Fortin Amps

Two things carry the brand's reputation among players: Mike Fortin's Tube Screamer modifications, which go back decades, and the Fortin Zuul noise gate, which Fortin itself describes as the industry standard⁴.

From Tube Screamer mods to US-built pedals

Fortin's pedal story starts with modified Ibanez Tube Screamers. The Fortin-modded TS808 is a classic Ibanez TS808 modified by Mike Fortin, and Godlyke's listing says it "offers even more output level and saturation than his previous TS mods, allowing it to function" as everything from an amp booster to a straight-up distortion pedal⁶. A Fortin-modded TS-9 followed, announced as a Custom Shop release after the idea was pitched to Mike Fortin at the 2020 NAMM show and realized two pandemic-stricken years later, in 2022⁷. Maxon has also sold a Fortin-modded TS808 of its own, again described as a classic Ibanez TS808 modified by the amp designer⁸⁶.

The mods later shrank into the Fortin Mod Mini Tube Screamer, a mini Ibanez TS-MINI chassis carrying Mike Fortin's acclaimed TS9 mod, which Fortin sums up as "Mini pedal. Maximum aggression."⁹ Fortin's own page for it calls the TS9 mod legendary and says it is back in a compact, pedalboard-friendly format¹⁰. The Mini was sold in limited availability, with a 20% restocking fee on canceled orders⁹.

The mod circuits then moved into Fortin's own US-built pedals. The Fourteen boost/overdrive puts three of Mike's most loved TS mods, drawn from the Fortin-modded TS808/OD808, TS9/OD9, and Hexdrive circuits, into one pedal, with a polarity switcher so either side of the pedal can be assigned to either channel of your amp¹¹. Fortin traces the same lineage through the 33, Hexdrive, and Fourteen to the N2O Micro Boost, which offers either a classic modded TS hump or a flat boost⁵.

Known for the Zuul noise gate

The Zuul is Fortin's noise gate pedal, built on what the maker calls Intelligent Reactive Guitar Noise Gate Technology¹². Fortin describes the Zuul as "the industry standard" noise gate, and the gate has spread across the range: the Mini Zuul offers all the same features as the original in a mini form factor⁴, and the Zuul+ and Zuul+ Blackout carry the same reactive gating technology in a full-size pedal⁴.

The Zuul also turns up inside other Fortin products. The Meshuggah preamp/distortion pedal includes a built-in Fortin Zuul noise gate, which Fortin calls a crucial component for the dead-silent stops characteristic of Meshuggah's style¹³. The Fredrik Thordendal Signature Dual Boost integrates the Zuul directly into the circuit for dead silence between notes¹⁴.

The Zuul's reach extends beyond Fortin's own catalog: PedalPCB's Muzzle DIY project is documented as a circuit based on the Fortin Zuul, a sign of how widely the design is known among builders¹⁵.

Signature pedals and artists

Fortin's closest artist connection is Fredrik Thordendal of Meshuggah. The Meshuggah preamp/distortion pedal carries his band's name and includes a built-in Zuul noise gate, which Fortin describes as a crucial component for the dead-silent stops characteristic of Meshuggah's style¹³. Fortin's artist page for Thordendal documents the collaboration behind the Meshuggah pedal¹⁶.

The Natas and the amp-derived pedals

The Natas distortion pedal is Fortin's best-known dirt box. Fortin says it "brings the authentic Fortin tone to a dirt pedal, for the very first time"³. It uses a relay-based soft footswitch with true bypass, and it powers up in the same state it was powered off, so a rig comes back exactly as it was left³. A limited edition BlackOut version is sold as a high-gain preamp/distortion pedal². The Natas sits alongside other amp-derived Fortin pedals such as the Meshuggah preamp/distortion¹⁷¹⁸ and the Kali preamp/distortion, for which Fortin sought and received permission from Origin Effects to use the Cali name¹⁸.

Where the pedals are made and how to buy

Fortin ships globally, and all published prices on its site are in US dollars³.

The range (28)

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