Visual Sound Route 66

The Visual Sound Route 66 is a two-in-one pedal that puts an overdrive and a compressor in the same box, each with its own footswitch. Premier Guitar described it plainly: "The Route 66 pairs a potent overdrive with a great-sounding compressor."¹ First introduced in 1999, it is now in its third version, and its maker, Visual Sound, changed its company name to Truetone in 2015, so later versions appear under the Truetone name.²¹³

Truetone describes the pairing as "an overdrive that covers everything from mild boost to cranked amp sounds; a compressor that players often leave on as a permanent tone enhancer."⁴ The V3 was also reported to work well beyond guitar: the dual pedal "can enhance the sound of guitar or bass, and even keyboards and other electronic instruments," and Delicious Audio found the overdrive "particularly solid as a bass effect as it is as a guitar effect."⁵⁶

An overdrive and compressor in one pedal

The Route 66's two halves are fully independent circuits. The compressor side handles everything from tightening up your sound to the heavy parallel compression used by today's pros, according to the V3 announcement, and it carries a mix knob and a switchable noise gate.¹⁵ The overdrive side has standard drive, treble and volume controls plus two mini knobs for clean mix and bass, and an A/B switch for different voicings.¹

The V3 overdrive circuit is based on the classic Reverend Drivetrain circuit developed by Bob Weil and Joe Naylor, with an added Clean Mix control that blends overdrive and dry signal.⁵⁸ A two-position Voice switch varies the overdrive tone between bright and open, or more saturated.⁵⁸

Separate inputs, outputs and buffers

What sets the Route 66 apart from most two-in-one pedals is its routing. Premier Guitar noted that "the addition of separate inputs and outputs for each effect makes the Route 66 a true two-in-one," and listed switchable internal buffers among its pros.¹ The Truetone V3 carries front-mounted jacks with separate inputs and outputs per channel.⁷

For a player, that means:

• Run the overdrive and compressor in series inside the pedal, or feed each side from a different source¹⁷.
• Put one side in a loop or a different point in the chain while the other stays in line¹.
• Switch the internal buffers on or off depending on the rest of the pedalboard¹.

The compressor itself is not a transparent one. Premier Guitar's reviewer wrote that "the Route 66 isn't a completely transparent compressor, think of an old Ross or MXR Dyna Comp, but it can achieve subtlety" through its mix knob.¹

The third version and its circuit

The Route 66's history runs from 1999 through three versions. The original overdrive had Tube Screamer-esque roots and used the 4558 op amp, the chip associated with that circuit family.¹² The V3 overdrive moved to a redesigned circuit based on the Drivetrain II that Visual Sound designed for Reverend.¹

The enclosures changed too. V1 and V2 were pentagonal, like home plate, and Delicious Audio called that highway-sign design "a nuisance on a pedalboard."⁶ The V3 Route 66 American Overdrive + Compressor shipped in a more traditional rectangular casing.⁶

The V3 was developed by Visual Sound's Bob Weil and Chief Engineer R.G. Keen, and carried a lifetime warranty.⁵ Keen had been the company's chief engineer since the earlier V2 series era.⁹

What reviewers said

Premier Guitar's roundup review summed up the V3's strengths and weaknesses:

The same reviewer found the treble sweep "a bit subtle and thought it could use a more dynamic top end," but on value the verdict was strong: "At roughly $90 per effect, the Route 66 is a contender for the bang-for-buck championship belt."¹ On noise, the reviewer found that "at stage volume the Route 66 was comfortably quiet."¹

Delicious Audio called the V3, at $179, "reasonably priced for a dual switch overdrive pedal with loads of options for tone control, particularly factoring in the lifetime warranty."⁶

The compressor side also earned its own following. Premier Guitar noted that "since its introduction in 1999, fans of Visual Sound's Route 66 stomp box have been requesting the compressor channel as a single pedal," which led to the standalone Comp 66, reviewed as competitive with Keeley, Diamond and Demeter compressors.²

Who made it

The Route 66 was made by Visual Sound and introduced in 1999.² It has since reached its third version, described as a feature-packed, two-headed monster.³ The Route 66 line continues under the Truetone name as the Truetone V2 Route 66 and Truetone V3 Route 66. Related Visual Sound dual pedals include the Route 808 and the VS-XO.

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