ToneQuest Report: September 2023 – Vol. 24, No. 11

What's Inside This Issue:

Interviews

Electronic Orange Jan Horinek – Jan Horinek works on his own and so far, has built over sixteen hundred pedals with his own hands—he does it all…solder, wire, assemble, scrutinize, and select the parts, tests them so he doesn’t have to worry about someone else’s mistakes. Jan is a perfectionist and tests every pedal he makes three times before he packs it for you. Enjoy his journey through the world of electric guitars, beginning at twelve years old when he first heard Pink Floyd and later finding out David Gilmour used a bunch of weird little devices, scattered on the floor, called guitar pedals—listening to his live bootleg of astonishing fuzz and swirl sounds on The Dark Side of the Moon. Years later and truly mesmerized with guitar pedals he answered a calling and started building his own. With an unexpected reaction to pedals he made for himself, he made a proper website and Electric Orange was born.

Zvonko Suhodolĉan Creator of The DryBell Brand – In the small town of Krapina, Croatia, Zvonko Suhodolĉan, “Zvonch,” a DIY enthusiast with a passion for electronics, music and an endless desire to dig deep into exploring new guitar sounds, kickstarts his vision for DryBell and creates the Vibe Machine V-1. DryBell continued to improve the V-1 with the V-2 and V-3. According to Zvonch, guitarists search high and low to find the Uni-Vibe style pedal they are ultimately satisfied with—The greatest compliment they have received is from customers whose search for the perfect vibe has ended with their Vibe Machine. Their incredible journey includes the launch of several new and unique designs, including Unit67, The Engine, and Module 4…inspired by the sixties and seventies and aimed at making those pleasant sounds a reality in an easy-to-use pedal.

Bob Burt – We first visited with Bob Burt in 2010 and then again ten years on. We’ve sung the praises of his boost and overdrive pedals, not to mention the fifteen hundred or so solid, old growth pine cabinets he’s crafted over the last twenty years. We enjoyed spending time with Bob’s 3D Distortion and GR8T pedals. We wanted to find out what compelled him to build the GR8T pedal and his boost and overdrive. Here’s the latest from Lake Village, Arkansas.

 

Reviews

Electronic Orange Diamond Fuzz and Moon-Vibe MkII – Yes, we are fuzz hounds here at the TQR Mother Ship. So, when Jan’s Diamond arrived via global shipping, we did not hesitate to uncork it for days on end. It’s a silicon version with the BC183 transistors, same as the Eric Johnson fuzzes, we have mentioned here so many times. Jan was interested in upping the bar with his take on the vintage fuzzes Hendrix and Gilmour used with a few tweaks to get it in the sweeter zones with his Diamond Fuzz—he’s playing for keeps. Within a week of airing out Jan’s pedals our good friend Darrell Scott, his wife and dog arrive in a camper truck on a tour. He’s just some fellow who was Robert Plant’s hired guitarist on the Band of Joy tours and a songwriter of hit songs, “Never Leave Harlan Alive” and “It’s a great Day to Be Alive.” After a couple of hours playing the Moon-Vibe MkII— “Where can I get one of these?” is all he asked.

Bob Burt GR8T – Bob Burt is that guy. The one tone freaks mention when they talk about drive and gain. We dig this Burt GR8T. As much as we can write all day about it, as Tom Petty said, don’t bore us, get to the chorus. We were able to dial in heaps of “Cortez the Killer” and intro to “Rocky Mountain Way.” It’s peaceful when you choose to lay back with the band behind the song. Find one and we bet you’ll keep it forever.

DryBell Vibe Machine V-3, The Engine, Unit67 & Module 4 – DryBell have come light years along since the days of Croatian corn harvesting parties where they all sang folk songs in the living room. DryBell are ever so humble and not about the flavor of the day hype machines. Yes, they have some major players using them, including our TQR Advisory Board member extraordinaire Corey Congilio, who let us know his Vibe Machine V-2 was his go-to on a pedal board. Corey gives a short-take on his V-2—the faithful recreation of the historical circuit that came before it. We cranked up the pedals through endless vintage amps and a few newer ones to boot—we understand what the fuss is all about. These are seriously stellar pedals built to specs we rarely see anymore. They shine like no tomorrow.

 

Pedal Mystique – Pedals have forever been magical portals. A simple step of the foot and there you go, parallel universes of tone. We’ve roamed around the earth to gather three of the absolute most happening genius pedal makers there shall ever be and bring them to you. Jan Horinek is a brilliant savant, wondrously creating away in Prague, Czechoslovakia with his Electric Orange offerings inspired by Gilmour and Floyd. The rowdy family and friend team at DryBell of Zvonch, Martina, Kruno and the gang in Croatia are truly kicking ass. The one and only Bob Burt is an underground legend hailing from Lakeville, Arkansas with his pedals and hand-built speaker cabinets that send out wickedly perfect siren signals of rock and roll. We welcome you all to forever light of this place.

One Last Train by Andy Summers –  We like to read around here when we aren’t cranking amps and lighting up the sky. Often, we dig a musician’s story. If you want to know the long path of former guitarist Andy Summers, “One Last Train” is rife with tone chasing and guitar stories of a soul hunkered down in Zen mode in his England days. As for The Police, Summer takes you along the vintage Echoplex for all the beauty, the songs, Sting, and yes, the inevitable crash and burns of a band who stopped making music together with so much potential. This is his message in a bottle for you…grab a copy to enjoy.