Shift PettyJohn Electronics

PettyJohn Electronics Shift

PettyJohn Electronics goal in creating this pedal was to fill what they saw as a hole in the market for a true studio-grade utility box, a true Swiss Army Knife of tone. There are five main functional uses for the SHIFT:

1 – World Class Buffer/Boost

The design of the SHIFT started with our time proven buffer/boost circuit found in all three versions of the PreDrive and LIFT. This buffer has been meticulously tested and used by thousands of guitarists world wide since it was introduced in 2014. The SHIFT pedal remains always on, so the buffer is always active and the footswitch activates the boost mode with no electrical pop. We use our proprietary 36V internal power supply allowing for massive headroom. This makes having up to 30dB of crystal clean gain on tap possible for the first time in a pedal format from a basic 9v power supply. While this is more gain than most guitar amps can take, this gain amount may come in handy when using some of the other functions outlined below.

2 – Studio Grade Direct Box

The SHIFT’s most significant use may be as a direct box. We call it an active/passive direct box design as it uses our buffer/boost circuit to drive a high quality, USA made transformer to balance the signal. To activate this mode simply switch the output mode mini-toggle to ‘B’ for balanced out mode. This design is paramount and unique in the direct box world because it utilized an active gain stage to drive a transformer, just like high end studio mic preamps. This is often superior to a purely passive or purely active design because it is optimized to offer the advantages of both designs at the same time, while avoiding many of the shortcomings of the aforesaid designs. This direct box has been carefully design for low noise and wide frequency response so it is perfect for bass, electric and acoustic instruments as well as keyboards or even dynamic microphones. Literally anytime you would reach for a DI box, the SHIFT will offer supreme performance and sonic bliss. A ground lift is provided to solve ground loop issues via the mini-toggle labels GND.

3 – Transformer Based Color Box

The output transformer can be activated via the output mini-toggle which, beyond direct box mode, it can also be used with an unbalanced cable to add real analog color to the tone. Perfect for those who need a little more vibe in their buffer/boost, which is designed to be very clean. Also great for amp sims and any other time you just need a little more analog vibe.

4 – High Performance Studio Re-Amp Tool

The balanced line-in mode is designed for two tasks. The first task we designed for is re-amping guitar takes in the studio. When the input mini-toggle is switched to ‘B’ for Balanced-in mode it activates a studio grade Burr Brown Line receiver stage that can be run at unity gain or line level via the PAD switch, which inserts a -20dB pad for accepting true line level signals. The SHIFT in this mode can accept virtually any balanced signal and then convert it to an unbalanced signal for sending to your pedals or an amp with utmost fidelity and transparency. Use the PAD and Gain knob to adjust the gain staging until it is perfect for your use.

5 – No-Compromise Cable Extender System

Using two SHIFT boxes you can effectively make a super high fidelity cable extender system to rival anything currently on the market. The set up is simple. Use one SHIFT in direct box mode at the end of your pedal board. Use a TRS cable to XLR adaptor (available separately) to send you signal up to 300 ft to your amp. At your amp, plug in the other SHIFT in Balanced Line receiver mode with the PAD off and go into your amp. If both SHIFT’s are run in buffer mode there should be essentially zero signal loss up to 300 ft. You can use the Gain on either side to add make up gain if necessary. Due the high headroom and high fidelity parts in the SHIFT, you will hear all of the detail and dynamics of your playing.

Never before has this number of utility operations been provided in a compact pedal format. The SHIFT does all of this with absolutely zero compromise in quality.

Unique Features

• World class buffer and boost featuring unity to 30dB of gain
• Studio grade direct box with ground lift
• Real transformer “colored” buffer/boot mode
• High performance studio re-amping box with line level input pad (-20dB)
• No-compromise cable extender system
  * For a cable extender system use two units for best results, or try with another “reamp” box or any quality passive direct box
• High voltage power! 36 Volts of internal power from standard 9v-15v adaptor (200mA / center tip negative)
• Foundry series MKII custom enclosure with in-set screws

Audiophile, Studio-Grade Performance

• Burr Brown OPA powered (stock) buffer/boost
• 990 style discete opamp upgrade (available as an upgrade at anytime)
• Burr Brown kine receiver chip for line-in mode
• USA made Edcor steel core transformer (stock)
• Jensen transformer upgrade (available at time of purchase only)
• Audiophile grade, through-hole 1% metal film resistors
• Top shelf WIMA and Silver Mica caps used in tone sensitive operations
• Lead-free PCB constructed with Audiophile Lead-free silver solder
• Extremely low noise (-110dB at unity gain)
• Wide frequency response: 20Hz-30kHz (-3dB)

Power Requirements

Clean, regulated, isolated power from 9v-15v (200mA) center tip negative jack (standard pedal adaptor).

*Please note that we can not guarantee perfect operation of every power supply. Some are not well regulated and may cause extra noise if used. One known example is many of the voodoo labs power supplies have a high current, non-regulated output that will dip below 9v if used and cause high noise floor. Most customers report it works fine on the 12v outlet. If you hear a high noise floor, try another power outlet!