The Mad Professor Super Black: A Blackface amp in a pedal (and a bit of a bargain)
Classic '60s amp tones in a stompbox
5,0 / 5,0 | 
Squeezing the sound of classic amps into a pedal is an ongoing trend in the guitar pedal universe, from cheaper ones like the Joyo Preamp House to more boutique stuff like the Falcon Overdrive and the Regent 150 amp tone in a pedal. Now comes a new pedal by Mad Professor, the Super Black, recreating a Fender Blackface amp-in-a-box pedal. The aim here is to replicate the classic ’60s amp circuit in an effect pedal format.
A Fender Blackface amp, in a box
Can’t find a 60s Fender Blackface amp but need that tone on tap? Mad Professor’s new Super Black is a recreation of those amp tones. This pedal is designed to be looped in via the return jack of your amp’s FX loop. This allows you to bypass your amp’s own preamp and use the Super Black as its core preamp tone.
Mad Professor Super Black
Super Black Mini Switches
The pedal has the standard amp controls you’d expect for bass, middle, treble, gain, volume and presence. It should be easy enough to dial in the tones you require. But Mad Professor has added two mini switches, labelled bass cut and compression. These let you adjust these amp characteristics, mirroring, the MP website says, variations in amp sound encountered by the engineers during the development process for this pedal.
Sweet Honey Overdrive
Plus, you get a built-in overdrive pedal. Mad Professor has added the Sweet Honey Overdrive* to boost the front end of the Super Black. That makes this a great way to add boosted tones to your vintage amp sounds. The drive section has its own footswitch and dedicated controls for volume and drive.
If it’s as accurate as the Mad Professor says in modelling the 60s Blackface, it will be a lot cheaper to run and maintain than an old vintage amp! I like the inclusion of the Sweet Honey Overdrive, which makes this a bit of a bargain, in my opinion.
You can hear it in action in the video below or follow my link below to read the full specifications of this new pedal. It’s due out on 15 December, so not long to wait till you can get one.
RRP – EUR 279
More Information
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Video
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- Mad Professor Super Black: Mad Professor
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4 responses to “The Mad Professor Super Black: A Blackface amp in a pedal (and a bit of a bargain)”
So e279 is a bit of a bargain is it?! What fucking planet do you people live on! Still, you can’t blame the manufacturer, if people are stupid enough to pay those prices. True about fools and their money.
Yeah, I hear you. A lot of these boutique pedals are generally pretty pricey. But this does have a drive circuit included that was released as a standalone pedal, plus the preamp Balckface tone, so you’re getting more for your money here. And if it’s as good an emulation as the Professor says, it’s way cheaper than buying a real 60s Blackface.
I unfortunately have to spend more than that on guitar strings a year! So to me it is a bargain, as you get something that gives you a well built, vintage voiced guitar amp tone and a high quality overdrive in one compact pedal. Perfect for a gigging musician or as a studio tool, plus way cheaper than an old Fender amp. If you make money as a musician either gigging, or writing music then it is a useful tool. It won’t be for everyone, but for certain guitarists that need these tones and well made/ reliable, it is good value for money.
I have owned this pedal for a few months. I wish it was less expensive but it makes my mushy sounding tweed amp sound tight, chimey and dynamic. It also boosts the volume of the amp, delivering great clean or driven sounds. Makes overdrive pedals sound sharper and more dynamic. Expensive but very useful.