Veri-Tone is basically a one-man operation, so I hope you don’t mind if I carry this on in the first person.
Hi, my name is Adriano and I have been a recording and touring guitarist for almost 20 years. I’ve also done a bit of work as a recording engineer, as well as in mixing and mastering.
I’m very much a vintage enthusiast, and it’s no surprise to see that I’ve carried my passion for early studio technology and mid-century aesthetics into my pedals. I often buy and take apart vintage audio equipment to harvest components such as Germanium transistors that have long been out of production, and give those components a new lease of life as part of my guitar pedals.
While I’m a fan of classic guitar sounds, I’m not much into building straight-up clones, so you’re not going to find any Tube Screamers, Tone Benders or Rats here. I try to come up with original discrete circuits* that allow me to find my own ways to get those vintage tones.
With that said, it’s important to address one point that often comes up when discussing “boutique” pedals. When you’re talking about analogue effects, pretty much everything has already been invented. There’s only so many ways one can put together a transistor or FET gain stage, or an LFO. I’m never going to claim that any of my pedals are unique and exclusive creations of my own mind, because all I’m doing — and this extends to pretty much every other pedal maker out there — is taking ideas and principles that have been known for decades and putting them together in ways that allow them to do things to a guitar signal.
I’m not out to reinvent the wheel over here. I’m just trying to build the best wheel I can, using the experience, knowledge and influences that I’ve accumulated over those decades of listening, creating and producing music.
I believe there is value in that.