Catalinbread Crooner Preamp: Classic RCA BA-31 tones
Vintage studio mic preamp tones for guitar and bass now in a pedal format
4,5 / 5,0 | 
The Catalinbread Crooner preamp pedal is based on the RCA BA-31 microphone preamp and follows the same format as their 2025 Airstrip preamp pedal. Another classic studio preamp now available in a pedal format- nice!
Contents – Catalinbread Crooner Preamp
RCA BA-31
The RCA BA-31 is a popular vintage microphone preamp which has been used (and abused) by musicians in recording studios for many years. Now Catalinbread has put their take on this classic preamp and made it into a pedal for guitarists and bass players to enjoy.
Catalinbread Crooner
Inspired by the aforementioned RCA BA-31, this versatile preamp in a pedal covers everything from a transparent clean boost to a heavy, saturated fuzz. It is a useful tool for musicians, and the pedal format is a lot easier to lug around compared to a vintage studio microphone preamp.
Push
Your sound is shaped by the Push knob, which controls the front-end amplifier. At lower settings, it offers a clean, warm volume boost that perfectly preserves your original tone.
As you turn it up, it drives the preamp harder to create a rich, compressed distortion. Thanks to its vintage-style germanium components and an output transformer, the pedal should deliver a classic, highly responsive sound that truly shines as you crank up the gain.
Trim
A standout feature of the Crooner is its Trim control, which adjusts the pedal’s internal gain. By intentionally pushing its vintage-style circuit past its normal limits, the pedal unlocks a massive range of sounds.
Allowing users to dial in everything from a warm, subtle overdrive to thick distortion and heavy fuzz. If you max out both the Trim and Push controls, the Crooner delivers a rich, highly compressed lead tone with classic vintage sag. Perfect for adding some character to your tone if required.
The Volume sets the overall output level, and the Filter is used to roll off high frequencies and avoid any harshness. Making this preamp pedal nice and simple to use, which is always a win for players like myself, who like things to be easy to dial in.
It runs internally at 18V and is powered by a standard 9V power supply, with no support for running off a battery.
Price & Availability
The new Catalinbread Crooner is priced at $179.99 and will be shipping soon. It comes in a similar format to their Airstrip preamp and should be available at Thomann at some point shortly. We will update you once it is available there.
More Information
This might also interest you
