Frank Levi and Brian Zircon, 2015.
Holy Overdrive - The Legend of ZLI
Beginnings
ZLI was formed out of the desire of Frank Levi (legendary amp tech to the stars) and Brian Zircon (performing artist and guitarist), to create the most expressively beautiful amplifiers in the world.
The world of vacuum tube technology has gotten bloated - too complex, when simplicity is needed, and too comfortable when risk is needed.
Guitar players do not need another tweed amplifier--they need a development forward, a new reason to pick up their instrument.
But these amplifiers cannot be aliens--they must have their feet planted firmly on the ground, as they reach into the sky of progress.
Where did it begin?
The Modding Legacy
Evolutions of circuits into their prime ideal.
These evolutions were “mods” to existing amplifiers. They were birthed by a select few, whose names are whispered in hushed tones by guitarists and the fans that look up to them.
Of these, the name "Levi" strikes a massively colorful chord.
To those in the know, the name Levi equates to Legendary.
The man was everywhere -- building NASA's Ground Control, fixing issues behind the scenes at Woodstock, or acting as head engineer at Hiwatt. You name it, Frank was there -- and he took pictures.
British invasion. The birth of Prog. Sunset Strip. ‘90s Guitar Revivals. Modern Pop.
Yes, Modern Pop. The time for the six-string has come again.
Cycles happen throughout time, but now the electric guitar will rise like never before.
It never went away; it just needed a nap.
A man of made the old revolution happen. Who better than to lead the new one?
Made for the Moon
Even if you forgot about all the people he put on stage, I raise you a curious question.
What would happen to your sound if you played an amplifier designed by a guy that helped put us on the Moon?
While taking time to tour with Yes, Billy Squier, Def Leppard, or Ratt, Frank had his mind set on the Evolution of Music.
Whether it was working sound for Peggy Lee, or driving a truck full of equipment to David Bowie, Frank was always thinking about the sound that made them famous -- and how he could supercharge it.
His incredible plethora of experiences gave him rare insight into the workings of circuitry, the most complete perspective of all his contemporaries.
There was only one problem--the man was notoriously secretive, and while wonderfully kind, did not trust the world with the magical Sound that he used to build everyone from Yes to Guns N' Roses.
Guitarists would have to have their amps made with his blessing or hopelessly attempt to make their own halfway-close copies.
But a copy is never as full-tilt as the original.
Nor as secretive and legendary.
A copy is just a copy. Often “created” by those who have little respect for the original contributions of others, primarily because they lack the empathy of experience that comes with actually making something new for themselves.
Today, the situation is much the same, with the exception that Frank Levi has let the world into his plans to make his circuits fully available to the world for the first time.
The magical Sound survives.
A Legacy of Clientele
A select few will carry on the legacy of Frank Levi, by owning and playing his ultimate ideals of metal and machine - the amplifiers of Zircon-Levi Innovations.
Never has an amp company been designed around the aim of giving each player their own individual voice.
We create amplifiers that transmit your identity from string to speaker like none other -- and we have the right to.
For 51 years, our founder Frank Levi did just that, amassing a vault of secrets and skills to be shared fully with one man only -- his apprentice, the performer Brian Zircon.
Why a guitarist?
Frank believed that the connection between a guitarist and their amplifier was sacred, and that led him to entrust a guitar player with his legacy.
Over an intense period of 6 years, Levi trained Zircon on the philosophies and particulars of his wildly effective approach to electrical design, and supplied him with the tools to bring his circuits to life in a company.
This is that company.
The Apprentice
But why Brian?
Frank needed guitarists to translate his work to the ear of the consumer. He developed much of his technique changing components out on live amps while he plucked the rusty string of an SG.
This was effective, but not ideal -- so when he could get his hands on guitarists that really knew what they were doing, his work would develop at scorchingly fast rates.
These guitarists included Slash (Guns N Roses), Warren DeMartini and Robbin Crosby (RATT), Phil Collen (Def Leppard), and many more.
But of these guitarists, there were only two in Frank's view that were capable of creating the ultimate amplifier, guitarists that were equally proficient in their understanding of electronics. Guitarists who could translate their musical preference into an electronic suggestion.
These guitarists were Billy Squier, of Piper and solo fame, and Brian Zircon, the musical auteur running Sunwing Studios.
Beautiful Relationships
When Brian Zircon and Frank Levi first met, Frank asked Brian for a picture before Brian could ask for an autograph.
They were equally in awe of each other, because they respected the fact that they needed the other in order to create music of a higher elevation.
And for these two, the only way to go was up.
But they didn’t do it for themselves; they wanted to bring everybody with them. They want to bring you with them, to get you in the room with the same sound that shocked the pants off the guitarists most are nervous to speak to.
They dreamed of a way they could work together in realizing their expressive vision through amplifiers, ones that would unleash the voices of thousands of guitarists in a viciously colorful manner, as Frank had done so many times before for his famous clients. The key difference being that with a dedicated company, this sound could be driven on the road by enthusiasts just as commonly as it was tracked by the racing drivers of the industry.
The chances of amplifier wizards like Frank Levi and musical virtuosos like Brian Zircon meeting on such a premise are slim to nil - but it actually happened, and so the world will better understand what amplified love sounds like.
Join us for a journey into the future we were meant for -- vacuum tube technology at its prime apex.
Destination: third planet, from the Sun we call home - who will YOU become with your ZLI amp?
Frank Levi
Began amp mods in 1965
Creator of SIR #34, #36, and #39 (rev. 2)
Head Engineer at Hiwatt, 1992-1994
Staff at Sunwing Studios
Brian Zircon
Active 2008-present
Founder of Sunwing Studios
Singer, guitarist, and more as Brian Zircon
Apprentice to Frank Levi