The first pedal offered for sale by Electro‑Harmonix (or EHX, as they’re often called), some 57 years ago, was the LPB‑1, a simple gain boost pedal. They’ve now revisited the concept to create the LPB‑3 Linear Power Booster, which incorporates an active EQ, complete with a parametric mid control, and I find it can be incredibly useful in tailoring the sound before it hits a drive pedal or amp.
The pedal can also add up to 33dB of boost, making it well suited to pushing the front end of an amplifier to coax out its natural saturation characteristics. This impressive headroom is achieved by internal circuitry that increases the power supply to 30V. True or buffered bypass operation is available, as you prefer, courtesy of an internal switch that’s accessed by removing the bottom panel, held in place by four crosshead screws. A standard footswitch bypasses the effect, with a red LED showing that the effect is active. (LEDs were barely out of the experimental stage when the LPB‑1 came out!)
Housed in a standard, pedalboard‑friendly Nano‑format die‑cast alloy case, the LPB‑3 draws 120mA. Battery operation is not supported, but the pedal runs from a standard 9V power supply and one is included in the price. There are six knobs, four of which relate to the three‑band EQ: this has treble and bass knobs, plus adjustable mid frequency and mid gain. Treble affects frequencies above 3.2kHz while bass works below 240Hz. The mid band can be adjusted anywhere between 240Hz and 3.3kHz. All three EQ stages offer both cut and boost. Mid Q (Bandwidth) is switchable between low and high rather than being fully variable. The Boost knob adjusts the overall output of the pedal, and the Max switch offers a choice of 20 or 33 dB maximum boost. A Pre‑gain knob adds up to 20dB of gain before the EQ stage, which suggests that the post‑EQ boost switch adds either no further gain or 13dB, to reach the 20 or 33 dB maxima.
The ability to adjust the guitar’s tonality before it hits the amplifier opens up a world of useful tonal options.
Verdict
Having so many knobs on such a small pedal front panel does make them a little fiddly to adjust, but the pots have a pleasing resistance so tend to stay in position once set. I found the circuitry to be quiet, even at higher gain settings, and the two Q options are very well chosen, the lower setting adding a gentle hump or dip, and the higher setting a little bite and attitude to the mids, without sounding overblown.
Used before an amp or indeed an amp emulator, the ability to adjust the guitar’s tonality before it hits the amplifier opens up a world of useful tonal options, from adding a Tube Screamer‑like mid hump to warm up drive sounds, to thickening up the sound of low‑output, single‑coil pickups. Alternatively, thick‑sounding humbuckers can be thinned and brightened. Used before a drive pedal the LPB‑1 makes it possible to conjure up a wide range of drive sounds, while the additional gain can be useful in pushing a drive pedal harder, in the same way as it can be used to push the front end of an amp. With all that boost on offer, no high‑gain sounds are out of reach, though for most of us just adding a few dB of boost will probably be enough to warm things up nicely.
In the studio, putting the LPB‑1 between the guitar and the input to an audio interface offers both level and impedance matching, as well as the tonal shaping that in many cases can help you fine‑tune the sound of modelled amplifiers. There are other boost pedals out there — lots of them! — but, for me, the flexible midrange EQ of the LPB‑3 sets it apart from much of the competition.
Information
£119 including VAT.
$129
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