Needz me a fuzz!

Kwesi · #1 03-11-2010, 07:40 PM

So I'm looking for a good (gated?) fuzz now and I'm not exactly sure where to start. I never really liked distorted bass tones at all until recently so this is all pretty new to me. I do know that I dig the sound of the Zvex Wooly Mammoth but 1) the price is outrageous imo and 2) I've heard that it doesn't sound good with active basses. Is there a pedal similar to the Wooly Mammoth in terms of tone and size but remedies those two issues and closer to $100? I'm willing to spend more but not too much over that. Ideally, I want a fuzz that can do either gated or ungated fuzz sounds like the Wooly Mammoth can. I also really dig the sound of the new EHX bass big muff but it doesn't have a gate control so something similar in tone to that with a gate would be cool too. Any and all suggestions are appreciated

bassman1185 · #2 03-11-2010, 08:16 PM

You might be able to find a Zoom Ultra Fuzz for a bit over $100. I had one, and it was really sick sounding, but ultimately not what I needed. You'll have pretty slim pickings for gated fuzzes around the $100 mark, though.

Hollow Man · #3 03-11-2010, 08:35 PM

Kwesi, I found that the Zvex Mastotron was damn close to the Wooly Mammoth, and it's about $150 new/100 used (just sold mine for right about that price). You can get 'em at GC, so if you don't like it, just return it! I highly recommend you check one out.

rosstanium · #4 03-11-2010, 08:47 PM

+1 on the Mastotron

Also, check out a used Chunk Systems Brown Dog.

warwick.hoy · #5 03-11-2010, 09:10 PM

OLC Chunky Cheese!!!!!!!!

Very Versatile Fuzz, a clone of the Lovetone Big Cheese.

As far as I can tell; all your basses are active and (price aside) the Woolly Mammoth while a great sounding fuzz isn't known to sound particularly good with actives. This isn't my experience just the common consensus that I've bumped into researching gated fuzzes on TB.

I'm really just in the afterglow of getting my OLC Chunky Cheese,...man that thing sounds awesome. It has several voicings,...one that is muffish,...one that is Facish and my favorite is the spitting sputtering oversaturated interestingly decaying "Cheese" setting (4 on the OLC)

Kwesi · #6 03-11-2010, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rosstanium

+1 on the Mastotron

Also, check out a used Chunk Systems Brown Dog.

I thought about that but those don't seem to pop up to often on the used market and when they do they're a bit closer to the $200 mark than I would like to spend though I'm still considering one. ~~Are they gated?~~ The Mastotron looks very interesting and the control scheme would suggest a very versatile fuzz but is it gated? I saw a clip that sounded pretty sweet (very similar to the mammoth clips I've heard just not quite as thick which I can deal with) but I didn't hear a very gated sound.

EDIT: Just checked the Chunk Systems website on the Brown dog and it's definition is "a gated bass fuzz" lol so disregard that question.

paganjack · #7 03-11-2010, 09:26 PM

Well, some people say the Swollen Pickle sounds Mastodon-ish, although it is not gated. It can do a nice variety of tones though, from super-scooped open to uber-compressed bassy speaker destruction. It's cheaper, and easy enough to find.

Just a thought. I have one and do like it quite well.

Bassnut62 · #8 03-12-2010, 12:33 AM

I have both Mammoth and Mastotron. The Mastotron does get close to the Mammoth; but it doesn't quite nail it. It isn't really gated in the same delicious way as the Mammoth either. The Mastotron is a great pedal for the low cost though.

As far as I can tell nothing sounds quite like the Mammoth; but it is horribly expensive and there seem to be plenty of other tasty pedals to look at.

Two others that have me (as a dedicated Mammoth fan) tempted are Wren & Cuff Pickle Pie B and CoPilotFX Orbit.

I don't think the Pickle is really gated, but what a sound - it sounds different from Mammoth but just as irresistible to me; some have described it as a Muff on Steroids.

The Orbit is definitely gated and from the clips I've heard it seems capable of some very whacked out sounds, including something closer to the heavily gated Mammoth sound. They come up quite cheap too.

Kwesi · #9 03-12-2010, 01:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bassnut62

I have both Mammoth and Mastotron. The Mastotron does get close to the Mammoth; but it doesn't quite nail it. It isn't really gated in the same delicious way as the Mammoth either. The Mastotron is a great pedal for the low cost though.

As far as I can tell nothing sounds quite like the Mammoth; but it is horribly expensive and there seem to be plenty of other tasty pedals to look at.

Two others that have me (as a dedicated Mammoth fan) tempted are Wren & Cuff Pickle Pie B and CoPilotFX Orbit.

I don't think the Pickle is really gated, but what a sound - it sounds different from Mammoth but just as irresistible to me; some have described it as a Muff on Steroids.

The Orbit is definitely gated and from the clips I've heard it seems capable of some very whacked out sounds, including something closer to the heavily gated Mammoth sound. They come up quite cheap too.

Yeah I was looking at the Orbit myself and thinking I could go with that. I think Im really leaning towards either that or the Brown Dog right now. My only issues are that neither have much in the way of actual tonal control of the fuzz. The Orbit has basically none (only the Vol and Int knobs control the fuzz everything else is the VCO) and the Brown dog only has the hard/soft switch and the fuzzy/synthy knob. I really like the EQ and Wool knobs that the Mammoth has but I can't seem to find anything like that in a gated fuzz. I've seen a bunch of mammoth clones floating around, would it be possible to have one of those modded to be more active-bass friendly?

Kwesi · #10 03-12-2010, 02:53 AM

So I was checking out this video here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjdROKCYdHM) of the Mojo Hand Huckleberry v2 and I love the tone! It's super juicy and super thick but... it's not gated. Is it possible to have a gate control modded onto a pedal? If so who should I go to and how much would I be looking at spending? If it's not then I'm probably gonna end up with a Brown Dog...

megadan · #11 03-12-2010, 07:06 AM

I haven't used that many other gated fuzzes but the gate on the Brown Dog is quite good. It's a little out of your price range (I picked mine up on TB for $155) but it's a good pedal.

Kwesi · #12 03-12-2010, 09:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by megadan

I haven't used that many other gated fuzzes but the gate on the Brown Dog is quite good. It's a little out of your price range (I picked mine up on TB for $155) but it's a good pedal.

$155 isn't unreasonable at all actually, I just never see these for sale on TB. I did a search and saw 5 in the last year

. And one hasn't sold on eBay for at least a month (none found on the completed listings page).

BassBrass · #13 03-12-2010, 10:07 AM

Do you actually need a gated fuzz or do you just want the sound to stop when you stop so it's otherwise quiet? The Mastotron and the Blowtorch are silent in between notes. Some Deviever pedals use a gate, but that's for sputter-ation as the note decays. The devi Karaoki Part is the one (so far) that doesn't cut low end, but it's isn't gated like the BIT (which cuts lows). I've found that the Blowtorch is easier to use than the Mastotron and lows (and Mids too) are very tweekeble, not pre-set to not enough/too much. All these buzz nicely...Blowtorch does a lot more.

James_E · #14 03-12-2010, 10:09 AM

Check out: MXR Blowtorch and MXR El Grande Bass fuzz. I have the El Grande, it was $125, and it sounds good to me.

rosstanium · #15 03-12-2010, 10:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kwesi

$155 isn't unreasonable at all actually, I just never see these for sale on TB. I did a search and saw 5 in the last year

. And one hasn't sold on eBay for at least a month (none found on the completed listings page).

Yes...that's a damn good price

And the don't sell on ebay for a reason...because people don't usually part with it after they own one

Kwesi · #16 03-12-2010, 11:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BassBrass

Do you actually need a gated fuzz or do you just want the sound to stop when you stop so it's otherwise quiet

This is what I'm not actually sure of. The Mastotron, Hucklebery v2, and Brown Dog have what I'm looking for tonally without the price of the Wooly Mammoth but I wondering how much a gate contributes to the overall sound I'm after which is this: http://vimeo.com/10048959. I know the fuzz is only part of that (I still need a lowpass filter and expression pedal but I'm set on what I'm going to get) but I really want to make sure I get the right one.

Kwesi · #17 03-13-2010, 11:52 AM

bump for info and suggestions

megadan · #18 03-13-2010, 12:09 PM

For what it's worth, the Brown Dog goes great before a filter, lots of tasty harmonics.

Right now my favorite synth sound is the Brown Dog into the Fatman, then the Prunes & Custard afterwords to crank up the treble again.

Kwesi · #19 03-13-2010, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by megadan

For what it's worth, the Brown Dog goes great before a filter, lots of tasty harmonics.

Right now my favorite synth sound is the Brown Dog into the Fatman, then the Prunes & Custard afterwords to crank up the treble again.

I bet that sounds awesome! A Brown Dog would match my Agent 00Funk quite nicely too

. Argh, choices are hard. I'm probably just gonna get the Huckleberry because it's the only one I can actually find for sale currently at a price that I'd be willing to pay.

takfar · #20 03-13-2010, 02:04 PM

I've been using the Mastotron extensively for synthy-er tones (and the Bass Big Muff for more "vanilla" fuzz). I've always wanted to try a Brown Dog, but these two pedals pretty much have me covered in the Fuzz front, so I'm not in a hurry to get one.

If you do try a Mastotron, I suggest you try it with lower "fuzz" settings. It's much more controlled, and still very synthy. You then adjust "push" to the effects you're using with it and/or the song you're playing to cut or increase the "gatey" effect and eliminate sputter. Took me a while to find this out, but it works *much* better on bass with fuzz dialed back, imo (you can crank it up if on guitar).