ToneConcepts Inc. designs and manufactures guitars, effects and amplifiers for professional guitar players and discerning tone hunters that deliver the tone, dynamics, musicality, quality and bullet-proof reliability demanded by the world’s greatest guitar players.  Since 2008, we have tested and developed gear with some of the world’s leading guitar players on the stage and in the studio. We’ve put new and vintage tones into their hands, under their feet and through their amps. Starting in early-2013, we collaborated with several key artists to develop a tool that addressed a common need and desire. The Distillery was the result! A new class of pedal that makes them sound great on stage and in studio, all while retaining the true character of a great player, guitar and amplifier combination.

Designed and manufactured by ToneConcepts Inc. in Toronto, Canada, The Distillery was the first in a series of products developed in collaboration with some of the world’s best guitarists. This innovative new line addresses the needs of professional touring and recording musicians.

The BLACK LABEL is a Built to Order Custom Shop version of our award winning The Distillery which has tested by Jim Campilongo, Nels Cline, Bill Frisell and Pat Metheny.

We designed “The Distillery”, considering by many artists as the world’s most transparent and musical tone-shaping pre-amp boost, for professional touring and recording guitar players.

The Distillery gives you 20dB+ of the purest, zero coloration volume boost as well as a range of sophisticated tone-shaping options. From subtle enhancements to drastic tonal changes, The Distillery unleashes your guitar’s range of possibilities, while allowing the true character of the player, and a great guitar and the amp combination to shine.

That’s why artists like Steve Lukather, Vince Gill and David Hidalgo will always have The Distillery ON in their signal chain, and why The Distillery is an important and essential integrated part of their sound along with their custom, precious, vintage, and boutique amps and guitars.

The BLACK LABEL is a Built to Order Custom Shop version of our award winning The Distillery which has tested by Jim Campilongo, Nels Cline, Bill Frisell and Pat Metheny.

THE BLACK LABEL FUNCTIONS: 

BOOST CIRCUIT:

The BOOST section is the heart of The Distillery “BLACK LABEL”. With the combination of +20db of super transparent musical volume amplification along with sophisticated tone shaping options, The Distillery has created a new class of effect, changing the way players think about a boost pedal.

• ON/OFF: A True By-Pass Switch
• BOOST: Up to +20dB of pure, transparent, musical volume boost.
• GUTS: Extra Gain, Tone Structure Preamp Control. It will tighten up the signal, adds definition, harmonic detail, sensitivity, and mild natural compression. Adds presence to humbuckers, boldness to single coils. Your leads will cut through the mix without altering your original tone and feel. Magic.
• BLEED: Variable Z Control. It can be used as a subtle tone control, matching your humbuckers or single coils output, or replicating the input of many classic beloved stompboxes of the past.

SHAPE CIRCUIT:

Like the BOOST section, the SHAPE EQ section has been designed and tuned with the goal of replicating sound and feel you get by adjusting your guitar’s tone and volume and your amplifier’s controls directly. The Distillery integrates itself into a great guitar-amp combination.

Some users will even claim that in combination with BOOST section, the SHAPE section controls will feel and sound, like swapping the pickups on their guitar.

Designed to work ideally with an electric guitar’s magnetic pickups, The Distillery “BLACK LABEL” is most effective when placed first in the signal chain, but the SHAPE section can also be extremely effective when The Distillery is placed after an effect like an overdrive, distortion or fuzz pedals that are harmonicly rich.

• ON/OFF: Switchable Filter EQ : It will engage the EQ section.
• CONTOUR: Low Pass Filter Control, gives you a range from airy highs to low fat tones
• EDGE: Q Control. Adds Air, Sparkle, or focused Vocal Mids.

“I like to think of The Distillery as having volume knobs for the feel and character of sound. As the name suggests, The Distillery will help extract the purest fundamental elements of your guitar and amp tone and allow you to musically enhance them.”

Dweezil Zappa

“The Distillery does for my Tele what Wes Montgomery’s thumb did for his L-5; it adds body and character while surrounding the tone with a sugary, natural sort of air. It’s one of the first gain stages I’ve used that fully supports me when I’m improvising instead of forcing me to come up with ideas to suit the pedal. I love that it follows my lead and lets me play anywhere on the fretboard without sounding muffled or ice-picky. It’s a new mainstay.”

Zane Carney