KillerTone Labs ToneCrafter

This pedal is just as easy to use as any other overdrive/distortion pedal. Four standard control knobs, but some of the knobs vary in function depending on which 'effect' you have installed in the pedal. I believe the pedal is capable of seven different effects, but the one I am reviewing is the "CloneZ" overdrive.

I try to keep things very simple and have found that the only effects I like to use are wah, overdrive/distortion, reverb and delay. I use either a Peavey Wolfgang w/ Dimarzio Tone Zone in the bridge or a G&L Legacy w/ a Gibson Classic '57 bridge and Seymour Duncan Phat Cat in the neck. Next I use a Dunlop 535Q, then to the CloneZ, to either a Peavey Bandit or a Fender Hot Rod w/ a Danelectro Dan-Echo delay in the effects loop. As hard as it is, I am currently swapping out the stock speakers in each of my amp w/ the only Celestion Vintage 30 I have; it sucks but the Vintage 30 is MUCH better than the two stock speakers these amplifiers have. I don't consider any of my equipment to be high-end in the least. I just deal w/ what I have and try to get the best sound out of it possible. I have always had Tone Quest disease but I think I am getting close now. I could never be happy in the least w/ either of my amplifier stock tones. One a cheap solid state, the other a cheap tube amp. Somehow the CloneZ sounds really good through both of them; and this is saying alot. I have found that many overdrives sound good through one amp but never the other, and vice versa. The pedal has a wonderful open sound (not 'midrangey' (is that a word?) like other overdrives are). The pedal cleans up well w/ the gain knob on the pedal and the volume knob on the guitar. I have been able to emulate my very favorite artists, all quite well, w/ this one overdrive pedal. Joe Satriani, Larry Carlton, Joe Bonamassa, David Gilmour, Robben Ford.......I can get very close to all of these artist's tones w/ the proper tweaking of the knobs on the pedal, my amp and guitar, depending on which amp and guitar I am using. I change moods so often, I have to have options for different tones or I would just get bored and probably quit playing. This pedal really does them all for me. I do have to say that I am a tweaker by heart and did change the pedal's original design just a little on my own w/ a combination of Carlos' recommendations and one of my own. Through conversations on the phone (many times; great guy!!) I decided I would exchange one of the diodes in the pedal for a Germanium, which really gave me more of a 'tubey' sound. This really did the trick. But just the fact that the pedal allows you the option of doing anything you could imagine is great. This pedal is a must have for the hobbyist and tweaker alike.

I don't gig (maybe someday) but I have opened this pedal up NUMEROUS time trying different options; exchanging various diodes, capacitors, even opamps, and such and have never had a problem w/ the original design of the unit in the 6-7 months that I have had it. The only problems I had, I created myself through my limited lack of knowledge when it comes to electronics by putting things where they shouldn't be in an electrical circuit. But that's all a part of leaning, right!? Nothing has 'popped' out, though I guess it could if you threw the unit around all of the time. I did hear that Carlos hopes to be able to do permanent (soldered) units in the future and in smaller boxes....can't wait.

Carlos is great. Like I said earlier, I have spoken to him on the phone many times, and through email as well. If he was ever hard to get a hold of, it was only bec/ he does have a regular job and works MANY hours a week. Hopefully someday, he can afford to leave that occupation and devote his expertise to us guitar players, full time.

I have been playing on and off for around 13 years. I used to enjoy playing stuff like Slayer, Forbidden, stuff like that when I was young, but the older I get, the more I really enjoy blues, and more mainstream rock. One really nice thing about this pedal I didn't mention above is if it is setup right, it is very touch sensative; an ability I have never experienced before w/ all of the gear I have had over the years. This adds a totally new dimension to playing for me. I think that is why this has to be my favorite overdrive pedal to date. I still have some Keeley pedals and a Mesa Boogie V-Twin which are all very good, but none of them give me the responsiveness this pedal does. This unit has been one of the very few pieces of gear I have owned that helped me to forget about everything else and just play! In my mind, you can't give a better compliment than that. Thanks Carlos for such a wonderful product.

Considering what this is - a really nicely done project box with the ability to wire up several different effects, it's incredibly easy. Put together very well, and step-by-step instructions on CD with great images to follow. Even I could do it. That said, it's not comparable to a pre-made effects unit even though one effect is pre-built. The real beauty is the ability to swap parts and try things out - much more significant than turning a couple of knobs.

I'm sticking to the "Clone-Z" effect for sound quality because it's my favorite of the bunch, even though I've never been much of a distortion pedal user. I love the sound of this one. Open, yet it does get very crunchy. It *really* plays well with my other crunchy pedals - a Full-Drive II and a SansAmp GT2. The Clone-Z into the SansAmp with both on a low to moderate gain setting gives me a crazy Eric Johnson type sound that is fun as hell to play with. I'm using this mostly with a Fender American Strat and a Mesa Blue Angel.

Well...this category is almost unfair for this pedal. Is it built well and reliable? YES! Would I use it without a back up? Nooooo! No way. It's a breadboard with the parts pushed into position. It's really not intended to be used live like a standard pedal. I have snuck it into my set up for a couple of gigs just to test it out at live volumes, but I wouldn't recommend that regularly. Don't toss it in your pedal bag and expect it to survive for years getting bounced around. Some part is bound to pop out eventually.

My plan is to tweak the ToneCrafter box to get the components I like best and then to soldier those into a typical board and pedal arrangment. Then I'll have my favorite set up as a stand-alone pedal, and still have the ToneCrafter to try other things out with.

I'm giving it 8, but that's almost unfair. It's very well done.

As far as I can tell, KillerTone is a one-man shop. If there was a rating higher than 10 Carlos would deserve that. I've emailed him a few times and always got quick and helpful responses. He offered to talk on the phone in order to speed things up and he seems very responsive on the forums he has set up. I get the impression that he's excited about this project/product and he really wants it do be successful and do well. He came up with a tremendous idea and he's done a great job putting it together. He deserves all the credit and support he gets in my opinion.

I play a wide variety, but gig mainly with a rock cover band. I don't use too much distortion for my own sounds, but I'm always trying to mimic somebody else's sound for the band. The Clone-Z project does a super job helping me get a range sounds from just past bluesy to higher gain.

I've been playing over 30 years and have owned a fair number of pedals, nothing crazy though. I mainly use a Fender Am Strat and a home made tele, but I also use a Carvin DC-150, a home made walnut strat and a jazz box made by Darrell Cook.

I considered buying a second one of these, so if it were stolen I'd get another right away. I love the Clone-Z sound and I love that you can play with all the parts and try all sorts of things out. The only thing I would suggest is that maybe Carlos should sell stand-alone versions of each of the projects that can be made with the ToneCrafter. I'd buy at least one of them!

Also, I think Carlos is selling these for a very good price. I know if you buy at bulk prices and such the components aren't all that expensive, but he has packaged all the parts along with a great project-box arrangement and lots of documentation into one kit. It would have taken me days to track down the specific parts, not to mention assemble a project box this well. I think it's great. Obviously.

I have used it with a 81 mesa boogie mark2b,a solid state princeton reverb,in front of a gnx 2 into 2 tech 21 power engine 60s and plugged a yamaha bass into it to record a bass track and got unbelieveble results.

I have used it live 4 times now with no problems and dont exspect any.

Carlos should be teaching other companys how to do customer support,when you email him he responds imediately.He even took time away from his family at Christmas to respond!

IT is hard to be critical of a pedal made so well that also includes all the parts with it and simple instructions to change it to another pedal all together without having to solder anything.I am 52 years old and have never seen or heard anything like this.

This pedal is good to go right out of the box. Four useful knobs that actually change the tone, grind and boost the way they should. No manual needed. Just listen.

Shocked and surprised. I have been playing the guitar for some 40-odd years. I am a gastroenterologist by trade, but playing the guitar is my passion. Like another reviewer on this page, I like SRV, Robben Ford and others who know how to express themselves on the guitar with minimum flash and maximum soul. I have been through a lot of equipment and I admit, I am a slow learner when it comes to tone. For a long time, I trusted what other people said and not what I heard. Now I know what I like and it obviously has nothing to do with how much you spend. I trust my ears, and to my ear, this is about as good as it gets. A lot of other pedals depend on the Emperors New Clothes phenomenon. Everybody says they're great. They cost a bundle. So they must be great. Truth is, they aren't so great, and some absolutely suck. I bought a Fulltone Deja Vibe, and it sounded like someone let a squirrel loose in my amp. I bought a high-end drive pedal. Sounded like my amp was stuffed with cotton-wool. This pedal provides true tonal clarity, a big bass end and an almost french-horn like sound on some settings. On others, it as brown as brown can be, and being a gastroenterologist, I know brown. This is Van Halen brown, or better. Amazing sound, coming out of this big blue box.

I haven't had it for long, but it is big and heavy. Seems roadworthy. It better be. It's on my pedalboard and it's staying there.

Carlos is a terrific guy. That said, let me say that I hate reading reviews that talk about how great the maker of the pedal is. They always make me feel like the manufacturer wrote the review. I never really have chit-chat with the pedal-guy. But Carlos offered information without my asking and kept in touch even though he didn't have to. He is clearly invested in the quality of his product, and he donates all of the profit from his sales to charity. What more can I say. He is a prince and a prodigy. He offers help before you need it and I feel totally confident that if anything went wrong, he'd have it fixed in a jiffy.

I am in a classic rock cover band. Cream, Hendrix, Aerosmith, Zep, EVH, Grand Funk, a little Foo Fighters, etc. You get the idea. We're not great, but people like what we do because we like what we do. Actually, we love what we do. I have made this box part of my personal setup for all of the reasons mentioned above. I think it's funny that for 89 bucks, hidden inside this big blue box, is the holy grail of pedals. Carlos just might have to quit his day job when the word gets out.

As far as using this as a standard effects pedal, it has some downsides. It's a big, clunky pedal with no status LED and four chicken head knobs on the sides of the pedal. It's hard to see what the setings are, especially on a dark stage. These are minor quibbles that are far outweighed by the performance factor. As far as changing or modifying the circuit, it couldn't be easier. The components are easily moved or replaced, and Carlos' directions are easy to follow. If you like to tinker with your tone and want to know more about how effects pedals work you should really own one of these.

Although there are four effects that can be set up, I only use the CloneZ circuit right now. It gives me an excellent boost with added sustain for solos. I use the stock circuit with my Roland BC-60 Blues Cube in my jam band and a slightly modified CloneZ circuit with a Carr Rambler in my rock/blues/R&B band. The pedal has true bypass, so there is no loss of tone when it is not being used, but the switch makes a fairly loud pop when used with the solid state amp. It's quiet with the Carr, though. I can't tell you that it sounds like a Dumble amp or a Holy Grail Marshall Plexi, but I can tell you that the overdrive I get with this pedal is more pleasing than anything else I've tried, which includes pedals by Fulltone, Klon, Barber, Keely, Blackstone and just about everything else. It just seems more musical to my ears. Pretty amazing considering the price and the ability to fine tune without having to solder components!

Although the box is large and not ergonomically designed, it appears to be very well built and I have gigged with it without a backup. I do own two pedals, but one stays in the room where the jam band plays.

Carlos provides excellent customer service and is always willing to provide any kind of information to you. He has always been quick to respond, very friendly and helpful when I have contacted him.

I've been playing rock, blues, R&B and original material for over 30 years, mostly in small to medium sized clubs. I use a variety of guitars including a Tele, Les Paul, Reverend, Daion, and Harmony, Kay and Galveston resonator (for slide). In my quest for tone I have owned countless effects pedals and dozens of amps. The Tone Crafter is right up there with the best of the best for my ears. Carlos should be commended for his innovation! Considering the price and the versatility of this pedal, you can't go wrong.

I just want to add a clarification to my earlier review. Carlos at Killertone has advised me that the Tonecrafter does have "true" bypass.
I will probably substitute a 3PDT switch to add an indicator LED. As I usually want only a moderate boost, it's hard to tell sometimes whether the pedal is on or off. But, considering the value of these pedals, this omission is minor and easily rectified.
David Hicks

You can specify this effect to be shipped in one of five available configurations. The box is different than most, in that it is designed to be internally modified to the user's taste by simply moving components within the breadboard-type socket base. Also included is a CD with very detailed instructions for changing the circuits, plus schematics and MP3 demo files of all the variations. IMHO the documentation here is the best I've ever seen on a pedal.
And, I don't think this box has a bad sound in it,.. just variations of tonal colors to suit most any taste. Plus, if you're a tinkerer, this is a great platform to try different modifications.

I'm using a Trainwreck amp clone I bullt and wanted to see if OD boxes these days were good enough to substitute for a second "channel". My main guitars are a Peavey custom built Strat-type guitar and a Baker BJH.
I spent a few months gathering sound bites of different OD pedals from the web, and narrowed my choices down to a few favorites: I recently acquired a Hermida Zendrive and a Providence Stampede, and while these are GREAT pedals, the Tonecrafter more than holds its own. I have mine set up as the CloneZ model which is medium gain OD. I can make all of these pedals get a wonderful Robben Ford type smooth sustain, but the CZ has a little better low end response. All have very low noise level at the gain settings I prefer. I did notice a slight lack of high end treble with the CZ as compared to the others, but a couple of modifications suggested by the manufacturer allowed me to tailor it to my liking. I also originally planned to install "true" bypass switching, but if there is any tone-sucking going on here, I can't hear it!

The pedal is very well built with a nicely finished wooden bottom. Due to the nature of the design the case is a little larger than most, and there are a few extra mounting holes to allow for the different configurations.
I don't play out, but the workmanship is immaculate, and I don't think there will be any worries about dependability.

Carlos at KillerTone Labs is one of the nicest guys you'll encounter. We've kept up a correspondence, and he's responded to my questions and suggestions about "coloring" the sound with a couple of modification suggestions to suit my taste.

I like rock, as well as Robben Ford, SRV, and most modern blues; Fewer notes and more soulful tone! I've been playing for 30 years, but don't claim to be a great guitarist. I do know guitar tone; I have been making my living for 20 years working with musical instrument electronics and pro sound, and wrote equipment profiles for Guitar Player magazine for a number of years in the 80s and 90s.
I think these pedal are innovative and I love the tone of my CloneZ. Oh, and I should add, I wanted to try the PedalPal modification, but don't want to lose the CZ, so I ordered a second pedal that should arrive next week.
My favorite feature,...the price!! I think both the other OD pedals I have are worth what their builders charge, but it's hard to hear any qualitative differences. For my money they all represent the best of the breed; any sonic differences are subtle and would fall into the realm of subjective preferences between players.
Get one!!