Fuzz Face
TheFuzz Faceis aneffects pedalforelectric guitar,used also by someelectric bassplayers. It is designed to produce adistortedsound referred to as "fuzz", originally achieved through accident such as broken electrical components or damaged speakers.
History
[edit]Arbiter Electronics Ltd. first issued the Fuzz Face in 1966. Later units bear the "Dallas Arbiter", "Dallas Music Industries Ltd.", "CBS/Arbiter Ltd." or"Dunlop Manufacturing Inc."name.
The earliest units usedgermaniumtransistors.Silicontransistors were used in later editions of the pedal. Silicon transistors provided for a more stable operation, but have a different, harsher sound.
The electronics are contained in a circular-shaped metal housing.Ivor Arbiter"got the idea for the round shape when he one day saw a microphone stand with a cast iron base".[1]The design was originally intended to be used as a microphone base for guitarists who sang.[citation needed]The pedal uses two knobs, one for volume, and one for the amount of distortion the pedal produces. The arrangement of controls and logo on the box suggests a face.
The circuit is based on theshunt-series-feedback amplifiertopology- a standard in engineering textbooks.Sola SoundandVoxhad been using the same circuit topology for theirTone Benderpedals earlier in 1966.[2]The Fuzz Face is particularly similar to the Sola Sound unit known today as the "Mk1.5" Tone Bender. The main difference is that the Fuzz Face is biased slightly colder, making it more usable in warm environments.[clarification needed]The original instructions even described the Fuzz Face as a "Tone-Bending" unit.[3]
Dallas Music Industries made a final batch of Fuzz Face units in 1976 or 1977, shortly after moving to the United States. The company boughtCrest Audioin the 1980s and although it was operating under that name when it reissued the Fuzz Face in 1986, the units still bore the Dallas-Arbiter name. They made about 2000 Fuzz Faces until 1990.[4][5]In 1993Dunlop Manufacturingtook over production, making a variety of Fuzz Face units until this day. Several germanium and silicon models are available. In 2013, smaller versions with status LEDs and AC power jacks were introduced.[6]
In the late 1990s, Arbiter reissued the pedal.[7]
Components
[edit]
The circuit uses only a small number of components, plus a battery. Its sound is mostly dependent on the selection of transistors (type,hfeand leakage in case of germanium transistors). As germanium transistors are sensitive to temperature, the amount of leakage is variable. Thus the bias voltages will shift up and down, so the sound produced by a germanium Fuzz Face may change as the equipment heats up or cools down. Also, the battery is part of the circuit. Variances in voltage and internal resistance can make an audible difference.
According toJimi Hendrix’s guitar techRoger Mayer,Jimi would buy half a dozen Fuzz Faces and mark the one he liked best only to find out that he didn't like it in a different environment.[8]
Despite popular belief that Arbiter used randomly selected pairs of transistors, Dennis Cornell, one of the engineers who worked for Arbiter in the 1960s,[9]described in a 2016Guitaristmagazine article how he auditioned them for their sonic properties.[10]
Early units used AC128 or NKT275 germanium transistors.[11]Later on, BC183L, BC183KA, BC130C, BC108C, BC209C and BC239C silicon transistors were used. The American made versions used BC109C transistors.[1][12]Arbiter reissues used AC128s.[12]Hendrix also switched to the silicon transistors, but they created additional difficulties on stage, since they are much more susceptible to receiving AM radio signals, which were then audible through the guitar amplifier.[13]
Use
[edit]The Fuzz Face's continuing popularity and status as a classic may be explained by its many famous users, which includeJimi Hendrix,[14]David Gilmour,[15]Duane Allman,[16]Stevie Ray Vaughan[17]Pete Townshend,[18]Eric Johnson,[19]George Harrison.[20][21]andKevin Parker[22]
The Fuzz Face has a lowinput impedanceand thus is very sensitive to the guitar pickup.[23]By rolling the volume knob, the guitar player can decrease the gain of the pedal and get a clean or crunch sound, while still having all the gain when the volume knob is on maximum.[clarification needed]For the same reason, Fuzz Face pedals react differently when placed directly after the guitar than when after other pedals or after abuffer amplifier.
While some claimWah-wah pedalsare known to be troublesome with Fuzz Faces,[24]artists such as Hendrix were known to use them together to spectacular effect. His signal flow for live performance involved first plugging his guitar into a wah-wah pedal, then connecting the wah-wah pedal to a Fuzz Face, which was then linked to aUni-Vibe,before connecting to a Marshall amplifier.[25]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ab"FUZZ FACE by David Morin - Custom Sounds".8 July 2011. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-07-08.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^"A Little History".Stompboxes.co.uk.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^Sternberg, Nick (12 May 2021)."Arbiter Fuzz Face • Fuzzboxes".Fuzzboxes.org.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^"Untitled Document".Archived fromthe originalon 2009-10-01.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^"Scrapbook".26 November 2009. Archived fromthe originalon 2009-11-26.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^"NAMM 2013: Dunlop launches Fuzz Face Mini and MXR Talk Box".Musicradar.com.25 January 2013.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^[1][permanent dead link]
- ^"Archived copy".Archived fromthe originalon 2012-07-14.Retrieved2012-08-09.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^Nelson, Gary (26 March 2002)."Arbiter Fuzz Face Reissue".Vintageguitar.com.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^Brakes, Rod (Nov 2016). "Smiling Through".Guitarist.Bath, England: Future Publishing Limited.
- ^"Fuzz Face History, Models and Reissues".fuzzfaced.net.Retrieved2023-11-19.
- ^ab"Analog Man Sun Face and Fuzz Face Page".Analogman.com.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^Dregni, Michael (August 2012). "The Arbiter Fuzz Face".Vintage Guitar.pp. 62–64.
- ^"Archived copy".Archived fromthe originalon 2010-01-14.Retrieved2010-04-23.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^"Archived copy".Archived fromthe originalon 2010-06-08.Retrieved2010-04-23.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^"Duane Allman Guitar Gear Rig".Uberproaudio.com.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^Hopkins, Craig. Stevie Ray Vaughan – Day by Day, Night After Night: His Early Years, 1954–1982. Backbeat Books; September 15, 2010. p. 327.ISBN978-1-4234-8598-8
- ^"Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face fuzz box | Pete Townshend's Guitar Gear | Whotabs".Thewho.net.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^"Eric Johnson Interview".Archived fromthe originalon 2007-10-22.Retrieved2007-10-23.Modern Guitars - Eric Johnson Interview
- ^"Get Back" by the Beatles; Apple, London, 1969
- ^"Beatles Gear" by Andy Babiuk and Tony Bacon; Backbeat, 2002
- ^"Gear Rundown: Kevin Parker".Mixdownmag.com.au.4 April 2016.Retrieved5 November2023.
- ^"ElectroSmash - Fuzz Face Analysis".Electrosmash.com.Retrieved2019-02-09.
- ^"Wah Before or After Fuzz Pedal".Screaminfx.com.Retrieved2019-02-09.
- ^Shapiro, Harry; Glebbeek, Caesar (1995) [1990].Jimi Hendrix: Electric Gypsy(New and Improved ed.). St. Martin's Press.ISBN978-0-312-13062-6.p. 689.