
This is at least Joey’s second signature Overdrive - based on the Dog Ear album sound - which mostly uses his REVV Custom D25 JL Amp. The DirtDog is the more portable format for carrying that specific sound - so that Joey can more easily take the sound of ’Dog Ear’ on the road.
I’m not clear on whether this replaces his prior Jackson Audio Golden Boy Signature BluesBreaker style Overdrive - which has 6 x knobs, 4 x clipping modes via the left footswitch, and 4 x boost flavours on the right footswitch - or whether this is released as an additional flavour?
It seems like Joey is very much set up in the REVV Camp now - and that is the main if not sole purveyor of the current Joey Landreth Sound.
His DirtDog overdrive is a much simpler affair than the Golden Boy - with just 4 simple controls. Where Tone is mostly a midrange-sweep, and ’Bite’ refines or further accentuates the high frequencies.
Controls - Gain, Level, Bite (Highs), Tone (Mids).
For me personally - the DirtDog is a slightly less appealing Overdrive versus the Golden Boy, while it still sounds pretty decent. After all - Joey Landreth is a very well know tone-smith. I own a few of his associated pedals for a variety of reasons. But have yet to decide whether the DirtDog should be a further likely target for me!
It’s well priced for sure - at $199 / £199 and equivalent from the REVV Amps Webstore and at leading International Dealers - versus the $299 of the Golden Boy. And it comes in 2 distinct editions - the standard Cream and Purple Accent Standard Edition, or the much prettier ’Rose’ and White Accent Limited Edition - which would be my choice if I did decide to go for one of these.
It’s a decent sounding overdrive for sure, but somewhat vanilla too. I’m currently recalling loving the DSM & Humboldt - which gives me 4 gears that I can switch up and down on the fly! I typically gravitate toward more expansive and versatile overdrive pedals - so it’s unclear as to whether this DirtDog will be in my future!
Of course it’s a high quality construction and a fairly exacting pedal take on the sound of Joey’s Signature Custom D25 JL Amp and Dog Ear album.

