Ítalo Frota and Adriel Passos sitting on a leather sofa in the VTR studio

Made in Brazil. Recognized worldwide.

We don’t make generic pedals. We build instruments of inspiration.

We were born at the workbench in 2015, driven by one obsession: proving that Brazilian audio engineering can lead the world market.

9+ years
of bench work and continuous innovation
100%
designed, built and calibrated in Brazil
2,000+ pedals
on boards around the world
Lifetime support
on every pedal we make

Our journey

Chapters of a story written at the workbench.

  1. 2015

    The first pedal on the bench

    While studying electrotechnics, Ítalo hand-builds his first pedal, a Tube Screamer TS808 clone, tested by a guitarist friend. The sound spoke for itself.

    A green pedal hand-built by Ítalo, resting on school books
  2. 2017

    VTR Effects is born

    In 2017, with no starting capital, Ítalo had the crucial support of Professor Denilson Machado, who opened his doors and provided tools to assemble the first circuits.

    Ítalo Frota testing pedals with his guitar in his bedroom
  3. 2020

    Acceleration with Polo Zaia

    Later, with Polo Zaia and partners such as Carlos Alberto coming on board, VTR gained the lab muscle to turn bench prototypes into world-class products.

    Garage door with the VTR Effects sign
  4. 2023

    The Gold Series

    Kailani, Narciso and Loki arrive combining modern DSP with an analog path. Kailani gets the attention of JHS Pedals and leading guitarists in Brazil and abroad.

    Pedalboard with Kailani, Narciso and another Gold Series pedal next to a guitar
  5. 2024

    New headquarters in Serra

    Moving to a larger headquarters expands production and new product development.

    Front of VTR Effects’ new headquarters with the brand logo
  6. Today

    The Platinum era

    In 2025, IGNIS becomes the first Brazilian pedal to load NAM captures and IRs, opening the Platinum Series. With Sanctum and VTR Studio, the hardware now talks to your computer.

    Sanctum Reverb pedal from the Platinum Series

Engineering philosophy

How our pedals are made.

01

Made by people who live sound

Cutting-edge engineering only makes sense when it serves musical emotion. Every algorithm, gain curve and knob is designed by people who know first-hand the demands of a stage and the search for the perfect tone.

02

Our own algorithms

100% proprietary hardware and DSP. No off-the-shelf blocks: every algorithm is developed and tuned here, by musicians.

03

Built for the road

Rugged chassis, hand assembly and studio tolerances, with lifetime support on every pedal.

The people behind it

The people behind every pedal.

Ítalo Frota

Ítalo Frota

Founder and CEO

Adriel Passos

Adriel Passos

Head of Production

A pedal being soldered at the VTR workbench

The workbench in Serra, Brazil

Assembly, quality control and calibration happen at our headquarters, pedal by pedal, before it reaches you.

Investor partners: Denilson Machado and Carlos Alberto.

Explore the pedals ↗