FEA Labs Dual Band Distortion

The FEA Labs Dual Band Distortion is a distortion pedal that takes a different approach from a one-circuit dirt box: the incoming guitar or bass signal is divided into two bands of frequencies, each with its own distortion type. The low band delivers a hard clipping distortion built on germanium diodes, while the high band delivers an overdrive built on two FET amplifiers. The pedal also covers octave distortion, using a full wave rectifier, alongside the two band circuits¹.

FEA Labs announced the Dual Band Distortion as the latest pedal in its lineup in September 2010, and No Treble reported days later that it was available from the FEA website for $245 plus shipping and handling, matching the special introductory price of $245.00 USD plus S&H given in the announcement (plus tax if shipped within New York State)¹².

How the two-band design works

Splitting the signal before distorting it means the low end and the high end can be treated on their own terms. The high band uses two audiophile quality FET (field effect transistor) amplifiers, and the press release describes the result as "a smooth (tube-like) overdrive distortion tone that reacts to the style of the player and the way they attack the strings"¹. The low band offers "a classic hard clipping distortion tone using germanium diodes in a unique asymmetrical configuration which adds even order harmonics to the tone"¹.

Because each band has its own distortion, the pedal also lets you mix clean and distorted signal by frequency rather than by blending the whole signal. Either the high or low band distortion can be bypassed, which mixes the clean, undistorted signal in the selected frequency band while the other band continues to provide distortion¹. For a bassist, that means the fundamentals can stay clean and full while the upper harmonics break up, or the reverse.

The controls

The pedal's feature set centers on three things, per the announcement: an adjustable crossover frequency, a dry signal blend, and a distortion band bypass feature, along with a complement of tone controls¹.

• Crossover frequency control: sets the user selectable frequency at which the low band ends and the high band begins¹
• Band bypass: removes the distortion from either the high or low band, leaving that band clean while the other keeps distorting¹
• Dry signal blend: mixes undistorted signal with the effected signal¹
• Tone controls: the announcement mentions a complement of tone controls without detailing them¹
• Activation footswitch: a stomp switch with direct bypass when the pedal is not active¹

Power and circuit

The pedal runs 18 volt circuitry, but it is powered by a 9 volt battery or a standard 9 volt DC adapter¹. That internal step-up approach shows up elsewhere in the FEA Labs range: the FEA Labs DB-CL Dual Band Compressor Limiter, a related dual band design, uses an onboard internal charge pump to operate at 18V from a 9V power supply, which Pedal of the Day noted gives headroom useful for active pickups and aggressive playing styles³.

Size and mounting on a board

The press release describes a small footprint design of 4.5" by 3.5"¹, compact enough to sit alongside standard pedals on a board. A single activation footswitch handles bypass¹.

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