Some pedal companies (well, a lot of them, actually) are small, unique and hail from a different country. I always like to see what other countries and cultures are doing in the massive pedal world, to see what influences they are using, and how their ideas about pedal building differ from the ones here in the U.S.A. I’ve recently been in contact with Fuse Electronics, all the way from Chile in South America, and they sent a couple of pedals my way to take a look at. Let me tell you, the cats from the lower American continent know how to build a pedal, so let’s take a look at the Muzz Fuzz and see what they’re all about.

The basic fuzz features are all present here: Level, Tone and Fuzz. The Level knob boasts a HUGE amount of gain, so dialing this little orange beauty in to cut through any mix is a cinch, as it can overpower any bass bombs or overly-cymbal-heavy drummers you can throw at it. The Tone knob is fantastic as well – when turned down, the lows are accentuated beautifully, giving off a nice, boomy sludge-fuzz tone; when you crank it up more towards the high-end side, the fuzz tones really start to sparkle, adding a boost and really making the fuzz sounds move to the forefront of any rig.

Speaking of the fuzz, there is a great range of noise located in the Muzz Fuzz (what a great name, too!). Low, subtle, sneaky overdriven sounds with a little bite to give way to a wall of buzzsaw sound with just a turn of a knob. Sustain for days, great for leads AND chords alike, and enough energy to bring down any given house on any given night. The Muzz Fuzz is one of those classic-sounding pedals that you just plug in and go with, not really needing to take a ton of time to dial it right in.

Lately, I’ve been a little frustrated with the way that smaller pedal building companies are being overlooked, especially in the pedal trading community. There are so many great pedals out there to try, and a lot of incredible ones at relatively inexpensive prices. As we all know from the EHX Soul Food, the Joyo Vintage Overdrive and the Digitech Bad Monkey, among others, low price does not always equal low quality or sound, and just because a pedal doesn’t sport a specific brand name doesn’t mean it’s no good. Thanks so much to Fuse Electronics for sending this really nice, simple, awesome fuzz our way for review. Stay tuned for our take on their other landmark pedal, the Smooth Drive, coming soon, and of course, go check out their website!

Submitted by Mike B, Website

Demo Rock pedalboard by West Coast Pedalboard