Effects

Andy Timmons

By Scott Ulrichs

Andy Timmons, guitarist and bandleader for over three decades, sits down for a wide-ranging conversation covering his love of vintage Telecasters, the vinyl that shaped his ears, gear-staging epiphanies, and the ongoing tone quest that still drives him to experiment every day.

Fuzzy Feelings Deux

By Riverhorse

No overdrive will ever match the harmonic complexity or magical bloom of a great fuzz — a deep dive into germanium fuzz options, from the KingTone mini-GE to TQR's own homebrew builds.

Circuit Art For The Soul

By Scott Ulrichs

The R2R Two Knob Treble Booster, built by Chris with all-NOS parts including a Mullard AC107 Germanium transistor, offers a far more flexible take on the classic Rangemaster circuit — expanding its single-capacitor design into six selectable frequency ranges for endless sustain and bloom.

Analog Mike

By Riverhorse

ToneQuest sits down with Analog Man's Mike Piera — aka Analog Mike — to talk vintage pedal hunting, the legendary King of Tone, fuzz face realities, the new Brothers AM collaboration with Chase Bliss, and what keeps the handmade pedal world alive.

Reflecting On The Latest Pedal Tech

By Pete Prown

Today's reverb pedals have exploded far beyond the simple spring tanks of old, harnessing powerful new DSP chips to deliver everything from massive ambient pads to authentic vintage spring sounds. Pete Prown surveys the latest generation of reverb stompboxes reshaping guitarists' sonic possibilities.

Driving Miss Daisy Chain

By Scott Ulrichs

Todd Sharp's VTLD1 tube loop driver is reviewed as a timely antidote for players who love stacking pedals but dread the fidelity loss that comes with them — preserving "true north" amp tone while offering a lush variable tube boost stage and flexible signal shaping tools.

Polyphonic Crunch

By Oscar Jordan

Robert Keeley's Octa Psi Transfigurating Fuzz melds a Pitch Shifter, Octave Generator, and all-analog Fuzz into one highly versatile pedal. With intuitive controls, momentary/latching modes, and expression pedal support, it delivers everything from smooth fuzz to pitch-twisted chaos at $249.

Creator of the DryBell Brand

By Riverhorse

ToneQuest sits down with Zvonimir "Zvonch" Audio and the DryBell team in Krapina, Croatia, to trace the journey from homemade amplifiers and a private guitar-gear forum to one of the world's most celebrated boutique pedal brands. From the Vibe Machine V-1 to The Engine, Unit67, and Module 4, DryBell's story is one of passion, family, and an obsessive pursuit of authentic tone.

Vibe Machine V-3, The Engine, Unit67 & Module 4

By Riverhorse

DryBell's four-pedal lineup — the Vibe Machine V-3, The Engine preamp, Unit67 compressor, and Module 4 Orange Squeezer — earns an unqualified rave, with each pedal praised for studio-grade quiet, meticulous circuit research, and tones that rival the vintage gear that inspired them.

The SAG BC108 Silicon & NKT275 Germanium

By Riverhorse

ToneQuest sits down with fuzz builder Matthew Dunne to explore the art and obsession behind his SAG BC108 Silicon and NKT275 Germanium fuzz pedals — from reverse-engineering vintage Fuzz Faces to hunting NOS transistors worldwide. A hands-on review of both fuzzes follows, delivering a verdict that's hard to argue with.

And Fuzz Face Treasure Hunting

By CJ Landry

Builder CJ Landry dives into the art and science of constructing original PNP germanium and NPN silicon Fuzz Faces — hunting for the rare transistors and elusive mojo that made Jimi Hendrix and Eric Johnson's fuzz tones legendary.

Gizmo Audio

By Riverhorse

Charles Luke of Gizmo Audio returns with the Sweet Breakup, a MOSFET-based overdrive pedal born from satellite-engineering expertise and years of refinement. ToneQuest puts it through its paces and finds a studio-quality, touch-sensitive boost and breakup machine that earns a full green light.

Trainwreck, Reverb & Uni-Vibe Favorites

By Riverhorse

A ToneQuest reader in Jacksonville asks Riverhorse for advice on pairing reverb, delay, and Uni-Vibe pedals with a new Trainwreck Express JMD head while preserving the amp's legendary touch sensitivity. Riverhorse offers recommendations ranging from Strymon Flint and vintage Deluxe Memory Men to the Electronic Orange Moon Vibe and a hard-won 1972 Uni-Vibe.

Talking Stereo Modulation

By Scott Ulrichs

Robert Keeley sits down with ToneQuest to discuss the new Oaxa Dual Phaser, Rotary, and Nocturne Reverb stereo pedals — revealing the engineering philosophy, star-studded endorsements, and upcoming releases that are keeping Keeley Electronics at the cutting edge.

Swirly Vibes, Organ Oscillations, And Decadent Decays

By Scott Ulrichs

ToneQuest puts three of Keeley Electronics' newest platform pedals — the Oaxa phaser, Keeley Rotary, and Nocturne reverb — through their paces, exploring swirling stereo phasers, Leslie-like rotary tones, and lush, multi-mode reverbs that transform even the simplest amp rigs.

Building The Right Frequencies Into Each R2R

By Scott Ulrichs

Chris Vincent of R2R Electric talks NOS parts, Germanium transistors, and the simple elegance of Rangemaster-style treble boosters — and how a player's obsession with vintage tone led him to build some of the most sought-after small-batch boost pedals available today.

Cole McBride’s Genius Designs

By Scott Ulrichs

Cole McBride, founder of Black Mountain Picks, talks about his journey from guitar teacher to inventor of spring-loaded thumbpicks, tungsten slide rings, roller-wheel volume pedals, and a revolutionary spring-embedded capo.

Roll Away The Dew

By Scott Ulrichs

A field report on the Black Mountain roller volume pedal and its surprising suitability for seated players.

Michael Palmisano - Guitargate

By Riverhorse

Michael Palmisano of Guitargate talks building a half-million-strong YouTube community, teaching guitar online to players in 185 countries, and the creation of the Teleport — a Wi-Fi-enabled looper, drum machine, and music-sharing device designed to help players connect, collaborate, and get better.

The Austen Hooks Projector Pedal

By Riverhorse

Builder Austen Hooks transforms vintage military film projectors and Geiger-counter dosimeter housings into singular guitar amplifiers and a solid-state preamp pedal that has captivated players from Blake Mills and Keith Richards to Derek Trucks and Trey Anastasio. ToneQuest goes deep with Hooks on his journey from Texas A&M engineering student to underground amp visionary — and puts his Projector Preamp Pedal through its paces.

Always On

By Oscar Jordan

Oscar Jordan puts the Origin Effects RevivalDRIVE Compact through its paces, exploring its range of amp-voiced overdrive tones after hearing Eric Johanson praise the pedal for its ability to blend cranked-amp saturation with a clean signal on stage.

Glorious Overtones!

By Oscar Jordan

The Xotic Effects AC Booster-V2 builds on one of the brand's most popular pedals, adding improved tone, flexibility, and two distinct modes — Classic and Modern — to deliver rich overtones and an ungodly Boost function at a street price of $180.

Daniel Steinhardt, The GigRig & That Pedal Show

By Riverhorse

Daniel Steinhardt traces his journey from harmonizing with siblings in Brisbane to co-founding That Pedal Show and GigRig, sharing hard-won wisdom on tone, pedal order, and the gear that changed his musical life.

Brad Sarno —The Mind Behind The Steel Guitar Black Box

By Scott Ulrichs

Brad Sarno, designer of the legendary Steel Guitar Black Box tube buffer, talks about his journey from Heathkit tinkerer to boutique builder — explaining why guitars want to see a tube first, how impedance loading shapes tone, and what's coming next from his one-man garage workshop.

Gotta Black Magic Woman

By Scott Ulrichs

Brad Sarno's Steel Guitar Black Box Mini puts a 12AX7 tube in your signal path to restore warmth, air, and feel lost to long cable runs and buffered pedal chains. At around $300, it's a deceptively simple device with surprisingly significant results for both acoustic and electric players.

Jay Schreiber, Niche Devices

By Riverhorse

Jay Schreiber of Niche Devices discusses his path from professional drummer and electronics tinkerer to boutique pedal builder, detailing the transformer-equipped Humboldt Preamp/Compressor and what's next for the company.

Humboldt Preamp & Dakota Compressor

By Riverhorse

Jay Schreiber's Niche Devices Humboldt Preamp combines optical compression and a high-headroom preamplifier in a fully blendable parallel circuit — ToneQuest's Riverhorse puts it through its paces alongside the Dakota Compressor and finds gold, tonally and literally.

The Gear Guru Sounds Off

By Scott Ulrichs

Gear guru Mike Waldotronics discusses the buffers, Blaster clones, custom pedals, and amp mods he's built and installed for Grateful Dead tribute guitarist Josh, revealing the meticulous craft behind capturing authentic Jerry Garcia tone.

The Proton Mk IV Envelope Filter

By Scott Ulrichs

Spencer Doren of 3 Leaf Audio talks about the evolution of his Proton envelope filter — a Mu-Tron III–inspired design now in its fourth version — along with his Octabvre, Doom 2, and the philosophy behind running a thriving boutique pedal company without social media.

3 Leaf Audio Proton Mk IV Review

By Scott Ulrichs

The 3 Leaf Audio Proton Mk IV envelope filter delivers an intoxicating, dynamic playing experience that tracks exceptionally well with your attack — by far the most fun we've ever had with this style of effect.

Old And In The Grey

By Scott Ulrichs

A hands-on encounter with a rare 1969 Uni-Fuzz — the Japanese-made sibling to the legendary Uni-Vibe — reveals a 53-part circuit that delivers far more complexity and character than any traditional Fuzz Face. At $550, this vintage oddity proves irresistible for serious fuzz hunters.

CJ Landry

By Riverhorse

Houston-based electronics engineer and musician CJ Landry has spent decades quietly repairing vintage effects pedals other technicians couldn't touch — Deluxe Memory Men, A/DA Flangers, Roger Mayer Octavias, and more — with a network that traces back to AnalogMan himself. ToneQuest sits down with CJ to talk tone, repairs, and a lifetime of never putting the guitar down.

Madsen Amplification Custom Ge Boost

By Scott Ulrichs

Builder Maynard Madsen discusses the origins and design of his Custom Shop Ge Boost — a germanium treble booster built with heirloom-quality components and hand-selected NOS transistors. He traces his path from audio engineering school to boutique pedal building, explains what makes germanium boosts unique in a band mix, and previews an upcoming KT150-powered amplifier.

Madsen Custom Shop Ge Boost Review

By Scott Ulrichs

The Madsen Custom Shop Ge Boost is a Rangemaster-style germanium transistor treble boost with three capacitor-selectable voices that rewards guitarists who plug straight in — delivering round cleans, expressive bloom, and a dynamic feel that compressors can't match.

The Axis Of Soul

By Tom Guerra

Grammy-nominated guitarist Jon Butcher discusses his new soul-infused album Nuthin' but SOUL, sharing the gear, influences, and inspirations behind one of his most personal recordings to date.

ATG 828 Overdrive Analog Pedals

By Riverhorse

Jeff Bolin's ATG 828 Overdrive from Analog Pedals is a smooth, wide-ranging overdrive that so impressed Billy F Gibbons he bought four of them on the spot. TQR puts it through its paces and finds it highly recommended for players chasing organic sustain and expressive '80s tones.

Sonic Solutions VTLD1 Loop Driver

By Scott Ulrichs

Veteran guitarist and Nashville Amplifier Service founder Todd Sharp discusses the design philosophy behind his VTLD1 Vacuum Tube Loop Driver — a handcrafted device built to restore signal integrity and dynamic feel for players drowning in pedalboards.

Beetronics FX

By Oscar Jordan

Filipe Pampuri, guitarist and CEO of family-owned Beetronics FX, traces the Los Angeles pedal company's journey from homemade studio experiments in Brazil to a celebrated boutique brand whose clients include Adrian Belew, Jeff Tweedy, and Sean Ono Lennon. In this interview, Pampuri discusses the origins of his most beloved pedals, his design philosophy, and what's next for Beetronics.

Wannabee Beelateral Buzz

By Oscar Jordan

The Beetronics FX Wannabee dual overdrive houses both a Bluesbreaker and a Klon Centaur circuit in one pedalboard-friendly package, with flexible routing options that unlock a festival of tones from sparkling Brit-rock to gnarly ZZ Top grit.

Abelha Tropical Fuzz

By Oscar Jordan

Beetronics FX's Abelha Tropical Fuzz takes the classic fuzz tone and gives it a Brazilian tropical makeover, offering three distinct flavor modes — Polen, Nectar, and Honey — that range from sagged low-gain buzz to sweet high-gain overdrive.

Anthem Dual Drive Pedal

By Riverhorse

Missing Link Audio's Anthem Dual Drive pedal is a Lynyrd Skynyrd-inspired overdrive featuring a 3-way toggle voiced for individual band guitarists — Collins, King, Gaines, Rossington — plus a dedicated Boost. ToneQuest puts it through its paces with Gibson and Strat rigs into a Marshall Plexi and a '64 Deluxe Reverb.

Jeff Bolin's KY Hot Brown

By Scott Ulrichs

Jeff Bolin of Analog Pedals discusses the inspiration behind his KY Hot Brown overdrive — a six-JFET-stage pedal chasing Eddie Van Halen's warm brown sound — and reveals how Billy Gibbons and Buddy Guy recently discovered his work.

KY Hot Brown

By Riverhorse

Jeff Bolin's KY Hot Brown is a plug-and-play take on Eddie Van Halen's legendary "brown sound," delivering a serious amount of gain alongside beautiful, lively harmonics. For the money, it's a slam dunk that works especially well with humbuckers.

JAM Retrovibe Mk.3

By Scott Ulrichs

The JAM Retrovibe Mk.3 is a beautifully built Univibe-style pedal that delivers creamy, mix-friendly modulation with no annoying high-end artifacts.

Airport Runway Reverb & The Chrome Bigsby

By Riverhorse

Larry Pogreba's one-of-a-kind homegrown reverb unit — built around an actual airport runway landing light — arrives alongside a rare 1951 Bigsby Volume/Tone pedal, setting the stage for a sublime evening of cosmically charged tone in a Texas bungalow.

The VFE Old School Tremolo

By Riverhorse

A deep look at the VFE Old School Tremolo — from its origins in a 1968 circuit to its current version — told by designer Peter Rutter, the former teacher who built a beloved boutique tremolo pedal on the side.

The Prescription Electronics Experience

By Riverhorse

From 1993 through 2014, Jack Brossart built pedals under the Prescription Electronics Inc. name, leaving behind underground favorites prized by tone hounds like Eric Johnson and Doyle Bramhall II. This appreciation digs into what makes the Experience — with its Octave Fuzz and hypnotic Swell section — one of the most unique and inspiring fuzz pedals ever made.

Vintage Deluxe Memory Man

By Riverhorse

The Electro-Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man is the only pedal that comes close to a vintage Echoplex, offering haunting modulation and analog warmth that modern delays simply can't match. ToneQuest's editors make the case for the big-box vintage units — and why four of them still isn't enough.

James Mastro With Mike Matthews of Electro-Harmonix

By James Mastro

Guitarist James Mastro reunites with his long-lost 1973 Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi after forty-two years, then sits down with EHX founder Mike Matthews to uncover the colorful history behind the world's most beloved fuzz pedal.

The Russian Green Machine Big Muff

By Riverhorse

A personal account of life on the road with the Russian Green Big Muff — made in St. Petersburg from 1994 to 1999 and favored by David Gilmour and the Black Keys — and the hunt to find one again decades later.

Fuzz Phrase Itd

By Scott Ulrichs

The JAM Fuzz Phrase Ita wraps a legendary fuzz circuit in purple suede with a Jimi Hendrix graphic and a zipperable plexiglass backplate, delivering everything from violin creaminess to full-octane gain with a remarkably usable sweep of both controls.

Lilt And Shimmer

By Scott Ulrichs

A deep dive into the history and mystique of the Univibe — from Fumio Mieda's Vibra Chorus origins to a firsthand encounter with a 1970 original that still delivers liquid fairy dust tone.

Echoplex: The Legacy Continues

By Oscar Jordan

Bart Postlewait inherited the Echoplex legacy from his grandfather-in-law, inventor Mike Battle, and carries on the tradition of servicing and championing the iconic tape delay unit. In this interview, Postlewait shares stories of working side by side with Battle and reflects on why the Echoplex remains irreplaceable.

It All Starts With The Tape

By Bart Postlewait

Tape is the guitar string of the Echoplex — a treasured, irreplaceable component that defines the machine's character. Veteran repairman Bart Postlewait shares six essential tips for getting the most out of your Echoplex tape loop.

Zoma Stereo Reverb And Tremolo

By Oscar Jordan

Keeley Electronics' Zoma Stereo Reverb And Tremolo combines spring and plate reverbs with sine tremolo, harmonic tremolo, and vibrato in a compact, easy-to-use stereo pedal. At $299, it delivers lush vintage tones and modern flexibility in equal measure.

Chris Leuzinger

By Oscar Jordan

Nashville session veteran Chris Leuzinger has played on over 130 million albums with artists from Garth Brooks to Emmylou Harris, and here he reflects on four decades of tone, taste, and the art of playing for the song.

Inspiration Information

By Oscar Jordan

Robert Keeley sits down with ToneQuest Report to discuss 23 years of pedal innovation, from his legendary compressors and mods to the new Octa Psi Transfigurating Fuzz and upcoming MIDI-controlled and tube-driven Klon designs.

EJ Fuzz Experiment

By Riverhorse

When a bare EJ Fuzz Face circuit board turned up on Reverb, ToneQuest sent it to Analog Pedals' Jeff Bolin for a custom housing, true-bypass wiring, and a SAG circuit — then asked him to explain the fuzz pedals he builds himself.

Electronic Orange Jan Horinek

By Riverhorse

Jan Horinek of Electronic Orange in Prague builds handcrafted guitar pedals one at a time — over sixteen hundred and counting — drawing on a deep love of Pink Floyd and a background in electrical engineering. In this interview, he discusses his Moon-Vibe, Diamond Fuzz Face clone, and his pursuit of "fake germanium" silicon tone.

Diamond Fuzz and Moon-Vibe MkII

By Riverhorse

Electronic Orange's Diamond Fuzz and Moon-Vibe MkII are handcrafted Czech pedals that deliver exceptional vintage fuzz and Uni-Vibe tones — so impressive that guitarist Darrell Scott, fresh off tours with Robert Plant, immediately wanted to know where he could get one.

Bob Burt

By Scott Ulrichs

Pedal builder Bob Burt of Lake Village, Arkansas discusses the origins of his GR8T Distortion and 3D Distortion pedals, his collaboration with guitarist Allen Hinds, and the hand-painted swirl finishes that have become his signature aesthetic.

Bob Burt GR8T

By Riverhorse

The Bob Burt GR8T is a hand-painted overdrive pedal that delivers a ridiculously pure, three-dimensional, harmonically complex gain — one that cleans up beautifully with the volume knob and doesn't sound like a pedal at all.

Wade Goeke

By Riverhorse

Wade Goeke, the man behind Chandler Limited, shares the story of how his passion for recording gear took him from a small Iowa town to London's legendary Abbey Road Studios — and back again — to build faithful recreations of EMI's historic recording equipment. The interview also includes reviews of Chandler's handmade Germanium Drive and Little Devil Colored Boost pedals.

The Hudson Electronics Broadcast

By Scott Ulrichs

Hudson Electronics' hand-built Broadcast is a transformer-coupled, discrete Class-A germanium pre-amplifier capable of everything from clean boost to gonzo fuzz — and the Ariel Posen signature AP variant pushes the concept even further with silicon transistors and an OEP transformer.

Zac DelVecchio

By Scott Ulrichs

The J. Rockett Clockwork

By Scott Ulrichs

The J. Rockett Clockwork delay pedal takes the beloved sonic signature of the vintage Electro-Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man and updates it for modern players, with tap tempo, dual expression pedal inputs, and true stereo — all while keeping the warm, analog magic intact.

Jeff Beck Mod Archer

By Scott Ulrichs

Reviewer Scott Ulrichs also puts the J. Rockett Jeff Beck Mod Archer head-to-head against the KTR and other Klon-style pedals in a revealing A/B shootout.

Cosmic Country Phaser

By Scott Ulrichs

The Cosmic Country Phaser — a limited-edition collaboration between Daniel and Robert Keeley — delivers warm, vintage-voiced modulation across three stage modes without the level or high-end pitfalls that plague many phaser pedals. Only 150 were made, each adorned with psychedelic artwork, making this a compelling find for players who want subtle, musical phase that earns its place on the board.

Josh Scott

By Richard Goodsell

Josh Scott, founder of JHS Pedals, sits down to discuss his small-town Alabama roots, his legendary collection of over 4,500 pedals, and how reverse engineering and relentless curiosity built one of the most celebrated effects companies in the world.

The Leslie Speaker Revisited

By Richard Goodsell

A comprehensive history of the Leslie rotating speaker cabinet, from Don Leslie's rivalry with Laurens Hammond in the 1940s through its golden era with the Hammond B-3, its adoption by guitar legends, and the modern pedal simulators that carry its legacy today.

Key Component of Jerry Garcia's Sound

By Scott Ulrichs

ToneQuest sits down with Mike Wald of Waldotronics, the obsessive tone-seeker who reverse-engineered Jerry Garcia's on-board buffer and OBEL circuitry to build the Spud and Spud II buffers now found in guitars throughout the Dead-inspired scene. From cracking open Tiger's electronics cavity to schooling players on McIntosh power amps and JBL speakers, Waldo goes deep on what it really takes to cop Jerry's tone.

JAM Pedals The Real Grecian Formula

By Scott Ulrichs

ToneQuest sits down with Jannis Anastasakis, founder of Athens-based JAM Pedals, to explore the hand-built, NOS-component-driven philosophy behind beloved effects like the Retrovibe, Fuzz Phrase, and Wahcko. From sourcing CV7003 transistors to solving the photocell puzzle in their Univibe clone, JAM's obsession with vintage tone and meticulous craftsmanship has earned them a place on boards belonging to Bill Frisell, John Scofield, and beyond.

Analog Pedals

By Riverhorse

Kentucky-based pedal builder Jeff Bolin of Analog Pedals discusses his path from guitar-obsessed kid to creator of handmade, small-batch signature pedals for players like Greg Martin and Chris Robertson of Black Stone Cherry — followed by a hands-on review of the Cedar Flat Lightning preamp boost and the Dos Fuzz v2.

The César Díaz Tremodillo Tales

By Riverhorse

A deep dive into the legendary César Díaz Texas Tremodillo tremolo pedal, tracing the life and genius of SRV's amp tech through rare archival interview excerpts and hands-on tests of two original Tremodillo pedals — one NOS, one signed by Bob Dylan.

The Boss Waza Air Headphones

By Riverhorse

Riverhorse puts the Boss Waza Air wireless guitar headphones through their paces — from late-night bedroom jams next to a sleeping companion to mountain hikes and tailgate sessions — and finds the tone surprisingly convincing. A vivid, personal account of how a $400 pair of headphones changed his playing habits entirely.

Riverhorse Wails on Wahs

By Riverhorse

Bitten hard by the wah-wah bug, writer Riverhorse goes deep down the rabbit hole of vintage wahs — hunting down 1967 Vox Clyde McCoy and 1970 Sound City Fuzz Wah Face pedals, sending them to Geoffrey Teese for expert service, and discovering why cables, inductors, and impedance matching matter as much as the pedals themselves.

Falsifuzz

By Scott Ulrichs

Scott Ulrichs recounts the cautionary tale of buying a counterfeit Dunlop Eric Johnson EJF1 Fuzz Face on Reverb — and the month-long odyssey of navigating seller denial, Reverb's resolution process, and Dunlop's surprisingly helpful support team to get his money back.

Fuzzy Feelings

By Riverhorse

A roundup of essential fuzz pedals and Univibes — from the Kingtone Mini GE and Analog Pedals Sugar Buzz to a rare vintage Roger Mayer Octavia — for seekers of hairy, inspired tone.