Vahlbruch BBQ

The Vahlbruch BBQ is a small pedal that puts three utilities in one box: a high-end buffer, a clean booster and a three-band equalizer. The name is the acronym, Buffer, Booster and eQualizer, and the whole circuit is 100% analog¹. It is handmade in Germany by Vahlbruch¹.

The buffer is there to solve the problems long cable runs and big pedal chains create: it eliminates impedance matching problems and avoids the loss of treble and dynamics that can occur with them¹. The booster section can push an amp harder or be turned down to clean up a crunchy amp, and the EQ gives each band a wide cut and boost range. Delicious Audio described the result as a high-end audio performance with a signal-to-noise ratio in studio quality².

What the BBQ does for your sound

The BBQ can be used in front of the amplifier as well as in effect loops², so it works as a first-in-chain buffer, an always-on tone shaper, or a solo boost depending on where you put it and how you set it.

The three sections cover the jobs players usually buy separate pedals for:

• Buffer: keeps the full treble and dynamics of your guitar through long cables and large pedalboards¹.
• Booster: raises or lowers the level hitting your amp, from -8dB to +16dB, to overdrive an amp's input stage or clear up a crunchy amp¹.
• Equalizer: three bands, Treble, Middle and Bass, each with +/-15dB of boost or cut².

Delicious Audio's reviewer found the EQ section versatile enough that, in the maker's words, "only the user's imagination limits the possibilities"².

The controls: volume, treble, middle and bass

The BBQ keeps its control set small. Four knobs do the work:

The volume range is worth noting for boost pedal shoppers: the +16dB maximum is enough to push an amp's input stage into overdrive, while the -8dB minimum means the pedal can also act as a volume cut, useful for cleaning up a crunchy amp between songs or sections¹. That is a wider range than a typical clean boost, and it means the BBQ can replace both a boost pedal and a dedicated EQ pedal on a small board.

Buffered or true bypass

One of the BBQ's most useful features is that you do not have to choose between buffered and true bypass when you buy it. An internal DIP-switch selects between an active high-end buffer circuit and true bypass operation¹, so the same pedal can sit at the front of a long chain as a buffer, or run true bypass in a chain where another buffer is already present.

A front-panel LED labeled "Buffered Output On" indicates whether the buffered bypass mode is activated¹, so you can see at a glance which mode the pedal is in.

The on/off switching uses Vahlbruch's MagTraB button, a magnetic switch with no mechanical contacts. It toggles bypass in normal use, and it has a second function: hold the button down while plugging in the power supply and you can set the pedal to power up either in the on state or in bypass². Players who like an always-on buffer or EQ at power-up, or who want everything silent until they say otherwise, can program that once and forget it.

Power and connections

The BBQ requires an external regulated 9V power supply, which is not included, and draws 40mA¹.

With a 1M Ohm input impedance and a 100 Ohm output impedance¹, the pedal presents a typical high-impedance input to the guitar and a low-impedance output to the rest of the chain, which is what lets the buffer drive long cables without treble loss.

The BBQ XL: two BBQs in one box

Vahlbruch also makes a BBQ XL, which Delicious Audio called the big brother of the BBQ pedal³. It combines two identical channels, each with the same controls: a volume control and a three-band EQ section where each band has a boost/cut range of +/-15dB for bass, middle and treble³.

The XL is housed in a compact, pedalboard-friendly enclosure³ and is also suitable for bass and acoustic guitars³, which makes it an option for bass pedal and acoustic pedal boards where a two-channel EQ with a buffer is useful. Like the BBQ, it is handmade in Germany³.

Buying the BBQ in the US

Vahlbruch lists the BBQ at 196 USD for the USA, and 179 EUR including VAT for the European Union¹. Orders are taken by email at support@vahlbruch-fx.com, with payment by bank transfer or PayPal, or through Reverb.com¹.

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