Fuzz recommendations

[sylnau]

Hey! My first post (I think) in the doom side.

I'm looking for a new fuzz... and I think doomer will have some great advise.

I want a fuzz that is really BIG sounding... high gain, lots of bass but still crunchy (not metallic and arsh sounding in the trebel)... Something with a cool texture but still open sounding. Good on chords.

So far I think of:
-Frantone Cream Puff
-Frantone Peach Fuzz
-Wren and Cuff The White ELK

I play guitar.

Thanks.

[jrfox92]

DBA Fuzz War
SS/BS Buzzz
Probably any halfway decent Big Muff clone should do what you're looking for, I'd think. Maybe one with a boost before it and a better EQ.
You might want to look at some Colorsound One Knob Fuzz variants, too.

[AZX309]

Sonic Titan

[maggot]

I just sold an EQD Hoof, and it sounds like it would be just what you're looking for as a crunchy Muff. It's great for defined, fuzzy riffing sounds. I sold it because I never like Muffs that much. The Cloven Hoof is a bit brighter and more open-sounding. The Frantone pedals sound like they'd be amazing as a fuzzier fuzz.

I've got an EQD Tone Reaper on the way. I'll report back. I've had good luck with Tone Bender-based designs in the past for that kind of thing.

[sylnau]

Maggot, I'm in the same boat as you are... each time I try a Muff I think it's not for me... but I like it when I hear other play with Muff.

[maggot]

I'll report back on the Reaper. The Earthbound Audio Centurion is a Fuzz Face-based pedal that has demos with the big doom sound. Then there is the Boss FZ-2, which I haven't really tried, except a long time ago in a music store. The Abominable Electronics Demon Lung is based on the FZ-2 as well, and sounds insane in demos (although possibly more harsh sounding than you want,).

The only Muffs that work for me are really distortiony ones like the Cloven Hoof and the Maxon D&S. But those are barely fuzzes, and I want a fuzzier sound without the Muffy response, so I'm looking as well. Other Muffs are OK; I've used them for years, it's not like they suck, but there's something about the pick attack I don't like.

[jrfox92]

I don't know that the FZ-2 would do what syl wants since it's mostly used as a trebley-as-fuck OTT fuzz.
The main issue I have with Muffs, anymore, is the lack of control.
So many clones do the same fucking thing which means very few are actually useful, from my perspective.

Maybe getting something with switchable didoes (like, taking out the diodes in the first stage, which is what the Fuzz War does), a pre-drive cut/boost control (like the Blunderbuss or Musket), and some other kind of tone stack (Twin-T, Bax, switchable mid cut/boost BMP, etc.) built custom might really change things for you on the muff.
I know a lot of people argue against messing with the tonestack, but it seems like that tends to be where complaints stem from, so I don't think it'd hurt too much to experiment.

[maggot]

Tone Reaper first impressions. This is what I recall Tone Bender clones being like. First of all, they're about a million times as responsive as a Muff, meaning that the way you attack the note makes much more of a difference. Palm mutes sound biting, and even though there's a ton of sustain, you definitely have more of a sense the you need to beat up on the guitar a bit to get the sound out. There's plenty of fuzz, but it's not always the heaviest, sometimes it's more buzzy. The fuzz is really rich sounding with grindier overtones than most Muffs.

The tone knobs on these things aren't the most sophisticated. The tone knob seems like a low-cut filter to me. Counter-clockwise is middy, without a ton of lows; clockwise brings the lows in. There are always a ton of mids and an aprropriate amount of highs. Because of the mids it has a little bit more of a rock n' roll sound much of the time. It's hard to get those sculped palm-mute sounds that a Hoof or Pharoah or whatever can get, because the tone is jumpier, but a little effort gets a much more aggressive riffing sound.

Leads and solos are no comparison; the Reaper can do everything a Muff can do, but can also sound much richer and more responsive while doing it.

The upshot is that if someone spent half as much energy doing tricked-out Benders as they do Muffs, you could do anything with a Bender because it doesn't have that undynamic, plasticky quality that Muffs have. As it stands, the question is how you feel about mids. I'd say that the stuff I play isn't really doom, it's more like stoner in that there are more regular rock riffs, and sounding like 3000 ton kazoo is really no problem for me. It comes down to how you feel about Jimmy Page. If you feel that that kind of tone is something that could creep into your doom and you'd be happy, a Bender may be for you. If that kinda sound is too middy and excitable for you, a Bender might not be that great. BTW, it sounds great boosted and is the only pedal I've tried that can actually play well with my Fuzzolo.

[jagermonster]

The DAM Meathead Deluxe will do it all. Not cheap, but definitely worth it.

[jrfox92]

The DAM Meathead Deluxe will do it all. Not cheap, but definitely worth it.

Or, you could DIY it.

[KT66]

NEW Roger Mayer Visage Fuzz.

Has 3 Stage, Feedforward design, and 45 Parameter/EQ possibilities, not counting being able to control Volume/Drive for each EQ position. Has Huge Gain on tap, and will crumble any high gain amp. also cleans up as good as my 2004 ANALOGMAN NKT275 Wht Dot Low Gain Sunface/Sundial.

It run by Rows of Pins, 3 pins per row. Middle Pin is Ground. There are in 3 Banks A B C...... Park. Park is where Unused Pin Jumpers are Parked.

This 1 ended my quest for Fuzz. I will buy another 1. Or 2.



Roger Mayer - Official Site
www.roger-mayer.co.uk

[Iommic Pope]

Syl, get an Ape Blaster.

[sylnau]

Syl, get an Ape Blaster.

I will look for some démos.

[MechaGodzilla]

That roger mayer thing looks kind of interesting but idk, maybe put those things on external switches?

[Iommic Pope]

Syl, get an Ape Blaster.

I will look for some démos.

Honestly man, it's worth putting on your shortlist.