Shot in the dark; Anyone here compared old Diaz effects to the new stuff?

[sstweed]

I have an old Tremodillo and an old Square Face. I can't say enough good about them. Both are from '95 and are pre-signature Cesar built pedals. Both are best in breed as far as I am concerned. Over the years that I have owned them, both have gone up against prospective replacements and both keep coming out on top. The Tremodillo, which doesn't get that much love around here, simply is the best sounding trem I have ever used live, and I have compared it to numerous other trems.

Now I would like to get another example of both as backups. But I only have experience with my older models. These have no led's, no dc jacks, in the case of the Square Face it has no sockets (GE only). Both have the paint that chips easy (yellow on blue). They don't come up for sale all that often anymore.

I hear rumors that the newer ones don't sound as good. But I can't prove it, and I can't see why that would be. I have dealt with the company since Cesars passing for replacement parts and such, and they were great to work with. The designs were pretty well refined by the time of Cesars passing, so all a company would have to do is build the new ones correctly and from the same parts and the pedals should work great, or be easily made to work great. Right? All this is confusing hear say until I find someone who has really compared the old to the new. So in a nutshell that is my question.

 

[AGuitarPlayer]

I would be interested to know this as well. If you don't get a response, you should get one of the newer ones and let us know!

 

[sstweed]

To be honest, I am trying to avoid just that, as the newer ones are a bit pricey for backups. They would be worth it if they sound like the old ones though!

 

[sstweed]

No one? Crud, looks like I might have to buy one.

 

[StuckItToYa31]

I'd also like to know if there's a difference. The Square Face has tempted me for a while, and I'd love to know if the new ones sound just as good.

 

[sstweed]

Bump to see if the morning crowd knows anything.

 

[sstweed]

One more try, then I'll give up.

 

[Blakemore Effects]

I had a Tremodillo given to me by another guitar player, but I dunno how old it is. Is there any way to date them? I couldn't compare it against another, but I could at least say what I thought about it as a new or old pedal. I just need to date it.

 

[sstweed]

I am not positive on absolute dates. I know the new ones have much better finishes. The old ones were painted and chipped easy. Also The real old ones have no LED or DC Jack. But I am not sure when some of these things were added and whether Cesar added them before he died or if the Diaz company added them later. Cesar started signing them before he died, those for sure were built by Cesar. But many older ones weren't signed, but I think they would have the painted boxes. I am not sure when the tremodillo got the pulsing LED. They come in a WIDE variety of colors. Don't know if I am much help here at all.

 

[Terry Hayes]

I am not positive on absolute dates. I know the new ones have much better finishes. The old ones were painted and chipped easy. Also The real old ones have no LED or DC Jack. But I am not sure when some of these things were added and whether Cesar added them before he died or if the Diaz company added them later. Cesar started signing them before he died, those for sure were built by Cesar. But many older ones weren't signed, but I think they would have the painted boxes. I am not sure when the tremodillo got the pulsing LED. They come in a WIDE variety of colors. Don't know if I am much help here at all.

Nice to see Diaz stuff getting some attention.

I have a green Tremodillo that I bought from Cesar himself. It has the nicer paint, was signed by him, and has the LED but no DC jack. I don't have the receipt in front of me but I got it in the mid-90's I think. I spoke to him on the phone when I ordered it and as I recall he was pretty sick then.

Like you said, it is a great tremolo. I have often wanted to try a Square Face too.

 

[sstweed]

Nice to see Diaz stuff getting some attention.

I have a green Tremodillo that I bought from Cesar himself. It has the nicer paint, was signed by him, and has the LEDs but no DC jack. I don't have the receipt in front of me but I got it in the mid-90's I think. I spoke to him on the phone when I ordered it and as I recall he was pretty sick then.

Like you said, it is a great tremolo. I have often wanted to try a Square Face too.

I can't believe that his old pedals aren't commanding MUCH MUCH higher resale values (and not just because I own a couple). The Square Face I have is awesome. Very much its own personality. The only thing I have ever had to do to any of my Diaz pedals is replace the switches when they wore out. They have been stepped on a lot. Still want backups just in case.

 

[Bobby D]

the old ones are great. the guitarist i tech for, Brian Stoltz, has serial #001 of both the Square Face and the Tremodillo. Brian was the one who convinced Cesar to build some pedals, and Cesar gave the very first ones of both models to Brian as a gift. Both Cesar & Brian toured with Dylan, so that's the major connection between them.

Brian's pedals do NOT go on the road though. They are safely stored at home, and he might use them in the studio sometimes.

i have not tried the new ones, but the old ones i have tried were VERY good. Cesar's amps were even better. i had the chance to buy a combo amp of his from him back in the 90s, and passed on it

 

[sstweed]

the old ones are great. the guitarist i tech for, Brian Stoltz, has serial #001 of both the Square Face and the Tremodillo. Brian was the one who convinced Cesar to build some pedals, and Cesar gave the very first ones of both models to Brian as a gift. Both Cesar & Brian toured with Dylan, so that's the major connection between them.

Brian's pedals do NOT go on the road though. They are safely stored at home, and he might use them in the studio sometimes.

i have not tried the new ones, but the old ones i have tried were VERY good. Cesar's amps were even better. i had the chance to buy a combo amp of his from him back in the 90s, and passed on it

Cool story. My pedals have no serial numbers, but the original switches on both my square face nad my tremodillo were dated from 1995. What year were the number 1's made?

 

[Terry Hayes]

I confirmed that I got my Cesar-made Tremodillo new from him in 1997. However, I could not find a serial # on the receipt or on the outside or inside of the pedal itself.

 

[Bobby D]

Cool story. My pedals have no serial numbers, but the original switches on both my square face nad my tremodillo were dated from 1995. What year were the number 1's made?

yours are VERY early, i have to ask Brian what year that was, but i am thinking it was the 1994 NAMM show that Cesar presented them to him.

Cesar was a WICKED guitarist. dude could REALLY play.

 

[sstweed]

yours are VERY early, i have to ask Brian what year that was, but i am thinking it was the 1994 NAMM show that Cesar presented them to him.

Cesar was a WICKED guitarist. dude could REALLY play.

Cool to know. Of course date codes don't mean a whole lot. Those might have been old switches when they were installed. But I don't think so. Both pedals together have three switches (two on the tremodillo and one on the square face), and all three had a 95 code on them. What are the odds?

My Diaz pedals aren't going away anytime soon. I love them. I really want a backup Tremodillo. Also I have never owned a Texas Ranger. That was the first Rangemaster clone I remember with the optional low and mid settings. Cesar was a ahead of his time. His pedals should, by all rights, be selling for a fortune right now.

 

[Terry Hayes]

Always wanted to try a Rangemaster too!!

 

[sstweed]

Got a newer Tremodillo. I haven't yet plugged them up together, just replaced the old one with the new one on my pedal board. But I can say without reservation that this pedal can be made to sound just as good as the old one. The Tremodillo is flatout the warmest coolest trem on the planet. Cesar must have had golden ears.

 

[ruger9]

I'll be interested to hear how they differ... I have a new Tremodillo on the way, to shootout with my old Swamp Thang (thanks to your reports!)

 

[ruger9]

Well, I got a RECENT (like just produced) Diaz Tremodillo, and it's speed is not like the one in the youtube video, which I don't know if it was a new-production one, or an older, "original" Tremodillo. Mapleneck said his (the old one) goes very slow, so I'm thinking the one in the video is an older one. The new one is nowhere near slow enough for me, so it goes back.


UPDATE:

I just scored a 1997 Tremodillo off ebay for $189. Signed by Caesar, mint. If THIS ONE doesn't cut it, I guess I'll just have to hang on to the old, over-sized Swamp Thang...

The 1997 does have the LED...don't know if it pulses or not, and I don't know if it has a power jack, I can't tell from the pics.