Tube Driver

B.K. Butler has been hand-building and improving the Tube Driver since creating it in 1983. Unlike solid-state drives that emulate tube characteristics, the Tube Driver uses a real hand-selected 12AX7 vacuum tube for genuine tube overdrive response and harmonics.

The pedal reached its quintessential form in 1993 with the Tube Works 911 (named after Brents favorite car, the Porsche 911). David Gilmour adopted it that year during The Division Bell recording and has used multiple Tube Drivers on his boards ever since—as many as three units on the Rattle That Lock tour for different gain levels.

Controls include Tube Drive, Hi and Lo EQ, and Output Level. The custom Bias mod version (made for Gilmour, Eric Johnson, Billy Gibbons, and Joe Satriani) adds a fifth knob that adjusts tube characteristics from weak 12AU7-like response to blistering 12AT7 territory. Gilmour and Johnson prefer Ei Yugoslavia Ecc83 tubes, made to Telefunken flat-plate specs.