Pédale du Jour

This pedal sits somewhere between fuzz and distortion. It does not sound thin and ragged, but full and thick, with plenty of volume in reserve. It works best into a tube amp that you turn up well, because then the sound gets air and room. With the gain low you hear a light grain that comes close to overdrive. Turn the fuzz further up and that grain becomes a dense wall of distortion in which notes ring on for a long time. The character is fat and dirty, but the top end stays sweet rather than sharp.

The controls are easy to grasp: three knobs for fuzz, tone and volume. Setting it up takes no time, and there is nothing more to steer. The enclosure is metal and feels solid, although steel is a little heavier than the aluminium of costlier pedals. The jacks are on top, so cables do not wander across the pedalboard and you can fit several side by side if you like. The circuit is analogue, the bypass is true bypass and the pedal runs on a battery, so a power supply is not required.

It is meant for anyone after raw rock: buzzing power chords that hang in the air, lead lines with long sustain and riffs that hold their own in a band. Players mostly mention that it sounds raw and cuts through hard, even when they play heavy. Subtle it is not. One player also heard extra noise while not playing, something to keep in mind with high gain and quiet passages. If you would rather have a lighter or a sharper fuzz, a few other options follow below.