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Motorcycle cops in a parade in downtown Seattle.
More on my trip to Seattle is on The Prudent Cyclist
I just started building this little guy. It is a modded Zvex Fuzz Factory that only has 3 knobs. This configuration makes it more stage friendly. The mod and board where made by culturejam.
Portugal
Day9
Evora: We meet Zevora and visit the aquaduct near our BB, Vintage Car musuem.
Then head to Lagos, Algarve. Meet up with cousins and have dinner at a Karaoke place near our hotel
Live @Solo Macello, Circolo Magnolia, MI
© All rights reserved. Do not use my photos without my written permission. If you would like to buy or use this photo PLEASE message me or email me at stefan.marotta@gmail.com
Live @Solo Macello, Circolo Magnolia, MI
© All rights reserved. Do not use my photos without my written permission. If you would like to buy or use this photo PLEASE message me or email me at stefan.marotta@gmail.com
So I built this Super Fuzz clone using the Lectric FX Pork Rind PCB. It's kind of a cool take on the circuit because the original just had two knobs and a Tone switch. This replaces the Tone switch with a potentiometer and adds a Starve control to pull down the operating voltage, since some people said these pedals didn't sound good with a fresh battery. Also, there's an internal trimmer that allows you to choose how much of an octave effect comes in.
OK, a couple of observations.
First off, people used to jokingly claim that the controls served no purpose and these pedals were either On or Off. Yeah, there's no, "Subtle" setting of this circuit, apparently.
Second, at full voltage with the octave trimmer cranked up this pedal will do horrible things. Things that in no way could be considered legal in most states. Things that sound like what I imagine the ambient sound in the electrical room sounds like when one of those high-rises suffers from harmonic distortion in the power lines that causes its main transformers to rip themselves apart. This is not a pedal where, "Every sound is great!" Unless by, "Great!" you mean, "Terrifying!"
Third...wow. I'm gonna have to mess with this one and see where its Happy Place lives, 'cause this pedal ain't the friendliest girl at the party.
Update: I solved the Super Fuzz mystery. The octave trimmer was the culprit. As you back down the octave trimmer, for some reason it increases the gain until the pedal is completely uncontrollable. I don't know why that wasn't more obvious to me sooner. With the octave trimmer up to about 3/4, the gain becomes much more manageable. Which, for some reason, is just the opposite of what I thought was going on. So I kept the trimmer low and it was making the pedal a nightmare.
The Fuzz-Stang is a clone of the ultra rare and unattainable Sam Ash Fuzz-Stainer. A limited run is currently being made. Email me at fuzzstang@gmail.com with questions or to place your order!
So, yeah...five knob Fuzz Face build. Someone had asked me about using BC209C transistors and I’ve never really built silicon Fuzz Face projects. Pretty much always germanium. So I decided to experiment. Usually with germanium the common wisdom is for Q1 to be around 70 hFE and Q2 to be around 130 hFE. Silicon transistors are way hotter. This has a 400 hFE in Q1 and a 528 hFE in Q2. Sounds cool to me. Cleans up with the guitar’s Volume knob like it should. Maybe the ratios are more important than the voltage.
The birth of the Fool Audio Research, 'Infinite Fuzz' pedal.
OK, here's Sunday's project. I took that first board that I'd discarded because I thought the circuit wasn't working (even though it was probably working fine) and I rebuilt it. So the testbed-y sockets are gone and I'm gonna build this out today and put it in the blue pedal enclosure. New-production germanium transistors from New Jersey Semiconductor, matched at 73 hFE for Q1 and 90 hFE for Q2.
If everything works as hoped (and I see no reason why it wouldn't, but that doesn't always mean anything), I'll offer this pedal up as a...I dunno, "blemish" or, "factory second" or whatever your euphemism of choice is for something that's been handled more than a new product shoulda been.
Anyway, I'm kind of excited about these because even the originals weren't on turrets. This is one of those things that lots of people build out, but they almost always use printed circuit boards to do it. I love the idea of a hand-wired version of this circuit on turret boards.