Dr Robert

The brand's second model (and second 100% original circuit), the Dr. Roberts is a pedal that will please many, many guitarists, take our word for it! ACLAM is a Spanish brand based in Barcelona. This one very quickly became a reference for pedalboards and it is now attacking the market for high-end effects pedals. The Dr. Roberts is, as you will see, a pedal in its own right, in terms of its development and the sounds it delivers.

A bit of history... Do you know Klaus Voormann? Klaus is a German artist, musician and record producer. He is also a friend of the Beatles whom he met when they were starting out. He is also known for his illustration work, in particular the cover of the album Revolver in 1966. You will tell us, what is the relation with this pedal? Well, the Dr. Robert is the closest replica of a legendary and rare VOX UL730 amp, used on the Revolver and Sgt. Pepper's. Can you see more clearly? What could be better than having the aesthetics and the sound of these albums within a simple pedal? Well that's Aclam Dr. Roberts! A mythical sound and design, typical of the Beatles.

The biggest problem for the Aclam team was to find one of the 100 VOX UL370s manufactured. Most of them have been destroyed or are no longer in working order. After getting their hands on one of these amps, the team dissected the amp, analyzed each component and transformed the original circuit by staying as close as possible to it, while making it fit into a pedal format. Everything has been kept, down to the voltage of the amp (18V)

First thing, the packaging is extremely neat. It is rare to see such attention to detail. When you open the box, you find the pedal in a small "very soft" bag that takes up the aesthetics of the album cover. There are also stickers sharing the same aesthetics , a nicely printed manual, very good quality Velcro, cut to the dimensions of the pedal etc... In short, it looks very good.

Aesthetically, the pedal surprises. Very light, it has two screws on the sides, and everyone wonders: "but what is this thing?" Well dear guitarist friends, these little knobs allow you to fix the pedal without velcro-ising, sticking, persing or anything. You pose, you turn and it holds! Magic! You're going to say, "uh yes, but not on my pedalboard?". Right, you need an Aclam pedalboard. Go take a look, they are the best on the market! And don't worry, the pedal attaches in the traditional way to any other pedalboard. Smart is the Barcelonan!

The exterior finish is impeccable, so we open to see what is happening inside. High quality PCB, very well designed with a smart layout, very good quality relays, sorted components. What's in there: Carbon resistors, Nichicon Fine Gold and Wima caps, Alpha polars and switches... It's top of the range and the attention to detail is pushed to the inside.

Guitar in hand, plugged into a Two-Rock amp, the pedal impresses from the very first seconds with its silent functioning. Putting the gain at 12:00, you get a drive typical of the English amp brand, with however, a thicker rendering, lower midrange, less aggressive than an AC30. The Mid knob is rarely seen responsive. It really allows you to sculpt your sound in an extremely precise way. Don't worry, bass and treble settings are also available inside the pedal. The pedal delivers a dynamic rarely seen, and plunges us directly into the sounds of the 60s - 70s. Importantly, the effect's response is a model of its kind, and its ability to "clean" the volume knob like the original amp would is impressive. It's a pedal that is controlled like an amp, at your fingertips. The spectrum is balanced, with a rich and punchy low end. The JFET works beautifully and the pedal sounds overall "amp like".
By pushing the gain a little further, we reach classic rock sounds that please the ears. With an increasingly dense and fluid grain. The Mach Schau! allows you to engage an additional floor to promote solos. It has a separate volume control. It adds gain and volume, but does not alter the pedal's ability to retain articulation and headroom, even when turning down the volume knob. A true role model.

It should also be noted that the Dr. Robert can be used with both a guitar and a bass. This one having a wide frequency spectrum available and enough headroom and dynamics.

In the end, this Aclam Dr. Robert is a Boost, an Overdrive, a Distortion and a solid replica of a mythical amp, in addition to being a collector's item. The quality of the work of Klaus Voormann for the visuals and of the Aclam team for the sound, make this Dr. Robert a must of its kind, and the only option for those who would like to get closer to the mythical sound of these 2 huge albums that are Revolver and Sgt. Pepper's.