Keisman Pedals Thunderbird

The Keisman Pedals Thunderbird is an overdrive guitar effects pedal built as a 2-in-1 drive: two overdrive circuits in a single pedal from Keisman Pedals¹. Pedal of the Day's review describes it as a dual overdrive that "provides you with two overdrives that bring a variety of flavor to your tone"².

Two drives in one box

The Thunderbird's right-hand side holds the Earlybird, a light overdrive that Keisman also sells separately². The other side is the Velvet, a medium-gain drive². Each drive is laid out as a three-knob pedal with Volume, Tone and Gain², so either side can be set up and used on its own like a standalone overdrive.

On the Earlybird side, the Gain knob raises the drive amount, and reviewer Mike B noted the tone "can even get a little bit growly if you crank the Gain"³. That gives the light side a usable range from a gentle push into a rougher edge, with the Velvet covering higher gain settings.

Because both sides have their own footswitch, they can be switched on at the same time. Mike B's take: "Turn them both on at the same time, if you dare"³. Stacking the two drives gives a thicker combined tone than either alone, and it is one of the main reasons players reach for a dual drive rather than two separate pedals.

What reviewers said

Mike B, reviewing for Pedal of the Day in June 2014, summed the pedal up this way³:

Cameron K's 2015 review for the same site framed the appeal the same way: two overdrives that bring a variety of flavors to a player's tone². For players weighing a dual drive against single pedals, the Thunderbird sits in the same territory as other two-in-one drives such as the Keisman Pedals Midnight Drive, which combines a boost and an overdrive rather than two drives.

Videos

Click to load

Click to load

Click to load