tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25034681437824904092024-03-27T19:54:41.969-04:00Tone Machines Blogvintage effects breakdownEd Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.comBlogger228125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-89993086392053880092024-03-18T13:50:00.004-04:002024-03-18T13:56:07.968-04:00Crawdaddy Magazine Vol. IV No. 14 (1970)☟<div><span style="color: #c27ba0;">I'm hoping you can help!</span><p>A few months back I posted an article about one of the <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2023/11/is-this-earliest-big-muff-ad.html" target="_blank">earliest Big Muff ads</a> I have ever found. It came out of <i>Crawdaddy</i> Magazine, from either March or April of 1970, and features a nice quarter-page photo ad from Electro Harmonix. </p><p>And while I have been able to acquire most of the <i>Crawdaddy</i> issues from that year, I am missing one. Volume 4, Issue 14 from October 1970.</p><p>Originally the main story was an interview with Ray Davies of the Kinks. But right as they were about to send it off to the presses, Jimi Hendrix tragically died. And so the cover was changed and a small tribute was added.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM_WsWVmvgDAHH5M9ztRZxdDYzZ4r2LI-ERTV2J8eSsgZ7UCajirKh3jXLeh6nbtFpUHWD3O6QiysoBFNPcFW58NbqjGFGsIEmoNiwue4hhSWrzRte-8aYupuuo-NVPhNoIUHMVDUAvqYLpxweVlVO349iTCnZ1gWE_E4Fh3lMq3NmIX8EWeao-znh7aU/s2160/Crawdaddy%20Magazine%20vol%20iv%20no%2014%20Hendrix.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Crawdaddy vol. IV no. 14 1970 Hendrix" border="0" data-original-height="2160" data-original-width="1725" height="496" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM_WsWVmvgDAHH5M9ztRZxdDYzZ4r2LI-ERTV2J8eSsgZ7UCajirKh3jXLeh6nbtFpUHWD3O6QiysoBFNPcFW58NbqjGFGsIEmoNiwue4hhSWrzRte-8aYupuuo-NVPhNoIUHMVDUAvqYLpxweVlVO349iTCnZ1gWE_E4Fh3lMq3NmIX8EWeao-znh7aU/w397-h496/Crawdaddy%20Magazine%20vol%20iv%20no%2014%20Hendrix.png" title="Crawdaddy vol. IV no. 14 1970 Hendrix" width="397" /></a></div><br /><p>Interestingly I am looking for this issue not so much because of the Hendrix tribute, but because it contains a couple of ads that I'm desperately trying to track down.</p><p>If you happen to have a copy of <i>Crawdaddy</i> vol. IV no. 14 please contact me via <a href="mailto:eddieeugene@gmail.com" target="_blank">Email</a><span style="color: #f1c232;"> </span>or<span style="color: #f1c232;"> </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/ed_skymall/" target="_blank">Instagram</a>. </p><p>Thanks for your help!<br />-ed</p></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-18206032368831254422024-03-16T14:50:00.011-04:002024-03-17T09:10:35.309-04:00NO Demos. 📽️☟<div><span style="color: red;">Well I went and did it, I started a </span><span style="color: white;">YouTube</span><span style="color: red;"> channel that's essentially a video version of the blog.</span><p>And I wanted it to be just that, deep dives into obscure old pedals. But instead of my poor writing skills, you'll get my much poorer verbal communication skills. 😂</p><p>The show is called "<b>NO Demos"</b> and the first two episodes are live now! </p><p>>>> Here's <a href="https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3DQYNOFfWjzUXYPMiXPZ91CUI34BG1t3&si=6tHoRNum5EiUYz9I" target="_blank">a link to the channel</a>. <<<</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="312" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e_6j-pJp7Fg" width="397" youtube-src-id="e_6j-pJp7Fg"></iframe></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="331" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/M0Heb1fldl8" width="397" youtube-src-id="M0Heb1fldl8"></iframe></div><p>So I hope you like em, and thanks so much for watching. 🙏<br />-ed</p></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-40954535635406956872024-03-13T11:02:00.006-04:002024-03-13T13:00:49.074-04:00Vintage Guitar Pedal Print Media☟ <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt6DNW1Da_a1UT_4UhFIEXoBo8zagaQrmfhiDL3QNK3fizGYKaiJJK7jkVIMNk4lFQuKI_4KuaSzvW9M1SZuijR6Xg_UHEJ-ZnBLB8a1RT5oVpS1oiylAZdfjM8BqsFtOX2Eyhp9WQVKbAuGcXTtPGxELHx0l77n0cIx3rJTsw_Q7oDNqropdj_7wrG-U/s2160/Catalogs.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2160" data-original-width="2160" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt6DNW1Da_a1UT_4UhFIEXoBo8zagaQrmfhiDL3QNK3fizGYKaiJJK7jkVIMNk4lFQuKI_4KuaSzvW9M1SZuijR6Xg_UHEJ-ZnBLB8a1RT5oVpS1oiylAZdfjM8BqsFtOX2Eyhp9WQVKbAuGcXTtPGxELHx0l77n0cIx3rJTsw_Q7oDNqropdj_7wrG-U/w398-h398/Catalogs.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>For about as long as I have been collecting pedals, I've also been collecting pedal related media; catalogs, ads, books, brochures, warranty cards, magazines, etc.</p><p>They were always just cool to look at and experience a small taste of what it was like when these were originally being released.</p><p>But it wasn't until this past year when I started writing again that I realized how much I actually relied on this old media to help tell the stories of when and where many of these pedals came from.</p><p>The further you go back, the harder it is to determine exact dates with any of this stuff. And even some of the most important fx of all time, like the Big Muff, still have their true release dates shrouded in mystery. </p><p>Which is exactly why I began to properly catalog all the media I have lying around; by date, publication, brand, and model. The stories of these pedals have been told and retold thousands of times over the years, and many of them are inaccurate at best, but oftentimes <b>the most repeated pedal lore is a complete fabrication</b>. So having an accurate database of images that show the Big Muff was available to buy in April of 1970, for instance, helps a lot in narrowing down what is true vs. what is not.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I assume that if you're reading this that you have a similar interest in the history of guitar effects pedals. And while there aren't too many of us out here digging for that history and making it freely available on the internet, we wouldn't be able to tell these stories accurately without this forgotten media.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #f1c232;"><u>So my ask for you all</u>, is if you have any physical or digital copies of catalogs, trade journals, order forms, brochures, magazine articles, ads, warranty cards, etc., and would like to contribute to this site (and eventually a fully public database), please contact me via <a href="mailto:eddieeugene@gmail.com" target="_blank">Email</a> or <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ed_skymall/" target="_blank">Instagram</a>.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #f1c232;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #f1c232;">I keep Tone Machines completely sponsor/ad free and make no money from doing this. It's purely a passion project. And while I love tracking this stuff down myself, I feel as though I have hit the end of what is currently available online. So any new scans or photos could be the missing key that helps unlock the true history of guitar pedals.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #f1c232;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Thanks for reading,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">-ed</div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-40253476638786639212024-03-11T18:14:00.014-04:002024-03-11T23:21:23.411-04:00Claybridge (pre) Fuzzmaster!☟<div><span style="color: #b4a7d6;">Last month I received an email asking about a mysterious little fuzz box that had made its way into an Australian guitar shop. Neither the shop owner, Chris, nor the seller had any idea of what it could be or if it held any type of significance. And even though it looked like something somebody cooked up in a high school electronics class, it sounded great! </span><p><span style="color: #b4a7d6;">And that was just enough motivation for Chris to buy it and enlist some local friends who could maybe help figure out what this thing was. Well after a couple months of digging, he was pointed in the direction of <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2023/01/in-search-of-australian-fuzzmaster-part.html" target="_blank">this article</a><a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2023/01/in-search-of-australian-fuzzmaster-part.html" target="_blank"> we wrote last year</a> about the elusive Claybridge Fuzzmaster. And a few paragraphs in, it seemed as though they had cracked the case...</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSy-yuv1TVulOmZriPyOKDxPeidKcZeDpjaP-heR8G0lGqWXa0cUnuolODTzj8XfyWycVZLurgZpqy6JMwJXcCdgObFYSWeSGRTlmQUaSpXjwNuHpHTij3WpuZCBKUYjCp37EMRwbbOUNdFE5J6i_zyJcQS7NvgiaFR6bvEubEqaU7oWSz92cIHHC62hU/s1514/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%206.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1514" data-original-width="1514" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSy-yuv1TVulOmZriPyOKDxPeidKcZeDpjaP-heR8G0lGqWXa0cUnuolODTzj8XfyWycVZLurgZpqy6JMwJXcCdgObFYSWeSGRTlmQUaSpXjwNuHpHTij3WpuZCBKUYjCp37EMRwbbOUNdFE5J6i_zyJcQS7NvgiaFR6bvEubEqaU7oWSz92cIHHC62hU/w398-h398/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%206.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is where I came in. 😁</div><div><br /></div>On February 21st Chris' email landed at my inbox, and because of the time difference it arrived around 4am. Luckily for me, I had a terrible sleep that night and happened to glance over at my phone shortly afterwards. Seeing the notification, in a sleepy daze I opened it and began reading. <div><br /></div><div>After the first line of text I was hit with so much adrenaline that I jumped out of bed and immediately responded. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, and part of me thought that it had to be some kind of hoax (a very niche and oddly obscure hoax). </div><div><br /></div><div>I quickly went back to my original article and pulled two ads, one from May 4th of 1966 and the other from May 16th of 1966. Both advertised different versions of the Claybridge Sound Systems Fuzz Box; one was describing a pre-Fuzzmaster circuit while the other seemed to be describing the Fuzzmaster, but before it was given that name.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV7PlVf20t_uDfPJP1xbKmNNF03F9O7OBCsUxKwQaWqwgiFt5cXx-2X3IVfpVVPJ-yiBjF4v_dhFbBZnOI8lch549nmPYv66e8Pv1q36MpdmAqkUb0ebne251B5eeYt29cPRCKxPbxU5eN6S4Gv5jREJyxRuiGinpgRtLTmw_Ekn2d0Y1URVj2HLYp_R4/s567/Claybridge%20Ad%20May%201966%20scan.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="567" height="351" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV7PlVf20t_uDfPJP1xbKmNNF03F9O7OBCsUxKwQaWqwgiFt5cXx-2X3IVfpVVPJ-yiBjF4v_dhFbBZnOI8lch549nmPYv66e8Pv1q36MpdmAqkUb0ebne251B5eeYt29cPRCKxPbxU5eN6S4Gv5jREJyxRuiGinpgRtLTmw_Ekn2d0Y1URVj2HLYp_R4/w398-h351/Claybridge%20Ad%20May%201966%20scan.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /><p><br /></p></div></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS9o4joGaTw7UHHGyEyj5wNntL47jxJ57MvNfGUiggFRYiErQjeRCM5XNlbD4Qt6K5ZjN55WqUaCUZjEJAVw-b0ny4e48piQmn8FlLAWoZ1lDH99gS9W-Du407MRWvMP85Ri-rLGP6cELEed3R8EY-3ipfzC51yM883T0DnPZr5NxfZ3HYfX_km9ebzGs/s470/Claybridge%20Ad%20b.%20May%2016th%201966.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="303" data-original-width="470" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS9o4joGaTw7UHHGyEyj5wNntL47jxJ57MvNfGUiggFRYiErQjeRCM5XNlbD4Qt6K5ZjN55WqUaCUZjEJAVw-b0ny4e48piQmn8FlLAWoZ1lDH99gS9W-Du407MRWvMP85Ri-rLGP6cELEed3R8EY-3ipfzC51yM883T0DnPZr5NxfZ3HYfX_km9ebzGs/w398-h256/Claybridge%20Ad%20b.%20May%2016th%201966.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><br /><div>I wouldn't know until I looked inside, but with what I was seeing this mystery pedal could be either.</div><div><br /></div><div>So we exchanged emails for a few days and more photos starting pouring in. And after getting the all-important gut shots, it really seemed like this was indeed a <b>PRE</b>-Fuzzmaster, Claybridge Sound Systems Fuzz Box!</div><div><br /></div><div>Everything was matching up: the two controls, the 15ft lead (or output cable), the sticker on the side that read the earliest name of the company; it was all there.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT0kSF2cDzAaWmyE-ecz4a0m2vZSLJVZd-9owdUibKBmxWZJyGSGd2BqBxx1wg36hpvxFRyh1mR7D8IisQdjE2llJx2qP8QYaoEWWMNvAvVRXK_569y7Kui9VLFoBS4uxe_GrwUeE22Koo4GERre9b-QZNATwyXgu7vtxx3U_44_maDzBqGDGctdpN7Xc/s2214/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2213" data-original-width="2214" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT0kSF2cDzAaWmyE-ecz4a0m2vZSLJVZd-9owdUibKBmxWZJyGSGd2BqBxx1wg36hpvxFRyh1mR7D8IisQdjE2llJx2qP8QYaoEWWMNvAvVRXK_569y7Kui9VLFoBS4uxe_GrwUeE22Koo4GERre9b-QZNATwyXgu7vtxx3U_44_maDzBqGDGctdpN7Xc/w398-h398/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%202.jpg" width="398" /></a></div>I was still a bit skeptical because this truly has to be as close to a 1 of 1 as possible, in terms of it "currently existing in the world".<div><br /></div><div>So I went back over my old articles and database of photos. And then, all of the sudden, two major details jumped out as being definitive proof of its validity:</div><div><br /></div><div><b>A.</b> The small white knobs used on this "prototype" were also found on a legitimate v1 Fuzzmaster, in addition to appearing on the original Fuzzmaster ads!</div><div><br /></div><div><b>B.</b> The same label-maker seemed to be used on the MKIV Fuzzmasters!</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTMEtQ5ft0yIs3HMorMd6RcUpDc2kn0JOq9UVLMtzGKAPSUIUgHfcC_FZsmBa8HSM_ojGeX-gVTpXTSCo-Px9yYmuPh_2GnEhHE_0lQvMRM6j72CdW155u-Hg6XZLy8-CJYSUe4Jhj3KDthknfU_gd-YNXU-0xdtmN5LVQxWx_fk81yiqOd04re7cu-9k/s1162/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKIII.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1162" data-original-width="1079" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTMEtQ5ft0yIs3HMorMd6RcUpDc2kn0JOq9UVLMtzGKAPSUIUgHfcC_FZsmBa8HSM_ojGeX-gVTpXTSCo-Px9yYmuPh_2GnEhHE_0lQvMRM6j72CdW155u-Hg6XZLy8-CJYSUe4Jhj3KDthknfU_gd-YNXU-0xdtmN5LVQxWx_fk81yiqOd04re7cu-9k/w396-h427/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKIII.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivuDYijG9MgzThA-XmJZdXTzsPCF7s9aeK8p1SCSxjxlM5DZ2KjGJGtf9vYODu7REdI0KTTQKlVMffmCmIlUdXweSScOvRGv8LhTzMLLAvlPJaM0Vb6UxAXtsyVVS1c2go45KMvdBfL2xN_uQ0R-eG1KnGthlJrln3g9CUA_5f9S8F55ZxkS1D8VHBMko/s824/Go-Set%20Magazine%201966%20Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20scan.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="824" data-original-width="754" height="435" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivuDYijG9MgzThA-XmJZdXTzsPCF7s9aeK8p1SCSxjxlM5DZ2KjGJGtf9vYODu7REdI0KTTQKlVMffmCmIlUdXweSScOvRGv8LhTzMLLAvlPJaM0Vb6UxAXtsyVVS1c2go45KMvdBfL2xN_uQ0R-eG1KnGthlJrln3g9CUA_5f9S8F55ZxkS1D8VHBMko/w398-h435/Go-Set%20Magazine%201966%20Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20scan.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><br /><div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbybi1-u07rV81C1AbEg7ZkkRFvyz7DJRdbiinGmkQbEW88mR-g9Y3CnaWVrR42xJjnP90q54qI8cADBny6LHKAWvC9aZdM1kCIcZIIegi44sv7C8GZ-9lh93Wn9IMHEVHSJTA67ziwMoRN4H5O1SJ2w-TayuabKqG5mT1MPTKIWXXLQ-1vsh49YjJ85o/s629/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20Serial.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="545" data-original-width="629" height="344" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbybi1-u07rV81C1AbEg7ZkkRFvyz7DJRdbiinGmkQbEW88mR-g9Y3CnaWVrR42xJjnP90q54qI8cADBny6LHKAWvC9aZdM1kCIcZIIegi44sv7C8GZ-9lh93Wn9IMHEVHSJTA67ziwMoRN4H5O1SJ2w-TayuabKqG5mT1MPTKIWXXLQ-1vsh49YjJ85o/w397-h344/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20Serial.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><br /><div>So a deal was made, and now it was time to wait.</div><div><br /></div><div>Unfortunately, and for reasons I can't figure out, getting mail from Australia always takes 10X longer than any other country. I can get packages from Japan in 2-3 days usually, and most parts of Europe a week/week and a half at most. But who knows?</div><div><br /></div><div>Well, it's March 11th and the wait is finally over, because it is here!!! And holy shit this is cool.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo3b7yeb_qyIg_ESqCuuxRMwxoCYsNT_VxFRFBeNmjctbxFStMNzIdCmr9b6uF1Er8c0dW-XsbBpG-yWtBB_2Rhuu6W5hPtMGrzFHrx93x_pmlOiIOHrYIe73FM0aEgeCkjclo5JpjWzlXsQ79jtmjBWOVwmrwIvWT1_hB5oMMT_8MQjGsnucj0qcinQs/s2119/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%204.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2119" data-original-width="2119" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo3b7yeb_qyIg_ESqCuuxRMwxoCYsNT_VxFRFBeNmjctbxFStMNzIdCmr9b6uF1Er8c0dW-XsbBpG-yWtBB_2Rhuu6W5hPtMGrzFHrx93x_pmlOiIOHrYIe73FM0aEgeCkjclo5JpjWzlXsQ79jtmjBWOVwmrwIvWT1_hB5oMMT_8MQjGsnucj0qcinQs/w396-h396/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%204.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div><br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrT-MW_viUDTEXdOyGi2nF0fpBMpMhY9HWom3AjA7MFpvQ949PmIKzDi5Cn2UvqS-gVLO95SrBKoKdvFZevm2CUNC5NpJDPAY3AiLBAidxnGweCduZ5qYKOpEUGfs9vcrIrrGud0Dsga4nYTT6qvCcnGBiqtAx0B8IVIBBxkWdgpvLXkXRshTGoMOqmZQ/s2246/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%203.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2245" data-original-width="2246" height="397" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrT-MW_viUDTEXdOyGi2nF0fpBMpMhY9HWom3AjA7MFpvQ949PmIKzDi5Cn2UvqS-gVLO95SrBKoKdvFZevm2CUNC5NpJDPAY3AiLBAidxnGweCduZ5qYKOpEUGfs9vcrIrrGud0Dsga4nYTT6qvCcnGBiqtAx0B8IVIBBxkWdgpvLXkXRshTGoMOqmZQ/w397-h397/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%203.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><br /><div>The very first thing I did was open it up and take a look inside. It was hard to tell from the emails exactly what was going on in there, so my anticipation was insanely high.</div><div><br /></div><div>Well, Ralph Bridges must have known he had something really special here because the circuit is completely encapsulated in an opaque epoxy resin.</div><div><br /></div><div>This is not unlike the infamous "brick" inside of an <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2016/05/ampeg-scrambler-sc-1-1969.html" target="_blank">Ampeg Scrambler</a>, and also not any less of a kick in the stomach for pedal nerds like myself. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOD6M_iHEmqd_RRzT_wn9JDjVlpTLUfD7WljEHFdnZ8bvjGSe9BoqxncO6AxnhNTEusNs6yX3IscdtIeGJE90YagjqjtOUWk_vj8knlNQFjz84bO6YmnSFiD4yvWQvkimE0lLHC1nuR_4DNog1EQAUs-fcV_8N03GFCjbulN-DhxJQ4mksQ1cYSpruunk/s2250/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%205.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2250" data-original-width="2250" height="397" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOD6M_iHEmqd_RRzT_wn9JDjVlpTLUfD7WljEHFdnZ8bvjGSe9BoqxncO6AxnhNTEusNs6yX3IscdtIeGJE90YagjqjtOUWk_vj8knlNQFjz84bO6YmnSFiD4yvWQvkimE0lLHC1nuR_4DNog1EQAUs-fcV_8N03GFCjbulN-DhxJQ4mksQ1cYSpruunk/w397-h397/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%205.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><br /><div>That initial disappointment aside, what is notable about the guts is that the enclosure seems entirely too small to hold a true Fuzzmaster circuit (which is essentially a 2 transistor fuzz that's smashing a treble booster). So even though this pedal matches most of the details described in the May 16th ad, I can't see how it would be possible to fit both the "improved" fuzz circuit and the "inbuilt treble boost" into such a tiny space.</div><div><br /></div><div>The other thing to note are the components we can see, like the two resistors and that big yellow cap hiding below the wires. Including the pots, jack and switch, everything matches up pretty well with a 1966 release.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, let's see how it sounds.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfU79NIT6JbsuUvxsiwdOFjgsslEh6ZFD3MEIstSGW7I6hWXCLxLqPf2j_UopaRudOCI9qDmtkKeaBEtl6QTZlcG2_LaRVtlsIxyRVEaBt7HBXjm8LuActMuYPe7lOJquGYcmDTJ7EwVbuFtLlxeoDSLjiiOCLukEVgMrA5L4tcSxUt2a_lCwDJNwPun8/s2169/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2169" data-original-width="2169" height="397" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfU79NIT6JbsuUvxsiwdOFjgsslEh6ZFD3MEIstSGW7I6hWXCLxLqPf2j_UopaRudOCI9qDmtkKeaBEtl6QTZlcG2_LaRVtlsIxyRVEaBt7HBXjm8LuActMuYPe7lOJquGYcmDTJ7EwVbuFtLlxeoDSLjiiOCLukEVgMrA5L4tcSxUt2a_lCwDJNwPun8/w397-h397/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: red;"><b>GODDAMN!!!</b></span></div><div><br /></div><div>Well the first thing to note is that this generates an enormous volume boost. Even with the fuzz set to its lowest, this is loud as hell. I compared it to my original MKIV Fuzzmaster <i>and</i> my d*a*m Fuzz Supreme, which is a clone of an original green Fuzzmaster. And when it comes to pure volume it blows both away.</div><div><br /></div><div>The actual tone is different too. </div><div><br /></div><div>Against my MKIV, this is much more aggressive. In addition to being louder, it's also gainier, fatter, and kicks out more midrange. The MKIV also gates in a really cool way, sort of in the vain of an FZ-1; but this other pedal sustains for days, not unlike a Big Muff or a Rat.</div><div><br /></div><div>Compared to the d*a*m Fuzz Supreme, the overall tone is bit closer, but still pretty different. There is just something "organic" about this that's hard to describe. The closest thing maybe, would be how a real <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2023/04/mki-tone-benders-full-on.html" target="_blank">MKI Tone Bender</a> would sound if it had a baby with a <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2013/01/perfboard-triangle-big-muff-v1-1970.html" target="_blank">perfboard Muff;</a> just raw, pure, and a bit unhinged. The d*a*m version is much more articulate and does a bit of that scooped-mids thing we associate with a Civil War Muff, while this pre-Fuzzmaster spews its thick crunchy midrange from every orifice.</div><div><br /></div><div>No joke, and hyperbole aside, this is one of the best fuzz pedals I have ever heard.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEVSRtTkRP-vKgjnsvHGfRm2qNiP0IAYQ7KADpNhJcIVHoEiTPpTdbQ6bleLKJA4ULG7vA6GTTOUZerQSY_TgM7BKNAvsO8YKYLKcO4AybyK9M3z5D3aJQOSO9MES_zHFCbe8i2fprM_62qvLnP9Xs1F14Nej4ZXmTW_HPLuv39pydY9fsTmciHi3tUBU/s2267/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%207.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1971" data-original-width="2267" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEVSRtTkRP-vKgjnsvHGfRm2qNiP0IAYQ7KADpNhJcIVHoEiTPpTdbQ6bleLKJA4ULG7vA6GTTOUZerQSY_TgM7BKNAvsO8YKYLKcO4AybyK9M3z5D3aJQOSO9MES_zHFCbe8i2fprM_62qvLnP9Xs1F14Nej4ZXmTW_HPLuv39pydY9fsTmciHi3tUBU/w398-h346/Claybridge%20Fuzzmaster%20MKII%207.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><span style="color: #bf9000;">While I have you here, I wanted to take a second and point out something that I noticed recently.</span><div><span style="color: #bf9000;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #bf9000;">This is my MKIV Claybridge Fuzzmaster. As you can see it's gold. And I have always thought that Claybridge used gold, in addition to the silver hammerite paint. But then I really looked at it again, and this very spot made me rethink my original assessment.</span></div><div><span style="color: #bf9000;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #bf9000;">Notice how the gold paint goes up over the metal plate? And how you can see silver peaking out underneath. Well, I'm an idiot, and this has almost certainly been repainted at some point.</span></div><div><span style="color: #bf9000;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #bf9000;">I will throw myself a bit of grace as only 3 of these have surfaced over the years. Although the other 2 are definitely silver. :) So I apologize for any confusion my gold Fuzzmaster has caused.</span></div><div><br /></div><div>Alright, thanks for reading.</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-55492503034854767862024-03-06T12:22:00.001-05:002024-03-06T12:22:07.105-05:00Aria Distortion Sustainer RE-102 (1975?)☟<div>Aria, a brand that is mostly known in the stompbox world for their 80s <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/10" target="_blank">Dual Stage Series</a> (which happen to be some of my favorite vintage effects), initially began manufacturing pedals in the mid-70s with their <i>RE</i> Series. Releasing different types of phasers, boosts and distortions, arguably the greatest of them all was the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/re/102" target="_blank">RE-102 Distortion Sustainer</a>.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirdIvINUWjGZge3hia4FKK1GL06iXuqSRlgrBFTioY_81U_hSyh0em1ucpHVtyqunq17zpjAPov-0jdtoIGOJrEA6vxjJX2kD3V48kfct0G6QtijuW1-POpwizOvlT7-FpifXlBXWIbpa2dePg3tfrULbCWoZ1_RuaQNoNewZPzKgE3cyXaVdhyV8zuCU/s2462/20231109_204349.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2462" data-original-width="2080" height="447" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirdIvINUWjGZge3hia4FKK1GL06iXuqSRlgrBFTioY_81U_hSyh0em1ucpHVtyqunq17zpjAPov-0jdtoIGOJrEA6vxjJX2kD3V48kfct0G6QtijuW1-POpwizOvlT7-FpifXlBXWIbpa2dePg3tfrULbCWoZ1_RuaQNoNewZPzKgE3cyXaVdhyV8zuCU/w398-h447/20231109_204349.jpg" width="398" /></a></div>Aria Electronics (aka Arai & Co. Inc.) has an interesting history when it comes to effects. In 1968 they released their first pedal, an unlabeled OEM version of the infamous <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2011/12/sekova-fa-ii-fuzz-1969.html" target="_blank">Sekova wedge fuzz</a>. The following year they released another OEM series, this time built by Thunder Electronics, that utilized the <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2011/11/royal-fuzz-box-tf-1-rf-1-1969.html" target="_blank">Royal Fuzz</a> and <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/rp2" target="_blank">Wah/Fuzzes</a>. And finally, under the <i>Aria Diamond</i> label they contracted Maxon/Ibanez to build another set of <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/diamond" target="_blank">Fuzzes and Wahs</a>, which are probably recognizable to even the casual pedal collector. <div><br /></div><div>All of this jumping around does make sense for the time, as Aria had been a guitar brand since the mid 50's. And just like countless others in the late 60s, they decided to dive into the burgeoning pedal game in the easiest way possible, by paying to have their logo slapped on someone else's creations. </div><div><br /></div><div>That is of course until the mid 1970s...<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhA7R-W1XzjMlAIm-g8vDjYRC-JdPrDyRtWSt43SqV1_VyaBBYSZoNy-tkCnMjSHaGMryiYjc27XSfKo_VlBQddElQLf5sFTgWD_UTWiRN20YPLDBEnRPBnPX0QzZ8j-vRzzZdk_d6eaAZpydzv8lWZV5OmvjZhfUjgkwM0gKKrOF-S-FbL359nymwl4o/s1080/Super%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%20RE-203%20-%206.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="846" data-original-width="1080" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhA7R-W1XzjMlAIm-g8vDjYRC-JdPrDyRtWSt43SqV1_VyaBBYSZoNy-tkCnMjSHaGMryiYjc27XSfKo_VlBQddElQLf5sFTgWD_UTWiRN20YPLDBEnRPBnPX0QzZ8j-vRzzZdk_d6eaAZpydzv8lWZV5OmvjZhfUjgkwM0gKKrOF-S-FbL359nymwl4o/w398-h312/Super%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%20RE-203%20-%206.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /><p><br /></p></div></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL19CRBhLgOJZCAVCdXfotR7K_IPAIcDAzVypIf8qr9G1bTAY5LszYjzA_fZgjf0wEigd8W-ey_lLu42ImwmKpB_FTvchg-IAUBn8KX04K8pkav94VS6hZ8HuDDI9cEWWpyTF7rj1-XfYXsXQintNGPtVPKcC9nCZqS7M8ox1lcQgc5AObYX8EQUGIk_Y/s1600/Super%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%20RE-203%20-%207.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="373" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL19CRBhLgOJZCAVCdXfotR7K_IPAIcDAzVypIf8qr9G1bTAY5LszYjzA_fZgjf0wEigd8W-ey_lLu42ImwmKpB_FTvchg-IAUBn8KX04K8pkav94VS6hZ8HuDDI9cEWWpyTF7rj1-XfYXsXQintNGPtVPKcC9nCZqS7M8ox1lcQgc5AObYX8EQUGIk_Y/w399-h373/Super%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%20RE-203%20-%207.jpg" width="399" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhrUCMzylWfQRdGe3U34lOL0gdlAqFINZkQCgg0sv4B1EDFkaDIKZO4j_G1aL65zr6h5yEO4FxV_EVAySIaAe8ayOKq3PfVxpOJADhuvjrNP4zC7xV_zldhinYgAFRH9LCWXTLn9dc-CY8htbxJnAT-yW3Yl7xNYodAcGBUtg7UekeTujDCRObeBK6ahI/s2700/Super%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%20RE-203%20-%209.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2116" data-original-width="2700" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhrUCMzylWfQRdGe3U34lOL0gdlAqFINZkQCgg0sv4B1EDFkaDIKZO4j_G1aL65zr6h5yEO4FxV_EVAySIaAe8ayOKq3PfVxpOJADhuvjrNP4zC7xV_zldhinYgAFRH9LCWXTLn9dc-CY8htbxJnAT-yW3Yl7xNYodAcGBUtg7UekeTujDCRObeBK6ahI/w398-h312/Super%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%20RE-203%20-%209.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>In 1974(?) Aria released a new line of effects known as the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/re" target="_blank"><i>RE</i> Series</a>. No longer outsourced, and going with the trend of the time (lead by brands like MXR, Univox and Maxon), they featured enclosures with a smaller footprint. And while they initially came in a generic yellow-colored project box, Aria quickly wised up and switched over to a much cooler custom metal enclosure that had a textured black paint job similar to Electro Harmonix. </div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #ffd966;">*One odd fact to note is that Aria not only began building their own pedals at this time, but they completely flipped the script and began licensing them out to other brands! There was even at least one <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/royal/re202" target="_blank">Royal branded pedal</a>, in addition to a few other notable OEMs like <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/arbiter/soundhouse" target="_blank">Arbiter</a> and <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/vox/aria" target="_blank">Vox</a>.</span></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLOFNmWpuc-ieLmC76w6B_Hd5zg09lWgvcnpICWd2VSbbqaphGzX91c1d62EMRxUvBZlM7yRuswdacFchRKR1-yyAl7Kkx5MXPdVAdB2jaMeGy1nqbCrPQtP7xz0pKFRIZBmX840CnfLS-xc_bMdw5t6fZbka_W7lM_QLmo3UxVtrfP9bw0RRIeRd7SvI/s1600/Royal%20Aria%20Jet%20Phaser.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLOFNmWpuc-ieLmC76w6B_Hd5zg09lWgvcnpICWd2VSbbqaphGzX91c1d62EMRxUvBZlM7yRuswdacFchRKR1-yyAl7Kkx5MXPdVAdB2jaMeGy1nqbCrPQtP7xz0pKFRIZBmX840CnfLS-xc_bMdw5t6fZbka_W7lM_QLmo3UxVtrfP9bw0RRIeRd7SvI/w399-h300/Royal%20Aria%20Jet%20Phaser.jpg" width="399" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>So how good was the RE Series?</div><div><br /></div><div>Their phasers aside, the first distortion effect they put out was called the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/re/distortionbooster" target="_blank">Distortion Booster</a>. It was much closer to an overdrive / <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/mxr/m104" target="_blank">Distortion+</a> than a full-on fuzz. Cool, but unfortunately nothing to write home about. </div><div><br /></div><div>Then came the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/re/80" target="_blank">Power Booster</a>, which was pretty much exactly what it sounds like. And while it's not going to take the place of your <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/univox/unidrive" target="_blank">Uni-Drive</a> any time soon, it does do a nice job of slamming the front of your amp (i.e. an <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/eh/lpb1" target="_blank">LPB-1</a>). </div><div><br /></div><div>And finally a <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/re/82" target="_blank">Treble</a> and <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/re/81" target="_blank">Bass</a> boost were both added to the mix. Again, no <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/dallas/rangemaster" target="_blank">Rangemasters</a> here, but both pedals accomplish what it is advertised.</div><div><br /></div><div>So this brings us to the first real fuzz in the RE Series; the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/eh/bigmuffpi#pictures" target="_blank">Big Muff</a>-inspired RE-102 Distortion Booster. <span style="color: #c27ba0;">*t</span><span style="color: #c27ba0;">his release date is a bit of a mystery, but my best guess is 1975, and at the very earliest, late '74.</span> It featured a modified Triangle Muff circuit that removed both the recovery gain stage and the tone control found in a typical Big Muff. This created a beautiful, crunchy and wooly fuzz that sounds like a lower gain Muff going into a dirty tube amp. To me it's closest sonic cousin isn't even a Muff at all, but one of my other favorite fuzzes, the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/vox/jen/distortionbooster" target="_blank">Italian Vox Distortion Booster</a>. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdi1d1sPfaZpZPSPZllxr5vYnSuZxNy9_R15mx8NtNmFtEIEvvAshPm2bJMVxiovhIUNPaiCYo8EkYHNADhmAQd1hqdKqxYTolku8YXDtZ2XYaTMstHCC3KZtI_WnFUYeX7OVFLWcEEpeDWIGhpOuSTAWgOAUixAXkk4FO6yinALBEUzj9jCWoInz9RvU/s2485/20231109_204239.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2485" data-original-width="2224" height="445" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdi1d1sPfaZpZPSPZllxr5vYnSuZxNy9_R15mx8NtNmFtEIEvvAshPm2bJMVxiovhIUNPaiCYo8EkYHNADhmAQd1hqdKqxYTolku8YXDtZ2XYaTMstHCC3KZtI_WnFUYeX7OVFLWcEEpeDWIGhpOuSTAWgOAUixAXkk4FO6yinALBEUzj9jCWoInz9RvU/w398-h445/20231109_204239.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_XzSVmH5kaQzITHeQARUONsdMhvX8E9DyYkjUDeJ8L4rh0ZvcxCooWpEAUtOLRGVJuuQwt-czGp1SlBBpLFGagtkSPut1xHbhPd5VXp6ukPJpnz9ndzzeYggeJoJe21i2KFkEANsLEJulafJLKXAlLB9YfZ68cLOCWkuZKWc2jQbV_EfFmCxR1nk2fQg/s2401/20231109_203005.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2401" data-original-width="2268" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_XzSVmH5kaQzITHeQARUONsdMhvX8E9DyYkjUDeJ8L4rh0ZvcxCooWpEAUtOLRGVJuuQwt-czGp1SlBBpLFGagtkSPut1xHbhPd5VXp6ukPJpnz9ndzzeYggeJoJe21i2KFkEANsLEJulafJLKXAlLB9YfZ68cLOCWkuZKWc2jQbV_EfFmCxR1nk2fQg/w398-h422/20231109_203005.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>So after completely nailing a very cool interpretation of the Big Muff you would think that Aria would just have stopped there.</div><div><br /></div><div>But obviously they didn't, because released at the very same time as the RE-102 was the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/re/203" target="_blank">RE-203 Super Fuzz Sustainer</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>This was essentially the same exact pedal, but contained the missing tone control portion of the circuit, complete with a "Tone" pot (just like a real Big Muff!).</div><div><br /></div><div>Unfortunately in doing so it did affect the overall sound a bit. The Super Fuzz Sustainer lacks in both the volume and gain that the Distortion Sustainer seems to kick out in the final turn of the knobs. And it is precisely in this spot where the real Muffy magic happens.</div><div><br /></div><div>So while the cooler looking, bigger boxed, better named pedal (that also happens to be much more common) is fun, it just misses the mark on BIG fuzziness and playability. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxGKYpihhIprDzYJRcJjw_qRJOS8GZYJS2FHG-HfHnKoLjVEoCPIKCdV51DdXYkF-pzBnjOvroV7rcG7YCIvT5HRMCnn4g_U5jSwFfP5E03cHG96MaCYtwYqwRy3hto6VnXUgjGLRq7G28i2NbqOhlMxvyQzGM9zkaWYNXIKHlfSnDRlxAdx_N96C70Rg/s1600/Super%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%20RE-203.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="532" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxGKYpihhIprDzYJRcJjw_qRJOS8GZYJS2FHG-HfHnKoLjVEoCPIKCdV51DdXYkF-pzBnjOvroV7rcG7YCIvT5HRMCnn4g_U5jSwFfP5E03cHG96MaCYtwYqwRy3hto6VnXUgjGLRq7G28i2NbqOhlMxvyQzGM9zkaWYNXIKHlfSnDRlxAdx_N96C70Rg/w399-h532/Super%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%20RE-203.jpg" width="399" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>What is really cool/interesting is that both pedals share the same circuit board. But even though the Distortion Sustainer was first in serial numbering, it actually uses the RE-203 board and not the other way around!</div><div><br /></div><div>Another thing to note about the board is that they both have a series of unused holes. Which raises a couple of questions: </div><div><br /></div><div>-Was there a 4 transistor/true Big Muff version that has just not surfaced yet? </div><div><br /></div><div>-Was it a financial/business decision where they decided they could get 90% of the way there and save some cash on less parts? </div><div><br /></div><div>-Was yet another 3rd party responsible for this Aria line, and did they produce a "true" Big Muff for someone else???</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf7I5huLcpDUFZUHA5AM3qae7Buy-HpPGNqxkxd1JCGFMa6n49H30oUneYNu4fL-CZ84Tf-EQlHuJDBx94MV4PEsnGDbiSCfdCLmsPeje2Xuo4JMcOI7NnSFl1sC8x3Z9AlSSybMN-cF4-x2DBAhhuCtPzE25JMTNFa-Sib4-X3VobWl-AIPcSMR4mMdg/s2522/Aria%20Distortion%20Sustainer%20RE-102.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2522" data-original-width="2057" height="488" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf7I5huLcpDUFZUHA5AM3qae7Buy-HpPGNqxkxd1JCGFMa6n49H30oUneYNu4fL-CZ84Tf-EQlHuJDBx94MV4PEsnGDbiSCfdCLmsPeje2Xuo4JMcOI7NnSFl1sC8x3Z9AlSSybMN-cF4-x2DBAhhuCtPzE25JMTNFa-Sib4-X3VobWl-AIPcSMR4mMdg/w398-h488/Aria%20Distortion%20Sustainer%20RE-102.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnnNRP2vwwsIM-NXy_uprnxVlPJPzaw4ipmCRryKH9GD40k6U_m9wHCPRdL1Tivuo0azBnK5hWW8aAZW1yW1VB16joYJ5LXs6vumv4tD1nSGby47tY6Q6VO_Z3bQSSYkzZbEoAsyoz37myfAx6nzASToK14OK89pjI3W0gKrnl8YdLyYJG1CNczbopiRw/s1880/Aria%20Distortion%20Sustainer%20RE-102%203.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1877" data-original-width="1880" height="395" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnnNRP2vwwsIM-NXy_uprnxVlPJPzaw4ipmCRryKH9GD40k6U_m9wHCPRdL1Tivuo0azBnK5hWW8aAZW1yW1VB16joYJ5LXs6vumv4tD1nSGby47tY6Q6VO_Z3bQSSYkzZbEoAsyoz37myfAx6nzASToK14OK89pjI3W0gKrnl8YdLyYJG1CNczbopiRw/w396-h395/Aria%20Distortion%20Sustainer%20RE-102%203.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoKZJnvz1JKtDAdXW2fzi09tsChm1_sNoHAEiKABw8qMNQfa5AgxOW_32meryU-EnuJJjke7iMmT5ZjzQDd8_L843Km9bxvITVQlkkTVxTzBNVIJ9mFov1oskgXwxqSdj9AE-VgYRnv0HssU4sSBFG34PO8huOBEb5zUpV0hpSXAFYRozpW-XLhucss1s/s1600/Super%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%20RE-203%20-%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="529" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoKZJnvz1JKtDAdXW2fzi09tsChm1_sNoHAEiKABw8qMNQfa5AgxOW_32meryU-EnuJJjke7iMmT5ZjzQDd8_L843Km9bxvITVQlkkTVxTzBNVIJ9mFov1oskgXwxqSdj9AE-VgYRnv0HssU4sSBFG34PO8huOBEb5zUpV0hpSXAFYRozpW-XLhucss1s/w397-h529/Super%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%20RE-203%20-%202.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><br /><div>It also could very well be nothing. 😂</div><div><br /></div><div>What is true is that by the mid 70s Japan was flooded with Big Muff style pedals. Brands like <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/elk/bigmuff" target="_blank">Elk</a>, <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2012/08/guyatone-sustainer-fs-6-1973.html" target="_blank">Guyatone</a>, <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/mirano/ef1" target="_blank">Mirano</a>, <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2023/03/sekova-big-muff-se-2015-1972.html" target="_blank">Sekova</a>, and <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2011/04/maxon-d-od-801-vs-ibanez-overdrive-od.html" target="_blank">Ibanez</a> all had their version of the circuit. And while most of them took a more straight-up approach, Aria and Guytone where the two stand-outs, with their modded lower gain offerings.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'm definitely more of a "more gain is better" kind of person when it comes to fuzz. But when done well, a pedal can really shine in the lesser of extremes. And the Aria Distortion Sustainer is 100% that.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh70OC3rHn47ny-BGEi6vK5ahORmIOeROcYX5eUL5Ka56tKNWX2TcCZpx7DU69XX-4eo9vtiNuZqxMLNWI0-2mx2tryY-1TYgN0dvm9G_qjnvRlbiudzzSsHlm10TBFlAapfQsxpAGcWjN82IalWXL6j4Sb4kHtvy_OmSCuzZ3R9HoXE9t_aq1wrwMtKpw/s2739/Aria%20Distortion%20Sustainer%20RE-102%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2739" data-original-width="2268" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh70OC3rHn47ny-BGEi6vK5ahORmIOeROcYX5eUL5Ka56tKNWX2TcCZpx7DU69XX-4eo9vtiNuZqxMLNWI0-2mx2tryY-1TYgN0dvm9G_qjnvRlbiudzzSsHlm10TBFlAapfQsxpAGcWjN82IalWXL6j4Sb4kHtvy_OmSCuzZ3R9HoXE9t_aq1wrwMtKpw/w396-h478/Aria%20Distortion%20Sustainer%20RE-102%202.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>If you happen to come across one, don't hesitate because they are not easy to find. But they are pretty damn awesome when you do!</div><div><br /></div><div>thanks for reading,</div><div>-Ed</div></div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-793353305201606672024-03-01T20:26:00.005-05:002024-03-01T20:29:04.850-05:00Elk Big Muff demo time / /☟<div>This has been online for a few years, but never featured here.<p>So check out one of my favorite mid 70s Japanese Big Muff copies, the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/elk/bigmuff" target="_blank">ELK Big Muff Sustainar</a>!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="331" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1U_XVdO1uI0" width="398" youtube-src-id="1U_XVdO1uI0"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="330" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Do7c8S0FDX0" width="397" youtube-src-id="Do7c8S0FDX0"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Thanks for watching!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-36381545354840066082024-02-28T14:06:00.002-05:002024-02-28T14:23:41.001-05:00Kurosawa The Fuzz☟<div>As we like to do here at Tone Machines, today we're going to look into another pedal of mysterious origin. This is <i>The Fuzz</i>, or as the internet has dubbed it, <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/unknown/japan/thefuzz" target="_blank">Kurosawa The Fuzz</a>. It's a 6 transistor monster, that for the most part, is a <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/univox/superfuzz" target="_blank">Super Fuzz</a> copy. All things point to an early 80s build, and definitely from Japan. But unfortunately that is where our solid(ish) information ends...<p>So today we're going to do as deep a dive as possible and grab from all of the currently existing info to see what we can come up with!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ6Se7pBNGol9bDvAFK6grzypJVi9BUVAx5WlYgfEBB1FjHtbNkdUHsUuYOcBt4eHH6mEDI9XJ56JKsneZA08BrMyrRQXes30j85pUEAu437aZBowQYRc8oX-ubYaAA8fVx2qHTTl-ZK7HtM8aTC8MiQp4cZL0ChY_tLxdGGIm4XppNz9-Ul57XaduR-4/s2102/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%20.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1844" data-original-width="2102" height="349" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ6Se7pBNGol9bDvAFK6grzypJVi9BUVAx5WlYgfEBB1FjHtbNkdUHsUuYOcBt4eHH6mEDI9XJ56JKsneZA08BrMyrRQXes30j85pUEAu437aZBowQYRc8oX-ubYaAA8fVx2qHTTl-ZK7HtM8aTC8MiQp4cZL0ChY_tLxdGGIm4XppNz9-Ul57XaduR-4/w398-h349/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%20.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div>So first, the things we do know 100% from holding two of these in my hands: </div><div><div><br /><div>A. They sound and act just like a Super Fuzz / FY-6.</div><div><br /></div><div>B. The circuit board has "PRAT-7" and "Kurosawa" printed on it.</div><div><br /></div><div>C. The circuit itself has 6 transistors and a single op-amp. Although the op-amp doesn't seem to do too much tone-wise.</div><div><br /></div><div>D. The components are all consistent with other early/mid-80s Japanese builds. </div><div><br /></div><div>E. The bottom plate has "Japan" embossed on it.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhalSnQAV67kcmES4qUH5-MrVpPfX5okhSQ5D9huHgF5Yk1sStwHMhaApyUJ_D3z6j-nkN5I6sYbD5D8VtDFDvE6P8DrgoJ5qQQgdwIQd40QxMosp7OfXBGhEjQj6AGimQis-OyfAvaPe1DqQjkfGcw8ARMK48gcbNRyPZL-sVgJTY0qjrtXuOerWVXSA8/s2268/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2094" data-original-width="2268" height="367" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhalSnQAV67kcmES4qUH5-MrVpPfX5okhSQ5D9huHgF5Yk1sStwHMhaApyUJ_D3z6j-nkN5I6sYbD5D8VtDFDvE6P8DrgoJ5qQQgdwIQd40QxMosp7OfXBGhEjQj6AGimQis-OyfAvaPe1DqQjkfGcw8ARMK48gcbNRyPZL-sVgJTY0qjrtXuOerWVXSA8/w398-h367/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%202.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGCvp2XomNYSVFVCWy76XkoW6bLgLAyVvC1pbJoqUNLYBDmT7nW6KoaCp2AZR_-cW3hzM2YmxhQ6752FwncDzRwrPRm9m6BcTT9xIkTnFy3DGudh-h3UM4DEMiaZizpPM4VvRdFnr-mJjDt7Qw_7vLYVbTNeoJAdcsQ51oTJHJ7_JrGzDpgDAqvsXeu5Q/s2296/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%203.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2119" data-original-width="2296" height="367" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGCvp2XomNYSVFVCWy76XkoW6bLgLAyVvC1pbJoqUNLYBDmT7nW6KoaCp2AZR_-cW3hzM2YmxhQ6752FwncDzRwrPRm9m6BcTT9xIkTnFy3DGudh-h3UM4DEMiaZizpPM4VvRdFnr-mJjDt7Qw_7vLYVbTNeoJAdcsQ51oTJHJ7_JrGzDpgDAqvsXeu5Q/w398-h367/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%203.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div>I was really hoping that some day an ad, or old magazine article, or even an actual box would pop up and we would get a clue to the brand behind <i>The Fuzz</i>. But after a decade or so of scouring the net I came across nothing. </div><div><br /></div><div>Until last year, when a friend of the blog reached out to show me that he had just purchased a beautiful boxed version!</div><div><br /></div><div>Unfortunately it didn't help much to solve the mystery, but we did get to see the original price of ¥1980. And while it failed to have any sort of shop sticker, or date, it is really cool just to finally see a box! 😍</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQyH0b1z01yEny-Hx83nYCyxTBS6WDrV54oB23WvArJrV3BPOZ7zM8Pi-XhqHFsy21uefW1x_QjEz_tg-AnuSYQBHm3ap1_ZosHA1VblW47EH0hBgpHoZZ3RRCQWYmACd99i6thZPZV_6p8e4C7FOSnzqTXTtSaTNk_nxVZOPM4OP_65y9CkxVxHDMuLU/s834/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%20with%20Box.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="626" data-original-width="834" height="299" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQyH0b1z01yEny-Hx83nYCyxTBS6WDrV54oB23WvArJrV3BPOZ7zM8Pi-XhqHFsy21uefW1x_QjEz_tg-AnuSYQBHm3ap1_ZosHA1VblW47EH0hBgpHoZZ3RRCQWYmACd99i6thZPZV_6p8e4C7FOSnzqTXTtSaTNk_nxVZOPM4OP_65y9CkxVxHDMuLU/w398-h299/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%20with%20Box.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div>I have read/heard some rumors about who may be responsible for <i>The Fuzz</i>. One of them was that the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/guyatone/ps03x/ps030" target="_blank">Guyatone PS-030 Fuzz</a> from the late 80s was essentially the same pedal, circuit and all. And that there may be a connection.<div><br /></div><div>So I looked into this theory, and while the two do share similar sonic qualities (aka Super Fuzziness) the construction, the usage, and the components are just so different that I am going to have to rule this one out. </div><div><br /></div><div>Awesome and underrated pedal though!</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLchWB51hpjTbW2UTnAzxHNjm9-1BhwJ9EqVJkqim9yYNHG_G6hGzpTQfniuWEAqu47Y4Dd4raKx0fzExPod0iTTUWyGafOw19yYFfnRvXF_9lnkjKhubDtO89dx7tI1GgRHymNWY-ahNdSkbenpVj9uBVxTBEcM9El51XuwWHTVGt8SgbG1IBF43LD7U/s1600/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%208.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1421" data-original-width="1600" height="354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLchWB51hpjTbW2UTnAzxHNjm9-1BhwJ9EqVJkqim9yYNHG_G6hGzpTQfniuWEAqu47Y4Dd4raKx0fzExPod0iTTUWyGafOw19yYFfnRvXF_9lnkjKhubDtO89dx7tI1GgRHymNWY-ahNdSkbenpVj9uBVxTBEcM9El51XuwWHTVGt8SgbG1IBF43LD7U/w399-h354/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%208.jpg" width="399" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb9TLH3sbk3wfplDeqJHa_TPRJBcirAUp7Lmd4I39aB8iU41dryC2hhcE2nPyBTvJBboG4GlCSNk_V84DjoFogn7tGrZelVhsmPg29SrkJK0pS3fWBtAJDv-7vBSkBqucB3p8nOm1QRjMUPu1ru4NTx8TNhRABF9kOJjzEabdqBC7uU1X4hd9SMGsEFMk/s1078/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%206.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="906" data-original-width="1078" height="335" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb9TLH3sbk3wfplDeqJHa_TPRJBcirAUp7Lmd4I39aB8iU41dryC2hhcE2nPyBTvJBboG4GlCSNk_V84DjoFogn7tGrZelVhsmPg29SrkJK0pS3fWBtAJDv-7vBSkBqucB3p8nOm1QRjMUPu1ru4NTx8TNhRABF9kOJjzEabdqBC7uU1X4hd9SMGsEFMk/w399-h335/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%206.jpg" width="399" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Next is the supposed connection that some people swear is the smoking gun.<div><br /></div><div>"What about that enclosure??? It sure looks a lot like the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/locobox/70s/mystodysto" target="_blank">Locobox pedals</a> from the same time period, from Japan. And they're known for licensing to OEM brands. CASE CLOSED!!!"</div><div><br /></div><div>Ok, so let's look into Locobox and see what other similarities we can find, if any.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKYW31uPqrVq3vo0nOv1E6Y4V_kk-eD2zZjkKNTCQDKQLc7CT2_17ia_ye3HkP6p02VCNcw3TrUSStYLYjWgoSFHytGO3I2Y6SMj4pzOONep7TrYOqUOhMzeTSsbIeBIZeVqgJv15g3GnIve6H9htGEEeM98h-rb0IQu_TxY_UC7NNo3OtljV4XIpIC9E/s800/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%207.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="299" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKYW31uPqrVq3vo0nOv1E6Y4V_kk-eD2zZjkKNTCQDKQLc7CT2_17ia_ye3HkP6p02VCNcw3TrUSStYLYjWgoSFHytGO3I2Y6SMj4pzOONep7TrYOqUOhMzeTSsbIeBIZeVqgJv15g3GnIve6H9htGEEeM98h-rb0IQu_TxY_UC7NNo3OtljV4XIpIC9E/w399-h299/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%207.JPG" width="399" /></a></div><div><br /></div>As you can see, the enclosures for both pedals are actually the same! I can't deny that. Same size, same little slant on the front, same rounded corners, everything.<div><br /></div><div>Now I do fancy myself a bit of a pedal detective (lol) and this was something I noticed around 2009 when I first became aware of the Kurosawa fuzz.</div><div><br /></div><div>And if we just take the enclosure, it does seem to be a pretty enticing conclusion. But if you keep looking, even at just the outside of the pedal, lots of small differences start to emerge.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuJL6J21Px1PrkUbCdWPuIChXWDoSUJeONQy9VzBL8z2_s6gIPS08xL70vUIgzY_KZ6xvY-fdY5VpYEM9355W7xjyws4sLBSGXgVVGn0TI-ewDqtAWxuc0PCjZs3fKfkaD0aO-Ym4VOZPF7mSiAB2jC8OZ4N10PgmOqrMzZILmuuyZP2dH6OpvtxuM_og/s1291/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%204.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1291" height="371" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuJL6J21Px1PrkUbCdWPuIChXWDoSUJeONQy9VzBL8z2_s6gIPS08xL70vUIgzY_KZ6xvY-fdY5VpYEM9355W7xjyws4sLBSGXgVVGn0TI-ewDqtAWxuc0PCjZs3fKfkaD0aO-Ym4VOZPF7mSiAB2jC8OZ4N10PgmOqrMzZILmuuyZP2dH6OpvtxuM_og/w399-h371/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%204.jpeg" width="399" /></a></div><div><br /></div>So let's take a look at this <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/electra/500/502c" target="_blank">Electra Compressor</a>, which was built by Locobox and shares the same circuit as their legendary "<a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/locobox/70s/choker" target="_blank">The Choker</a>" pedal. <div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #c27ba0;">Locobox built pedals for a ton of other brands like <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/rolling/501p" target="_blank">Rolling</a>, <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/nadines/old" target="_blank">Nadines</a>, <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/boston/phase501" target="_blank">Boston</a>, <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/volz/electra/phase501" target="_blank">Volz</a>, and more. All of them use the exact same circuits, placement of jacks and pots, and wiring. The only variation I have found is the bottom plate and a couple of them use different knobs.</span></div><div><br /></div><div>So if we know that for the most part, all of the OEM Locobox pedals are built the same, then we quickly begin to see some differences with the Kurosawa.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix25ScJN14XIzR9F8b9JyAyVLrpw9FpcprfPuqmYEDDkH8LWO0JSc6RPb8lZHELcyMlAoICP5-ZP6ZpBkS7PWqnMxIIHDYdH-JZNKsIsP0E3BklTaRQwLkEt41DctJc1osLexSt-sGwag_TgBahmzW_rOquLgkr__G_31DbbNkzjK0pvokpN0wKlU2xsg/s2277/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%209.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2277" data-original-width="2267" height="401" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix25ScJN14XIzR9F8b9JyAyVLrpw9FpcprfPuqmYEDDkH8LWO0JSc6RPb8lZHELcyMlAoICP5-ZP6ZpBkS7PWqnMxIIHDYdH-JZNKsIsP0E3BklTaRQwLkEt41DctJc1osLexSt-sGwag_TgBahmzW_rOquLgkr__G_31DbbNkzjK0pvokpN0wKlU2xsg/w400-h401/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%209.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Take the input/output jacks. Every one of the Locobox pedals has the jacks below the slant of the enclosure. While the Kurosawa clearly has them above. <div><br /></div><div>Now while I didn't take a photo to compare, you're just gonna have to trust me on this one, but the 9v jack is on the top right of each Locobox pedal and is a completely different type; while the Kurosawa's 9v jack is on the top left.</div><div><br /></div><div>The bottom plates do not match up either. There are 3 variations in the Locobox builds, but none of them use the plastic, battery holder snapout like the Kurosawa does.</div><div><br /></div><div>I will give you a couple of similarities though; the LED and the footswitch placement are the same. But those both seem to be pretty logical spots given the enclosure, and could have even been pre-drilled?</div><div><br /></div><div>Ok so the outside seemed to fail the test, but what about the inside. Surely that's the clincher...</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR8eGdz4l-UyvOt74UMz7rulagilSNVGveE5AMK6C7OgtMk2a-mUCRqtnJ0ZTmnVsLscK8ErmUnzszyqEKVwD1YHP2GsFA310MUCQV5xVquSDYo_lvKOFrGTK0oooDeddNDJUpobJDz9tHDnG96CudJHRauRKGgo9MC5-yy1crHFxiWNeW-D9QvI8W1mE/s1214/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%205.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1062" data-original-width="1214" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR8eGdz4l-UyvOt74UMz7rulagilSNVGveE5AMK6C7OgtMk2a-mUCRqtnJ0ZTmnVsLscK8ErmUnzszyqEKVwD1YHP2GsFA310MUCQV5xVquSDYo_lvKOFrGTK0oooDeddNDJUpobJDz9tHDnG96CudJHRauRKGgo9MC5-yy1crHFxiWNeW-D9QvI8W1mE/w400-h350/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%205.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>So here are two Locobox pedals opened up. The boards are consistent with every other variation/OEM; all showing a serial number on the bottom right and the wiring connections to the left. </div><div><div><br /></div><div>Notice that the serial numbering system is completely different (compared to "PRAT-7" we just get a string of numbers followed by a single letter). But also there is nothing printed on the board that mentions not only Kirosawa, but no brand name at all. </div><div><br /></div><div>And finally, if you look back at <i>The Fuzz</i> board above, you'll notice the wiring connections are located at the bottom, not to the left.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSc_R9wKmPkEZ7m-6oAMqgf3eK47uUEsBU4vencClLx0ruAL2O-KJ4hn2zH9Zth-ZOtdkSTJBl1iia5K-XL_R8FQ56RFOikmC4PnsKhx-JfFeJd5qlhDP_0UvgHdudEzns8KkEYcIuWnifrGkpGTm_bQcSbvyMU9azG5iHdExclfcdfrYI0uHJnPlGCfk/s375/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%2010.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="288" data-original-width="375" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSc_R9wKmPkEZ7m-6oAMqgf3eK47uUEsBU4vencClLx0ruAL2O-KJ4hn2zH9Zth-ZOtdkSTJBl1iia5K-XL_R8FQ56RFOikmC4PnsKhx-JfFeJd5qlhDP_0UvgHdudEzns8KkEYcIuWnifrGkpGTm_bQcSbvyMU9azG5iHdExclfcdfrYI0uHJnPlGCfk/w398-h306/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%2010.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>The most convincing argument though has to be that Locobox never released their own Fuzz pedal.</div><div><br /></div><div>Even if we look into the connection with <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria" target="_blank">Aria</a> (who were the distributers for Locobox, and even co-promoted them as a part of their own brand), we don't see a fuzz pedal that would have been out at the same time. The <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/re/203" target="_blank">mid-</a><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/re/203" target="_blank">70s Aria fuzzes</a> are completely different inside, and the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aria/a1/afz1" target="_blank">late 80s Aria fuzz</a>, in its plastic enclosure, is also a totally different animal than any of the Locobox pedals or the Kurosawa fuzz.</div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: red;">So what can we take from all of this?</span></div><div><br /></div><div>I think the most simple answer is, <i>The Fuzz</i> and Locobox purchased their enclosures from the same place. </div><div><br /></div><div>That's it. No other connection there!</div><div><br /></div><div>And I bet if we dig a little deeper we can find even more pedals from this era that also used the same enclosure. I honestly haven't looked at all, but I would put money on it.</div><div><br /></div><div>I definitely did not mean to make this a post about the history of Locobox, but hey, it happens.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6CkUQMXSYzhQMW9VIFmXKn_5peOBOg_EP_ssuZC7bnn9qi2E2V8lmfq1WLgeGc6jEyien5SWw2gpM-ckwy8zSs4mhLG7HQNg40svK9UlrF2FAGNcGleOwOspQ6rg8bn1pt1naDZE_mKvKAnssO3nSfs57remBqW5doQd_UT2nxRoc3vrlT8gP6m4OgM8/s1079/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%2011.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="1079" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6CkUQMXSYzhQMW9VIFmXKn_5peOBOg_EP_ssuZC7bnn9qi2E2V8lmfq1WLgeGc6jEyien5SWw2gpM-ckwy8zSs4mhLG7HQNg40svK9UlrF2FAGNcGleOwOspQ6rg8bn1pt1naDZE_mKvKAnssO3nSfs57remBqW5doQd_UT2nxRoc3vrlT8gP6m4OgM8/w397-h298/Kurosawa%20The%20Fuzz%2011.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Well, what do I think is the actual origin of the Kurosawa fuzz? If I really had to guess, my assumptions would point me in the direction of the Kurosawa Musical Instruments shop in Japan. This has been one of the largest and longest running guitar stores in the country and it would make sense that they not only had an in-house fuzz pedal, but that they could simply call it <i>The Fuzz</i> because the brand <b>IS</b> them. </div><div><br /></div><div>Sadly we still do not know for sure who built these, or really anything more than when we started. But hopefully this post helps to pull some new facts out of the dust, and we can an update it at some point in the near future.</div><div><br /></div><div>As always if you happen to have additional info, agree or disagree with anything I've posted here, please message me via <a href="mailto:eddieeugene@gmail.com" target="_blank">Email</a> / <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ed_skymall/" target="_blank">Instagram</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks for reading!</div><div>-ed</div></div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-33712246288117749872024-02-23T23:50:00.007-05:002024-02-24T01:00:59.007-05:00Carruthers Dyna-Soar Fuzz☟<div><span style="color: #ffa400;">A couple of months ago I finally added something to the collection that I had been hunting for... a while.</span></div><div><span style="color: #ffa400;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpg7RNXw9bo9scgP2DckCYiBGxtUxcILEflyvMqr8Aqy2yRTCpRSgioUL7EeGgE2c9cpKdbTJb47eely62uCYG5wTIIGqOVBfZ_t2Yj1LeSlVgtIGmkgBqnFNSjfNPH_pAeU_x_d9JKdQ4LFDKS5fZRh-KFSmibvpSBJcWqSNrBStSUhEDiAOWyT9NPxQ/s320/Kim%20Gordon%20Board%20Dyna%20Soar%20Fuzz.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="320" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpg7RNXw9bo9scgP2DckCYiBGxtUxcILEflyvMqr8Aqy2yRTCpRSgioUL7EeGgE2c9cpKdbTJb47eely62uCYG5wTIIGqOVBfZ_t2Yj1LeSlVgtIGmkgBqnFNSjfNPH_pAeU_x_d9JKdQ4LFDKS5fZRh-KFSmibvpSBJcWqSNrBStSUhEDiAOWyT9NPxQ/w396-h298/Kim%20Gordon%20Board%20Dyna%20Soar%20Fuzz.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>In the mid 2000s there was a mysterious pedal that began to haunt guitar forums. The only thing we had to go off of was this super blurry/grainy photo. The photo, from 1998, was of Kim Gordon's live board, and featured this black pedal with yellow text that seemed to read "Dyna ___?". </p><p>After more searching and internet scouring from the nerds, it was revealed to be a fuzz called the <i><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/carruthers/dynasoar" target="_blank">Carruthers Dyna-Soar</a></i>. It was made sometime in the 80s in New York, and was a Big Muff clone with enough volume and gain on tap to level entire city blocks; which was pretty perfect for Sonic Youth. And from what the internet tells me the Dyna-Soar is featured on this track "Wildflower Soul" (most likely at the intro and then from 6:35 on). //</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="329" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NBWehsXQcsI" width="396" youtube-src-id="NBWehsXQcsI"></iframe></div><p>Sadly the Dyna Soar would wind up on a list of gear that was stolen from Sonic Youth while they were on the road in 1999. And since then, another one would not emerge for over a decade! </p><p>Fast forward a bit to 2012 when I came across my very first siting of a true Carruthers Dyna Soar. Which was awesome, but there was something noticeably different about it, as the text was orange instead of yellow and it definitely said <i>Dyna-Soar <b>Lite</b></i>. So what was going on here? </p><p>Well as it turns out Carruthers also made a more chilled version of the pedal, which happens to be about 5 times more common, that sits comfortably in the dirty overdrive category as opposed to the fuzz family. But lucky for me the owner of this pedal had modded it back to it's original non-lite version, as it was technically the exact same circuit but with an odd configuration of the transistors. And after his mods brought it back to it's full wall-of-fuzz Muffy glory it was now punishingly loud and sounded exactly like how I assume the end of the world will sound.</p><p>So for the past decade+ I had been trying to find myself an original Dyna-Soar fuzz (minus the Lite) but had only ever seen 1 come up for sale. Which was cool because anytime I see 1 of something I know that <b>A.</b> they definitely exist, and <b>B.</b> time will eventually bring another one out of hiding. </p><p>Then finally this past December patience paid off, and to my mind-blowing surprise what would I see pop up online, but an original Dyna-Soar fuzz!!! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJedI0GOvBxzOzpcunCM8_0bEorRwaL3Mea-oScLQWSSVC6FQFFI4o0Ljb6LqhT2x8Zj0B0v6vKVrIsFzO86upNYDzKbifBarGrJqsJIOEZD6H30DMOx8HYy9BCvke863llb0kFaO2Ro_UUCYjO7ji7fHTK1DdgA_HUmANbBSJA402LjoGhiL5Bx5Pqk0/s1834/Carruthers%20Dyna%20Soar%20Fuzz%20Lite.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1832" data-original-width="1834" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJedI0GOvBxzOzpcunCM8_0bEorRwaL3Mea-oScLQWSSVC6FQFFI4o0Ljb6LqhT2x8Zj0B0v6vKVrIsFzO86upNYDzKbifBarGrJqsJIOEZD6H30DMOx8HYy9BCvke863llb0kFaO2Ro_UUCYjO7ji7fHTK1DdgA_HUmANbBSJA402LjoGhiL5Bx5Pqk0/w398-h398/Carruthers%20Dyna%20Soar%20Fuzz%20Lite.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div>What a cool take on the Big Muff! This thing is <b>LOUD</b>, beefy, gainy, mean, and just huge sounding all around. The only other Muff style pedal I can compare it to would be the Maxon OD-801, which itself is like a super high gain Civil War Muff. <div><br /></div><div>When I play this against my modded Dyna-Soar Lite it has a bit more low end, and gives a nice textural crunch in the mids. It's also more "organic" sounding, as my Lite can almost be too abrasive and full-on at times.</div><div><br /></div><div>I am so pumped to now own both of the Dyna-Soar fuzzes, although I probably need to find an unmodded Lite version.. ugh, it never ends!</div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #c27ba0;">The final thing I will leave you with is a small possible clue to the origin of these pedals. On the back of my Lite version is a sticker that reads <i>Dalbec Audiolab - Rensselaer, NY 12144 US</i>. I looked into Dalbec and it appears as though it was/is a sound system manufacturer and distributer. (check their <a href="https://dalbec.com/our-history-1" target="_blank">website here</a>) But unfortunately nothing about making hi-fi systems implies that they had anything to do with making fuzz pedals... But who knows! At the very least it requires a bit more digging</span><span style="color: #c27ba0;">.</span></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXhUSVL3ebqTWhe204zbkKPmQeF5GNdxjK3kRy5tA_nIhKrkNyz-sZABJYJI_gWnscIvTAepAe6BQBD20IhVt9R82aIC9ukt0ELi-4yXvbVCjdUlz5Dxj8TWVyEpX7PYkiRdsZtcyqUG0xZLxkKFi6rYKTdYWX76P3uH09G5I_r7GWGaG3pZsM8ZW95WQ/s2276/Carruthers%20Dyna%20Soar%20Fuzz%20Lite%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2276" data-original-width="2268" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXhUSVL3ebqTWhe204zbkKPmQeF5GNdxjK3kRy5tA_nIhKrkNyz-sZABJYJI_gWnscIvTAepAe6BQBD20IhVt9R82aIC9ukt0ELi-4yXvbVCjdUlz5Dxj8TWVyEpX7PYkiRdsZtcyqUG0xZLxkKFi6rYKTdYWX76P3uH09G5I_r7GWGaG3pZsM8ZW95WQ/w397-h398/Carruthers%20Dyna%20Soar%20Fuzz%20Lite%202.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Well, as always if you happen to know anything about the origin of the "Carruthers" Dyna-Soar Fuzz please reach out via <a href="mailto:eddieeugene@gmail.com" target="_blank">Email</a> / <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ed_skymall/" target="_blank">Instagram</a>. I would love to hear from you. <div><br /></div><div>Thanks for reading,</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-50245582663095149392024-02-21T17:17:00.005-05:002024-02-21T17:34:21.642-05:00A White (BUD Box) DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp?☟<div><span style="color: #ffd966;">I'm not sure how well I have made it known over the years, but to me the best overdrive pedal ever made is the DOD 250. I can honestly gush for hours about how good they sound, and even longer about their history and all the different versions over the years (but we'll save that for a later post).</span><p>One thing that has been rumored to exist, in nerdy pedal collector circles, is a very briefly-lived DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp housed in an off-white colored "BUD" box enclosure. We know for sure that about a year or two after DOD officially launched with their original <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/dod/first/electronicphasor" target="_blank">big box pedals</a>, they decided to move in the direction of a trending style at the time. And that trend was all about MXR and the smaller pedals that took over the 2nd half of the 70s.</p><p>And while I have never personally owned one of these "Bud" box DOD pedals, I have seen photos of a few existing units over the past couple decades.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmVsGxC9M3jJKYzcCjHfM7O29Tl6cbThp5Z2_V8fhNhCPlvzOr1veQjPY8tTZT1AgOXC1NWDA9TyjXMCsNxzYBVltJSHwGWJDBgO520jhDUHtLyE7AbKL7DIGNVSyr6ZcNrm3Qeyj4EEVdkiJnul3eKCtArP_o4gnyokh9k2HqpCkdyMzYky3W1K_lHEM/s997/FET%20Preamp%20Bud%20Box.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" border="0" data-original-height="783" data-original-width="997" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmVsGxC9M3jJKYzcCjHfM7O29Tl6cbThp5Z2_V8fhNhCPlvzOr1veQjPY8tTZT1AgOXC1NWDA9TyjXMCsNxzYBVltJSHwGWJDBgO520jhDUHtLyE7AbKL7DIGNVSyr6ZcNrm3Qeyj4EEVdkiJnul3eKCtArP_o4gnyokh9k2HqpCkdyMzYky3W1K_lHEM/w398-h312/FET%20Preamp%20Bud%20Box.jpg" title="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_JG1HSvfwbnpbP4hFmxBl2uHqbuprVH3JOv7mkgQdr2FjaJIQ_Mij86W7wPXUBE1DGScRMp31JhboKbC9OBQZmR5Hk0-mZ1HddIk1bjELNCpNh7hor95X720FCm0vwNdkEFzcIGchHqsgQsLX2KJspMDaeC7EySVtTsAZgDfLJ2YSrKXP-S14DfAvYkI/s374/Phasor%20Bud%20Box.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" border="0" data-original-height="374" data-original-width="311" height="479" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_JG1HSvfwbnpbP4hFmxBl2uHqbuprVH3JOv7mkgQdr2FjaJIQ_Mij86W7wPXUBE1DGScRMp31JhboKbC9OBQZmR5Hk0-mZ1HddIk1bjELNCpNh7hor95X720FCm0vwNdkEFzcIGchHqsgQsLX2KJspMDaeC7EySVtTsAZgDfLJ2YSrKXP-S14DfAvYkI/w398-h479/Phasor%20Bud%20Box.jpg" title="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><br /><div><br /></div><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifB0Gap2gsU9E91GtZIfOGiSONy2VDHT96SRJlYq-k9SGb-d79bYWhVJBG-AiKhyW9tMnZk1hB-Nzyg_reb5cVmNO1sG_B8YFBpqSlrJVl6e0tOEVTjA4EyNadogvmt7SAeU4R60ocLlnBL4gPKVjRwVjcxvAD9ejwKJLgf_PDe6SRz4ZpnSTTltI_cK0/s775/Compressor%20Bud%20Box.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" border="0" data-original-height="770" data-original-width="775" height="395" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifB0Gap2gsU9E91GtZIfOGiSONy2VDHT96SRJlYq-k9SGb-d79bYWhVJBG-AiKhyW9tMnZk1hB-Nzyg_reb5cVmNO1sG_B8YFBpqSlrJVl6e0tOEVTjA4EyNadogvmt7SAeU4R60ocLlnBL4gPKVjRwVjcxvAD9ejwKJLgf_PDe6SRz4ZpnSTTltI_cK0/w397-h395/Compressor%20Bud%20Box.jpg" title="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div>If you don't already know the story; around 1975/76 in an attempt to capture the new small-pedal market, DOD and ROSS decided not only to use suspiciously "similar" circuits to MXR, but also the exact same enclosures! <div><br /></div><div>The BUD box (which was basically a generic metal electronics project box) was the enclosure of choice. In fact there are a slew of pedals from the 70s that are all the same size and shape precisely because BUD were the go-to.</div><div><br /></div><div>But unfortunately for ROSS and DOD, they just got a little too big for MXR's liking and a cease and desist was issued.</div><div><br /></div><div>So in 1977 (which coincidentally was the same year MXR stopped using BUD boxes themselves) DOD came up with their own enclosures, which we all recognize now as <b>THE</b> 70's enclosure associated with the brand.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK7vYGHrV03zPkQRBxJPjkGd7junp0aSZF4-lkqXikpdehNci5_sgj6fJ6i-0qPKJU7YvG9hwkdhnuO1fR3z4ZwhgENZk0nGzXUsEjzb0ILdrWpN-xi44bcqFoJp3VPKpktvTTG5Kh9D7L3Z203XhzzPyzRG-hYztygSkcwPkNM-72H_qUghEgXOaBfNE/s2216/DOD%20Fall%201977%20ad.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" border="0" data-original-height="2216" data-original-width="2216" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK7vYGHrV03zPkQRBxJPjkGd7junp0aSZF4-lkqXikpdehNci5_sgj6fJ6i-0qPKJU7YvG9hwkdhnuO1fR3z4ZwhgENZk0nGzXUsEjzb0ILdrWpN-xi44bcqFoJp3VPKpktvTTG5Kh9D7L3Z203XhzzPyzRG-hYztygSkcwPkNM-72H_qUghEgXOaBfNE/w398-h398/DOD%20Fall%201977%20ad.jpg" title="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>This ad from the Fall of 1977 is the earliest one I could find that not only shows the classic DOD enclosures, but also announces them as the "new" <i>200 series</i>, and highlights their "extra rugged pressure die-cast case(s)".</div><div><br /></div><div>So... this all begs the question, <b><span style="color: #ffd966;">Was there a DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp that was built and sold in the BUD box era?</span></b></div><div><br /></div><div>At this point it is hard to know! If I were to go by serial numbers alone my earliest grey 250, from roughly the Fall of 1977, should be the 1,001'st unit ever made. </div><div><br /></div><div>Should be.</div><div><br /></div><div>But I have discovered grey 250s from 1980 that have EARLIER serial numbers!!! So after seeing this (the earliest being 250-0559) my first thought was that maybe they printed the serials for what was supposed to be BUD box 250s, but after getting the cease and desist from MXR they decided to hold off on production until they could make a new enclosure. And then for some reason they just kept a few hundred serial stickers until 1980 when they decided to recycle them way out of order??? but who really knows!</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUBypKkoCr8DM7R9pcu5PoVH8s9v1-Ddo6Zpaalw1Gzo30W-oKuW89l6NnCBMb1UaCLxWp-ldpDrnD3RlQhsk9hUzsBuLEWg-aYc-D6e5f4ytWryeHzCqn1iHFKVjIgIIOuQdViJAUkOQI07tx1hQpW8cRVx726cMHWMK60oIvi6Yxa1Ykfu4PdwqLI10/s864/2500559.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" border="0" data-original-height="864" data-original-width="864" height="397" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUBypKkoCr8DM7R9pcu5PoVH8s9v1-Ddo6Zpaalw1Gzo30W-oKuW89l6NnCBMb1UaCLxWp-ldpDrnD3RlQhsk9hUzsBuLEWg-aYc-D6e5f4ytWryeHzCqn1iHFKVjIgIIOuQdViJAUkOQI07tx1hQpW8cRVx726cMHWMK60oIvi6Yxa1Ykfu4PdwqLI10/w397-h397/2500559.jpg" title="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" width="397" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The corners of the circuit boards in the BUD box DOD pedals are all cut at an angle, just like the old MXR pedals. And so far I have yet to see one of the classic DOD enclosures utilized those cut boards. Which hints at one of two conclusions; either they decided to sell through all remaining stock of the BUD box pedals, or they trashed them and started fresh in the Fall of 1977. </div><div><br /></div><div>(I'm sure there is a 3rd option too, like they exist and I have just never seen one, but I needed to add some kind of drama to keep you on your toes)</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_4NxlByblB7ILtAz4hCjkSus7EPFzEi20rOGIiao2DR1M72rsNjFdBIVkkYBDS7aWpefZvr_VQmP2YbL8AAtB2cyF-dBovBDu27thyphenhyphenEJOXAL8qXhp0m9eAofaKAdGOyQa5sTS8WJdh9wnuAf8g5wi2GHGJquDEBxgMHXy8IY2NA39tEdHKiS-PX29eSc/s2268/DOD%20250%20Overdrive%20Preamp%20grey.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" border="0" data-original-height="2169" data-original-width="2268" height="379" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_4NxlByblB7ILtAz4hCjkSus7EPFzEi20rOGIiao2DR1M72rsNjFdBIVkkYBDS7aWpefZvr_VQmP2YbL8AAtB2cyF-dBovBDu27thyphenhyphenEJOXAL8qXhp0m9eAofaKAdGOyQa5sTS8WJdh9wnuAf8g5wi2GHGJquDEBxgMHXy8IY2NA39tEdHKiS-PX29eSc/w396-h379/DOD%20250%20Overdrive%20Preamp%20grey.jpg" title="BUD Box White DOD 250 Overdrive Preamp" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div>As of now, this one above, which is my oldest 250, is the earliest I have been able to find. <div><br /></div><div>And while I have heard stories from two separate people who swear they have seen/owned a BUD box version, I have to hold out belief until I see one for myself. </div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #ff00fe;">Even if it's just a photo, I'll take it!</span></div><div><span style="color: #ff00fe;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #ff00fe;">Come on universe! </span></div><div><span style="color: #ff00fe;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #ff00fe;">Give me something!!! </span></div><div><br /></div><div>Well, as we always do about this time, if you happen to have ever seen or owned any of the BUD box DOD pedals I would love to hear from you; (<a href="mailto:eddieeugene@gmail.com" target="_blank">Email</a> / <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ed_skymall/" target="_blank">Instagram</a>) but especially if you have any information about the BUD box 250 Overdrive Preamp.</div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">*a big thank you to all the owners of the BUD box pedals above. I appreciate your documentation for posterity. </span></div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks for reading,</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-2894679892755422022023-12-13T19:52:00.003-05:002023-12-13T19:55:35.441-05:001967 Jordan Juniors Collection☟<div>In 1967 Jordan Electronics introduced 3 small plugin effects (possibly modeled off the VOX plugin series from 2 years prior?), that included the <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2011/10/jordan-boss-boost-1967.html" target="_blank">Boss Boost</a>, the legendary <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2011/10/jordan-boss-tone-1967.html" target="_blank">Boss Tone</a>, and the newest addition to my collection, the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/jordan/vicovibe" target="_blank">Vico Vibe</a>! <p>They called this series the "Jordan Juniors", and up until now it has been nearly impossible for me to find all three... I lucked out about 12 years ago and came across both the Boss Boost and the v1 1967 Boss Tone within a few months of each other. But, it took this long to finally nab a Vico Vibe, and I'm so pumped!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU4HmpNT1Fe_cmHH_QV2Z_KJDcxFq3jcSZ6r2k4gzmg1hTVKggc4dkSHNv_3vgYbYN451aY53JXz3VH_P5EcqJqJBh5zsH1e0ZP_Ku-bBxSX0XcQv1Ohl3kJZwsVl3-oJwWoMnVOQKz24mbKi0RMmyLCVDBIlqCNj9-UknwUlySOl60lgz1lGs7rrLeo8/s1888/20231213_165817.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1888" data-original-width="1888" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU4HmpNT1Fe_cmHH_QV2Z_KJDcxFq3jcSZ6r2k4gzmg1hTVKggc4dkSHNv_3vgYbYN451aY53JXz3VH_P5EcqJqJBh5zsH1e0ZP_Ku-bBxSX0XcQv1Ohl3kJZwsVl3-oJwWoMnVOQKz24mbKi0RMmyLCVDBIlqCNj9-UknwUlySOl60lgz1lGs7rrLeo8/w396-h396/20231213_165817.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><br /><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhirCB_-V6tjwX_gBXTv3L_e8ngYCe0sdGyszRsjYo-PrXKKuaMmKwzM2uWWLmk-1KVnHYTtw-kv7uJsKtYnGYpELjQ5yXwX9MJskHg_vPyj3XJNMMPllDvcqUuGggx9gdGvJaLBpBgnzbrNKysFdKGJIyP7jvm8QSkkhDSr6acexgM4C2zMVNUjd04AWo/s1799/IMG_20231213_123759_145.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1799" data-original-width="1440" height="495" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhirCB_-V6tjwX_gBXTv3L_e8ngYCe0sdGyszRsjYo-PrXKKuaMmKwzM2uWWLmk-1KVnHYTtw-kv7uJsKtYnGYpELjQ5yXwX9MJskHg_vPyj3XJNMMPllDvcqUuGggx9gdGvJaLBpBgnzbrNKysFdKGJIyP7jvm8QSkkhDSr6acexgM4C2zMVNUjd04AWo/w396-h495/IMG_20231213_123759_145.jpg" width="396" /></a></p><p>After getting this in today I realized a few things; 1, The Vico Vibe logo is essentially the same design as the infamous <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVAa3FTt7krwzn_VmPUpmNLZJOBtrkIKsrIlOWPtMVLcQH4yw5UT_5HfwVMG46GVJ9zoh5J_RwwHFlglEz3SpQ3LpN9W_Z5fKCzONfCMRBfQ9Jl8dTogTD77q9lZ7jO_o_vYqLAKErwfQ/s1600/Jordan+original+pic.jpg" target="_blank">1966 "prototype" Boss Tone</a> which has never seen the light of day. 2, I realized a very small detail that leads me to believe that there are 2 versions of each effect! and 3, now I have to find those variations to really complete the collection. </p><p>It's never-ending. hahahahahahelpme</p><p><br /></p>thanks for reading,<br />-ed</div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-64781236396347525322023-12-04T00:19:00.005-05:002023-12-04T00:32:47.031-05:00Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass ???☟<div><span style="color: #8e7cc3;">I'll be honest, a lot of times while digging through old catalogs and magazines I come across a pedal I've never seen before and it immediately sends me into a mental quandary; do I keep it quiet and try to find one for myself easily and cheaply, <b>OR</b> do I go ahead, write a post about it and risk making it significantly more difficult to find one, especially at a reasonable price?</span><p>I have been sitting on these photos for a while and really just haven't been able to find any more information than what I could in a couple of old forum posts, which sadly wasn't much at all...</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9LyZ7gqx9UCC1MazXlFkdmE9nDp5lEI9-2N_gB2rqg5jKyfSPsBRY7clbJBhh5HN1z_8Po-c3v8JLqzQtIWDlHcNWgFntAjTedHZVp79pY13-x1KaJGxJ04TXKnw1Zhk-rXP3rMHji4KRCdbUl6cvxx2UG5dtK_IfjZ6pdQ10IQDho9dk_jh0N7n4IRo/s1915/Epiphone%20Distorsionador%20Fuzz-Bass%201.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass" border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="1915" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9LyZ7gqx9UCC1MazXlFkdmE9nDp5lEI9-2N_gB2rqg5jKyfSPsBRY7clbJBhh5HN1z_8Po-c3v8JLqzQtIWDlHcNWgFntAjTedHZVp79pY13-x1KaJGxJ04TXKnw1Zhk-rXP3rMHji4KRCdbUl6cvxx2UG5dtK_IfjZ6pdQ10IQDho9dk_jh0N7n4IRo/w397-h319/Epiphone%20Distorsionador%20Fuzz-Bass%201.jpg" title="Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div>This is the Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass, built in Argentina, I'm guessing some time in the 1970s. It has almost no way of being actually related to Epiphone, which makes it way more amazing!<div><br /></div><div>I have no idea how this thing sounds, and it's pretty hard to figure out what's going on inside, but it looks cool as hell with that pseudo Fuzz Face vibe and the giant footswitch that definitely makes it look like a landmine. </div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6CHT2hx_R6G-RPtprt8DWczU-7vOwd4g2vcqmyLZO9DOLrJP8dnJcrC62kzH8C5nfUVukBKHqfHpZZvBW6DY9vj8ZAOq2rzfyaC1otYw6hu-hc5fXoKuqsD5dKmg5j552YnhzLQamK9M6i1rPJqEIfjtgvT7u9cMb-1wbt9MgubWFFYXIZjpLbn7CxcU/s1592/Epiphone%20Distorsionador%20Fuzz-Bass%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass" border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="1592" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6CHT2hx_R6G-RPtprt8DWczU-7vOwd4g2vcqmyLZO9DOLrJP8dnJcrC62kzH8C5nfUVukBKHqfHpZZvBW6DY9vj8ZAOq2rzfyaC1otYw6hu-hc5fXoKuqsD5dKmg5j552YnhzLQamK9M6i1rPJqEIfjtgvT7u9cMb-1wbt9MgubWFFYXIZjpLbn7CxcU/w396-h382/Epiphone%20Distorsionador%20Fuzz-Bass%202.jpg" title="Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Like I said above, as of now I have only been able to find photos of these two different units. Luckily the owners posted gut shots (I love when that happens). But it would be amazing to know more about these little round oddities.</div><div><br /></div><div>Last year I really went deep into the Argentine pedal scene, one that started way back in the late 60s. And just like the stories I have come across from other countries like Brazil, Australia, and New Zealand, it was near impossible to get gear imported from the US or Europe at the time. So electronics pioneers decided to start their own brands, oftentimes biting names and products directly from other companies abroad. (<span style="color: #e69138;">there's actually an entire scene of Electro Harmonix ripoffs from South America that are truly hilarious in how brazen they were</span>)</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0V0mP_MhU6MRpzripcj4NZJBbf2HvfA-cqzFLb4MVisesSleOpKTkNcphSEFRAOG4Zx5Del4amC1fV-YBUMxDkiOToVodBauRSJzVqAh07F9xe0nAyEou_F0DM1TDh6oDw6ffBUY0F0JQjOfp3z0SBkE0TjrGuOGAPMdYHUNgF1mfM_fCvt-NfHgreEs/s1123/Epiphone%20Distorsionador%20Fuzz-Bass%203.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass" border="0" data-original-height="1016" data-original-width="1123" height="359" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0V0mP_MhU6MRpzripcj4NZJBbf2HvfA-cqzFLb4MVisesSleOpKTkNcphSEFRAOG4Zx5Del4amC1fV-YBUMxDkiOToVodBauRSJzVqAh07F9xe0nAyEou_F0DM1TDh6oDw6ffBUY0F0JQjOfp3z0SBkE0TjrGuOGAPMdYHUNgF1mfM_fCvt-NfHgreEs/w396-h359/Epiphone%20Distorsionador%20Fuzz-Bass%203.jpg" title="Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass" width="396" /></a></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS0RvTq1HdvkTag_ExmgymsJnxuVEsmlbuVgj-y39inFZdwvnvs_h17S2CiEYfjKrApIbEYz8IYV-6wpJAXs6Bbtqqo0mbpmu3b6uUqQ3lY42dgWCQcNQpXSDkr9CFM9pfmIo4Kf2s0QNIG59py3Wk7-0lOKdPYWF0XMRg-WKv_n-Oow13JY5Gt88YGlg/s1548/Epiphone%20Distorsionador%20Fuzz-Bass%204.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass" border="0" data-original-height="1473" data-original-width="1548" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS0RvTq1HdvkTag_ExmgymsJnxuVEsmlbuVgj-y39inFZdwvnvs_h17S2CiEYfjKrApIbEYz8IYV-6wpJAXs6Bbtqqo0mbpmu3b6uUqQ3lY42dgWCQcNQpXSDkr9CFM9pfmIo4Kf2s0QNIG59py3Wk7-0lOKdPYWF0XMRg-WKv_n-Oow13JY5Gt88YGlg/w396-h376/Epiphone%20Distorsionador%20Fuzz-Bass%204.jpg" title="Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass" width="396" /></a></div><br /></div><div>So as it goes with most of my mystery pedal posts, if you happen to own an Epiphone Distorsionador Fuzz-Bass pedal, or happen to know any actual details about them, please send me a message via <a href="mailto:eddieeugene@gmail.com" target="_blank">EMAIL</a> or <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ed_skymall/" target="_blank">INSTAGRAM</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>thanks for reading,</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-32144608738341527582023-11-20T21:50:00.009-05:002023-11-21T10:05:25.285-05:00Is This The Earliest Big Muff Ad?☟<div><span style="color: #ffa400;">There has been quite a bit of debate over the years about <b>when</b> exactly the Big Muff was released...</span></div><div><br /></div><div>I first started collecting back in the early 2000s and most people thought then, based on Triangle Muff pot codes, that 1968 was the definitive answer to this question. But as collectors and other fellow nerds dug into it a bit more, 1969 seemed much closer to the actual year. <p>But now with the endless amount of archived print media that exists there has yet to be a single ad or mention of the Big Muff before May of 1970 that anyone has been able to find; making that 1969 guess seem kinda wrong. And it's not just that the Big Muff didn't appear until that date, but that there are plenty of earlier EHX ads that show their full offering, minus the Muff.</p><p>Well, a few months ago I started buying up old copies of <i>Crawdaddy</i>, which was a bi-weekly Rock n' Roll newspaper out of New York that started in 1966 and ran through to 1979. And right there, on page 39, issue number 6, was the earliest ad I had seen showing a Big Muff! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6M-u0Ey-NHF-bDtkO8uiTN4jQz30pybdD5go66y6tMpEa8xjiedjBUrGaEI8lme8XdZu2pa1RhejpAQF0zTluzAqVBbKP5LLlH3AaUCjXmIJtWSm2olkS_jhgcaODqR5sLF7ra-DdyClc5LOVD-gI45ctoCGXO1sGqyvj4s0kOtWqeZFfzTz40c9AcrA/s3097/1st%20Big%20Muff%20Advertisement%201970.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Big Muff ad 1970" border="0" data-original-height="1689" data-original-width="3097" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6M-u0Ey-NHF-bDtkO8uiTN4jQz30pybdD5go66y6tMpEa8xjiedjBUrGaEI8lme8XdZu2pa1RhejpAQF0zTluzAqVBbKP5LLlH3AaUCjXmIJtWSm2olkS_jhgcaODqR5sLF7ra-DdyClc5LOVD-gI45ctoCGXO1sGqyvj4s0kOtWqeZFfzTz40c9AcrA/w395-h216/1st%20Big%20Muff%20Advertisement%201970.jpg" title="Big Muff ad 1970" width="395" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Being bi-weekly this issue either came out in the middle of March or beginning of April 1970, depending on when they started that year. But there are a few good clues, like ads for the upcoming releases of the "<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Isaac_Hayes_Movement" target="_blank">Isaac Hayes Movement</a>" album and Booker T & the M.G.'s "<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McLemore_Avenue" target="_blank">McLemore Avenue</a>" album, which were both released on Stax in April of 1970. </div><div><br /></div><div>But as cool as this is, in terms of Big Muff history, it does still leave the question unanswered as to when the legendary fuzz actually came out. I'm hoping to some day find an even earlier ad proclaiming the wonders of the "NEW BIG MUFF!!!", or something equally obvious. </div><div><br /></div><div>Until then I'm going to keep digging through old magazines, newspapers, and pdf's...</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjowbngWIX4Eb465z8QIU0yYLRBf5wWRLfojdFIViCez0TUShEGgS2RC8eJDZ_pS-fHHEXwY5ETwbauQRMJ2N9V1RIaX8yx-ZuCBodzVdSAj45gwaWJplB9WhxtBbCHvEN-9w5QUYG6Hrk1HHJlbrEtGziOJuPjR5hHapjqCearq2HeisKqde2LMTu6mjo/s2912/Crawdaddy%20magazine%20vol%20iv%20number%206.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Crawdaddy Vol. IV no. 6 1970" border="0" data-original-height="2912" data-original-width="2268" height="508" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjowbngWIX4Eb465z8QIU0yYLRBf5wWRLfojdFIViCez0TUShEGgS2RC8eJDZ_pS-fHHEXwY5ETwbauQRMJ2N9V1RIaX8yx-ZuCBodzVdSAj45gwaWJplB9WhxtBbCHvEN-9w5QUYG6Hrk1HHJlbrEtGziOJuPjR5hHapjqCearq2HeisKqde2LMTu6mjo/w395-h508/Crawdaddy%20magazine%20vol%20iv%20number%206.jpg" title="Crawdaddy Vol. IV no. 6 1970" width="395" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div>Thanks for reading! And if you happen to be sitting on potentially earlier Big Muff history, please reach out via <a href="mailto:eddieeugene@gmail.com" target="_blank">email</a> or an <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ed_skymall/" target="_blank">Instagram message</a>.</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-40104325431111576442023-11-04T00:39:00.007-04:002023-11-04T08:34:08.527-04:00Sam Ash Fuzz-Stainer (The Return)☟<div><span style="color: red;">12 years ago I found a mysterious red pedal while sifting through ebay at 1am. I had no clue what it was, but the inside looked fuzz-esque so I went for it... After a few months of digging and extensive internet chatroom debates, I realized that I had actually stumbled upon an original <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/samash/fuzzstainer" target="_blank">Sam Ash Fuzz-Stainer</a>; </span><span style="color: red;">an insanely rare pedal </span><span style="color: red;">from the early to mid-70s. </span><p><span style="color: red;">If you've followed this blog for a while you may have come across the first article I wrote on that very pedal shortly after figuring out what it was</span>. (<a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2012/02/sam-ash-fuzz-stainer-197.html" target="_blank">HERE'S THE LINK</a>)</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE5EOObSJPzATTw5u5gzMH_8U0LWguRPJ2KnnktxEwV498x8N7KwKmR-FtDhYOKEkTgqpcPlFblEmvM1En9N415ASOIl8Lw7O323mB8v02OHxvDPMQSkJpcm91YgvZqvbmusE_rl2bLgF1PWJW49vCMKs4f4vOw6NuY_gHlU3YLzv0INxI9MN_hMIZvnI/s2222/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2222" data-original-width="2222" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE5EOObSJPzATTw5u5gzMH_8U0LWguRPJ2KnnktxEwV498x8N7KwKmR-FtDhYOKEkTgqpcPlFblEmvM1En9N415ASOIl8Lw7O323mB8v02OHxvDPMQSkJpcm91YgvZqvbmusE_rl2bLgF1PWJW49vCMKs4f4vOw6NuY_gHlU3YLzv0INxI9MN_hMIZvnI/w398-h398/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer%202.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><p>Well, after this discovery I sent it off to the incredibly talented pedal-builder <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/jerms" target="_blank">Jerms</a>, who traced and cloned it for me. (maybe some of you are lucky enough to own one of his copies?)</p><p>Later on we both decided to make his schematic public; so I went back and added Jerms' work to the end of my article. Shortly afterwards the diy pedal scene exploded with Fuzz-Stainer clones! And while I was initially surprised at the reaction, this is pretty typical for discoveries of any "new" circuits that have been hiding in almost complete obscurity for the past 30+ years.</p><p>Since then I only knew of one other original unit that existed, owned by Matt Wright of <a href="https://www.wrightsounds.com/" target="_blank">Wright Sounds</a>. He had one for over a decade and ended up cloning it and releasing his version in 2010 as the <i><a href="https://www.wrightsounds.com/shop/btngqlbqlcbbdwhaiqsyzlepgk7cc2" target="_blank">Fuzz-Stang</a></i>.</p><p>Well, after 12 long years of hunting, searching, and scouring, I have finally found a 3rd Sam Ash Fuzz-Stainer!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir74gJQXOeLfaX0VVgw14OlQZAbbVnokYMEbXgBRIds0ktvbGD5LKfjLxlrMyunZo_KoeiTZPWcVLKiiC1MNlrK0UNSKfKsfrP8bfP_D06eULpRjjbZn5QyFlI0RYEOY6BrGKn0vMEbmsqaY9MY26rmokRVIERoVHubMEH08-ZdxTQ9zjVyHCembdFc6M/s2235/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2234" data-original-width="2235" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir74gJQXOeLfaX0VVgw14OlQZAbbVnokYMEbXgBRIds0ktvbGD5LKfjLxlrMyunZo_KoeiTZPWcVLKiiC1MNlrK0UNSKfKsfrP8bfP_D06eULpRjjbZn5QyFlI0RYEOY6BrGKn0vMEbmsqaY9MY26rmokRVIERoVHubMEH08-ZdxTQ9zjVyHCembdFc6M/w398-h398/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer.jpg" width="398" /></a></div>And while I was hoping to finally crack the code of the exact history of these pedals, I now have even more questions...<div><br /></div><div>We still do not know (even after reaching out to the Ash family) just how or why these exist. We don't know when they were sold, how many were made, which stores they were available in, who invented/built them, etc.</div><div><br /></div><div>So hopefully at some point in the future more info will begin to pour in. But what we can do now, at the very least, is look at the 3 existing units and compare them: </div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPcW4zIV0Mj7xOlBMqSHo8YEZppxd-7-vV1FzLD4cLEjilB7ERA57C_0GhkRXrdUJkLG0edliNfle6gviJLsNJhhVDXWRzQrckvV95U3rWCkVu5xAYR5fjWf1CSD3VscSYCXGGzpbwQG3p-QQDSbZ7xb2y8iz0MJwQjGX9MmMUWcptWqVzmSbThu79TPM/s1696/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer%203.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1696" data-original-width="1696" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPcW4zIV0Mj7xOlBMqSHo8YEZppxd-7-vV1FzLD4cLEjilB7ERA57C_0GhkRXrdUJkLG0edliNfle6gviJLsNJhhVDXWRzQrckvV95U3rWCkVu5xAYR5fjWf1CSD3VscSYCXGGzpbwQG3p-QQDSbZ7xb2y8iz0MJwQjGX9MmMUWcptWqVzmSbThu79TPM/w398-h398/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer%203.jpg" width="398" /></a></div>The first thing I noticed is that the same pcb was used for all 3 pedals. And for the most part, it is the same effect in each. But there are definitely differences between them, some more glaring than others.<br /><p>For a while I thought that my red pedal, since it was missing the original label, was most likely an updated version of the circuit; a "Mark III" possibly. And my main reasoning was based on the open holes in the pcb and the internal trimpot. It's easy to see this and conclude that there must have been an update to the circuit design at some point.</p><p>And if you look at my new Fuzz-Stainer, that conclusion seems even more plausible, as it's clearly the same pcb but with components in every slot and no trimpot in sight... </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz0KtZCD9pFDuY5R1oJWFSxwDUhDx7FoSQOWsCyu6Kuhdl2hfDWaFtc6ZUATQHCdoTsNP3zO_iFc8afkJPSh-nVqWCklxzIcY6a0jjAenOSVCePz8ID88A4hAKVY3lYVuiH4ybq_xaCUjEKS8EHragwvPIFiCh8mIIcRAZAGje8WBreqY5PhVQ2m8qCUM/s1241/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer%204.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="745" data-original-width="1241" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz0KtZCD9pFDuY5R1oJWFSxwDUhDx7FoSQOWsCyu6Kuhdl2hfDWaFtc6ZUATQHCdoTsNP3zO_iFc8afkJPSh-nVqWCklxzIcY6a0jjAenOSVCePz8ID88A4hAKVY3lYVuiH4ybq_xaCUjEKS8EHragwvPIFiCh8mIIcRAZAGje8WBreqY5PhVQ2m8qCUM/w400-h240/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer%204.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjSvOTDEWGX9kxS29-ctakKQXBaCfH1H0ld6zSjqylRXXDnTgieT-AuCbOGITqXamTxMdhmQcy3USrEkPQ31Cf0LVe4JCZAwnUKu13cQWWnnANM-6az-x6UZITWpjBgSq4mVIFoRC2s3fBj4i3pGk3qN_FI_gEMSUY3TrVt2G1-mPP1cw62U2hUJtfAqw/s1281/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer%205.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="765" data-original-width="1281" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjSvOTDEWGX9kxS29-ctakKQXBaCfH1H0ld6zSjqylRXXDnTgieT-AuCbOGITqXamTxMdhmQcy3USrEkPQ31Cf0LVe4JCZAwnUKu13cQWWnnANM-6az-x6UZITWpjBgSq4mVIFoRC2s3fBj4i3pGk3qN_FI_gEMSUY3TrVt2G1-mPP1cw62U2hUJtfAqw/w400-h239/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer%205.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div>But here's where it gets really interesting; the 3rd unit seems to be a hybrid of the other two, and the board is facing downward!!!</div><div><br /></div><div>AND it's labeled as "Mark II", just like my newer unit. Which leads me to believe that all three pedals were "Mark II" Fuzz-Stainers. </div><div><br /></div><div>So then the question becomes, why were all three made differently? Was there a "Mark I" of the circuit? Were these possibly kits of some kind? Did Sam Ash have a pedal building class and this was the project? Or was each pedal really just built to sound its best based on the available components at the time, regardless of consistency?</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTEuAq0rxm6Ewd-fkUt5956K9J_aclZMYECXPBC4AXYyHbcHKwS1yGuCfclQ8Z7WbYu89BB10MyuOkrfalHEYl3Lyq8gA0BOSmDwuEbfOUFM8DfLXfNAl3xq6d032RyK62ZPqxiEJdjA4S9LEmi5PadFK2Hvol1hl5lRV4Ui9p4SUvuaN11DqpWWuRego/s567/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer%206.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="338" data-original-width="567" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTEuAq0rxm6Ewd-fkUt5956K9J_aclZMYECXPBC4AXYyHbcHKwS1yGuCfclQ8Z7WbYu89BB10MyuOkrfalHEYl3Lyq8gA0BOSmDwuEbfOUFM8DfLXfNAl3xq6d032RyK62ZPqxiEJdjA4S9LEmi5PadFK2Hvol1hl5lRV4Ui9p4SUvuaN11DqpWWuRego/w401-h239/Sam%20Ash%20Fuzzstainer%206.jpg" width="401" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Well, as you can see there is literally a ton of information that's still very unknown about these. Obviously they came from Sam Ash (who, until this pedal, had outsourced all other branded gear to a 3rd party manufacturer). At least two of these have stories from original owners who remember buying them from the legendary 48th St. Sam Ash in NYC. And they are most likely from the early to mid 1970s. </div><div><br /></div><div>But other than what we've touched on above, I got nothing! We've reached out to members of the Ash family, who have kept meticulous records and paperwork all these years, but as of yet no mention of the Fuzz-Stainer anywhere.<div><br /></div><div>So if you happen to come across this article and happen to own, have owned, or know anything about the Sam Ash Fuzz-Stainer, please contact me via <a href="mailto:eddieeugene@gmail.com" target="_blank">EMAIL</a> or <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ed_skymall/" target="_blank">INSTAGRAM</a>. I would love to hear from you.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks for reading,</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-33179886932006408392023-11-01T09:50:00.003-04:002023-11-01T10:35:08.601-04:00Sentry Fuzz-A-Tort (1968)☟<div><span style="color: #e69138;">By the late 60s the sweet sound of fuzz was in full bloom, and it seemed like every music magazine had a an endless supply of stompbox-related ads, articles, and reviews. A popular offshoot of this hysteria was the diy guitar fx project; which outlined for the layman exactly how to piece together their own gear.</span><p><span style="color: #e69138;">And one of the true gems of this era came in the form of a small rectangular desktop fuzz box, the</span> <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/sentry/fuzzatort" target="_blank">Fuzz-A-Tort</a><span style="color: #e69138; font-style: italic;">,</span><span style="color: #e69138;"> designed by Sentry Manufacturing Company and released to the world January of 1968.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhRyqKopKPJqbEvWOl11A_rwHO-P6fzpE7o4hivbYhSkMkKw2DrIyT5u5D7IFVU2uzG5n3ygJBU5TwYw_ZFNtTN_QDNIrsJUrl-xAuTS-HbL93dBJ1VdyF1RlUxArGj7SC1LLiCJYPW4und5uNOi9WtG6H5B3r5utxMAsW6w98Q4n0k8tF2ia1HF-u64U/s2268/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="2268" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhRyqKopKPJqbEvWOl11A_rwHO-P6fzpE7o4hivbYhSkMkKw2DrIyT5u5D7IFVU2uzG5n3ygJBU5TwYw_ZFNtTN_QDNIrsJUrl-xAuTS-HbL93dBJ1VdyF1RlUxArGj7SC1LLiCJYPW4und5uNOi9WtG6H5B3r5utxMAsW6w98Q4n0k8tF2ia1HF-u64U/w396-h396/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><p><br /></p><p>The first real introduction of the <i>Fuzz-A-Tort</i> was actually a month earlier, when Elementary Electronics magazine ran this teaser ad in their December 1967 issue; proclaiming that the new "way out" project will bring the reader "way in weird sounds"...</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4u1pjFNapJG6_INwGLLjorM75rBg-pCnv7Xvb3G0Nz6554pjgRStBLkAM3rc1yhyMyRpxcSpU38B4RWA_bemtm7bw0DnxeR8SJkUufxBPxthDSC5KR8vboiFRSiSMbnQMHsHgydu-AhNA81pWFdUa1xCHq3y6kQYpNWPUlEZ6H6oQQPjOyt5yeLpnBlk/s1235/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%207.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1235" data-original-width="1079" height="453" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4u1pjFNapJG6_INwGLLjorM75rBg-pCnv7Xvb3G0Nz6554pjgRStBLkAM3rc1yhyMyRpxcSpU38B4RWA_bemtm7bw0DnxeR8SJkUufxBPxthDSC5KR8vboiFRSiSMbnQMHsHgydu-AhNA81pWFdUa1xCHq3y6kQYpNWPUlEZ6H6oQQPjOyt5yeLpnBlk/w396-h453/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%207.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div>The article itself explains the circuit, essentially how it works, and how to build it. <div><br /></div><div>Any interested person with a bit of soldering experience could order one of these kits and build themselves a working <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/maestro/fz1" target="_blank">FZ-1A</a> style fuzz. It was a cool idea for the time, and one that pops up quite a bit throughout the late 60s and early 70s (see our <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2022/09/knight-fuzz-box-kg-389-1967.html" target="_blank">article on the Knight Fuzz Box</a>).</div><div><br /></div><div>In fact, many brands from the 2nd wave of pedal makers site these magazines and do-it-yourself projects as being the catalyst to looking deeper into pedal design, and ultimately starting their own companies.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhws5chqFrdLLAMSwctHk3VB3cfvYvvyI8THDn3FpTFs_npflW1RhOX18KQekH7u-PGZQ4oGi11Qdd7gxCVuL-B2hvPDOOm55sEEHFQd8nHkmmmWdJwXx0NqI96aydgSCnnuYx5W0Asdyl6JxT0yEB69IXKNgApaYiWFwjYUvK17jHU5wEgiK9cm87pBGg/s1406/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%208.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1406" data-original-width="975" height="571" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhws5chqFrdLLAMSwctHk3VB3cfvYvvyI8THDn3FpTFs_npflW1RhOX18KQekH7u-PGZQ4oGi11Qdd7gxCVuL-B2hvPDOOm55sEEHFQd8nHkmmmWdJwXx0NqI96aydgSCnnuYx5W0Asdyl6JxT0yEB69IXKNgApaYiWFwjYUvK17jHU5wEgiK9cm87pBGg/w396-h571/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%208.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><br /><div>I won't post the entire article here, but if you're interesting in checking it out, <a href="https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Elementary-Electronics/1960/Elementary-Electronics-1968-Jan-Feb.pdf" target="_blank">HERE IS A LINK</a>. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtHUflU_bF0LLvg7TW11v8UdUd-G8C7m0Y2sWfIe1Rhu8t4reiXHTpMqsgFfdpJGst7J4EWtrwjnpSVGu3s0ThIL4uTqPlfZ28DuX5beVSVd-9EF-UVvBZoCCqZxUo9WBBxAm5S7hVUrg8Y1joaeoUUVQNTQaOadHzw2W0ZjZ7uz6aOQdHDnp3fIhprJE/s998/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%2010.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="998" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtHUflU_bF0LLvg7TW11v8UdUd-G8C7m0Y2sWfIe1Rhu8t4reiXHTpMqsgFfdpJGst7J4EWtrwjnpSVGu3s0ThIL4uTqPlfZ28DuX5beVSVd-9EF-UVvBZoCCqZxUo9WBBxAm5S7hVUrg8Y1joaeoUUVQNTQaOadHzw2W0ZjZ7uz6aOQdHDnp3fIhprJE/w398-h199/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%2010.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcPp655WcrggEI3h-kOuN01hbWTaiSqvV7Q1Ndfu2Q2SiIShK2yAhG5_YI3d3amywW4IA_q0jrHx9OYNEXQ0Pe21i2ED_xlDKX-YI4oewXofmlY1D55TQXUxX9qNcRxLrlFIN_ZtTcJVRmuFUKyt7eaxsb-5PgFQk_wPil5IWoQagaiTOStyPJ1cM9KhQ/s1258/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%209.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="621" data-original-width="1258" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcPp655WcrggEI3h-kOuN01hbWTaiSqvV7Q1Ndfu2Q2SiIShK2yAhG5_YI3d3amywW4IA_q0jrHx9OYNEXQ0Pe21i2ED_xlDKX-YI4oewXofmlY1D55TQXUxX9qNcRxLrlFIN_ZtTcJVRmuFUKyt7eaxsb-5PgFQk_wPil5IWoQagaiTOStyPJ1cM9KhQ/w399-h197/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%209.jpg" width="399" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHJrKgfEjl1EKj_uvPa2bTA-TM4dQ8BvJyN0AZLBEI4zxiigUnLOIpJbgnJTZNTjwbbYHop1PSY5_JiqNFbiTHMUJprgd-ag8HcGlFqwxohAqBYOXCs4uWwnUUEQnIn0TmQc95tIXBv1BOVteuCCvt2tFLyEOpr_a39RVYlASj2DZIWybhoA7D-kt1aR4/s1026/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%204.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="860" data-original-width="1026" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHJrKgfEjl1EKj_uvPa2bTA-TM4dQ8BvJyN0AZLBEI4zxiigUnLOIpJbgnJTZNTjwbbYHop1PSY5_JiqNFbiTHMUJprgd-ag8HcGlFqwxohAqBYOXCs4uWwnUUEQnIn0TmQc95tIXBv1BOVteuCCvt2tFLyEOpr_a39RVYlASj2DZIWybhoA7D-kt1aR4/w397-h332/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%204.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div>So you're probably wondering how it sounds...<div><br /></div><div>Well as we mentioned above, and if you know fuzz circuits at all, you probably recognize the 3 transistor / 1.5v configuration as being a Maestro FZ-1A. And in this case, it's bit closer to the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/lre/fuzzsound" target="_blank">LRE Fuzz Sound</a>, which itself was an early FZ-1A clone of sorts.</div><div><br /></div><div>And if you know how those ratty little bastards sound, then you pretty much know how this sounds. One thing that's fun to experiment with, when it comes to germanium transistors, is how the pedal reacts to temperature changes.</div><div><br /></div><div>At a cold/room temp the Fuzz-A-Tort is a cross between a lower gain classic 60s fuzz and a nice crunchy primitive overdrive, i.e. the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/astroamp/astrotone" target="_blank">Astro Amp Astrotone</a>. </div><div><br /></div><div>But when you start warming it up, things get real interesting... It begins to morph and take on all of those classic characteristics of an FZ-1A; hairy, gnarly, 60s Garage fuzz! </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWbgJSpu7QAQEfEhGDcxTYxJwOg1alEAy7rVSEn1_Pf9ge-TthIF-WyZhem4Yi14s906extjyiHgumOwivLVYBl9uNCvRyeAS39kLqLJDiOJwzDEbSGcnBEU2X3iEeR40MWrVGxsmfLYa3rkAi1IZfcj2Y_h0JwbSpVNpJ7wBz7bL2eEtHyfR6AAnWkZc/s1753/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1753" data-original-width="1753" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWbgJSpu7QAQEfEhGDcxTYxJwOg1alEAy7rVSEn1_Pf9ge-TthIF-WyZhem4Yi14s906extjyiHgumOwivLVYBl9uNCvRyeAS39kLqLJDiOJwzDEbSGcnBEU2X3iEeR40MWrVGxsmfLYa3rkAi1IZfcj2Y_h0JwbSpVNpJ7wBz7bL2eEtHyfR6AAnWkZc/w396-h396/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%202.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div>So who was Sentry Manufacturing Co.? I asked myself this question because other than the Fuzz-A-Tort, that's not a name I recognize from anywhere else in the guitar fx or amplifier world.<div><br /></div><div>Well it turns out that Sentry is mostly known to ham radio enthusiasts for their crystals (which I will let Wikipedia do the explaining <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_radio#:~:text=The%20crystal%20functions%20as%20an,is%20connected%20to%20the%20detector." target="_blank">HERE</a>), and other radio related parts.</div><div><br /></div><div>So the tie-in to electronics hobby magazines makes total sense. And I'm sure if I did a bit more digging I would come across other collaborations between Sentry and Elementary Electronics.</div><div><br /></div><div>But as it stands, this seems to be the only time they did anything guitar related.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhndjH3huWSXWj4AkXB41Ky27gDcUdcW2c45ttGylNKvbT0pSeyMJm4Ml33wiEV2hdotTsP_29gA-qIV7Qwq4ZMeZZIe5VUnqqtEBTL_Uoq1NFcFNSL4-xtGEPiGlVPYi87pit1KXZcYjeU7bYVnvMl0lshHhe_kzgmZaKlCq8ZDqp4CrgGUianbUWTZCw/s1600/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%2011.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1054" height="599" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhndjH3huWSXWj4AkXB41Ky27gDcUdcW2c45ttGylNKvbT0pSeyMJm4Ml33wiEV2hdotTsP_29gA-qIV7Qwq4ZMeZZIe5VUnqqtEBTL_Uoq1NFcFNSL4-xtGEPiGlVPYi87pit1KXZcYjeU7bYVnvMl0lshHhe_kzgmZaKlCq8ZDqp4CrgGUianbUWTZCw/w395-h599/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%2011.jpg" width="395" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4ADr-QP3BFEEJKfNpOV5cbsrLP1md9qZupRGS5PZg3eSuu90XTwLJx1MAOWVXIaqTr8dnMmcA2cPuHnuS40yj0b46UfgNfSedZoiMM9hTA85R8iKoqZVkrANpLt4KoItG21TzhHrCpVhmrE77qvBTVOs9Mpo7ra0WmbL_mL9N99G7oQhusQ-zcq0dqVE/s789/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%2012.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="789" data-original-width="525" height="595" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4ADr-QP3BFEEJKfNpOV5cbsrLP1md9qZupRGS5PZg3eSuu90XTwLJx1MAOWVXIaqTr8dnMmcA2cPuHnuS40yj0b46UfgNfSedZoiMM9hTA85R8iKoqZVkrANpLt4KoItG21TzhHrCpVhmrE77qvBTVOs9Mpo7ra0WmbL_mL9N99G7oQhusQ-zcq0dqVE/w396-h595/Sentry%20Fuzz-A-Tort%2012.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><br /><div>I feel like I'm always encouraging you to collect and hoard this stuff, but I swear, the Sentry Fuzz-A-Tort is a cool find! And I do recommend picking one up if you come across any; if for no other reason than it's an important, but often overlooked part of fuzz and stompbox history.</div><div><br /></div><div>thanks for reading,</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-16867414121303212462023-10-19T14:32:00.004-04:002023-10-23T22:02:30.790-04:00The Effector Book Magazine☟<div>For over a decade I have been seeing these really cool looking magazines out of Japan that appeared to be exclusively about guitar pedals, with a an extra focus on vintage. </div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDN_wPZgCKtjz3MbZp85p6afn6aerKR4E_guwHTdqLqj3rGGZ83mwED7pLDkfr3veCcvOGuiX0fstwi-Otho0lQ4Kvu9m8aBKl2j3IXiIT93x5oOh23CWoKpb7i7FLrI-zoz2aBwuxoETpJZRivV6IXV6Ace47FfiJTK3Fv1WWoKi-2WxZU3y8MgpbRtg/s2052/20231019_094521.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2043" data-original-width="2052" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDN_wPZgCKtjz3MbZp85p6afn6aerKR4E_guwHTdqLqj3rGGZ83mwED7pLDkfr3veCcvOGuiX0fstwi-Otho0lQ4Kvu9m8aBKl2j3IXiIT93x5oOh23CWoKpb7i7FLrI-zoz2aBwuxoETpJZRivV6IXV6Ace47FfiJTK3Fv1WWoKi-2WxZU3y8MgpbRtg/w397-h396/20231019_094521.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>I first came across <a href="https://www.shinko-music.co.jp/series/the-effector-book/" target="_blank">The Effector Book</a> on the <a href="https://electricpartslibrary.hatenadiary.jp/" target="_blank">Effeken Blog</a>, who lends his collection and words to each issue. The covers were always super striking to me, and the fact that enough people cared about old guitar pedals to keep a print publication going this long, I knew they had to be good. </p><p>So after more than a decade I finally picked up the two issues I was most interested in, <i>Japanese Fuzz</i> and <i>Upper Octave Fuzz</i>. Being written completely in Japanese I knew I would need some assistance from my old friend Google Lens. And it seems to work pretty well! </p><p>Each issue has a main topic that is given a full deep dive and a good amount of dedicated pages. In addition to that they review newer pedals, have interviews, and generally nerd out on all things stompbox. </p><p>I highly recommend checking these out if you're a fan of this blog. Japan has a pedal legacy almost as long as the US, and depth of amazing circuits and brands that is unmatched. </p><p>And hey, if the Japanese can support such a venture, maybe we can too... 🤔</p><br />Thanks for reading,<br />-ed</div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-8716924981848484612023-10-05T17:20:00.007-04:002023-10-06T16:47:34.509-04:00Satronik Fuzz Sustainer, The Polish Big Muff?☟<div>While the 1970s saw a flood of notable Big Muff inspired pedals (<a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/acetone/fm3" target="_blank">Ace Tone FM3</a>, <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2013/09/hohner-tri-dirty-booster-1976.html" target="_blank">Hohner Tri-Dirty Booster</a>, <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/elk/superfuzz" target="_blank">Elk Super Fuzz Sustainar</a>) the 1980s seemed to turn its back on the wooly beast, and instead builders started focusing on clones of distortion and overdrive pedals (mainly the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/boss/compact/ds1" target="_blank">Boss DS-1</a>, <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/mxr/m104" target="_blank">MXR Distortion+</a>, and of course the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/ibanez/808/ts808" target="_blank">Ibanez Tube Screamer</a>). But luckily a few brands kept the fuzzy flame burning, and as a result some really badass pedals were born...<p><span style="color: #ffa400;">Today we're checking out one of these, the</span> <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/satronik/fuzzsustainer" target="_blank">Satronik Fuzz Sustainer</a><span style="color: #ffa400;">, a Polish built pedal from the early/mid 80s.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHTQd_AihMym4uh_ZSjj3REw_BZDD4yBeFDCcMY68FTB25COL_6qafkiZyZkQH1zIWTjY0qH4WLNS7UC3fsN2xsQVitqVM1FKh7-UvhUUnw6vV4sVkpVsgJ0RZgDyBPyPRbDJ7SJVIwNC24HF-NEMzwKF6UZ_mydaUrecDUaOUQvjeluHqRo1M8RPhpr8/s1919/Satronik%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1919" data-original-width="1919" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHTQd_AihMym4uh_ZSjj3REw_BZDD4yBeFDCcMY68FTB25COL_6qafkiZyZkQH1zIWTjY0qH4WLNS7UC3fsN2xsQVitqVM1FKh7-UvhUUnw6vV4sVkpVsgJ0RZgDyBPyPRbDJ7SJVIwNC24HF-NEMzwKF6UZ_mydaUrecDUaOUQvjeluHqRo1M8RPhpr8/w396-h396/Satronik%20Fuzz%20Sustainer%202.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div>So what exactly is this thing?<div><br /></div><div>If you were a guitar player in Poland in the 1980s there weren't a lot of options when it came to buying pedals. The brand <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/exar" target="_blank">EXAR</a> was king of the Polish pedal hill, and while they made some really cool fx, many of them were modeled after Boss and Ibanez.</div><div><br /></div><div>What was interesting about the Polish knock-offs is that <b>inside</b> a lot of them was an attempt at approximating the sound of another pedal without copying the circuit outright. It's almost like they didn't have a schematic or an actual unit in their hands, so instead they got creative and figured something out.</div><div><br /></div><div>And this brings us to the Fuzz Sustainer. Currently there's not much info (if any) out there about Satronik; <span style="color: #c27ba0;">who built them? how long were they around? how many pedals did they produce???</span> And as of now I have only seen two different fx they put out, not including a white version of the Fuzz Sustainer. Additionally the only other potential link is this Polish Doctor Q from a brand called <i>Lab Sound,</i> that used the same enclosures and basic layout as Satronik.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimQSp3XknOsmv1zuM-8pwOIHe-eiUS8mMDX6EdfbfrUw0krwvFJ8rMxkTMQm09pm9dJNnj_exk5cIvwT8GOEwuKuh3t1u1ejoPvzW1xZoM9uZ4Djguh6mu5V2SqwkOdAJi329EH0pg_a57dVQf6wmP5QWt-ld4CFbt3ofmVjbSjMzl70GV60kZWXAkNXk/s555/IMG_20231004_213154_165.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="507" height="434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimQSp3XknOsmv1zuM-8pwOIHe-eiUS8mMDX6EdfbfrUw0krwvFJ8rMxkTMQm09pm9dJNnj_exk5cIvwT8GOEwuKuh3t1u1ejoPvzW1xZoM9uZ4Djguh6mu5V2SqwkOdAJi329EH0pg_a57dVQf6wmP5QWt-ld4CFbt3ofmVjbSjMzl70GV60kZWXAkNXk/w396-h434/IMG_20231004_213154_165.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div>So you're probably guessing that the Fuzz Sustainer almost has to be a Big Muff then... And it IS, kinda.<div><br /></div><div>If you were to plug into it and close your eyes you would swear it was one of the beefiest and buzziest and wooliest of Muffs you ever heard! And it did all that while still retaining articulate, thick bone-crushing harmonics.</div><div><br /></div><div>The sound sits somewhere between a late 70s IC Muff and a Civil War Muff. And honestly is one of the better BMP copies I've ever played. But that's what's crazy; inside the Fuzz Sustainer is not a copy, and not really derivative of anything (I can think of, at least)!</div><div><br /></div><div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhaHQ0fvnOJHw4ip6RE8KOnDpiyhGOxU-Le7W6zhV2af7VEvghJuQJKB896fw28C94HeA1WZP-U2e5BA699QrI2afBxDpArsQsDvb2MAED-5XzK5bFbTqwHrHHl4JDOTkNrndW9-Dtzd6Bjjzy889Jo6qXgdyXZJ8dp2EEZjdMNhqPifRzrlpr8vC6-e4/s2050/Satronik%20Fuzz%20Sustainer.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2050" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhaHQ0fvnOJHw4ip6RE8KOnDpiyhGOxU-Le7W6zhV2af7VEvghJuQJKB896fw28C94HeA1WZP-U2e5BA699QrI2afBxDpArsQsDvb2MAED-5XzK5bFbTqwHrHHl4JDOTkNrndW9-Dtzd6Bjjzy889Jo6qXgdyXZJ8dp2EEZjdMNhqPifRzrlpr8vC6-e4/w396-h396/Satronik%20Fuzz%20Sustainer.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><br /><div>It's running off a 741 chip (*see <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/dod/first/250" target="_blank">DOD 250</a> or <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2015/06/so-fresh-but-not-so-clean-its-1973-in.html" target="_blank">Seamoon Fresh Fuzz</a>), and a duo of silicon transistors, a metal can BC109 (I've also seen a unit with a BC108C in its place) and an oddly shaped BC149.</div></div></div><div><br /></div><div>If you're familiar at all with Big Muff circuits you can tell right away that this is something totally different. So it's pretty cool that they were able to achieve an almost identical tone and texture.</div><div><br /></div><div>Makes me wonder what other Big Muffs of the world have we yet to discover, simply because the circuit looked like a Rat with too many parts...</div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #ffa400;">So definitely add this one to your search list because it's an awesome and obscure oddity that can give you all the Muffy tones you want, but do it with a slightly different edge.</span></div><div><br /></div></div><div>For a bit more info and photos, check out <a href="https://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=129819.0" target="_blank">this post on diystompboxes</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>thanks for reading!</div><div>-ed</div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-82179405984272139812023-09-16T22:38:00.018-04:002023-09-17T21:50:09.120-04:00Fuzz King(s)?☟<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrdux0KuDcR-0sF1Ge04tGJgoSMyaUl5I_Kj-GnW8a-_5rB8iY4IPH25ZOAtXkOvRtSiB2qk2leXXiJCgqjNhI4jFxXSMqfXjWO7vI4-DP5z2ri1XN78rQwBT39Uw860Midz_jDxaf6Bm1Uby4GxthcogyDe0svwhfDJcf0VwPID3TX4ad4rDQONsOxrw/s722/Amplifier%20Corp%20of%20America%20Fuzz%20King.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="722" data-original-width="626" height="460" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrdux0KuDcR-0sF1Ge04tGJgoSMyaUl5I_Kj-GnW8a-_5rB8iY4IPH25ZOAtXkOvRtSiB2qk2leXXiJCgqjNhI4jFxXSMqfXjWO7vI4-DP5z2ri1XN78rQwBT39Uw860Midz_jDxaf6Bm1Uby4GxthcogyDe0svwhfDJcf0VwPID3TX4ad4rDQONsOxrw/w398-h460/Amplifier%20Corp%20of%20America%20Fuzz%20King.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /><div>The <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aca/fuzzking" target="_blank">Amplifier Corp. of America</a> (aka Unicord) <b><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/aca/fuzzking" target="_blank">Fuzz King</a></b> was first introduced in the summer of 1967 and was a cool take on the Maestro FZ-1A, sounding just as ratty and primitive. The pedal was released in North America and could be ordered directly from various electronics catalogs, in addition to simply walking into your local shop and picking one up. Judging by the components and general build style, it seems like the pedal was manufactured in the US, but I'm not 100% sure on that. </div><div><br /></div><div>One cool thing I have noticed after going through the history and connection between Univox/ LRE/ Honey/ Shin-ei, is that the ACA Fuzz King could be ground zero for how all of these brands came to be connected. 🤔<p>In the LRE catalog from Fall of 1967 the Fuzz King was also released as the "Fuzz Sound" (see below), for a whopping $26.95 (remember to add 9 cents for the battery), and promised to <i>"make your guitar or bass produce the harmony of several wind instruments!"</i>.</p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie-Hzw_XQH2goy1XKy3uw5m1mUGQBuxKs3pdw5ZgHT83MY8P8fdLDDxy6_VxEd9U3J8g6ck27pWS1B6F4ykjrQpfLLMAPNzGkQByEoXsEkQBNiy3oQPhNuhWajexI1rUDqJcaOl4IbH4SFRHhdJHBjseY5iMJ6xIGONjGduHk4gnzcBuTy-wu6RFaFyTU/s672/Fuzz%20Sound.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="Amplifier Corp of America Fuzz King" border="0" data-original-height="672" data-original-width="633" height="421" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie-Hzw_XQH2goy1XKy3uw5m1mUGQBuxKs3pdw5ZgHT83MY8P8fdLDDxy6_VxEd9U3J8g6ck27pWS1B6F4ykjrQpfLLMAPNzGkQByEoXsEkQBNiy3oQPhNuhWajexI1rUDqJcaOl4IbH4SFRHhdJHBjseY5iMJ6xIGONjGduHk4gnzcBuTy-wu6RFaFyTU/w396-h421/Fuzz%20Sound.jpg" title="Amplifier Corp of America Fuzz King" width="396" /></a></p><p>A year later LRE would release the version of the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/lre/fuzzsound" target="_blank">Fuzz Sound</a> that you're probably more familiar with, made in Japan and sporting a circuit that was almost identical to the 1967 ACA Fuzz King, it was released under multiple brandings here in the US. Funny enough, one variation of this pedal, released by the brand <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/apollo/fuzz/843" target="_blank">Apollo</a>, would ironically be labeled as "Fuzz King"...</p><p><span style="color: #ffa400;">But before you get a headache doing the calculus of what you just read, kick back and relax with the sweet sounds of the demos below ///</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="329" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/t0D8vu8-_0A" width="396" youtube-src-id="t0D8vu8-_0A"></iframe> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="329" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xKBERr4ZWcQ" width="396" youtube-src-id="xKBERr4ZWcQ"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">thanks for reading!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">-ed</div></div><p></p></div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-87741330754782605442023-09-14T22:33:00.008-04:002023-12-04T00:34:06.848-05:00Fuzz Master, not that one... ☟<div><span style="color: red;">Here's a weird one for you</span></div><div><span style="color: red;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD8MZqKgiGp2knvYghoMbU7xUBTKfosDpI6Gji6E0Fa3td3JuYBnUW-qnV85eR55cOP1UVnNpItFtn7sUWt0TW7GqQBczWEpXBq_N7JfTKKYbCQt8ydR3cfkRgAzdPTTvn6gdLyrveNYoAQOj1f4OJN-alcxzpLU2ofaJaAdV5k3XTXxA90LiaOVo_/s294/fuzzmaster.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="Fuzz Master" border="0" data-original-height="248" data-original-width="294" height="337" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD8MZqKgiGp2knvYghoMbU7xUBTKfosDpI6Gji6E0Fa3td3JuYBnUW-qnV85eR55cOP1UVnNpItFtn7sUWt0TW7GqQBczWEpXBq_N7JfTKKYbCQt8ydR3cfkRgAzdPTTvn6gdLyrveNYoAQOj1f4OJN-alcxzpLU2ofaJaAdV5k3XTXxA90LiaOVo_/w400-h337/fuzzmaster.jpg" title="Fuzz Master" width="400" /></a></div></div><p></p>
So I know I've mentioned this before, but I have a couple decades-worth of photos saved on my hard drive of anything I deemed to be awesome and pedal related. One such photo (apparently saved in 2003) was a generic ad shot of a woman on the phone, and then for zero reason I can think of, this pedal just randomly cropped into the corner. <div><br /></div><div>The image was so tiny and pixelated that I had to do my best to blow it up to what you see above. And what you see is another mystery pedal, I'm going to guess from the mid/late 60s, called the "Fuzz Master". It appears to be green, with knobs for <i>Volume</i> and <i>Attack</i> on opposite sides of the enclosure, and <i>Input</i> and <i>Amplifier</i> jacks at the top (although it seems like there is a jack of some sort visible on the side, so it could be possible that the labeling is just in a weird place?). The knobs remind me of the ones used on the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/sekova/59" target="_blank">Sekova wedge fuzzes</a>, and the font and layout choice remind me of something else, but I can't quite place it...</div><div><br /></div><div>If I had to put money on it, I would guess that this is a (Japanese?) <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/maestro/fz1" target="_blank">Maestro FZ-1/1a</a> clone, but sadly there's no way to know for sure. The term "Fuzz Master" was used other times in the 60s (i.e. the <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2023/01/in-search-of-australian-fuzzmaster-part.html" target="_blank">Claybridge Fuzzmaster</a> from Australia, the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/acetone/fm1" target="_blank">Acetone Fuzz Master</a> from Japan, and the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/olson/fuzzmaster" target="_blank">Olson Fuzz Master</a> from the US/Japan). </div><div><br /></div><div>One thing we definitely know is that starting around 1966 there were ads in every electronics magazine selling different fuzz build-it-yourself kits, and articles detailing how to build a fuzz from common components you could find at any hardware store. So it's possible that this is nothing more than a home project fuzz.</div><div><br /></div><div>But it's also possible that there is some type of hidden fuzz history here... something that ties this pedal to a bigger brand! or a builder who went on to do something classic! or who knows what else! </div><div><br /></div><div>But what I do know, is now I must find one. :)</div><div><br /></div><div>thanks for reading!</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-57393659490706495702023-08-30T11:21:00.003-04:002023-08-30T11:23:33.666-04:00A quick update!☟<div>I just wanted to stop in and say Hello! to the readers of the blog. I realized recently that I haven't posted here in a while. I am still collecting and finding cool stuff! <span style="color: #ffa400;">*see below</span> But I haven't been able to carve out the time for my usual obsessive digging and pedal research....</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUh2SnktRqwSRJeuTLqu10jNOkiitvewsqysBqOB0LgiVtLOsh1OwZx7QpHPrGEytxlyCko7jedSBF9xXW_fgwNbLB3_C_Ea__fxxxguX6bNBjjkKStiXoPKNtvQsAfMN8US-ye8nH0NWpf_3xCYdyF8clVJzX7wETkzfOHvNTj8NO_bK5HG9cv1Mr8M8/s2664/20230830_103051.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Rogue Fuzz, Sierra Nu-Fuzz, Yack Fuzz, Exel Shatterbox" border="0" data-original-height="2664" data-original-width="2147" height="492" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUh2SnktRqwSRJeuTLqu10jNOkiitvewsqysBqOB0LgiVtLOsh1OwZx7QpHPrGEytxlyCko7jedSBF9xXW_fgwNbLB3_C_Ea__fxxxguX6bNBjjkKStiXoPKNtvQsAfMN8US-ye8nH0NWpf_3xCYdyF8clVJzX7wETkzfOHvNTj8NO_bK5HG9cv1Mr8M8/w398-h492/20230830_103051.jpg" title="Rogue Fuzz, Sierra Nu-Fuzz, Yack Fuzz, Exel Shatterbox" width="398" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div><span style="color: #ff00fe;">Above you'll see my most recent finds; a super rare Nomad <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/kadent/rogue" target="_blank">Rogue Fuzz</a>, an almost as rare late 60's <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/yack/yf2" target="_blank">YACK Fuzz Box</a> from Japan, a rare Nu-Fuzz variant from their initial run under the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/sierra/nufuzz" target="_blank">Sierra Electronics</a> brand, and finally an early 70s <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/bm/exel/shatterbox" target="_blank">Exel Shatterbox</a> made by B&M.</span></div><div><br /></div><div>I have been stockpiling photos of awesome pedal related stuff since the Spring, so expect some deep dive posts in the near future!</div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks as always for reading,</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-25447808492271203262023-05-18T12:51:00.006-04:002023-05-19T14:50:24.351-04:00Super Identity Crisis...☟<div><span style="color: #ffa400;">Most pedal nerds know some history about the legendary Super Fuzz and that it got its humble start in 1967 as a stand-alone unit called the "Baby Crying" Fuzz, made by the Japanese brand Honey. </span><p><span style="color: #ffa400;">What is a bit less known is that, </span></p><p><span style="color: #ffa400;">A: the original designer of the Super Fuzz is still a mystery! (yes, Fumio Mieda, designer of the Univibe, did <b>NOT</b> also design the Super Fuzz) </span></p><p><span style="color: #ffa400;">B: production of the FY-6 (Super Fuzz) ran for 10 years! And, </span></p><p><span style="color: #ffa400;">C: in that time they were licensed to an almost endless list of brands, small shops, importers, and distribution companies.</span></p><p><span style="color: #ffa400;">So part of my ongoing (and super nerdy) research into the true history of this pedal is this little photo list of some of my favorite (and lesser known) variants, in a somewhat chronological order of Super Fuzzdom throughout the years. I hope you enjoy! 🙏</span></p><p><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/honey/babycrying" target="_blank">Honey Baby Crying Fuzz</a> (The original, made from 1967-1969, produced by Honey. As of now it's still unclear how long, or if at all, Shin Ei continued with the <i>Honey</i> branding after they purchased the company)</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR3mhSmEoJ45tzvO4PAh7qbl6kOikPXiHWZnwHJ9RduGV3rRr3kP2p0jNeLJ0AfI9Lj-wz6YcMSKOh-m4U7u0-qLFwWrnmCTVcnT1DMQUenujr_SyI7-g-YJHkOTLzSrrcCZAeVVgZYvhB5J6DuXKC1MV46jto379qsVdVt18WkmoVCsextjuuQ9rL/s478/Honey.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="252" data-original-width="478" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR3mhSmEoJ45tzvO4PAh7qbl6kOikPXiHWZnwHJ9RduGV3rRr3kP2p0jNeLJ0AfI9Lj-wz6YcMSKOh-m4U7u0-qLFwWrnmCTVcnT1DMQUenujr_SyI7-g-YJHkOTLzSrrcCZAeVVgZYvhB5J6DuXKC1MV46jto379qsVdVt18WkmoVCsextjuuQ9rL/w397-h209/Honey.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/lre/superfuzz" target="_blank">LRE Super-Fuzz</a> (It's starting to look like the gray LRE might be the first OEM, made by Honey, Super Fuzz. But I have some pieces of evidence I still need to find to confirm that)<br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizCOfInuCNyOZZd4HenTkn6AZu6ZMZNkBNCfk7N5JrqLbWFCnUi8c8nJocfbZswNI4Po_NKhWWvomgxkxMs9yWpJny4cCS8OXQOBaNqGKDKd1wVqM_xs0wuNo_BxaFxE2XU9JTcfazW5_WLxxYNehggiANS8IXRrNwc9dHySzVNrlJ46KG_NXVCzbb/s508/yyi34mnctdyehublot6f.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="237" data-original-width="508" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizCOfInuCNyOZZd4HenTkn6AZu6ZMZNkBNCfk7N5JrqLbWFCnUi8c8nJocfbZswNI4Po_NKhWWvomgxkxMs9yWpJny4cCS8OXQOBaNqGKDKd1wVqM_xs0wuNo_BxaFxE2XU9JTcfazW5_WLxxYNehggiANS8IXRrNwc9dHySzVNrlJ46KG_NXVCzbb/w397-h185/yyi34mnctdyehublot6f.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/univox/superfuzz" target="_blank">Univox Super Fuzz</a> (the Univox version either came right after or right before the LRE. Also note that these are the only two with that oval-shaped logo plate, and the only two made in a gray enclosure)</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRmGGd-K_c8bvfiLW4z3vRE9Qm273Ga6pRRv6GHA5FFx_Gv1Xjfz6eWFedg_WIbyxJfholDyEp3zJmmh_C6N0KiweXU606098aHpjdsIMsd4HNKVGpN2njzpGu0lIziuC0ZoQ-2FkA7Ko1jIIGFJjG35NROiymhY1wPUeTRd9TiOqLKLkIWzpGDwGX/s477/va3wxwgx76gtb88pxp6n.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="245" data-original-width="477" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRmGGd-K_c8bvfiLW4z3vRE9Qm273Ga6pRRv6GHA5FFx_Gv1Xjfz6eWFedg_WIbyxJfholDyEp3zJmmh_C6N0KiweXU606098aHpjdsIMsd4HNKVGpN2njzpGu0lIziuC0ZoQ-2FkA7Ko1jIIGFJjG35NROiymhY1wPUeTRd9TiOqLKLkIWzpGDwGX/w397-h204/va3wxwgx76gtb88pxp6n.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/companion/fy6" target="_blank">Companion FY-6 Super Fuzz</a> (In 1969 Honey was purchased by Shin Ei, who began to produce the pedal under their house brand "Companion")</div><div><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3fh7BVGMxuq5R0QH67X8wD3givt4rsXQDeIwDy5iauuVfMx_ooNcuuhKJ-fQk2t-g8k_qe1aWomFRZgDX814U0ntMxw8SMq_ay3e2t8xYo-75qDzf8AfRD3g9thzXWF4LeqAj5HpJp80VGwFHqmYx3g5QDzRNe6JA2pBw90MXl6utHRYhI3dvKWmz/s533/companion.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="262" data-original-width="533" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3fh7BVGMxuq5R0QH67X8wD3givt4rsXQDeIwDy5iauuVfMx_ooNcuuhKJ-fQk2t-g8k_qe1aWomFRZgDX814U0ntMxw8SMq_ay3e2t8xYo-75qDzf8AfRD3g9thzXWF4LeqAj5HpJp80VGwFHqmYx3g5QDzRNe6JA2pBw90MXl6utHRYhI3dvKWmz/w397-h195/companion.jpg" width="397" /></a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/shaftesbury/duofuzz" target="_blank">Shaftesbury Duo Fuzz</a> (The only version with a left-leaning badge!)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf0DaHFQekM8u5CbfWfZYw48heT_SdlDrr5tQKOZqPh3MPYRjLFwOOOqSYOqYSoLP_dcfr6Rneermw4g0hItkKI59Hp4RcXcws2VVK6f3vA5AsESjXpj4j9vt1kntLZdabAr4oXlQs9sdN3eTslVb8v_nCoF6cHYQ2OdWyUhifQCZ5EtkbBoZnKtit/s530/Shaftsss.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="274" data-original-width="530" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf0DaHFQekM8u5CbfWfZYw48heT_SdlDrr5tQKOZqPh3MPYRjLFwOOOqSYOqYSoLP_dcfr6Rneermw4g0hItkKI59Hp4RcXcws2VVK6f3vA5AsESjXpj4j9vt1kntLZdabAr4oXlQs9sdN3eTslVb8v_nCoF6cHYQ2OdWyUhifQCZ5EtkbBoZnKtit/w397-h205/Shaftsss.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/apollo/superfuzz" target="_blank">Apollo Deluxe Fuzz Tone Expander</a> <div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfkrGdgQV7f5wHjcNzE-laJkE1v3-3rudAfzUCvBCoGT7ZJDN0v4C2oRqxEvliXjKx-RCYioXxiPTZGa1kfTTroI37ISVBgtQDVR-4V-ZWtZoO3OHeyQWBtMYJAn8M9YiannviU_72GTxXZSwQFgkrsmVNcjvslOm1X0pV9013xh8WV_A71nryEfhP/s576/vxkbx443c3f5%20(1).jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="576" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfkrGdgQV7f5wHjcNzE-laJkE1v3-3rudAfzUCvBCoGT7ZJDN0v4C2oRqxEvliXjKx-RCYioXxiPTZGa1kfTTroI37ISVBgtQDVR-4V-ZWtZoO3OHeyQWBtMYJAn8M9YiannviU_72GTxXZSwQFgkrsmVNcjvslOm1X0pV9013xh8WV_A71nryEfhP/w396-h189/vxkbx443c3f5%20(1).jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/jax/fy6" target="_blank">JAX Fuzz Master Unit</a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim_1-P_0CmFWabA3AbbkPeaA0PXK0DCeSvxoEV2TveXAFppf44FwQtxhzG5BafqjI1gYoNiRe8ln2nERJDtablwbA2ZM-_IfO-NAxM-s50cTmxN92rMYI4tVNrnSvCkS-Iwjbqit30gfYyPDm11nAg4iJ23k_RByQgBOku7mMYwB34S7B6rWJh-BLn/s495/esdqxq0q22xncwazi7vz.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="288" data-original-width="495" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim_1-P_0CmFWabA3AbbkPeaA0PXK0DCeSvxoEV2TveXAFppf44FwQtxhzG5BafqjI1gYoNiRe8ln2nERJDtablwbA2ZM-_IfO-NAxM-s50cTmxN92rMYI4tVNrnSvCkS-Iwjbqit30gfYyPDm11nAg4iJ23k_RByQgBOku7mMYwB34S7B6rWJh-BLn/w396-h230/esdqxq0q22xncwazi7vz.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://aucfree.com/m/items/t646651579" target="_blank">Factone - Fuzz Machine</a> (One of the rarer examples, there have only been two Factone pedals to pop up, and both in Japan) </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg51GN81sM03_FNjL_ehkhvxYZltDwX6LxMDqtps6DnmLR9RH6Yj9IxixqIivyNnUFmb8ee1zcyEDWmf_o4WcViqEzSeuzAoUlm7DD2GMn8_OOCKmb2vCe6Wiqyj3LTF6HoDTuKMW_ZKGJLLYW3tVXINQMq4cVCa0A4ZKfnXKHV66jXQ_e35yuLB7KP/s481/fdfdf.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="481" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg51GN81sM03_FNjL_ehkhvxYZltDwX6LxMDqtps6DnmLR9RH6Yj9IxixqIivyNnUFmb8ee1zcyEDWmf_o4WcViqEzSeuzAoUlm7DD2GMn8_OOCKmb2vCe6Wiqyj3LTF6HoDTuKMW_ZKGJLLYW3tVXINQMq4cVCa0A4ZKfnXKHV66jXQ_e35yuLB7KP/w397-h223/fdfdf.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/micatone/superfuzz" target="_blank">Mica-Tone Super Fuzz</a> (the Musical Instrument Corp of America, aka MICA, imported and sold three different fuzzes in the mid-late 60s. The MICA Wailer [same as the LRE Fuzz Sound] the MICA-Tone Fuzz [which was a rebranded Manny's Fuzz] and this)</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNU2pb9_fj2jvvVNgO-hUxhsvyBuR9iD6uvmaRYLakOct8E4TIcPGqbISbPeKosVDsyyujWL2SteL4AuViyk_OjcY1VswqvTyVg3lsomyDeRc2Gf2gP-l2mcuTVgrsAShiidpvwWJjgazVZcSp2kaEfZECqnsZJ3c8PjevPBASZa9wGOUZE21KWFcx/s714/img_1_1680577138486.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="714" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNU2pb9_fj2jvvVNgO-hUxhsvyBuR9iD6uvmaRYLakOct8E4TIcPGqbISbPeKosVDsyyujWL2SteL4AuViyk_OjcY1VswqvTyVg3lsomyDeRc2Gf2gP-l2mcuTVgrsAShiidpvwWJjgazVZcSp2kaEfZECqnsZJ3c8PjevPBASZa9wGOUZE21KWFcx/w396-h218/img_1_1680577138486.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/lre/superfuzz" target="_blank">LRE Super-Fuzz</a> (1970 sees the LRE version go black and also sees Univox most likely ending their contract with Shin-Ei, taking over production in-house with the release of their big box orange & blue Super Fuzz. One year later LRE would end their own deal with Shin-Ei and begin to sell rebranded Univox/Unicord pedals through their catalogs and in stores)<br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmKxlb1ucaS_VvWrmIemEoLyFsyi4jNfDe64rWZToEu1TvX1T_vt5oMjh8D7hpfmit10vu3hMWhGfVqRhxQE6QDnJgN5-fwvt1yIKNowcE8OnO5pDRkumnnbPQPBYfB8Tslz4SVi_IQmOEKzvtTIgxhv4lX5G6vjIiXlw_ltP16j0-COmNiYaFlgtJ/s276/agehxduyc27xkaxwxcrj.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="149" data-original-width="276" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmKxlb1ucaS_VvWrmIemEoLyFsyi4jNfDe64rWZToEu1TvX1T_vt5oMjh8D7hpfmit10vu3hMWhGfVqRhxQE6QDnJgN5-fwvt1yIKNowcE8OnO5pDRkumnnbPQPBYfB8Tslz4SVi_IQmOEKzvtTIgxhv4lX5G6vjIiXlw_ltP16j0-COmNiYaFlgtJ/w397-h214/agehxduyc27xkaxwxcrj.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/shinei/companion/fy6" target="_blank">Shin-Ei Companion FY-6 Super Fuzz</a> (Shin-Ei begins to rebrand their Companion line with their own name)</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8OzBO4eNNlmzFdKT4b9HZmad0e94aJ_ec3jlHnt1ynE7bwD8M4aPuZVdbB7-tZhmn212eISrIPv_FGUNob1eEsVbnb9XYgge3VeGRvU3NxBEQpJJBvyhPLyK1KSDBayNGICAKFGh-wW99AQcnjripJ25v9-oMbwVyVLFHZs6ge707VSP6XvVYLcWO/s427/Shin%20Ei.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="186" data-original-width="427" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8OzBO4eNNlmzFdKT4b9HZmad0e94aJ_ec3jlHnt1ynE7bwD8M4aPuZVdbB7-tZhmn212eISrIPv_FGUNob1eEsVbnb9XYgge3VeGRvU3NxBEQpJJBvyhPLyK1KSDBayNGICAKFGh-wW99AQcnjripJ25v9-oMbwVyVLFHZs6ge707VSP6XvVYLcWO/w396-h172/Shin%20Ei.JPG" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/jhexperience/fy6" target="_blank">JH Experience Fuzz</a> (V1, I actually love that janky sticker label. Also, while I can't confirm that "JH" isn't an attempt at a subliminal Jimi Hendrix reference, I also can't deny it) </div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXXz-dhTXcT8Ge88Z00lkvG55zmyqFit36FjSlR6B863SPYlnEhui4xA_jHuMZl0EleoGC5sTdvahxNUdCcFwYYtrrimhE8nqCzuURUx5wX0DbmkEA0KjN8qSP4ba2NZ7UXXtRUMyFV9bxiwAy0ULgyJQa4ssyB04uBra1J4HcZRX1YhJeCw3fXJI/s267/c14e0e8f60de8a40ffdee786f930e05c--geek-squad-fuzz.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="153" data-original-width="267" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXXz-dhTXcT8Ge88Z00lkvG55zmyqFit36FjSlR6B863SPYlnEhui4xA_jHuMZl0EleoGC5sTdvahxNUdCcFwYYtrrimhE8nqCzuURUx5wX0DbmkEA0KjN8qSP4ba2NZ7UXXtRUMyFV9bxiwAy0ULgyJQa4ssyB04uBra1J4HcZRX1YhJeCw3fXJI/w396-h227/c14e0e8f60de8a40ffdee786f930e05c--geek-squad-fuzz.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/tempo/tr6" target="_blank">Tempo TR-6 Fuzz </a>(V2)</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0EIOLyjMQxUtYJtEVc15Z2d5Mr5nIzc34bPBLT61PZ-fg8eXBtrFNeJZ3lIKoHUTJcm3_KALgmO47VB7elxqanJuGPM1bgs-2Ve_u_1qK2qSuYexiMMImVJ0D2nipGmwiFN1qVTP2qtLyECZB_tqjGbZXnycUapjgPXMApMhLfLeLEBeY9oUtVlyZ/s570/o6tkquwbdohhrqshypne.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="295" data-original-width="570" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0EIOLyjMQxUtYJtEVc15Z2d5Mr5nIzc34bPBLT61PZ-fg8eXBtrFNeJZ3lIKoHUTJcm3_KALgmO47VB7elxqanJuGPM1bgs-2Ve_u_1qK2qSuYexiMMImVJ0D2nipGmwiFN1qVTP2qtLyECZB_tqjGbZXnycUapjgPXMApMhLfLeLEBeY9oUtVlyZ/w398-h207/o6tkquwbdohhrqshypne.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/mayfair/9540" target="_blank">May Fair Model No. 9540 Super Fuzz</a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6IaqGX23onwFQEPtF1EZEjb0gRcCMiroRkEfThxRDj-KBVl-tli5QfEVUXsAoRDz8LnAAvop-AAnR5ZAPmEZ_LH3IwqHXvDPP9GDaQcqz8XNkKZeibm3PguGyXU_uXO8Nj0jNqaYWux87QoZLfKlXb9OIymKqKq8SOIcXu_1tTOZt0XKwCmx3sFd1/s520/qebfialcjhcljf7ce5rw.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="520" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6IaqGX23onwFQEPtF1EZEjb0gRcCMiroRkEfThxRDj-KBVl-tli5QfEVUXsAoRDz8LnAAvop-AAnR5ZAPmEZ_LH3IwqHXvDPP9GDaQcqz8XNkKZeibm3PguGyXU_uXO8Nj0jNqaYWux87QoZLfKlXb9OIymKqKq8SOIcXu_1tTOZt0XKwCmx3sFd1/w398-h215/qebfialcjhcljf7ce5rw.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/crown/superfuzz" target="_blank">Crown Super Fuzz</a><br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi02DtRpq-_SgG8KHAxiib-41dS5ly9jQqiel345oarHUqZ9eM94kD5Rg7xEV9HKLYUuxIgTL_TVBvO81iKJ1SngVy4WPTeaswBsKogw7QCoOr1gznsETY0CxfoNXKZf3-52AzcLAvxhagq8_sss536CNYA3VcQNGqh8aRvPTbz3wmZKusKIr-i2MRs/s711/Screenshot_20230403_210424_eBay.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="377" data-original-width="711" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi02DtRpq-_SgG8KHAxiib-41dS5ly9jQqiel345oarHUqZ9eM94kD5Rg7xEV9HKLYUuxIgTL_TVBvO81iKJ1SngVy4WPTeaswBsKogw7QCoOr1gznsETY0CxfoNXKZf3-52AzcLAvxhagq8_sss536CNYA3VcQNGqh8aRvPTbz3wmZKusKIr-i2MRs/w398-h212/Screenshot_20230403_210424_eBay.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div><br /></div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/rands/fuzz" target="_blank">Rands FY-6 Fuzz</a><br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIMH8umLCfRzk6Cvw20CLmyKnyC0mKX6Syu7-G80Zmurc2Va-vNe8mcCVc4Lbj5KC-qbtzERQDNuCiQDJNSFZ4iaiY4-3h8rmjVraEw69m8YlNuKkc_pBOXHLF8Kkb_0wF4Q_ayZ-YqUDaUSHjxKl9Nh2NuXWW-CUa6PfqZfv7fa5SNl2x249drBGN/s1080/Screenshot_20230403_213112_Chrome.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="641" data-original-width="1080" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIMH8umLCfRzk6Cvw20CLmyKnyC0mKX6Syu7-G80Zmurc2Va-vNe8mcCVc4Lbj5KC-qbtzERQDNuCiQDJNSFZ4iaiY4-3h8rmjVraEw69m8YlNuKkc_pBOXHLF8Kkb_0wF4Q_ayZ-YqUDaUSHjxKl9Nh2NuXWW-CUa6PfqZfv7fa5SNl2x249drBGN/w397-h236/Screenshot_20230403_213112_Chrome.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/mana/fy6" target="_blank">Mana FY-6 Super Fuzz</a></div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPZlhJrNvNn-A8JhPYhg2TrQ1P2XQbWncpcxp-oR9gkqGpeHzVwYnWBVYqZNuUO6wHgjL6OyWWacMu057x1Og6tDRM84-0NlIGAt9zJv5gzGw4wrNyPY8_rOHM-uTCxRbY7reRUrSnk-vnFgTRbwYunEBLPv8W8B-6g1HpV5dh0U2KySviZq1xT8LI/s716/Screenshot_20230403_211929_Chrome.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="343" data-original-width="716" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPZlhJrNvNn-A8JhPYhg2TrQ1P2XQbWncpcxp-oR9gkqGpeHzVwYnWBVYqZNuUO6wHgjL6OyWWacMu057x1Og6tDRM84-0NlIGAt9zJv5gzGw4wrNyPY8_rOHM-uTCxRbY7reRUrSnk-vnFgTRbwYunEBLPv8W8B-6g1HpV5dh0U2KySviZq1xT8LI/w396-h190/Screenshot_20230403_211929_Chrome.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/jhexperience/fy6" target="_blank">JH Experience Fuzz</a> (V2)</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1f1UkW7G3npv2L1ht8YjSWMv9fBMJX4-Aji2oETM7NDoICcBoI4TFoER95yDXiNe0U8wQ1ql8W1mH21XtBGweLree8_wHcP_OR3al82a8_RwXlAfs6apHOKWdfNjbXQghLgpqkkPSxaltn4_RGYYIK9QMcfwUhXIkTy4mZJKeStbG9nYh0hI-97tI/s265/rs190rayqmpe0jtudy%20(1).jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="167" data-original-width="265" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1f1UkW7G3npv2L1ht8YjSWMv9fBMJX4-Aji2oETM7NDoICcBoI4TFoER95yDXiNe0U8wQ1ql8W1mH21XtBGweLree8_wHcP_OR3al82a8_RwXlAfs6apHOKWdfNjbXQghLgpqkkPSxaltn4_RGYYIK9QMcfwUhXIkTy4mZJKeStbG9nYh0hI-97tI/w397-h250/rs190rayqmpe0jtudy%20(1).jpg" width="397" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/hohner/shinei/masterfuzzcontrol" target="_blank">Hohner MF-50 Master Fuzz Control</a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPohWcFFeIsSW1leBlrATU4HM1J_L8hhcenDLk5vtxZDL4EG-P3LTDZuhSmPI_jSoB6yqhPXB903ANZTIxjXPP0UB2bmYTqF30N4cnSOhkZGFkPCepySv9gS8SrRiQoa3CCpmfAd554yBnIGKVlesnEZyp_1GWst5TpM3VyzIx-e7s2ekZL0qJc5B8/s796/Hhhon.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="469" data-original-width="796" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPohWcFFeIsSW1leBlrATU4HM1J_L8hhcenDLk5vtxZDL4EG-P3LTDZuhSmPI_jSoB6yqhPXB903ANZTIxjXPP0UB2bmYTqF30N4cnSOhkZGFkPCepySv9gS8SrRiQoa3CCpmfAd554yBnIGKVlesnEZyp_1GWst5TpM3VyzIx-e7s2ekZL0qJc5B8/w397-h235/Hhhon.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>As you probably noticed I don't have cool little details for most of these, and some of them I'm guesstimating the date. But the point really is that the most retold story about the wedge-shaped Super Fuzz being produced in the late 60's, until Univox changed everything with their big Orange & Red version, is actually... not true.</div><div><br /></div><div>We find plenty of Super Fuzz wedges dated well after 1970, with the latest I've come across is 1977! And that's a pretty insane revelation considering that most of us thought they were somehow all made between 1968 and '69. </div><div><br /></div><div>So hopefully this was somewhat informative for you all, and definitely let me know what your favorite version of the FY-6 Super Fuzz is or what crazy obscure branding I may have missed. </div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks for reading,</div><div>-ed </div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-37067073946122736032023-04-18T23:37:00.004-04:002024-03-17T07:52:17.116-04:00Bakelite Fresh Fuzz☟<div>For nearly 20 years there has been a mysterious photo of a plastic <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/seamoon/freshfuzz" target="_blank">Seamoon Fresh Fuzz</a> floating around the internet. The image was originally posted on a long-defunct Japanese website and had no context or clues as to who owned it or where it came from... <p>At the time I had some thoughts on what it could be, but for years it was the only one I had ever seen. That is until 2011 when I came across a random posting on a guitar forum where the author was showing off his modest fuzz collection; among them a second plastic Seamoon Fresh Fuzz! I immediately joined the forum and reached out to the owner. He was very reluctant to sell, and after a few back and forths, things sadly went south.</p><p>It would be 9 long years before I had another sighting. This time a badass reader of the blog reached out to me and sent photos of his pedal (I featured one of them on the big <a href="https://www.tonemachinesblog.com/2015/06/so-fresh-but-not-so-clean-its-1973-in.html" target="_blank">Fresh Fuzz article</a> a few months back). Unfortunately though, I somehow missed that email and didn't see it until 2 years later! And by the time I responded he was no where to be found.</p><p>I was starting to give up all hope when, fast forward to a couple of months ago, a friend/fellow pedal collector gave me the contact info for a potential owner, complete with a photo! This would be only the 4th plastic Fresh Fuzz to ever come across my screen and I knew I couldn't let it slip away. So I got to work crafting the perfect email, hoping for a huge score but expecting not even a reply.</p><p>Well, as you can probably guess, things went well. Because here she is! The very first, very fragile, and very very rare V1 Seamoon Fresh Fuzz from 1973. The enclosure was made by Daka-ware (aka Davies Molding) using Bakelite plastic. Very few of these were made and even fewer survived: </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj80Lhz0-cp8ya9VA65VIzMZWOOyd9Z3cqVPhtGdRXIbe_MxFpPWguXJT4FCc5Yro22c34CFg-cj2UUuCnI6lR-bLIMZISsNTsaO8lLgDbOuymzmzYrWI6U5d_9dSAp284AqDrHp-X65JmRbqEHh-DVjlbyhARFOlikEl3TQfB8QLCDNYj8f9w552b_/s2657/20230418_195552.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2657" data-original-width="2103" height="503" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj80Lhz0-cp8ya9VA65VIzMZWOOyd9Z3cqVPhtGdRXIbe_MxFpPWguXJT4FCc5Yro22c34CFg-cj2UUuCnI6lR-bLIMZISsNTsaO8lLgDbOuymzmzYrWI6U5d_9dSAp284AqDrHp-X65JmRbqEHh-DVjlbyhARFOlikEl3TQfB8QLCDNYj8f9w552b_/w397-h503/20230418_195552.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div><span style="color: #e06666;">So if you happen to also have one of these I would love to hear from you! <a href="mailto:eddieeugene@gmail.com" target="_blank">Send me an email</a> or <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ed_skymall/" target="_blank">reach out through instagram</a>.</span></div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks for reading!</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-28020296530586673862023-04-03T10:12:00.003-04:002023-04-03T10:14:03.020-04:00MKI Tone Benders, full on!☟<div>In case you haven't come across any of these demos before, here are a few examples of one of the best sounding fuzzes of all time!!!<p>These are all original MKI Tone Benders, from 1965:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="330" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SZX0SUZAYj4" width="397" youtube-src-id="SZX0SUZAYj4"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="329" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YJFnV3Eqy_s" width="396" youtube-src-id="YJFnV3Eqy_s"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="329" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/46EndhNwejI" width="396" youtube-src-id="46EndhNwejI"></iframe></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #ffa400;">*Big thanks to Philip, Graham, and Jerms for making these demos of this impossibly rare pedal!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">some day....some day. 🙏</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">thanks for watching!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-59164348705592372832023-03-28T20:49:00.003-04:002023-03-28T21:10:24.669-04:00SOUND Pedals, Brazil.☟<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2u2s0ctw9aCHLrwvDRUjBwUylvxuBxIHg3ioB3rJxAeV8LKj9osxupDwtUQV2dmwvpS-iW-Lvrh28JHxxVmdswmpmM3pIoCsleqGss-gaHwjyf4ocxF6-UNh1F48jieEWoPanAv9PavM5SXK-B3XiY-Dt-UKNRQbZQc_zS1299DMn8jX4F2ugZOqs/s1176/Sound%20-%20Brazil.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="855" data-original-width="1176" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2u2s0ctw9aCHLrwvDRUjBwUylvxuBxIHg3ioB3rJxAeV8LKj9osxupDwtUQV2dmwvpS-iW-Lvrh28JHxxVmdswmpmM3pIoCsleqGss-gaHwjyf4ocxF6-UNh1F48jieEWoPanAv9PavM5SXK-B3XiY-Dt-UKNRQbZQc_zS1299DMn8jX4F2ugZOqs/w398-h290/Sound%20-%20Brazil.jpg" title="SOUND ES-5 Devils' Fuzz" width="398" /></a></div><br /><p>SOUND Pedals was a brand out of Brazil that began in the late 60s and went all the way through the mid 80s. Their first efforts were combination pedals, typically featuring a wah and any insane mix of additional effects they could think of...</p><p>I originally found out about them through the amazingly named <i>Devils' Fuzz; w</i>hich is purported to be a Big Muff circuit. I was lucky enough to come across Fernando L'amounier recently, who happens to own an original, and he sent over this demo for us (also comparing it to the ES-4, Fuzz Wah):</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="329" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/02Z1obgzgmY" width="396" youtube-src-id="02Z1obgzgmY"></iframe></div><p>After a bit more digging I came across this demo for the SOUND ES-3, which employs the mix of Fuzz, Wah, Repeat, and Siren effects! This thing is completely ridiculous. Check it out///</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="331" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9faDK--jEIY" width="398" youtube-src-id="9faDK--jEIY"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And finally, here's our friend Fernando back again, this time with most of the SOUND lineup///</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="330" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6BY51_rl3zo" width="397" youtube-src-id="6BY51_rl3zo"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #ffa400;">For more info on SOUND Pedals and some background history, check out this site:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://minhaguitarradecedro.blogspot.com/2015/11/um-pouco-de-historia-da-sound-malagoli.html" target="_blank">SOUND Pedals Info</a><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">thanks for reading!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">-ed</div><p></p></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-7690489530723150412023-03-21T19:53:00.002-04:002023-03-21T20:34:10.852-04:00LRE Super Fuzz and Super Drive?☟<div>Starting in 1968 LRE (or Lafayette Radio Electronics) began selling their branded version of the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/honey/babycrying" target="_blank">Honey Baby Crying Fuzz</a>, or as we now know it, the <a href="https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/univox/superfuzz" target="_blank">Super Fuzz</a>. Along with Univox, they were not only the first OEM versions of this pedal, but also the only two in a gray enclosure with an oval-shaped logo plate. <p>In 1970 Univox began selling their version of the circuit in a Red (Orange?) and Blue enclosure. It's currently not clear if Univox began producing the pedal themselves or if Shin Ei continued the production, but what is clear is that the circuit layout and board changed with the aesthetic makeover, and a sticker proclaiming "Made in Japan by Univox Corp of Japan Ltd. under license of Unicord Inc. Westbury, N.Y." was affixed to each pedal.</p><p>More interestingly perhaps, is that in 1971 LRE began placing a section in their monthly catalogs showing an orange Super Fuzz and their version of the Uni-Drive, called the <i>Super Drive</i>! </p><p>While it is possible that we have seen an orange LRE Super Fuzz, because none of the pedals have brandings directly on them, we can say for certain that at least in the 20 years I have been collecting, not a single LRE <i>Super Drive</i> has ever popped up. </p><p><span style="color: #674ea7;">But I am very hopeful that some have survived! </span></p><p>LRE then has 3 versions of the Super Fuzz, and in my opinion here is the probable timeline:</p><p><span style="color: #ffa400;">1968 - Gray LRE Super Fuzz</span></p><p><span style="color: #ffa400;">1970 - Black LRE Super Fuzz</span></p><p><span style="color: #ffa400;">1971 - Orange/Blue LRE Super Fuzz</span></p>1970 LRE Catalog:<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAOsKezv2KNzMWviuqZzQzBJs1SRbQmtwR3sZpOVcn4iTFzPpBtNCYTscLQ9IwIyLq8ezaflEzE_qdVXsDNVWgI2m8jHqts4OQTt0jq7OpSgYWkIFaY7_O4D1Pm7x0wC9B3RqORGs9k0nRWI5J82aLaqO3JshjRm0WDmasCqVL8Cgdludhc2n3HQz6/s1427/LRE%20Super%20Fuzz.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1427" data-original-width="1048" height="539" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAOsKezv2KNzMWviuqZzQzBJs1SRbQmtwR3sZpOVcn4iTFzPpBtNCYTscLQ9IwIyLq8ezaflEzE_qdVXsDNVWgI2m8jHqts4OQTt0jq7OpSgYWkIFaY7_O4D1Pm7x0wC9B3RqORGs9k0nRWI5J82aLaqO3JshjRm0WDmasCqVL8Cgdludhc2n3HQz6/w396-h539/LRE%20Super%20Fuzz.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><br />1971 LRE Catalog:<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNPEutsGRYzM-_Q1kI-ZrRLS7_uHln_7hf0fa-ERAa-GAkcTFMf4Rjb2BPrsGAgjESH7kz404e5p412vjHKt7GpHRhfqJ8ED66lay6uQAvbHqC9HzyrOlnLzTyDu0SBz60qk8NG1WXVInqc5D4644DTlke-sojQx_kz-jyD4POWNk9SPbCJwHuQN1w/s1437/LRE%20Super%20Fuzz%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1437" data-original-width="1061" height="537" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNPEutsGRYzM-_Q1kI-ZrRLS7_uHln_7hf0fa-ERAa-GAkcTFMf4Rjb2BPrsGAgjESH7kz404e5p412vjHKt7GpHRhfqJ8ED66lay6uQAvbHqC9HzyrOlnLzTyDu0SBz60qk8NG1WXVInqc5D4644DTlke-sojQx_kz-jyD4POWNk9SPbCJwHuQN1w/w396-h537/LRE%20Super%20Fuzz%202.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div>With the help of a few equally nerdy friends, I am currently working on a more comprehensive history of this classic fuzz.<div><br /></div><div>So if you happen to have any info, personal stories, or anything that could help date these pedals, please hit me up via <a href="mailto:eddieeugene@gmail.com" target="_blank">email</a> or <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ed_skymall/" target="_blank">instagram message</a>!</div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks for reading,</div><div>-ed</div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2503468143782490409.post-16773114548608504242023-03-20T22:31:00.006-04:002023-03-21T19:55:01.287-04:00The Bansheeeeeeeeeeeeee!☟
<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfvXRsO6OsbuWUlFuuViyl1ZayGdGy3c5bywBTbXzwFqaak2PaMtUKF8JABZd7B6JUZMl5f0ysA9CBB8WjvipKYzUSgD2ydxIM0cxpoOIShSX6d4_wE9lgWOuflZ0PTcGAPyqx8dbxoaBF-WUorrY65E87yhQheBYbtkVYTGyX9W-PHpYzCM0S7vm/s1024/Nomad%20Banshee%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfvXRsO6OsbuWUlFuuViyl1ZayGdGy3c5bywBTbXzwFqaak2PaMtUKF8JABZd7B6JUZMl5f0ysA9CBB8WjvipKYzUSgD2ydxIM0cxpoOIShSX6d4_wE9lgWOuflZ0PTcGAPyqx8dbxoaBF-WUorrY65E87yhQheBYbtkVYTGyX9W-PHpYzCM0S7vm/w396-h396/Nomad%20Banshee%202.jpg" title="Nomad Banshee Fuzz" width="396" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Most likely from 1966, the Nomad Banshee Fuzz is a gnarly beast with a disgustingly primitive sound; like an Electronics 101 class project gone wrong, but in all the best ways/// </div><div><br /></div><div>Also made under the <i>Allied</i> brand, it sounds like a mix between a Maestro Fuzztone and a Fuzzrite, but somehow more gated.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>It's probably related to the fuzzes by Goya or UMI from the same time period, but that connection has yet to be fully made. Until then, just know that it's one of the grossest sounding pedals to come out of the 1960s...</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnxbUuBcdkddbjBJsLZRFvecnDE6VgRqhcEWqY9eVnDFwe9_rodb15gkCFfZtI-hINxpDddzs3E9QeTMfrHADAGaFJedrCrnGc9oWKMwWEDCQdRMqMucHoK5gwUWe982AWJysBOpMvG65GDTPYGAaVHW6DL0P-ye8P4hIJVGTGOKnDfTusyfeglByW/s824/Nomad%20Banshee%201.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="824" data-original-width="824" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnxbUuBcdkddbjBJsLZRFvecnDE6VgRqhcEWqY9eVnDFwe9_rodb15gkCFfZtI-hINxpDddzs3E9QeTMfrHADAGaFJedrCrnGc9oWKMwWEDCQdRMqMucHoK5gwUWe982AWJysBOpMvG65GDTPYGAaVHW6DL0P-ye8P4hIJVGTGOKnDfTusyfeglByW/w396-h396/Nomad%20Banshee%201.jpg" title="Nomad Banshee Fuzz" width="396" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp9gQc7Tr8g-8TUlKfz0JJ04vJH4dHwsqSskv3lDCOFsZ0JjFBEq78VorbgC0SH8Oojff0W6Ou4T7VdvurzgcnIoNwiJapoo_BR-JdxjIUHOqeFatnZrpLuaRhpeJe2l29nqsIHY13PnxO5LxXix5Eg7TjFLAl8UlgOXQxGoRvkRem9v7t6NQEY9ZL/s1014/Nomad%20Banshee.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="824" data-original-width="1014" height="321" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp9gQc7Tr8g-8TUlKfz0JJ04vJH4dHwsqSskv3lDCOFsZ0JjFBEq78VorbgC0SH8Oojff0W6Ou4T7VdvurzgcnIoNwiJapoo_BR-JdxjIUHOqeFatnZrpLuaRhpeJe2l29nqsIHY13PnxO5LxXix5Eg7TjFLAl8UlgOXQxGoRvkRem9v7t6NQEY9ZL/w396-h321/Nomad%20Banshee.jpg" title="Nomad Banshee Fuzz" width="396" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Thanks for reading!<div>-ed<br /><div><br /></div></div>Ed Skymallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12036148554977261116noreply@blogger.com0