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FEA Photon Fuzz II
- Thread starter yaksonator
- Start date
I don't think of it as an 'in your face' octave up sound. It definitely adds some edge and definition though. I think it was designed more as a way to enhance the core character of the fuzz than to be an obvious effect.
Thanks for the review!
I too like the dry blend low-pass filtered with sw 2. It makes the dry level more of a clean bass knob.Thanks for the switch settings.
-Frank
Yeah, it works well that way. The low-pass filter on the clean sound gives the blend has more of a true fuzz sound. With the HPF set at 55Hz, it creates a nice full fuzz in the bass, but with some nice tightness in the bottom end.
Agreed. The only reason why I have the LPF set at 4k is that I am running a tweeter with a 5K X-over. So I need to filter it out. If I had a more trad sounding cab, I wouldn't apply LPF at all.
That's definitely how it turned out.
Since the octave is post fuzz gain, I had to find a balance of octave + fuzz square waves when the gain was set high. The octave is parallel mixed with the fuzz and dry signals at the output amp... I remember spending a lot of time adjusting the octave control range so that there wasn't a huge volume drop when it was engaged with the fuzz.
-Frank
Ba55Man1ac
Gold Supporting Member
Just got one of these this week and gigged it Friday night with low gain setting. It's nailed the sound I was after plus I can make it much more fuzzy if needed. Win win!
Thanks to Frank and all who have contributed as it makes the learning curve much easier, being able to read your input and setting advice.
I have quite a clean rig (DB680 pre amp) and the thing I noticed was the clarity and quality of the sound. I know we all get that new pedal feeling but it really does have a very 'audiophile' quality which tells me it's been very well engineered and built.
I had thought the dual band distortion might be more suited to my needs but from what I've heard with my limited experience on this one it's quite a mean machine!
Looking forward to more experimentation over the coming days, especially at volume. I don't think we can really appreciate a good drive pedal at bedroom levels! With that in mind your favourite settings are always welcomed (by contributors and Frank). If you have any tip or tricks please do give me a heads up. I've not played with the dip switches yet and look forward to trying them out very soon and hearing what they have to offer.
Thanks to Frank and all who have contributed as it makes the learning curve much easier, being able to read your input and setting advice.
I have quite a clean rig (DB680 pre amp) and the thing I noticed was the clarity and quality of the sound. I know we all get that new pedal feeling but it really does have a very 'audiophile' quality which tells me it's been very well engineered and built.
I had thought the dual band distortion might be more suited to my needs but from what I've heard with my limited experience on this one it's quite a mean machine!
Looking forward to more experimentation over the coming days, especially at volume. I don't think we can really appreciate a good drive pedal at bedroom levels! With that in mind your favourite settings are always welcomed (by contributors and Frank). If you have any tip or tricks please do give me a heads up. I've not played with the dip switches yet and look forward to trying them out very soon and hearing what they have to offer.
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I love mine. I haven't used it in the mix as a fuzz yet, but had it set up as a low, touch sensitive drive at our last practice. Drive, bite and ANCR all the way down. blend all the way up. Sounded incredible.
I keep hoping FEA will make another pre like the Growler and the Photon can really nail some great preamp tones.
I keep hoping FEA will make another pre like the Growler and the Photon can really nail some great preamp tones.
You're welcome Frank!
It's very early days and I have to admit after my initial trial of the pedal I wasn't convinced but having listened to the Brett Kingman demo I knew the low gain sound I was after was lurking insidel. As for the fuzz tones, I have a couple of projects where the fuzz will get used in the coming months so its a bonus to have such a range of low gain/ fuzz available. Now it's a matter of tweaking what works best for those tracks a.k.a the fun part
I have a small pedal board and with my Cali 76 comp (I've never had an opportunity to try one of your...yet) and Basswitch there isn't much space available but the Photon II does everything I need and more with aplomb and thus wins the coveted noisemaker position!
It's very early days and I have to admit after my initial trial of the pedal I wasn't convinced but having listened to the Brett Kingman demo I knew the low gain sound I was after was lurking insidel. As for the fuzz tones, I have a couple of projects where the fuzz will get used in the coming months so its a bonus to have such a range of low gain/ fuzz available. Now it's a matter of tweaking what works best for those tracks a.k.a the fun part
I have a small pedal board and with my Cali 76 comp (I've never had an opportunity to try one of your...yet) and Basswitch there isn't much space available but the Photon II does everything I need and more with aplomb and thus wins the coveted noisemaker position!
So I picked up the new Darkglass Alpha Omega recently, and have been getting some killer sounds out of it with a growly active Warwick Streamer, simply played pickstyle direct into the pedal then a headphone amp.
Then I tried the same setup with the Photon II and got a sound I liked even more! Jon Stockman needs to buy this pedal!
Settings (o'clock):
Gain - 9-10
Bite - 4
Low - maxed
High - 3
ACNR - 2
Level - 1
Dry - 2
Then I tried the same setup with the Photon II and got a sound I liked even more! Jon Stockman needs to buy this pedal!
Settings (o'clock):
Gain - 9-10
Bite - 4
Low - maxed
High - 3
ACNR - 2
Level - 1
Dry - 2
I'm sorry.......not sorry. I've only spent about 20 minutes with my "new" Photon Fuzz II. Skimmed this thread and I'd have to agree with every positive thing I've read. From low gain to high, from more traditional leanings to more modern synthy (for lack of a better term) sounds, it's quite a gratifying device. It will go to my next rehearsal, (displacing my Gnomeratron for now) with the dry flat, the octave cut at 4K, and the pre-Fuzz HPF @ 55hz.
A previous post talked about the perceived high fidelity and overall quality. For some reason, during my initial tweaks, I kept thinking of Alembic. If Alembic made a Fuzz, it might sound and look and feel like a Photon II. Classy and highly functional.
