Help me understand fuzz

jmv

jmv

New member
Okay, i'd like to see if you guys can help clear some things up for me.

I'd have to say, as cliche as it may be, my biggest guitar influences are hendrix, cream-era clapton, and early zeppelin. Based on all that i've read, they all share one important thing in their tone that i don't have (besides a marshall stack). That being, a fuzz unit. Now, i'd love to get a sweet vintage-y unit, like an Analogman Sun Face, but they're really expensive, and i don't necessarily know if i need it....

When i play my bassman, with the volume set at 7 or 8, its already more 'dirt' than on any of those albums of my influences. Now, part of the problem is i've never experimented much with different distortion/overdrive/fuzz effects, so i can't tell the differences between them. But, if i have so much distortion/overdrive/whatever just from cranking my amp up, do i really need a fuzz??

I feel like a fuzz is maybe something i could use well with my Champion 600, which even at "12" doesn't get too dirty, but i don't know if i could practically use it with my bassman, as i don't really understand how everything works together.

I don't know if i've explained my problem very well at all, but if anyone can make sense of this and perhaps offer some insight into the world of fuzz, that would be great!

Thanks,
Jason
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

I try to look at a fuzz as mush less of a substitute for overdrive/distortion and more as a specific texture I might want to use...

I have several amps that sound great simply cranked up and if I can't crank them I have several nice OD/distortion pedals that I can use to get crunch but when I use a fuzz pedal Im looking for a very specific sound that no cranked amp will produce...it's just a different tone all together.
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

so, do you use the fuzz with an already distorted amp?? Or do you use it with a cleaner sound??

I love the distortion my amp gives me, i think its a great classic rock sound, but i'm curious as to what putting a fuzz into that equation would do.
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

You're gonna have to do the only thing that answers any of our questions....

Get one and try it :) That said, the Tweak Fuzz is a lot of fun for not much $.
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

Fuzz can act as more of an effect than a distortion. For example, it can increase sustain and give you violin type smoothness that an overdriven amp can't. Be warned that there are a lot of different types of Fuzz and each one will offer something different.
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

JB_From_Hell said:
Get one and try it :)
Click to expand...

yeah, i wish there was some way i could try out a germanium, vintage style fuzz before i bought it. I think thats the kind i would be interested in, but of course they are more pricey.

Ya know, i just checked it out and guitar center's website shows the Keeley Fuzz Head, i wonder if they would carry it in the stores. Unfortunately though, even if they do it probably will be alot different than trying it out with my own equipment.
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

It's something that guys just cannot do without and usually ends up costing us a LOT of money.
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

okay, maybe a better way for me to ask this question is this:

If you guys were going for a cream tone, say something like SWLABR for example, and you had a les paul, a good fuzz, and an amp that offers anything from light breakup to more distortion than you need for most classic rock, how would you set it up to get that kind of sound, both for the rhythm and lead tones?? How much would the amp be doing, how much would the fuzz be doing, etc??
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

jmv said:
okay, maybe a better way for me to ask this question is this:

If you guys were going for a cream tone, say something like SWLABR for example, and you had a les paul, a good fuzz, and an amp that offers anything from light breakup to more distortion than you need for most classic rock, how would you set it up to get that kind of sound, both for the rhythm and lead tones?? How much would the amp be doing, how much would the fuzz be doing, etc??
Click to expand...


I can do SWLABR with my Fuzz Face...and it's REAL close!

Do yourself a favor, save up and get an Analog.Man Sun Face, get the NKT 275 version with a Sun Dial...I know they cost a lot but they are WELL worth it IMO. You'll find lots of classic tones you;re looking for and talking abotu and if you, for whatever reason you do not like it you can easily sell it. If you can buy used and you'll likely not loose a dime if you decide to sell.
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

the guy who invented fire said:
I can do SWLABR with my Fuzz Face...and it's REAL close!

Do yourself a favor, save up and get an Analog.Man Sun Face, get the NKT 275 version with a Sun Dial...I know they cost a lot but they are WELL worth it IMO. You'll find lots of classic tones you;re looking for and talking abotu and if you, for whatever reason you do not like it you can easily sell it. If you can buy used and you'll likely not loose a dime if you decide to sell.
Click to expand...

yeah the sun face always seemed like the one i would want from what i've read. I dunno how soon i'll be able to afford it, but i think that may be what i do.

But still, i'm curious... when you get a SWLABR type tone, using a fuzz, whats the amp doing?? I mean, if you turn the fuzz off is the amp distorting?? How much??
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

I can do something like that with the amp completely clean! If I am running the amp up a bit to a slightly dirty tone it still works...

Now, it does depend on the voicing of the amp...I can't do it with a BF/SF Fender amp...they are too scopped out in the mids. If you have a Marshall or a more mid heavy amp you'll be just fine.
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

the problem with reading these forums is you begin to think good tone has an equation.

it's not a matter of matching everything perfectly...it's a matter of getting the stuff that works for you and workin it with all you've got.

i like fuzz pedals 'cuz they add that flat-out straight-up squarewave tone. the one i've had the most experience with was the Electro-Harmonix Double Muff which had a massive amount of low-end, it made my Bassman sound twice as huge when i stepped on it.

You ever hear of build your own clone? you can build your own decent fuzz pedal with their kits. www.byoc.com
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

^^^ a Cream song, off their first album i think.

I consider fuzz an effect. Even those guys used those boxes to some point as an effect, not as their main crunch. Considering that I wouldn't buy one to use as your main crunch/Overdrive sounds, but as an effect, and sometimes a lead boost. For that, I like the Big Muff.

Two really good examples i can come up with are David Gilmour's early Pink Floyd recording of Echoes, during the jam part when he's playing those really pretty pretty solo's. You can tell that he's using a fuzz, probably a big muff. The other example is on Zeppelin's No Quarter, while not being an early recording, it sounds like he's using a fuzz during that power chord riff when the song gets heavy around 1:00.
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

Empty Pockets said:
the problem with reading these forums is you begin to think good tone has an equation.

it's not a matter of matching everything perfectly...it's a matter of getting the stuff that works for you and workin it with all you've got.
i like fuzz pedals 'cuz they add that flat-out straight-up squarewave tone. the one i've had the most experience with was the Electro-Harmonix Double Muff which had a massive amount of low-end, it made my Bassman sound twice as huge when i stepped on it.

You ever hear of build your own clone? you can build your own decent fuzz pedal with their kits. www.byoc.com
Click to expand...

That is so true. Very well put.
 
Re: Help me understand fuzz

I find it works best into an amp with just a hint of gain, like what an old Marshall sounds like when there's some dirt there, but it's almost like an incredibly complex clean tone. Step on the fuzz and wail away. :)
 
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