Goodrich Classic

The Goodrich Classic is a volume pedal from Goodrich Sound Company, a maker that has been building professional volume pedals since 1965. Goodrich calls it their most refined design yet, aimed at players who want the familiar feel of a traditional Goodrich pedal with the flexibility of modern active electronics¹. It pairs the company's traditional string drive with a switchable active circuit built around a low-power, high-input-impedance JFET design, which Goodrich describes as giving clean, natural response².

The Classic grew out of the Omni line: Goodrich positions it as the successor to the Omni, but the company is explicit that it is not simply a second Omni. The active electronics were developed partly through JFET testing on the Baby Bloomer, and the design took more than a year to complete².

A traditional Goodrich with JFET electronics

The Classic keeps the physical architecture players associate with the brand: forged aluminum construction, precision-machined and fabricated components, and the traditional Goodrich string drive, where a string and pulley transfer the pedal's motion to the volume control². Goodrich describes the result as "the familiar feel of a traditional Goodrich pedal with the flexibility of modern active electronics"¹.

The electronics are where it moves past the older designs. The proven circuit has been upgraded with the new low-power, high-input-impedance JFET design, which Goodrich says delivers clean, natural response². A high input impedance means the pedal presents a light load to the guitar signal, which helps preserve treble when the pedal sits first in a chain, and the low-power design is what allows it to run on a single 9V battery.

The development story matters to how the pedal is positioned. Goodrich says the Classic grew out of the Omni, with electronics partly drawn from JFET testing on the Baby Bloomer, and sums it up directly²⁴:

So a player comparing it against the Goodrich OMNI HighPro or the Omni LowPro should treat the Classic as a new design rather than a revision: the Omni line is its ancestor, not its template⁴.

The controls and jacks

The Classic is a volume pedal, so its main control is the treadle, and Goodrich gives you two ways to shape how it behaves³¹².

The jacks on both sides are a practical detail: whichever way the pedal faces on your pedalboard, you can plug in without the cable routing around the unit, and the tuner output lets you keep a tuner connected at all times².

The adjustable pedal resistance is worth calling out because it is a mechanical feature, not an electronic one. Goodrich says you can "set the pedal resistance exactly where you like it, from light and free-moving to firm and controlled"². A lighter setting suits fast volume swells and pedal-steel style work; a firmer setting holds its position more readily under a resting foot.

Power and the active circuit

The Classic operates on a standard 9V battery or 9V DC power¹. Because the active JFET circuit needs power to do its job, the battery option means you are not tied to a power supply, while the DC input suits a fixed pedalboard. In passive mode the pedal works as a conventional passive volume control.

Build, origin and availability

Goodrich describes the Classic as its most refined volume pedal design yet¹. The pedal features forged aluminum construction, precision-machined and fabricated components, and the traditional Goodrich string drive². It carries a manufacturer's suggested retail price of $450.00 USD¹.

At 18 × 6 × 4 in and 4.1 lbs, the Classic is a full-size floor pedal in the traditional Goodrich mold rather than a compact board unit¹. The list price is $450.00 USD, MSRP¹.

For the launch, Goodrich offered the first 20 Classics at special introductory pricing, with a Reverse-Polarity Power Cable and a Goodrich Pedalboard Mounting Kit included at no additional charge².

One early owner is named on the product page: Nicolas Rodrigue, a verified owner with more than 30 years of Goodrich volume pedal use, who holds serial number 001¹.

Questions