Tools, Tones and Toys for Guitarists
Request – here you go & I hope this is what you were after. Could shave off a column or two if that’s a bother. The Fortin is a pretty stock silicon fuzz face with an input blend, a 10k trimmer in place of the usual 8k2 resistor and a 100n cap on the output. … Read more
I’m jotting down some notes for myself, because I don’t expect anyone else to use this layout. It’s a little impractical in parts, but I had some spare board this size, and a pair of transistors that I liked on the breadboard that needed a home. It’s a progression on this somewhat more practical layout. … Read more
Just one of my little side projects – it’s a pretty hot day here, so not one for playing with germanium transistors in a big black box with a tin roof (also known as my garage / workshop). The leakage goes nuts, and they sound like balls… While playing around with a bunch of old … Read more
Just a little fuzz face variant from D*AM – the Maggot Brain from 2019. There are some more recent variations on this as well. Could not see the cap and pot values, so just a partial trace. Being a fuzz face, you kind of know what they might be. I mostly breadboard before building a … Read more
Just as someone asked me about this recently, I was curious, so I looked it up – Fuzz Face with a 3-way rotary, selecting from 1k5, 2k2 and 3k3 instead of the stock 470 ohm. Mostly NTK275 transistors from what I have seen. No plans on making one, just jotting this down as a note. … Read more
Just a Fuzz Face layout that I used recently and want to make note of – it’s based on the one knob fuzz line, which is a handy little layout, but didn’t quite suit my needs. With some minor adjustments, it can be used for most fuzz face variants – component table here. FUZZ … Read more
Macari’s often release pedals that are minor variations on the same circuit – in this case the “Sakata” Colorsound hybrid one knob fuzz has quite a few value changes compared to the previous hybrid they released, which was closer to a stock fuzz box. Macari’s describe the Sakata as being tuned closer to a MK1.5 I … Read more
The D*A*M Drag n Fly DF-05 is a hybrid fuzz pedal that combines silicon and germanium transistors, drawing inspiration from the classic Fuzz Face design. What sets it apart is its unique filter control, located at the input of the circuit. This control blends the input signal between a 10uF and a 4n7 capacitor, offering … Read more
This the D*A*M Dragonfly DF-06, which is somewhat confusingly not the same circuit as the D*A*M Drag n Fly. They’re both in the Fuzz Face family, but they each approach the tone control differently. The Drag n Fly does the tone shaping up front, while the Dragonfly does it at the end of the circuit, … Read more
The Colorsound Fuzz Box has to be one of my favourite fuzz circuits, due to its simplicity and reliable results. It’s very much a one trick pony, but if you just want a nice thick fuzz, this will to that trick quite well. The original silicon circuit is said to be a Dick Denny design, … Read more