From the first glance at today’s pedal, the Silktone Amps Germanium Fuzz, you can see that it just looks different. And modern. And sophisticated. And exciting. Anytime there’s a meter of any type on any pedal, that’s usually an indicator of something special, and this one is no exception to that rule. Utilizing two germanium transistors at its heart, in the classic FF/TB1.5 topology, this circuit is tweaked to roll...
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Our Benson Amps Monarch has been a staple of our studio for years now, and one of our favorite amplifiers we’ve ever played. The Benson crew occasionally dives into the effects pedal pool as well, and we’ve got their latest for you today. The Germanium Fuzz is, well, a germanium fuzz, but one like no other you’ve seen. This pedal is set up in the ubiquitous 60’s circular fuzz topology, tuned for good sound, and...
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Vintage Fuzz. Plug in, turn it up and rock. Done and Done. Today’s pedal achieves exactly these checkpoints, bringing a warm and classic sound into the fold. The Bad Penny FX Wireless Germanium Fuzz has a simple control section, but adds in a couple of tasty options to really dial in and solidify your favorite fuzz tones. Let’s see what this one brings to the table, shall we? A classic unit that follows the Tone Bender...
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When it comes to the world of fuzz, few have carved out a niche like Spaceman Effects. From their beginnings with the Rumblefuzz, Spacerocket, Mercury III and Gemini III to the more current Titan II, Nebula and Gemini IV, they’re no strangers to absolutely incredible fuzz effects. So today, we’re going to take a look at their newest unveiling in the fuzz realm, one that keeps tradition with, but also builds upon, their...
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It’s been a minute since we had something from SviSound come through the shop, but their designs and enclosures are so unique, it’s always worth the wait. This go round they sent us the Germanium Fuzz Mini, a small, simple but boisterous effect that begs you not to judge by size, but by stature. Able to squeeze onto any pedalboard, as well as deliver blistering fuzz tones, this is a powerful little monster that is just...
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It’s honestly hard to believe there are still guitarists who don’t like fuzz effects – they’re loud, sometimes unpredictable, and add a certain pizazz to your tone that you just can’t get anywhere else. Who wouldn’t like that? To those folks, we say “More For Us!” and quickly find a fuzz to rock out with. Like today’s featured pedal, for example: the Fuzz-Arka from Veri-Tone is...
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After being able to check out the revered White Pedal from Jext Telez, we were excited to see what dirty effect they had for us this go-round – color us impressed again. The Buzz Tone is a germanium fuzz that also has trace elements of overdrive packed right in, for an all-encompassing tonal spectrum of sounds. The easy controls hide a wide dimension of tones, and the secret weapon here really pushes the envelope on what a...
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What can we say about the pedals that Spaceman Effects puts out? They’re pricy, they’re hard to find and they all sound incredible. Well, that’s a start, anyway. Their latest masterpiece, the Sputnik II Deluxe Germanium Fuzz, takes the already brilliant circuit from the original Sputnik Fuzz, and beefs it up even more, if you can believe it. With a new second mode and a couple more tasty additions, this is a fuzz...
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We can get behind any good fuzz pedal around here, so we were pretty stoked when the cats over at Way Huge Electronics sent over their Havalina™ Germanium Fuzz for us to check out. Featuring a basic three-knob control configuration, this fuzz does what a good fuzz pedal should do: produce copious amounts of fuzz. With a hint of old-school Tone Bender fuzz sound found within it, this is a fun fuzz that will get you groovin’ with...
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Today’s featured pedal is a modern take on a classic distortion effect. Based on the famous Interfax Harmonic Percolator, the Harmonik Germanium Fuzz from Dubrek Audio Boutique boasts the same type of fuzzy distorted sounds as the vintage unit, but with a couple of modern upgrades. Level and Gain are the only two control knobs present on the Harmonik, alongside a lone toggle switch. Both knobs feature a broad range, with plenty...
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The pedals that are being created by Hartman are really tantalizing to the eyes (and, as it turns out, the ears as well). Today’s reviewed pedal is no exception to that rule: the Vintage Germanium Fuzz looks as old school and classic as they come, and the sounds are just the same, only using modern, reliable and excellent-quality parts to re-create the sounds of the past. Three knobs make for easy controlling of this fuzztastic...
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Just opening the box containing the Sputnik Germanium Fuzz pedal from Spaceman Effects was quite a thrill. I love how they make everything so shiny and sparkly, making you feel just a wee bit better about how much you just spent on an effects pedal. The silver bag makes it seem like you’re opening a window into space, about to be launched into the sonic atmosphere at breakneck speeds, and leaving all other guitarists’...
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Last month, we were privileged to review and demo the B-312 Freakshow Fuzz, a Silicon-based fuzz effect from our friends at Big Joe Stomp Box Company. Today, we’re going to check out its counterpart, the B-313, which is a Germanium version of the pedal. With this one being a bit warmer, without quite as much gain and bite, both pedals offer distinctly fuzzy flavors and sounds for any fuzz enthusiast to enjoy. The B-313 Germanium...
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Well, it’s Benson Amps time again, folks!! It’s always a pleasure when their effects make it to our office, and this latest gem is sure to get everyone talking. The Germanium Preamp builds on the first pedal that Benson ever released, the aptly-titled Preamp Pedal, but with some tweaks and new circuitry options along the way. The result is a slightly lower gain, but richer sounding and feeling...
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Pedal with lots of knobs and switches are fun, plain and simple. Today’s effect has that in droves, bringing usually hidden or unaccessible features right to your fingertips. The CFH Pedals Sculptor+ Fuzz is no ordinary dirt machine, and once we run through what it can do, and you hear how it sounds, you’ll understand just what we mean… The CFH Pedals Sculptor+ Fuzz combines elements of the Fuzz Face and the Muff...
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We’re finishing our lineup run-through of the first four pedals from Bolt & Forge Analog Audio today. Coming to you from Yakima, Washington, we’re excited to check out the fourth effect they sent over, the Ol’ Ephraim Germanium Sustainer. Mixing fuzz and distortion is new and exciting ways, let’s see what it can do for you… Ol’ Ephraim is a germanium powered fuzz that’s easy to handle but roars...
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We’ve been trying to collaborate with Don Poniz for the last few years, and we’re finally making it a reality today! Presenting the Power Contol Unit, a massive silicon/germanium overdrive with a simple control section and a huge range of sounds on tap. The note that came with the pedal said, “Worth the wait, trust me, Mike!” and after playing this pedal, I believe that to be a very true statement… From...
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After the wild success of their Germanium Fuzz pedal a few years ago, Chris and the crew at Benson Amps decided to take the genre one more step further. Building off of the classic Tone Bender MkI circuit, the Stonk Box attempts to take a classic 1960’s fuzz design, and bring the sound into the modern world, without bringing any along the flaws and inconsistencies of the original. This one’s a beast, let’s get right to it!...
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Fuzz pedals can sometimes be finicky, sputtery and strange, and that’s not always what you need…but when it’s EXACTLY what you want, look no further than the ZVEX Effects Fuzz Factory Vexter. One of their most beloved pedals, this classically un-classic fuzz takes you to the breaking point of musical sanity, and then shoves you right over. We’re excited to check this one out, as I’m sure you are,...
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One of the perks of getting to know so many pedal companies in this business is the ability to have unique, one-of-a-kind pedals built for us, and we’ve got another great one today. Spindrift Audio approached me about doing a special effect just for Pedal of the Day, and we decided that it should probably be something Star Wars-related, ’cause why not? The result is the Mandalore Germanium Drive, a pedal that not only...
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We’ve always been impressed with the modulation and delay effects that Pigtronix has put out into the world, but today we’re looking at a pedal that heads into a different sort of direction. The Star Eater Analog Jumbo Fuzz blends legendary old-school fuzz sounds with modern tone-shaping versatility, for an interesting and intriguing take on the genre. With simple controls and a wide range of tones, this one was fun to...
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When you think of experimental effects pedal companies, Death By Audio immediately jumps right to the top of the list. Dirty, loud and beautiful, their lineup keeps us all on our toes, and opens up a myriad of new musical possibilities. Today, we’re looking at their latest release, the Germanium Filter, which proves that sometimes you only need 2 knobs to make a gigantic wall of sound. The Germanium Filter is DBA’s love...
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The Clubber Lang Harmonic Percolator Fuzz from Malaise Forever was one of our Top Pedals of 2021, and we were stoked to check out more gear from this fine company out of Columbus, OH. Luckily, we didn’t have to wait too long – today, we’re helping with the Brand New Release for their next creation, the Rage Monster Germanium Gain Stage. Packing some classic and modern boost sounds into one pedalboard-friendly...
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Our 15W Monarch from Benson Amps has been a staple in our demo rig rotation for years, and the Preamp and Germanium Fuzz pedals they put out left us floored as well. Today, we bring you their latest effect creation, a seemingly simple but under-the-hood complex piece of gear: the Germanium Boost. Don’t let the lone knob fool you – a LOT of research and time went into this tone-enhancing machine; here’s what Chris and...
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Last month, we checked out our first pedal from Sundance Electronics, the HI-1 Fuzz, and it was a complete ripper. Needless to say, we were excited for a second pedal from these guys, and we’ve got it for you today. The Clean Fuzz is anything but, as it is a super versatile distortion/fuzz aimed to work wonders on both guitar and bass. There are three simple control knobs present on the Clean Fuzz – Volume, Clean and Gain....
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The Harmonic Percolator. Is it a fuzz? Is it a distortion? Is it its own entity entirely? We’ve had the pleasure to check out a couple pedals based on the revered Interfax model, and we’ve got another for you today. The Malaise Forever Clubber Lang is a love letter to the original unit, with a couple of changes and additions to bring it into the modern world…let’s check it out! The Clubber Lang features a...
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Today we’re continuing down the path of Dual Enlightenment, thanks to the wonderful DCP Dual Series from our friends at Caline. The DCP-08 Nightwolf Overdrive Fuzz combines two of our favorite effects into one box, perfect for adding a bit of tone-shaping or completely annihilating your clean sound. These two classic effects make for a great team, let’s check out some more details! The Left side of the Nightwolf is a...
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Sometimes, the easier a pedal is to operate, the better. Today’s effect is just about as simple as it gets, while still offering up a nice range of sounds. The Weird Noise Pedals Fuzz It features one big knob and one little toggle switch….and it sounds HUGE. The Fuzz It is a hybrid fuzz pedal that’s actually two circuits in one. With the toggle set to the left, you’ve got a germanium fuzz that has a thick, warm...
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We were first introduced to KHDK Electronics, the brainchild of Metallica’s Kirk Hammett and industry pro David Karon, when they first started releasing pedals in 2016. The Ghoul Screamer is their take on the classic Tube Screamer, on steroids, and we really dug it. So we were pretty excited to dive into the Unicorn Blood II Octave Fuzz, a mammoth of a dirt pedal not for the tame or timid – this thing crushes eardrums and...
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We love pretty much anything that has a retro or vintage vibe, look or feel around here, and today’s pedal checks off all of those boxes with ease. The SolidGoldFX Imperial MkII Fuzz looks like it was made in the 80’s, sounds right out of the 70’s and has a modern feel that makes it a perfect fuzz all-around. Inspired by the vintage JEN Jumbo Fuzz, the MkII has four simple sliders that control a wide range of tonal...
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Today, we’re going to take a look at a wild, bold, bright dirt pedal from Tone.ElectroniX, which was conceived, born and raised in Figueira da Foz in Portugal. The Animalizzer (“the MufferFuzzer” as originaly was called) is a distortion…wait…is a fuzz…no…. it’s BOTH. Yes, it’s a distortion/fuzz effect pedal for guitar and bass – still, it can even sound like mild overdriven...
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Our first foray into the world of products from Warm Audio was just about a month or so ago, in the form of the Jet Phaser. A powerful recreation of a vintage classic, we were blown away by how great it looked and sounded. Well, we’re back at it again today, with the second device in the current WA lineup. The Foxy Tone Box Octave Fuzz reinvigorates another classic effects pedal, the Foxx Tone Machine, complete with velvet...
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The music of Dinosaur Jr is known throughout the world, and for guitar fanboys, so is lead singer and guitarist J Mascis. With one of the most recognizable fuzz tones in the business, he has become synonymous with the Big Muff family of pedals, both as a player and as a collector. Today’s pedal, the Garbage Face Fuzz Boost, is a collaboration between J and Matt from Wren and Cuff, featuring a uniquely Muff-inspired fuzz side, a...
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Custom, limited edition pedals have become a staple across the board the last couple of years, and we were able to get our mitts on another rare one today. The Seraphina Fuzz Octave is a collaboration between Red Witch Pedals and Reverb, featuring a wide range of fuzzy options in a simple control package. Unlike any fuzz Red Witch has created before, this one takes it to the next level. Featuring just three top-mounted controls, the...
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Happy Thanksgiving Week, all! Today’s pedal is not only a badass fuzz, but we’re also giving it away as a part of our MOVEMBER campaign. If you don’t know, Movember raises money and awareness for Men’s Health, suicide prevention and prostate cancer. The Pedal of the Day Team has been growing moustaches and raising money all month long – there’s still time to donate and enter to win this great...
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Our first venture into the world of Sitek Guitar Electronics has turned out to be a wild one, folks. Today, we’re going to run through the Pandora Fuzz, a versatile, high-gain effects pedal that mixes some beautiful, natural upper octave tones in with the powerful, dirty fuzz. There are a bunch of controls and options on this one, so let’s dig right in! The two main controls are Level and Fuzz on the Pandora Fuzz –...
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The Legends of Fuzz series from JHS Pedals is a tribute to the world’s most historic, rare, and sought after fuzz circuits. Since the originals are extremely hard-to-find, extremely expensive when you do and prone to the problems electronics might have after 50 years, this series brings these sounds and tones to the masses, for all to enjoy. There are four pedals in all, and we’re going to run through each one, what they...
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Anyone who knows the band Fu Manchu knows they have a pretty signature sound, and the bass is a big part of it. What you might not know is that the bass player, Brad Davis, is also the mastermind behind Creepy Fingers Effects, and he was kind enough to send us a pedal to check out today. The Fuzz Nugget is just that: a tasty little morsel of fuzz wrapped in a big old gold box, Eatin’ Dust and just waiting to be unleashed on the...
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We always love it when new gear arrives from our friends at Big Joe Stomp Box Company, and they have provided a killer pedal for you today. One of two different models, the Freakshow Fuzz (Silicon) puts a totally whacked-out, freaky fuzz right at your fingertips, offering up ample fuzz sounds with that signature bite only silicon transistors can provide. We’re excited about this one, let’s check it out… The B-312...
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We’ve had the pleasure of checking out a couple of pedals from StoneFly Effects up in Canada, so we were pretty stoked when we heard that Marc-Eric was unleashing a new beast on the world. Even better, he was teaming up for this release with our friend Eric Calvert of Frost Giant Electronics and Switchblade Jesus fame, which peaked out interest that much more. The result is today’s complete monster of a fuzz, a RAT that...
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Unleashing a fury of dirty fuzz tones that cover a large range, today’s featured pedal comes to us all the way from New Zealand. Apparently, they know how to make a pretty decent pedal down there, as the Caustic Fuzz from Pepers’ Pedals is a true powerhouse in the world of effects. While we’ve had a couple of guest reviews for Tony Pepers and his lineup, this is the first one we’ve gotten our hands on, and...
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If you’re a fuzz lover, when you hear the words “Tone Bender,” an instant smile creeps over your face. Used on countless classic rock recordings and live shows by everyone from Pete Townshend to Jeff Beck to Paul McCartney and more, these gray boxes from Sola Sound defined the latter half of the 1960’s. The MkII Professional version of the Tone Bender was made popular by Jimmy Page, having used it on the first...
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Continuing our week of powerful distortion effects, we’ve got another monster fuzz pedal for you to check out today. The American Geek is a high-gain fuzz machine from Zander Circuitry, one with a spread out tone section, a ton of drive and a super-charged footswitchable option to send your sound into the metal stratosphere. Level and Gain set the output volume and amount of crunch the American Geek produces, as they should, but...
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Now fully established as a fuzz and distortion-producing powerhouse of a company, we are always happy to get new effects in the office from our friends at Wren & Cuff, and we’ve got another mammoth for you today. The Super Russian is a potent fuzz pedal, plus a buffer/boost as well, a well-rounded machine that works wonderfully with bass and guitar alike. Featuring loud, boisterous, Muff-y tones and distortion, plus a...
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Straight-up, no-frills, to-the-point effects pedals are becoming somewhat of a rarity in today’s crazy market, so we were pretty excited about today’s featured piece of gear, a simple-to-use and extremely easy to dial in fuzz pedal from across the way in Slovenia. The MindFuzz from Surfadelic Soundwaves has a bare minimum control section, but is absolutely jam-packed with tone, power and, of course, FUZZ. The little...
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The Narwhal Distortion Fuzz from PLBR Effects is one of the funnest fuzzes we’ve seen come through as of late, so we were pretty stoked to try out its bug brother, the Maritimus Distortion Fuzz as well. Taking similar controls from the Narwhal and expanding upon them, the Maritimus allows you to further shape your tone and create magnificent walls of distorted fuzz. There’s a lot to get to in this pedal, so let’s...
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We love fuzz pedals around here, and the only thing better than a killer fuzz effect is….that’s right, TWO fuzzes in one pedal. The Bitoun is a Doubled Octave Fuzz from our friends in France Anasounds, and while looking seemingly simple from the bare bones control section, this guy is anything but. Based around the Shin-Ei Superfuzz pedal from the 60’s, the Bitoun Fuzz also incorporates aspects of Anasounds’...
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There are times when you plug in a pedal and think, “Hey, this might be kinda cool” and are then absolutely blown away once you click that bypass switch. Today’s pedal was one of those for us, for sure: the Solar Eclipse Fuzz from Earthground Audio. Not only does it satisfy all of our fuzzy desires, it has options for days and tweakablity to fit into any musical scenario. Let’s check it out! Inspired by the Big...
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A couple years back, we reviewed a pedal from a small company in Chicago (the Nothing Is Dead Fuzz), and it was one of the funnest pedals we saw all year. Happily, we have another offering from these guys to check out today, and while it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of the last fuzz of theirs we saw, it brings the heat and the heavy with ease, and will surely rock your face. The FY-2 is a modded germanium fuzz, giving...
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In an effects world full of clones and “borrowed” circuits, there’s a want, maybe even a NEED, for fresh pedals, new ideas and incredible music-making machines. A company that absolutely adheres to this mantra in Dr. Scientist, who continually reinvests the proverbial sonic wheel, creating unique design after design, some of which we’ve had the pleasure to review. Today’s pedal, the Frazz Dazzler Fuzz,...
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