I thought I should focus on my large format heavy-hitters for a change - where these 8 are some of my largest, most potent, and best favoured gain pedals. They are arranged here in alphabetical order, while they were released in the below chronological order. All 8 have featured heavily in my rig at different times - and all 8 are still very valid award winners and still in rotation. While the enormous girth of the Elektron Analog Drive means that is gets somewhat less of a rotation nowadays - ...

This latest of Björn Juhl’s Fuzz creations is supposedly his favourite to date. A new circuit making use of 3 x TO-39 Metal Can 2N3439 Silicon Transistors.

It’s superb versatile - with the most texture with Fuzz around 9 / 10 o’c, and then full-on sear at Max.

The two settings I landed on immediately were :

• Max Harmonics : Volume @ 3 o’c, Fuzz @ 9-10 o’c, Treble @ 3 o’c
• Max Sear : Volume @ 3 o’c, Fuzz @ Max, Treble @ Max

Controls - Volume, Fuzz, Treble.

One of the killer ...

Props to Thorn Soundlabs for a fantastically versatile circuit that easily takes you into Fuzz Face, Tone Bender, and Big Muff territory - depending on how you dial it in.

It has a really potent tone-shaping ability - combining 3-Band EQ with semi-parametric mids and a Damping control. And 2 toggle switches to deliver different characters and timbres.

Controls - Gain, Damping (Tighness), Mid Frequency : 300Hz > 2kHz, Volume, Character : Smooth, Natural, Hot!, Hard Clip : Off / On, Bass,...

My pal Scott Hager of Axe and You Shall Receive first brought this pedal to my attention when I wrote up the history of his dealership back in 2021. Scott had a connection to Glenn, and stocked the Moonrock Fuzz in the early days of his dealership. Alas Glenn passed away in 2014 - and this is the first major revival / tribute we have seen since then.

The Moonrock circuit is a unique Multi-Voice - which starts off with a gated Swelling / Blooming output - which when you crank the Fuzz knob ...

After the quiet comfort of February, March unleashed an avalanched of work - both in terms of new releases and acquisitions, but especial in the field of Guitar and Pedal expos - where I attended 3 within a month - first The Birmingham Guitar Show at Cranmore Park, then the London Synth and Pedal Expo at Studio 9294, Hackney Wick - and then back to Birmingham for the Noise Maker Market at Centrala, Digbeth - all grand events.

I burned myself out a little this month, and came back willingly empty...

One month after The Guitar Show we’re back in ’Birmingham’ again for a brand new venture at a brilliant venue - within walking distance of Birmingham’s New Street Station - while I will probably take a taxi - depending on prevailing weather conditions of course.

Noise Maker Market is at Centrala, Unit 4 Minverva Works, 158 Fazeley Street. Birmingham, B5 5RT.

It takes place on Sunday March 29th, and runs from 11:00 to 18:00 - with the show taking place on the first floor, where there is ...

Many are not aware that TGT11’s Sebastian Nylund and Björn Juhl are the very best of friends. In fact Björn Juhl’s BJFE Pedals were at the root of the formation of the TGT11 Store. Sebastian was the original dealer and outlet for BJFE, and remains The key resource if you’re looking to acquire one of those pedals.

I assisted with the introductions between Joe Light and Sebastian - where Joe is one of my very first  and oldest friends in this sector. Each of those had killer brand ...

One month after The Guitar Show we’re back in ’Birmingham’ again for a brand new venture at a brilliant venue - within walking distance of Birmingham’s New Street Station - while I will probably take a taxi - depending on prevailing weather conditions of course.

Noise Maker Market is at Centrala, Unit 4 Minverva Works, 158 Fazeley Street. Birmingham, B5 5RT.

It takes place on Sunday March 29th, and runs from 11:00 to 18:00 - with the show taking place on the first floor, where there is ...

February is always something of a lull - particularly after the hyper busy NAMM-inflected January. This month is the doldrums of the calendar where not much gets releases. I did though manage to land a decent selection of a dozen pedals - obviously some from the previous year. With the Sinvertek MGAT-1 EVO being the standout pedal landed - where the Klowra Gnash and Wampler Golden Jubilee were pretty spectacular too. 3 x Klowra pedals on the board this month - all excellent!

Of course there...