Fuzzzzz

biker joe · January 8th, 2004, 11:11 PM

I just got to try a fulltone 69 fuzz for the first time. I was really impressed by this pedal. Specifically, it sounded great with a fender style amp and really had great dynamics with the volume pot on the guitar. It sounded way better than any of the other distortion pedals the store had on display. $169 beans is a lot though. Just thought I'd share the experience.
I'm interested in adding a fuzz to my pedal board. I've only used overdrive pedals as most other "distortion" pedals don't do it for me. But the grit of this fuzz was great. And so controllable. What exatcly is the difference between fuzz and distortion anyway. I'd also be interested if anyone had any comparison of the 69 fulltone with the analogman sunface....

jordanl · January 9th, 2004, 10:20 AM

The whole OD/Fuzz/Distortion thing is a bit murky. Fuzz usually involves hard clipping of the signal, and is a "buzzier" tone. But it is a type of distortion. Distortion is something that sounds more like a Marshall turned all the way up.

I own an AM sunface NKT 275, it's a great pedal. Pricier than the 69. I've never done a side by side test of the 2 units. They're both based on the same circuit, you have 2 good chefs working from the same recipe. Fuzz face clones are pricy, while the circuit is simple, about 10 components, you need 2 matched transistors of a type that is no longer made. And those transistors had huge variances.

11 Gauge · January 9th, 2004, 11:43 AM

the difference between the 2 is like night and day to me.

distortion waveforms tend to be a mix of a fuzz and tube or 'soft' clipping. distortion pedals also tend to be a bit more 'modern' - you tend to get more tone controls and options and such. they also tend to have multiple gain stages, each one being designed a little different. also distortion pedals seem to capitalize on both even and odd harmonics.

fuzzes are designs from yesteryear. they tend to be pretty stripped down, just a few gain stages, 1 or no tone knob. the waveform tends to be fairly square in many of them - to give that unique fizz to the upper end. to my ears most fuzzes tend to be mostly odd order harmonics, with some or alot of octave - up effect as well.

IMO distortion sounds like an attempt to control a gained out sound. Fuzz is more about letting go - being out of control.

my favorite fuzzes are the ones that tend to be a bit out of control, or buttery smooth. i don't tend to like those that fall in between.

also some fuzzes capitalize on diode clipping. ODs and distortions also may use diodes, but most attempt to smooth out the diode clipping. fuzzes tend not to. silicon diodes especially can make a fuzz buzz for days...

genelovesjez · January 10th, 2004, 09:22 AM

I have a Fulltone '69, and I really like it. It definitely does what it's supposed to do.

5965 · January 10th, 2004, 01:40 PM

There was a brief period of time in the '90's when the red Dunlop FF used NKT275's. If you search around, you can find them for very little money, and they're very close to the originals sonically.

The '69 is nice enough, but it's a little too smooth and refined for me.

BLACKCAT69 · January 10th, 2004, 02:48 PM

Voodoolab.com

They have downloadable samples of their various pedals. Give the Superfuzz a listen then the Sparkledrive. Nice examples that show the distinction between overdrive and fuzz.

biker joe · January 10th, 2004, 04:11 PM

Hey,
Thanks everyone for replying.

Quote:
"Nice examples that show the distinction between overdrive and fuzz."

I'm very familiar with overdrive. I love the sparkle drive and have come very close to buying one on many occasions. I'm more curious about fuzz vs distortion.

Quote:
" Distortion is something that sounds more like a Marshall turned all the way up. "

I always thought that OD is what sounds like an "old" marshall turned all the way up.

The distrotion pedals that I have tried seem to add more of a solid state preamp distortion to an already good sounding fender tube amp. They seem more buzzier.

The thing about tube screamers and overdrives in general is that to me, they don't sound "thick and meaty" unless they are really pushing the amp. They sound kind of weak at lower amp settings. Opened up, they sound great but underpowered they are just too midrangy to me.

The fulltone fuzz sounded really warm to me. At lower guitar volume settings it sounded more like an OD but at full guitar volume it sounded like a raging marshall. This through a fender champ.

January 8th, 2004, 11:11 PM	#1 (permalink)
biker joe Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 296	Fuzzzzz I just got to try a fulltone 69 fuzz for the first time. I was really impressed by this pedal. Specifically, it sounded great with a fender style amp and really had great dynamics with the volume pot on the guitar. It sounded way better than any of the other distortion pedals the store had on display. $169 beans is a lot though. Just thought I'd share the experience. I'm interested in adding a fuzz to my pedal board. I've only used overdrive pedals as most other "distortion" pedals don't do it for me. But the grit of this fuzz was great. And so controllable. What exatcly is the difference between fuzz and distortion anyway. I'd also be interested if anyone had any comparison of the 69 fulltone with the analogman sunface....

January 9th, 2004, 11:43 AM	#3 (permalink)
11 Gauge Friend of Leo's Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: The East Coast Posts: 3,015 10 Photos	diff between Fuzz and Distortion... the difference between the 2 is like night and day to me. distortion waveforms tend to be a mix of a fuzz and tube or 'soft' clipping. distortion pedals also tend to be a bit more 'modern' - you tend to get more tone controls and options and such. they also tend to have multiple gain stages, each one being designed a little different. also distortion pedals seem to capitalize on both even and odd harmonics. fuzzes are designs from yesteryear. they tend to be pretty stripped down, just a few gain stages, 1 or no tone knob. the waveform tends to be fairly square in many of them - to give that unique fizz to the upper end. to my ears most fuzzes tend to be mostly odd order harmonics, with some or alot of octave - up effect as well. IMO distortion sounds like an attempt to control a gained out sound. Fuzz is more about letting go - being out of control. my favorite fuzzes are the ones that tend to be a bit out of control, or buttery smooth. i don't tend to like those that fall in between. also some fuzzes capitalize on diode clipping. ODs and distortions also may use diodes, but most attempt to smooth out the diode clipping. fuzzes tend not to. silicon diodes especially can make a fuzz buzz for days... __________________

January 10th, 2004, 02:48 PM	#6 (permalink)
BLACKCAT69 Friend of Leo's Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Canada-Windsor-Ont. Age: 37 Posts: 2,633 5 Photos	Go to the Voodoo Lab website. Voodoolab.com They have downloadable samples of their various pedals. Give the Superfuzz a listen then the Sparkledrive. Nice examples that show the distinction between overdrive and fuzz. __________________ http://www.lukefisher.com/blame.wav

January 9th, 2004, 10:20 AM	#2 (permalink)
jordanl Tele-Holic Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Farmingdale, NY Posts: 554	The whole OD/Fuzz/Distortion thing is a bit murky. Fuzz usually involves hard clipping of the signal, and is a "buzzier" tone. But it is a type of distortion. Distortion is something that sounds more like a Marshall turned all the way up. I own an AM sunface NKT 275, it's a great pedal. Pricier than the 69. I've never done a side by side test of the 2 units. They're both based on the same circuit, you have 2 good chefs working from the same recipe. Fuzz face clones are pricy, while the circuit is simple, about 10 components, you need 2 matched transistors of a type that is no longer made. And those transistors had huge variances.

January 10th, 2004, 09:22 AM	#4 (permalink)
genelovesjez Friend of Leo's Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Toronto, Canada Age: 41 Posts: 3,735	I have a Fulltone '69, and I really like it. It definitely does what it's supposed to do.

January 10th, 2004, 01:40 PM	#5 (permalink)
5965 Tele-Holic Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 731	There was a brief period of time in the '90's when the red Dunlop FF used NKT275's. If you search around, you can find them for very little money, and they're very close to the originals sonically. The '69 is nice enough, but it's a little too smooth and refined for me.

January 10th, 2004, 04:11 PM	#7 (permalink)
biker joe Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 296	Hey, Thanks everyone for replying. Quote: "Nice examples that show the distinction between overdrive and fuzz." I'm very familiar with overdrive. I love the sparkle drive and have come very close to buying one on many occasions. I'm more curious about fuzz vs distortion. Quote: " Distortion is something that sounds more like a Marshall turned all the way up. " I always thought that OD is what sounds like an "old" marshall turned all the way up. The distrotion pedals that I have tried seem to add more of a solid state preamp distortion to an already good sounding fender tube amp. They seem more buzzier. The thing about tube screamers and overdrives in general is that to me, they don't sound "thick and meaty" unless they are really pushing the amp. They sound kind of weak at lower amp settings. Opened up, they sound great but underpowered they are just too midrangy to me. The fulltone fuzz sounded really warm to me. At lower guitar volume settings it sounded more like an OD but at full guitar volume it sounded like a raging marshall. This through a fender champ.