One Control | Honey Bee

The One Control Honey Bee pedal needs no introduction. If you’ve been a long-time fan of Bjorn Juhl (BJF/BJFe) then you know that this is one of his best creations. The Honey Bee Overdrive is renown for its warm overdrive crunch, which is easily adjustable by a twist of a knob. Over the years, there have been several revisions of this sought-after pedal. This version from One Control is the best version yet, as it contains all the revisions and improvements from previous models.

The Design

The Honey Bee is an overdrive pedal that resembles a guitar amp that is set to a “crunch” setting. It integrates flawlessly with other effects and distorted amplifiers, giving your overdrive a warm tone. What makes this pedal unique is the ability to change the dynamics so easily. Change from a clean to overdrive tone by simply twisting a knob. No matter what setting you prefer, enjoy the free headroom-ish response, just like your favorite broken-in amplifier.

One Control made it possible to select both Honey Bee OD “versions”:

Vintage Mode (Original sounding Honey Bee OD): With a mild and classic overdrive tone, expect a unique high frequency response.
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Modern Mode (Revision 2+3+4) is the sound of the current Honey Bee OD. Compared to the Vintage mode, you’ll notice an gain increase, especially in the low ends. When Modern mode is selected, the “Nature” control range becomes wider.
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The Honey Bee Overdrive’s distortion affects the overtones while keeping the core tone intact; realizing both enhanced gain and pure tone simultaneously without physically increasing the gain. For flat strings, mellow tones are obtained. For round strings, a light distortion of a vintage amp will be obtained. The Honey Bee OD can also be used by bassists.