A MOSFET distortion based on the Ibanez Mostortion

The original Ibanez MT10 Mostortion was a MOSFET distortion from the Ibanez 10 Series, a collection Pedal of the Day calls "some of the most celebrated (and perhaps underrated) pedals in history"¹. The Mostortion became a sought-after circuit, and other builders have made versions of it since, the Roebuck being Danelectro's take¹².

Danelectro describes the Roebuck as nailing the original's tone and grit while adding two clipping options beyond what the original offered³. Guitar.com noted that the use of MOSFET transistors "provides tube-like touch responsiveness that varies the pedal's texture depending on pick" attack⁴, which is the quality MOSFET drive circuits are known for among players who want a distortion that cleans up with a lighter touch.

The Roebuck arrived as part of a trio of Danelectro pedals built around classic circuits: the 3699 Fuzz (a Foxx Tone Machine clone), the Back Talk reverse delay reissue, and the Roebuck, each priced at $199⁴⁸. All three share the same relic'd metal enclosures, metal jacks and true-bypass switching⁴⁸.

The controls and three clipping modes

The control layout follows the original Mostortion: Volume (Level), Distortion, and a three-band EQ of Bass, Mid and Treble knobs⁶⁷. GuitarPlayer described the EQ as touch-sensitive, giving exact sculpting of your tone⁷¹.

The clipping modes are where the Roebuck goes beyond the original:

• Mode I: Lower output, more saturation¹⁹
• Mode II: Louder, more open and crunchy sound¹⁹
• Mode III: The classic original Mostortion tone¹⁹

Mode III is the one to start on if you came to the pedal for the Mostortion sound; Modes I and II are the two additions the original circuit never had³⁹.

The pedal is switched by a soft-action footswitch⁷, and the whole thing ships in a relic'd metal enclosure, complete with dings on the case and scuffed paint, a deliberately aged look Danelectro applied across the NAMM 2020 trio⁷⁴⁸.

What it can do tonally

Danelectro says the Roebuck can cover more than the smooth overdrive end of things: the company believes it can deliver a scooped metal sound too, by dialing down the Mid control and cranking the Distortion². That midrange cut is exactly what a scooped metal tone needs, and the three-band EQ gives you independent control over it.

Tone Island's buying guide found it to be "a natural sounding distortion pedal" that "can cover smooth blues to hard rock with ease"¹⁰. The same review flagged the price point as high for a Chinese-made pedal¹⁰, a fair thing to weigh given Danelectro's budget reputation.

Pedal of the Day's 2020 review was enthusiastic about the value:

The same reviewer found that with the wide range on the Dist knob, "you've got a well-rounded beast of a pedal"¹.

Videos

Click to load

Click to load

Click to load

News

Questions