At the heart of the ZEQD-Pre is an EF86 tube, renowned for its touch sensitivity and rich harmonic content. Because the entire preamp path is analogue, you feel the natural compression, sag and bloom that only a real valve can provide. It reacts to your picking dynamics and guitar volume control just like a high-end amp, making it ideal as the foundation of your sound.
The ZEQD-Pre features a three-band passive EQ section that behaves like the tone stack on a classic amplifier. This lets you sculpt your sound with familiar, musical controls, from tight, focused rhythm tones to wide open, airy cleans. The passive design keeps the response smooth and organic, so you can fine-tune your rig without harshness.
A built-in boost channel with its own output control lets you push the preamp into rich harmonic overdrive or simply lift your level for solos. Because it is integrated into the tube circuit, the boost feels and sounds like turning up a great amp rather than stacking an extra pedal, giving you more sustain, presence and character on demand.
With a dedicated headphone output and balanced XLR output featuring analogue cabinet simulation, the ZEQD-Pre is ready for silent practice and direct recording. Plug in headphones for late-night playing without disturbing anyone, or run the XLR straight into a mixer or audio interface to capture convincing amp-like tones in your DAW without mics, extra boxes or complicated setups.
The EarthQuaker Devices ZEQD Pre-Tube Preamp Pedal is an all-analogue, EF86-based tube preamp designed to live at the end of your signal chain and behave like a complete amp on your pedalboard. Created in collaboration with Dr. Z Amplification, it delivers genuine tube warmth, dynamic feel and a flexible three-band passive EQ, alongside a boost channel, headphone output and balanced XLR with analogue cabinet simulation for direct recording. Whether you are building a compact fly rig, want studio-quality direct tones straight into your interface, or need a powerful always-on tone shaper in front of your favourite amp, the ZEQD-Pre gives you the sound and response of a proper tube front end in a rugged stompbox format. From sparkling cleans to harmonically rich overdrive, it is built to be the ultimate tonal tool for modern guitarists.