Naughty fuzz- Starboard fuzz

[Synchrony Pedalworks]

If a Tonebender and a Fuzz Face had a naughty baby, it would be a Fuzzrite! The Starboard fuzz is a great rendition of this pedal. Right now, I have 2N222’s in the pedal, but the 2N3904’s do sound great. I haven’t used the 2N3904 because I know I need them for some future projects. I think the hybrid 2N222 and 2N3904 sounded best, but I will have to see if I have one (2N3904) left to use. What other transistors have you all used?

I don’t think that you can use a Fuzzrite for every application of fuzz, but it does a great job with bass riffs. I am also loving the new, metallic colors from Tayda! The theme was in honor of the show “Welcome to Wrexham,” showing the Welsh dragon! The gold and silver has a great vintage vibe

 

[steviejr92]

I love this design! sweet pedal!

 

[Synchrony Pedalworks]

I love this design! sweet pedal!

I really liked the “FUZZrite” title on the side. I may have to continue this trend. It is a good use of space and looks pretty sweet. I think the original designers made an intelligent decision.

 

[steviejr92]

I really liked the “FUZZrite” title on the side. I may have to continue this trend. It is a good use of space and looks pretty sweet. I think the original designers made an intelligent decision.

Ive been trying to fit that style in here and there i love the way it looks! But man you got it right having the lettering go from bottom to top!

 

[Feral Feline]

Great looking pedal with solid choices for knobs/graphics/colours...

 

[Harry Klippton]

Looks good. I keep wanting to build one but not doing anything about it

 

[Synchrony Pedalworks]

Looks good. I keep wanting to build one but not doing anything about it

I would encourage you to make it. It is a nice change from the typical fuzz face or tone bender variants.

 

[smatchsmoke]

How is the volume? Looks like the pcb has been modified a bit, but a number of people mentioned low volume issues and trouble reaching unity with earlier builds.

 

[Synchrony Pedalworks]

The volume is lower than other pedals, but manageable. I actually changed the transistors to germanium NPNs, 2N169 and AC127. Their hFe’s are near 60 and do a decent job. I do wish for a little more sustain with the fuzz.

 

[Coda]

The Fuzzrite is one of my favorite circuits. Its also not especially easy to use. There is a volume drop definitely...there is also no low end whatsoever, which doesn't help the volume loss. You could be grooving along, everything fitting nice, and then boom, kick on the fuzz...and all the sudden you disappear. It helps to run this into something else...like an OD pedal, or a hot amp.

 

[Synchrony Pedalworks]

The Fuzzrite is one of my favorite circuits. Its also not especially easy to use. There is a volume drop definitely...there is also no low end whatsoever, which doesn't help the volume loss. You could be grooving along, everything fitting nice, and then boom, kick on the fuzz...and all the sudden you disappear. It helps to run this into something else...like an OD pedal, or a hot amp.

Great suggestion. I had been playing with a boost behind it. I may experiment with my ODs. I also found that reducing the tone knob on the guitar helps provide a better tonal balance.