Anyone Compared A B:Assmaster To A Black Cat Bass Octave Fuzz?

[Bryan R. Tyler]

Obviously they're both Brassmaster-based, but I was curious if anyone's compared them to see if there are any different nuances. A silicon B:Assmaster is one of those pedals I've wanted forever but have always had bad luck in getting (lost 5 eBay auctions for them, and have had as many that I tried to get through classifieds that sold before I got to them, etc.) but the Black Cat has a smaller size and are a little cheaper.

[nad]

I have both. They are a little different. Similar character in the fuzz, but the Black Cat is a little brighter sounding, with the Malekko aiming more toward the upper midrange. The switches on the Malekko don't affect volume levels, but on the Black Cat they do. Black Cat has an actual clean blend, the Malekko "clean" is very dirty and bright but helps cut through a mix a little better (they both cut just fine though). The Black Cat is pretty quiet for a fuzz, but the Malekko could probably drive a power amp.

If you want more girth, go with Black Cat. If you need as much cut as possible, Malekko. If you're a fuzzhead like me, get both. They are equally adorable.

[jetofuj]

Silicon B:Ass is the best pedal ever! It's the only pedal that always has its place on my still changing board.

Nad have/had B:Ass and Black Cat, so you might ask him directly.

And here is something similar - Bogdan Pole Master vs. Black Cat thread:
Black Cat Bass Octave Fuzz / Pole Master Comparison (too)

[Bryan R. Tyler]

Awesome- thanks. I'm a freak about trying to keep everything at a unity gain, so that's not an issue, but it sounds like the Malekko would be more my thing.

[jetofuj]

With Malekko you get unity around 9 o'clock

[Bryan R. Tyler]

Originally Posted by jetofuj

With Malekko you get unity around 9 o'clock

Same with my Blowtorch. I wish it had a lot less gain- a tiny bump on the volume and it goes from unity to 0.

[faceinbass]

Originally Posted by jetofuj

With Malekko you get unity around 9 o'clock

Its THE LOUDEST pedal I have ever owned.
Go Malekko.

[nad]

Unity gain? With a B:Assmaster? Good luck!

[jetofuj]

A little bit of B:Ass porn:


I still have and use standard one.

Malekko offers some kind of low mod you might be interested in, but I really don't know any details.

[Bryan R. Tyler]

Never saw that top one- looks badass. All the designs I've seen for them, including the pink and the etched metal, have looked great.

I talked to someone on here about the extended frequency mod. I thought it was supposed to just extended the lows (as did the person who got it), but they thought it extended the high frequency range as well once they heard it. I'll ask someone at Malekko some time.

[nad]

Dude, snag the Black Cat in the classifieds. You cannot go wrong with either of these pedals, they are slight variations on a theme, and that theme is Best. Fuzz. Ever.

[jetofuj]

The one on top is double germanium version that Josh build for me. I didn't really dig it as much as a silicon one. It doesn't have this brass character IMO.

[nad]

I didn't care much for the Double Germ either. Far too mellow for me, but that might work for others. It hated my passive basses though, which quickly sent it packing.

[Bryan R. Tyler]

The silicon is the only version I'm interested in. Still, that top one looks cool- is it the only one of its kind?

[billphreets]

Originally Posted by faceinbass

Its THE LOUDEST pedal I have ever owned.
Go Malekko.

+1

[TheWoodShed]

I owned a Fred Bonte made Gray Box version of the Black Cat BOF. What a great pedal...one of the few I regret ever selling. I don't know how the new ones stack up to that one, but it will give you over the top kind of grind. My only issue was the loud "pop" that would occur when using changing the switch positions.

The B:assmasters always sound thin to me by comparison.

[jetofuj]

Originally Posted by Bryan R. Tyler

The silicon is the only version I'm interested in. Still, that top one looks cool- is it the only one of its kind?

I guess it's 1 of 1. I also love the finish, but it wasn't enough for me to keep it

Photo made by Josh himself:

[Bryan R. Tyler]

I didn't even see the sparkles in the first pic. It's so 70s....I'd call it the Carl Sagan edition.