The Rick Gram Woman Tone TZ-1 is an overdrive pedal, one of three pedals in the company's Tone Zone line. Rick Gram designed it to mimic Eric Clapton's fat, sustaining Cream-era tone, and particularly to work in conjunction with humbucking pickups. Vintage Guitar's reviewer described the sound it makes as "a warm, fuzzy overdrive, but nothing that could be considered high-gain," which places it closer to the overdrive end of the spectrum than to distortion or fuzz1.
Controls and footswitch
The TZ-1 keeps things simple. A single "level" control adjusts the pedal's overall output, and a soft-touch footswitch engages the effect easily and quietly, with no audible "click"1.
Power and bypass
Each Tone Zone pedal uses a single nine-volt battery in a separate compartment in front of the control knobs, and AC power is optional. The pedals use "virtual bypass" operation, so they are essentially disconnected from the signal chain when not in use1.
All three pedals share the same lightweight, rugged plastic casing, each ornamented with specially-designed artwork1.
What reviewers said
On the sound, the reviewer wrote:
"The effect does its job very well"
The reviewer found it shone in conjunction with a full Marshall tube stack, enhancing the tone but not overpowering it, and that it added warmth to the overall sound of a solid-state Marshall combo1.
"One thing that's especially notable about all of the Tone Zone effects is how quiet they are. I didn't hear any noise wh"1
The reviewer's point stands: no noise was heard with the effect on or with hands off the strings1.
The pedals are voiced for use with humbucking pickups, but Vintage Guitar noted they can be used with all types of pickups1.
Videos
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Sources (1)
- Rick Gram Tone Zone Pedals, Vintage Guitar magazine, 2002-01-15