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GETTING THE GEAR
If you have searched eBay recently you know the garage revival has the price of vintage music
equipment skyrocketing. Luckily effects pedals are relatively lo-fi technology and there are mad
scientists out there busily replicating vintage effects and offering their wares at affordable prices.
Drastic Plastic Press set out in search of some killer boutique 60’s fuzz pedal clones. For this
review I enlisted the help of a guitar man very familiar with fuzz, Craig “Nine” Cholette. (The
Stooges' Ron Asheton once called Nine his favorite Michigan guitarist and Nine briefly played at
Asheton’s side in the Empty Set.)
If you have searched eBay recently you know the garage revival has the price of vintage music
equipment skyrocketing. Luckily effects pedals are relatively lo-fi technology and there are mad
scientists out there busily replicating vintage effects and offering their wares at affordable prices.
Drastic Plastic Press set out in search of some killer boutique 60’s fuzz pedal clones. For this
review I enlisted the help of a guitar man very familiar with fuzz, Craig “Nine” Cholette. (The
Stooges' Ron Asheton once called Nine his favorite Michigan guitarist and Nine briefly played at
Asheton’s side in the Empty Set.)
Ashbass FUZZbrite
The FUZZbrite is based on the Mosrite
FUZZrite pedal. It seemed appropriate
(or bizarrely postmodern) to test it
using a Eastwood (Sidejack) Mosrite
reproduction. Our amplifier was a
(real) Fender Twin.
The FUZZbrite is based on the Mosrite
FUZZrite pedal. It seemed appropriate
(or bizarrely postmodern) to test it
using a Eastwood (Sidejack) Mosrite
reproduction. Our amplifier was a
(real) Fender Twin.
Barge Concepts BB-1 Standard
I wanted to try the BB-1 after speaking with
Michael of the fuzztastic garage punk band
The Omens. Michael knows his fuzz and
when I asked him about his favorite vintage
fuzz pedals the Roland AF-100 BeeBaa was
among his recommendations. The Barge
Concepts BB-1 is an accurate recreation of
the BeeBaa with some modern improvements
in control and construction.
I wanted to try the BB-1 after speaking with
Michael of the fuzztastic garage punk band
The Omens. Michael knows his fuzz and
when I asked him about his favorite vintage
fuzz pedals the Roland AF-100 BeeBaa was
among his recommendations. The Barge
Concepts BB-1 is an accurate recreation of
the BeeBaa with some modern improvements
in control and construction.
Nine kicked out some garage riffs and
we were blown back in time by the
sound of the FUZZbrite. Nine had
played through the Mosrite FUZZrite
and felt the tone was an authentic
representation of the original 60's
stompbox.
This is a simple, straight-forward pedal
with two control knobs, volume and
depth, which we kept maxed out. It is
worth noting, the FUZZbrite is a very
quiet pedal. It gave us exactly what we
asked for: perfect classic FUZZ, and
nothing more. If you’re looking for that
mosquito fuzz tone or The Ventures’
“2000 Pound Bee” (or any other insect-
related sound) then this is your time
machine.
we were blown back in time by the
sound of the FUZZbrite. Nine had
played through the Mosrite FUZZrite
and felt the tone was an authentic
representation of the original 60's
stompbox.
This is a simple, straight-forward pedal
with two control knobs, volume and
depth, which we kept maxed out. It is
worth noting, the FUZZbrite is a very
quiet pedal. It gave us exactly what we
asked for: perfect classic FUZZ, and
nothing more. If you’re looking for that
mosquito fuzz tone or The Ventures’
“2000 Pound Bee” (or any other insect-
related sound) then this is your time
machine.
The BB-1 is a much more versatile pedal
than the FUZZbrite. It gets a great range of
thick fuzz tones with lots of sustain. With
the four control knobs you can dial in
vintage to modern sounds, and it doubles
as a volume boost. That said, using the
same set-up we weren’t able to get that
quintessential FUZZrite tone with the BB-1.
If you’re in the fuzzbox market I would
consider picking up both of these pedals
for the ultimate fuzz arsenal.
than the FUZZbrite. It gets a great range of
thick fuzz tones with lots of sustain. With
the four control knobs you can dial in
vintage to modern sounds, and it doubles
as a volume boost. That said, using the
same set-up we weren’t able to get that
quintessential FUZZrite tone with the BB-1.
If you’re in the fuzzbox market I would
consider picking up both of these pedals
for the ultimate fuzz arsenal.
--Craig Campbell
February 24, 2007
February 24, 2007
THE STORY OF FUZZ
Fuzz pedals use what was once cutting edge mid-century transistor technology to boost and clip a
guitar’s signal by turning a standard sine wave input into what is essentially a square wave output.
This gives a much more distorted and synthetic sound than a standard distortion pedal. The
fuzzbox was originally developed to simulate the sound of strings or brass. The processor didn’t
catch on initially. Then came the British Invasion and with it the glorious sound of fuzz. Ray
Davies’ doctored Vox AC-30 and the Stones’ Maestro FZ-1 Fuzz Tone on “Satisfaction” forever
changed our idea of what an acceptable guitar tone was.
Fuzz pedals use what was once cutting edge mid-century transistor technology to boost and clip a
guitar’s signal by turning a standard sine wave input into what is essentially a square wave output.
This gives a much more distorted and synthetic sound than a standard distortion pedal. The
fuzzbox was originally developed to simulate the sound of strings or brass. The processor didn’t
catch on initially. Then came the British Invasion and with it the glorious sound of fuzz. Ray
Davies’ doctored Vox AC-30 and the Stones’ Maestro FZ-1 Fuzz Tone on “Satisfaction” forever
changed our idea of what an acceptable guitar tone was.
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