$25.00
Andy Timmons shares his musical influences, practice habits, gear discoveries, and lifelong commitment to learning that continues to shape his artistry and sound. Matthew Dunne and C.J. Landry explore the enduring fascination of fuzz circuits, transistor selection, and the elusive magic hidden within great Fuzz Faces. Marco Brunetti reveals engineering philosophy to unlock the sounds players hear in their heads, while his Mercury1 demonstrates how great amplifier design gives voice to the musician’s soul. Along the way, we examine Evidence Audio’s Forte cable and the science behind the proximity effect, Carondelet’s OTB Ultimate humbuckers and the blueprinting of a modern pickup recipe, Pete Flynn’s Duane A3 and T-Top humbuckers in Jonn Richardson’s road-tested Novo, and the ideas, techniques, and lessons that inspire the passionate pursuit of guitar tone.
The Art Of Andy Timmons
Reflections On Musical Influences And Arriving At His Sound
Scott Ulrichs
Andy Timmons discusses the records, players, guitars, and experiences that forged one of the most recognizable voices in modern guitar. From early Beatles and Jeff Beck influences to jazz studies, vintage Strats, Marshall clean tones, fuzz experimentation, and decades of refinement with his signature Ibanez, Timmons shares a thoughtful look at practice, tone, creativity, and lifelong musical growth. It is an expansive conversation about lifelong learning, becoming a better musician, and the musical curiosity that fuels the search for sounds worth chasing.
Matthew Dunne On Chasing Stellar Fuzz
The SAG BC108 Silicon & NKT-275 Germanium
Riverhorse
Matthew Dunne traces his path from building pedals on a kitchen table to reverse-engineering vintage Fuzz Faces in search of exceptional tone. He discusses Germanium versus silicon transistors, sourcing rare components, the importance of transistor biasing, and the mathematical relationships that make great fuzz circuits come alive. The feature concludes with a review of Dunne’s SAG BC108 Silicon and NKT-275 Germanium fuzzes, two builds that combine vintage inspiration with hard-earned practical knowledge.
Texas Homebrew Transistor Magic
And Fuzz Face Treasure Hunting
C.J. Landry
Building a great Fuzz Face can feel less like engineering and more like treasure hunting. C.J. Landry chronicles his exploration of germanium and silicon transistor fuzz circuits, the challenges of measuring and selecting usable components, and the search for the elusive “magic” heard in legendary fuzz tones. He recalls a memorable vintage Fuzz Face that ultimately found its way to Eric Johnson and shares lessons learned while recreating those memorable sounds through modern homebrew builds.
Fuzzy Feelings Deux
Riverhorse
Why does a great fuzz remain one of the most captivating sounds available to guitar players? Riverhorse considers the harmonic richness, bloom, and dynamic range that separate exceptional fuzz circuits from ordinary overdrives. From KingTone’s Mini-GE to recent ToneQuest homebrew projects built around vintage NOS transistors, the journey continues through a landscape of dedicated builders, old-school components, and the simple joy of plugging into a great fuzz and turning it loose.
Marco Brunetti & The Brunetti Perspective
The Amp That Becomes Your Soul
Riverhorse
Italian designer Marco Brunetti reflects the remarkable path that led from modifying electronics as a teenager to building world-class amplifiers used by professional musicians around the globe. Brunetti discusses recording studios, tube circuits, transformer design, amplifier voicing, gain architecture, component selection, and the philosophy behind creating tools that help players realize the sounds they hear in their heads. It is a fascinating look inside the mind of a builder whose designs blend engineering precision with musical expression.
The Flight Of The Mercury1
Dialing Up Harmonic Complexity And Endless Perfect Gain
Riverhorse
After a leap of faith and a shipment from northern Italy, the Brunetti Mercury1 arrived in Texas and quickly proved itself to be something special. Combining remarkable touch sensitivity, dynamic gain structure, harmonic richness, and surprising versatility, the Mercury1 delivered everything from pristine cleans to classic British rock tones. Riverhorse details the build quality, features, speaker pairings, and playing experience behind an amplifier that encouraged more playing, more exploration, and a renewed appreciation for what a truly exceptional tube amp can be.
The Path To The Mercury1
A Signal From Finland
Riverhorse
Finnish guitarist Sam Vilo tells his story through music, gear, and tone, and explains how a collaboration with Marco Brunetti helped develop the sound of the Mercury1 amplifier. What began with demo videos and a shared appreciation for great sound ultimately became a highly expressive amplifier designed around touch sensitivity, a usable master volume, tube rectification, and a unique 12-watt Class A mode. Vilo also gives us details about his current recording and performance rig.
The Proximity Effect
Evidence Audio’s Inspired Development Of The Forte Cable
Riverhorse
Tony Farinella explains the science behind one of the most overlooked contributors to signal quality: strand interaction inside instrument cables. In discussing Evidence Audio’s Forte and Lyric models, he details how proximity effect can influence audio performance and how alternative conductor designs solve the problem while preserving flexibility and durability. The result is an unlocking of the engineering philosophy that has established Evidence Audio a loyal following among world-class players and recording professionals.
Carondelet’s Jeff Richard—Blueprinting Our Own Custom Recipe
The OTB Ultimates Among The Few Top Tier
Riverhorse
Jeff Richard recounts the journey from repair-shop owner and guitar enthusiast to pickup builder, tracing the influences, experiments, and countless revisions that led to Carondelet’s OTB Ultimate humbuckers. Developed alongside guitarist Owen Barry, the pickups define years of studying vintage manufacturing practices, materials, and tonal characteristics while creating a recipe uniquely their own. The feature concludes with a review of a humbucker set distinguished by exceptional clarity, musicality, touch sensitivity, and a remarkably compelling middle position.
Two Roads Through A Novo
Pete Flynn’s Duane A3s Alongside The T-Tops
Jonn Richardson
Jonn Richardson compares two distinctly different Pete Flynn humbucker designs installed in a Novo guitar that had struggled to find its voice. The Duane A3s deliver clarity, sweetness, and vintage-inspired musicality, while the T-Tops bring greater output, authority, and exceptional responsiveness. Examined in real-world gigging situations, both sets offer unique strengths and demonstrate why pickup choice remains one of the most influential decisions a player can make.