EarthQuaker collaborates with Studio Rancho de la Luna for a limited edition Compact V2 Dirt Transmitter

I’ve actually been after this compact edition for a good many years now. I did a post back in 2020 - where the V2 Dirt Transmitter was one of my active targets. In the interim we’ve had a handful of pricey second-hand editions on Reverb.com - until EarthQuaker brought out its Legacy Reissue of the larger original V1 version - this was back in September of last year.

I considered long and hard whether I should get the larger version, or hold out still for a compact variant. And I’m delighted with my choice - as here at last is the pedal I’ve long sought - in exactly the right format for me.

It’s based on a series of recording sessions held at Studio Rancho de la Luna to celebrate it’s 30th Anniversary - those sessions included Jamie, - who mostly made use of a Dirt Transmitter for those recordings. So this collaboration is a celebration of those recording sessions and Rancho de La Luna’s 30 years of history - and makes use of a new artwork by artist Mike Elgan - which takes visual cues from that studio’s past output.

Controls - Level, Fuzz, Tone, Bias.

A perfect control topology for me - as I love fuzzes with external Bias controls. This is a 2 Transistor Design - significantly different to the more famous classic 2-transitor Fuzz. The Dirt Transmitter has a slightly rawer and raspier output and works well for Overdrvei, Fuzzy-Drive, and full-on Fuzz Tones - depending of course on how you deploy those 4 controls.

I’m personally really delighted to get my hands on one of these - making this my 13th EQD pedal to-date - so I’ve still got a few more of those to get - I feel I have at least enough targets to eventually bring my up to 20 or so.

This Dirt Transmitter is a super versatile fuzz with a huge range onboard and lots of variety.

I pre-ordered mine from Andertons - where it’s supposed to come into stock this Friday - so will land early next week in theory if all goes according to plan. The Rancho de la Luna Dirt Transmitter is $179 and equivalent, I paid £189 for mine from Andertons - where those are now listing ’Out Of Stock!’.

More of these have been made than the Legacy Reissues - which were limited to just 1,000 units, only 1,600 units will be available of the Rancho edition - with just 160 of those being allocated to the UK!

If you want one - hopefully you will be able to snag one - as they’re still listed in a few places!