Destiny can manifest in unexpected ways, and, sometimes, a rather unprofessional guitar player is all that’s needed to trigger a career in pedal-making.
When, during his college years, Croatian emerging musician Zoran Kraljevic was dabbling in drums, his band’s guitar player was more interested in spending money on alcohol and other forms of entertainment rather than on serious musical gear. Zoran, who had recently joined the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, decided to take things into his hands and built him a rudimental RAT clone.
That pedal was the beginning of a passion for stompbox engineering that, in 2009, became a full-fledged company called Dawner Prince – a name that is the English translation of Zoran’s name.
Currently, Dawner Prince manufactures five guitar effects, two modulations, one delay, and two gain pedals, all hand built in their location in Imotski, Croatia. The company’s main interest seems to be rooted in modernizing legendary old circuits, like the Uni-Vibe and the Binson Rec Echo, but it has also built original designs like the Diktator, a dual channel boost + overdrive, and the Starla, a compact tap tempo tremolo brimming with options.
The company’s reputation and popularity skyrocketed after their released the Boonar, an incredibly compact and faithful emulation of the Benson Rec, an echo effect that was made famous by Pink Floyd in the ’70s and that very few company attempted to replicate.
Check out this interactive gallery of the Dawner Prince pedals, and if you are going to be in Los Angeles on the first weekend of December, come and try them in person at the 2nd L.A. Stompbox Exhibit at Sam Ash!
