The Ixora Overdriven Preamp is a highly sought-after overdrive pedal that was originally designed by Dan Coggins, a former member of Lovetone. It was hand-built in limited quantities between 2012 and 2016, making it quite rare.

The pedal is an adaptation of the Dinosaural OPA-101 Overdriven Preamp, which was an extremely rare pedal itself. Aion FX, a company specializing in pedal tracing and reproduction, traced the OPA-101 in 2020, allowing for the creation of the Ixora.

The OPA-101 was released by Dinosaural in November 2012 and was only available for direct sale through their website or Facebook page. It is estimated that only a few hundred units were ever made.

The Ixora is an updated version of the Tube Bender, another original design by Dinosaural from 2003. While the Tube Bender used an all-discrete transistor circuit, the OPA-101 replaced the input gain stage and output buffer with op-amp stages. However, the unique clipping characteristics of the middle two-transistor amplifier stage were kept the same.

Another significant change from the Tube Bender was the inclusion of a JFET-based buffered bypass mode, which was also present in the OTC-201. The Ixora features an internal slide switch that allows the user to select either buffered or true bypass mode.

One notable improvement in the Ixora is the addition of a tone control. The original OPA-101 did not have a tone control and only had a fixed treble cut after the clipping stage. The Ixora replaces the fixed resistor with a potentiometer, allowing for more control over the treble cut and greatly enhancing the pedal’s versatility.

Overall, the Ixora Overdriven Preamp is a highly sought-after and rare overdrive pedal that offers a unique and versatile tone. Its adaptation of the Dinosaural OPA-101, along with the added tone control, make it a highly desirable pedal for guitarists and collectors alike.

Summary created by AI from the original source.