WHAT IS

FUZZ

Here's a small selection of useful videos to help you understand FUZZ and improve your guitar tone...
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WHAT IS FUZZ?

Fuzz is basically extreme distortion.

A fuzz pedal heavily distorts the guitar signal, creating a tone characterized by its sustain, compression, and harmonic richness. Fuzz clips the guitar signal in a way that produces a unique square waveform which results in the characteristic fuzzy sound that we know!

Its first use is widely attributed to guitarist Grady Martin in 1961 on Marty Robbins’ hit song Don’t Worry. And like all great things in rock’n’roll, it was an accident: a fault in a mixing console that propelled engineer Glenn Snoddy to recreate the extreme, square-wave distortion ‘mistake’ in a stand-alone device using three germanium transistors.

The design was sold to Gibson who marketed it as the Maestro FZ-1, finding eventual fame – and a whole new revolution in guitar tones – on Satisfaction by The Rolling Stones in 1965.

That seminal design spawned the Fuzz Faces, Tone Benders and Muffs that we love to this day, with germanium transistors remaining at the heart of the most sought-after-models. Germanium transistors have always been highly inconsistent and incredibly temperature sensitive, however, so silicon transistors became an early alternative.

The sound differences are much debated, suffice to say a certain Mr Hendrix used fuzz pedals with both germanium and silicon transistors in the late 1960s as the latter became available.

We’ve put together a selection of videos below to give you a bit more fuzz-formation about these awesome pedals. Go forth and fuzzify! 

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE TYPES OF FUZZ?

There are various types of guitar fuzz pedals, each offering its own distinct flavor of fuzz tone. Here's a brief description of some common types:

Vintage fuzz pedals aim to recreate the classic fuzz tones of the 1960s and 1970s. They often utilise Germanium transistors and are known for their warm, smooth, and slightly compressed tones. Vintage fuzz pedals can range from mild and smooth fuzz to more aggressive and saturated sounds.

Silicon fuzz pedals utilize Silicon transistors and are known for their brighter, harsher, and more aggressive tones. They often offer increased sustain, tighter response, and sharper clipping. Silicon fuzz pedals can produce a wide range of tones, from biting and gritty to heavy and saturated.

The Fuzz Face is an iconic fuzz pedal design that dates back to the 1960s. It is available in both Germanium and silicon versions. Fuzz Face pedals typically offer a simple circuitry and produce a smooth, creamy, and classic fuzz tone with a touch of compression. They can be sensitive to playing dynamics and adjusting the guitar volume control.

The Big Muff is a popular fuzz pedal known for its thick, sustaining, and high-gain fuzz tones. It offers a powerful, heavy sound with a wide range of sustain and distortion. Big Muff pedals can be found in various versions, including the original Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi and subsequent models.

Octave fuzz pedals combine an octave with a fuzz. They produce an octave-up or octave-down effect alongside the fuzz, creating a thick and synth-like tone. Octave fuzz pedals are often used in psychedelic and experimental music.

There are many more different types of fuzz pedals with their own traits so try them out to find what you, and watch the videos below to hear some in action!

Confused about where to start with guitar fuzz pedals? We talk through the four cornerstones of fuzz to help your search...

Awesome Octave Fuzz For Guitar

It had to happen eventually. Dan and I are both big fans of the octave fuzz sound, but it is a greatly varied thing and can be quite the challenge to add confidently to your rig.

With the help of a superb crop of modern pedals we howl and screech our way through the tones that might inspire you to give it a go.

Want to know how Fuzz evolved through the years? Join us as we go through a Fuzzy history...

Does your Fuzz go weird when it's hot?

We delve into an issue that committed users of germanium transistor fuzz pedals will know all about. The ambient temperature goes up – for example if you’re playing outdoors on a sunny day – and your prized fuzz pedal starts doing very weird things.

Cue folklore of studios keeping their favourite fuzzes in the fridge!

Shop Fuzz...

Modern Tone Bender-Style Fuzz Pedals

So you want a Tone Bender inspired fuzz pedal? Here are a bunch that you really should hear. The Sola Sound / Colorsound Tone Bender sits right up there alongside the Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face among the most influential fuzz pedals of all time.

There are a whole bunch of modern variants from the original maker – but what about the plethora of TB-inspired pedals from other brands?

HOW TO BUILD A FUZZ FACE PEDAL

Want more?

We have lots more videos available on the That Pedal Show YouTube channel