gearmanndude | 7 years ago

http://www.gearmanndude.com The Disco Bush, a Silicon fuzzbox that can get Germanium tones if ya talk to it right. I'm very proud of this one...been many years in the making...a whole lot of starting over from scratch, and a whole lot of fun experimentation...I hope you dig it! I don't pretend to be a circuit master like Scotty from ProAnalog, Robert Keeley, Analogman Mike, Brian Wampler, Zachary Vex (Zvex), Mike Matthews, Ceasar Diaz, Keith Vonderhulls, Jay Rockett, Josh Scott, Tore from TC, ChaseBliss, BasicAudio, the freaks at Earthquaker Devices, the scientists at Strymon, and all the other supreme masters out there...my skills are VERY limited, and laughable to say the least...but my heart is large and my intentions are true...at least I think so. This demo, with a Stratocaster, mostly on the bridge pickup, may come off a tad bright, but I'm here to tell ya, that's where you need to be, to cut through the mix when using a fuzz pedal...so take that into account while listening. It may not be the perfect fuzz for everyone...but it sure is the perfect one for ME!

One fuzz to rule them all! In designing the circuit, I was looking for that classic 'Tone Bender MKII-meets-Fuzzface' flavor, yet wanted the ability to go over the top, like some of the more modern fuzz designs that approach muffy, synthy sort of bliss. That's a whole lot to ask of one pedal, and one circuit. But if I was going to put my name on it, I wanted it to be able to do heavy-synth sounds, classic vintage fuzz sounds, gated-farty sounds, and even heavy overdrive tones...oh...and I wanted it to have excellent interplay with the guitar's volume control. LOL! All that..in one box of joy. No problem, right? WRONG! It left me stumped for years, as I experimented with classic circuits and taste-tested tons of Germanium and Silicon transistors and other seasoning variables, but I always ended up puzzled and defeated in my quest.

SO! I climbed the Secret Mountain, and gave hot tea, steeped in tone leaves, and burned incense with the wise and kind wizard of the west. He poured knowledge in my ear, and I slipped into a dream...in this dream, there were Fuzzfaces, Tonebenders, and NYC era Big Muffs, all galloping upon great, fuzzy steeds, riding side by side, hand in hand, all weilding NPN silicon transistors selected for their excellent gain to noise ratio. There was smoke...there was fire...there was love...there was joy. It was truly beautiful. When I awoke, the great western wizard said, "now go forth, GMD, and build the fuzz of your dreams, and take it to the people".

The DB has many personalities, because there is so much interaction between the knobs. For example, the BLUSH (bias) doesn't really do much of anything for the first half of the rotation if you have the HIPS (bottom end) knob set on 6 to 9 o'clock. This is normal. Although the harder you hit the strings, you can find a magic spot, where you really get the farty, synthy, gated fuzz...like super squished out bias, approaching annihilation. The interplay between the Blush, Hair, and Money controls, creates some great textures - from woolly, to velco, to gated, to almost bit crushing squelchy freakness. The HAIR control, acts like the Attack knob on a vintage tonebender, and the MONEY control, is a passive volume control between the first boost stage and the fuzz face part of the circuit that would act more like an actual pre-fuzz/gain knob.

What's all this mean? NOTHING! Plug it in and RIP IT UP!!!!

CONTROLS:

JUICE: Level
COLOR: EQ
HAIR: Attack/Gain
BLUSH: Bias
HIPS: Bottom End
MONEY: Pre Fuzz Gain

Made, with Love...in the USA

Pedals generally ship within a couple days of order. Feel free to email me with any questions regarding shipping and such...I'll ship anywhere on the planet! gearmanndude@hotmail.com is my email.

Demoed with my http://www.mjtagedfinishes.com MJT Strat, cocked, rocked and loaded with http://www.mojotone.com Mojotone Quiet Coil 58 Pickups, an old Princeton Reverb, hot modded with a 12" Jensen Alnico Blue, mic'd up with http://www.royerlabs.com Royer R121 Ribbon Mic, and http://www.telefunkenelektroakoustik.com Telefunken M81 dynamic microphone. Wired for sound with http://www.klotz-ais.com Klotz cable and http://www.bulletcable.com Bullet Cable white coily cable of hair and tasty nastiness...yep!