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| Company type | Sole proprietorship |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music technology |
| Founded | 1994; 31 years ago (1994) in Lancaster, Pennsylvania |
| Founder | Frances C. Blanche |
| Headquarters | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | Effects units |
| Website | www |
Frantone Electronics is an American Philadelphia-based hand-made effects pedal manufacturer founded and run by Fran Blanche (Frances C. Blanche). Blanche operates a YouTube channel where she discusses the company's history and showcases various electronics projects.
History
Frantone Electronics was founded by Fran Blanche, a self-taught electronic engineer in 1994. The company was one of the world's first boutique guitar effects companies. Over the years, the company's boutique pedals would be used by notable musicians including Lou Reed and R.E.M. The company's growth was never steady; Blanche moved Frantone repeatedly, being gentrified out of several NYC-area locations.
In the early 1990s, Blanche built an effects pedal for herself named the "Fuzzy-Wuzzy". She subsequently founded Frantone and designed the Hep Cat, the company's first commercial product, which was followed by more pedal designs in the years to follow. Blanche took a hiatus from operating Frantone and worked at Electro-Harmonix, from about 1997 through 2000, where she designed the company's 2000 version of the Big Muff pedal. Blanche also went on hiatus from Frantone in 2009, but revived the company in a 2016 Kickstarter campaign to restart production of her Cream Puff pedal.
After some years out of production, the company announced the release of new pedals in 2017 as well as reintroductions of the Peach Fuzz and Cream Puff designs as limited editions. In 2021, Fran announced in a video on her channel that she will no longer be manufacturing the pedals herself, although she is open to a licensing deal.
Fran Blanche
Blanche is a strong supporter of the LGBTQ+ community, as her personal identity as a transgender person has led to attacks on her character, which she has cited as harming the company's reputation and growth.
She is a Senior Member of the IEEE since April 2021. She has a Youtube channel, FranLab, where she discusses and demonstrates vintage electronics.
References
- Fran Blanche's channel on YouTube
- "Meet the Maker: Fran Blanche". Tested. 2019-09-03. Archived from the original on 2021-04-28. Retrieved 2021-05-09.
- ^ "An Interview with Fran Blanche of Frantone Electronics". Sheshredsmag.com. 14 October 2015. Archived from the original on 25 June 2019. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
{{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires|magazine=(help) - ^ "The Lenny Interview: Fran Blanche". Lenny. Archived from the original on 7 April 2020. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
- Rockrgrl. Rockrgrl. 2002. Archived from the original on 2017-02-28. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
- ^ Astley-Brown, Michael (19 April 2016). "Frantone announces return of Cream Puff guitar effects pedal". Music Radar. Archived from the original on 30 July 2020. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
- Blanche, Fran (2021-04-30). What Happened To Frantone?. YouTube. Retrieved 2021-05-05.
The future of Frantone is sort of open, but I personally don't ever want to manufacture pedals again.
- Blanche, Fran (2021-04-25). (YouTube). Retrieved 2021-08-02.
{{cite AV media}}: Check|url=value (help) - "Fran Blanche - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
Further reading
- Nicholas Kula (2015-06-18). "Welcome Back, Frantone: Her 5 Best". Tone Report. Retrieved 2016-12-19.
- "The Return of Real Boutique: A Chat with Fran Blanche of Frantone". tonereport.com. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
- "#263 – An Interview with Fran Blanche". The Amp Hour Electronics Podcast. 21 August 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
- Dave Mosher (July 22, 2014). "Welcome To The Lab Of An Apollo Computer Anatomist". Popular Science. Retrieved June 6, 2021.