“Two glowing hot 12AX7 preamp tubes, running at the proper high voltage, are this pedal’s beating heart”: Friedman unleashes the IR-D, a twin-channel boutique fire-breather inspired by a modded JTM45

Friedman Amplification IR-D preamp pedal.

Friedman Amplification, the high-end guitar amp brand favoured by the likes of Jerry Cantrell and Bill Kelliher, has launched the IR-D, a preamp pedal that packs all the modded JTM45 tones of its Dirty Shirley and Twin Sister tube amps into a compact pedalboard-friendly format.

Some preamp pedals emulate a certain type of circuit, some are more like overdrive pedals with some extra features, but the IR-D promises more. Like the IR-X that was launched in September 2023, it described by Friedman “as a genuine preamp in every way”, and at the heart of its design lies a pair of 12ax7 tubes running at high voltage.