Strymon FairFax Class A Output Stage Drive

Audio Topology & Amplification Architecture

• 100% Pure Analog Path: Built with absolutely zero digital code or conversion. The signal chain is entirely analog from input to output.
• JFET Gain Stages: Employs multiple custom-voiced, discrete high-input-impedance JFET stages acting in place of traditional vacuum tubes to emulate authentic tube preamp behavior and nonlinear distortion.
• Output Transformer Emulation: Features a custom-engineered analog circuit that precisely mimics the saturation, low-end shifts, compression, and complex harmonic fold-over that happens when a real tube amplifier’s output transformer is pushed past its limits.

Power & Headroom Dynamics

• Internal 40V Rail Supply: Features a custom transformer-based internal power supply that steps up a standard 9V DC input to a massive 40V operating rail internally.
• Massive Headroom: The 40V internal system ensures true amp-like dynamic response, letting the circuit breathe and react like a living power section with immense touch-sensitivity.

Tactile Tone Controls & Features

• Drive Control: Sets the precise gain of the preamp section, scaling smoothly from a sweet, transparent clean boost to heavily saturated, singing lead voices.
• Level Control: Manages the overall output volume. Provides an enormous amount of clean boost on tap to slam the front end of your physical amplifier.
• Dynamic Sag Control: Continuously variable control that replicates the current limitations of a vintage tube rectifier:
• Lower settings: Firm, immediate, tight, and articulate note response (resembling a solid-state rectifier).
• Mid settings: Spongy, natural tube compression that blooms beautifully based on pick attack.
• Max settings: The JFETs unbias and dynamically starve, introducing sputtering, gated-fuzz-like madness and “chortling” artifact textures.
• Bright Toggle Switch: Fine-tunes the high-frequency contour. Flip it off for smooth, rolled-off vintage warmth, or flip it on to let your instrument’s original clarity and sparkle shine through completely.

Hardware & Rig Integration

• Bypass Mode: Premium electromechanical True Bypass design ensures your core tone remains completely untouched when the pedal is disengaged.
• Power-Up Memory: Includes an selectable internal hardware jumper to configure the pedal’s power-up state. You can set it to automatically turn “ON” when power is applied—an absolute lifesaver for loop switchers and remote rack drawer setups.
• Platform Agnostic: Designed to work flawlessly as a “sonic sweetener” or gain stage into clean tube amps, naturally dirty amps, or digital amp modelers to inject missing analog sag and harmonic richness.

Specifications & Power

• Power Requirements: Requires 9V DC, center-negative, minimum 500mA power supply (power supply sold separately).
• Physical Enclosure: Heavy-duty, ultra-compact squarish metal chassis with premium top-mounted pots.
• Dimensions: 4.38” deep x 2.83” wide x 1.57” tall (11.1 cm deep x 7.2 cm wide x 4.0 cm tall).
• Origin: Proudly designed and built in the USA.