The FFX Goldmember is a German-made dual overdrive from FFX, announced in July 2023 as the company's second dual overdrive. Its defining idea is dynamics: the builder worked to erase most of the pedal's internal compression, on the reasoning that a guitar signal already carries enough compression of its own. Delicious Audio's Paolo De Gregorio describes the pedal as packed with classic drive and distortion spirit while focusing on playing dynamics and tonal flexibility1. If you are weighing it against other drives, it sits in the broad family of overdrive pedals, with a reach that extends toward distortion and boost territory.
A low-compression dual overdrive built for dynamics
The Goldmember puts two drive circuits in one box, and each side has its own character. The left-hand side is the more restrained of the two: with almost no gain added, it serves as a slightly driven boost with added controls for low and high frequencies. The right-hand side is the wider-ranging channel, offering everything from clean boost to pushed drive all the way to power amp distortion1.
The two sides can be run in either order. FFX states a preference for one arrangement1:
"Our favorite order is L > R if you're into some of the classic blues & rock sounds that influenced generations of guitar players."
The low-compression approach is the other half of the design. FFX explains the intent directly1:
"We've worked very hard to erase most of the internal compression, since we think there's already enough of that going in."
For a player, that means the pedal is meant to follow pick attack and volume-knob changes rather than flattening them, which is where much of its tonal flexibility comes from1.
The controls: gain, the plus switch, and the EQ and feed section
| Control | Side | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Two gain controls | Right | Access either distorted or clean preamp gain, creating complex or rough tones1 |
| "+" switch | Right | Offers two different gain ranges to experiment with1 |
| Low and high frequency controls | Left (EQ section) | Added tone shaping for the boost-side circuit1 |
| Feed control | Left | Works hand in hand with the EQ section to fine-tune the saturation of the frequencies1 |
The right-hand side's two gain controls are the heart of its range: one path gives distorted preamp gain, the other clean preamp gain, and combining them is how the pedal reaches its complex or rough tones. The "+" switch multiplies that by offering two different gain ranges on the same channel1.
The left-hand side pairs its low and high frequency controls with the feed control, which FFX describes as working hand in hand with the EQ section to fine-tune the saturation of the frequencies. In practice, that gives the boost side tone shaping and saturation control rather than a single gain knob1.
Videos
Buddy Blues
Questions
Where is the FFX Goldmember made?
FFX builds the Goldmember in Germany. Delicious Audio's product page, published when the pedal was announced in July 2023, describes it as a German-made dual overdrive and notes it as the company's second dual overdrive design.
Can the FFX Goldmember be used as a clean boost?
Yes. The left-hand side, run with almost no gain added, works as a slightly driven boost, and it adds controls for low and high frequencies. The right-hand side also reaches down to clean boost at its lowest settings, going up through pushed drive to power amp distortion.
What does the plus switch do on the FFX Goldmember?
The plus switch sits on the right-hand side of the pedal and offers two different gain ranges to experiment with, letting you switch the character of that channel's drive without turning a knob.
Which channel order does FFX recommend for blues and rock?
FFX's stated favorite order is L > R, running the left-hand side into the right-hand side, which the builder points to for classic blues and rock sounds that influenced generations of guitar players.
Sources (1)
- New Pedal: FFX Goldmember Dual Overdrive, Delicious Audio, 2023-07-24