Analog Man Fuzz Face Classic Upgrade

There are plenty of sounds here but a Fuzz Face is a touchy circuit and just reading the info at analogman.com you can tell that it takes skill to use. A kid with a cheap guitar and little solid state amp cannot get good sounds. You have to be a decent player with abilities to control the volume knob on your guitar. My Fuzz Face had a new board installed by Analogman because it was one of the newer types so it has a Sun Face board in there. The manual for the Sun Face has many suggestions - cheap batteries, bias control and trim pot which are all accessible inside the unit. There is a lot of control but it takes experience to use. I have only had it back a couple days but I have played around with all of it and it just sounds great. I only give it a 7 because it takes a certain level of skill - but the instructions and info at analogman.com help you all you need.

I am using this with a couple Marshalls right now. Hopefully a fender combo will be coming along soonish. My JCM 800 works a lot better with this pedal on all pickups with a Strat. I also have a 900 that doesn't work great with the pedal until it is a bit louder and then it sounds really decent. I have played with it and all the adjustments and you can get an amazing variety of tones. I have it set currently to add a thick fuzz overdrive type sound. It is great on the bridge pickup of a strat because it thickens up the sound and takes away some of the shrillness. That is why Hendrix used one so much because it thickens up the strat bridge pickup. After dialing it in I can get Hendrix type sounds and Cream sounds. Also early Page sounds some too - my strat bridge pickup can do the Dazed and Confused thing great. This upgrade makes it work better with my Wah (a Dunlop 535q) and my rotovibe. I like the Fuzz before the Wah - it is the first thing that my guitar hits. I gets an awesome swooshy sound which works better for Cream type stuff (not sure of Clapton's positioning of wah and fuzz). The other really strong point of this unit is the noise factor - compared to the original dunlop reissue it has a tone less. Now the Fuzz Face can get noisy and is prone to be noisy because of the amount of gain. But it is much more managable with the Analogman board in there. That was one of the first things I noticed about the unit when I first plugged in.

Looks built really well. The dunlop housing is solid and heavy. The upgrade added a new circuit board and left the switch be itself compared to the way it was before - that should help durability. Why dunlop ever attached the circuit board to switch is beyond me. Everything looks good quality and I see those nice brown resistors in there. I'd gig without a backup unless I was a pro touring guy which I am not.

Great. I send the pedal out on a Wednesday and got it back by Tuesday of the next week. That is service. They must have opened up and modded it right after they got it. All emails are answered quickly and with excellent replies. It really is nice to see that level of customer service.

I play blues rock with influences from Hendrix, SRV, Page, Clapton and Gilmour. This pedal fills a need on my pedal board. I plan on getting a Ibanez TS-9 to mod to TS-808 specs. Otherwise I have the wah, the Rotovibe and a Boss TU-2. That's it. I plan to add a Fender amp to my setup with an A/B box to switch between my Marshalls and the Fender or combine them for a thick tone. This pedal does it's job admirably and is worth the money I spent to have the elusive original Fuzz Face sound.

This is an update to my previous review. I have worked out some of the quirks with my 'face. The problem with the fuzz + wah combination is getting solved by getting a new output stage installed in my Teese RMC3. Also, I no longer use a powerbrake with my JCM900 and it 'face likes the amp a little more now. I think having any form of master volume really steals away from the true nature of this pedal. I will reiterate the amazing sound I get out of a Strat -> Fuzz Face -> ZVEX SHO -> Fender Vibrolux on 3.5
I'm looking at replacing my JCM 900 with a Plexi for a more natural sound. Perhaps when I get cash I'll get a Blockhead Plexi! Anyway, just wanted to let people know that the problems that I was having with this pedal I've remedied and it is a helluva pedal.

real easy to use but kind of like a one trick pony. gets great fuzz sound but that it. i don't expect it to be anything else except really great sounding fuzz. tone can be altered drastically by using the guitar volme knob. around 7 it is totally gone. 8 and 9 has good musical fuzz and at 10 the thing just sings. i typically just use it on 10 anyway because that sound sounds better to me. if you want fuzz why not just go all out, right.

setup is strat to ts9, fuzzface, 535Q wah, boss dd-3 delay, Marshall JTM 45 reissue. I never really noticed any particular noise I didn't like coming out of this fuzzface. It just always sounds great, especially when getting this real sick squeal by having the fuzz on full and having the wah set in the treble position. endless sustain with a marshall half stack. gets every fuzz sound i like. Hendrix, Clapton in Cream, Eddie Hazel on Maggot Brain by Funkadelic, SRV, Page, etc.

always dependable now because i have it hooked up to a power supply. Analog Mike said not to do it, but I think it sounds just the same as it did with batteries. Anyway, it wasn't as reliable before because I would forget to change the battery and it would sound real weak. If you're playing gigs make sure you have a fresh battery. I couldn't stand having to keep changing the battery.

Analog Mike is the best. He has the best effect pedals anywhere. I keep asking him to make a version of the Ibanez WH-10 wah with a metal casing instead of the factory plastic one. I'm also planning on getting his clone pedal. Every mod that he does makes the pedals sound better and some of his own pedals sound better than the original ones he was copying.

I play almost everything you could think of. In some cases I never use the fuzz, like if I was playing jazz. When I hear it in my head I know that it is there and just a step away. That it why having a fuzz pedal is so convienent. Having any pedal that helps you create what you hear in your head is great. If you don't use a lot of fuzz in your playing there is no reason to have it, but having one makes you realize how much you could use it.

My pedal was originally a Dunlop Fuzzface, circa '97. It had been sitting around for the most part because I just couldn't make it sound good. I sent it off to Analog Mike, and he did his thing a wonderful job. Now it is easy to get a good sound (the a few of them in there suprisingly). Just two knobs and a foot switch

My setup is Fender Stratocaster Deluxe Plus w/Rio Grande PU -> Voodoo Lab Proctavia -> Analog Man/Dunlop Fuzzface -> Teese RMC3 Wah -> ZVex Super Hard On -> Roger Mayer Crossroads AB Box -> Fender Vibrolux & Marshall JCM 900 w/powerbrake.

At first I had the the wah first in line, but it did not agree with the wah (I probably could adjust my Teese to accept the fuzzface better, but I like my current wah tone and haven't bothered).

It is much easier to get a good tone with this. A particularly like the fuzzface through the Vibrolux with the fuzz setting from 3/4 to full, the volume knob two back, and just strumming rhythm. I don't try to nail other peoples' tones, but this does give me a nice sound when playing "Strange Brew", but not quite Clapton's. That's OK. Oh yeah, combined with the ZVex SHO, it is SWEET!. Proctavia also interacts real well.

I found that it is very picky with the Marshall. I have my lead gain and rhythm gain cranked, along with the volumes, and have the powerbrake cutting back the volume. Treble 8, Mids 4, Bass 8, Presence 6. A VERY good sound by itself. However, with the fuzzface and the rhythm channel, it almost seems that 'face is sending out too low of frequencies for the speakers. It is very muffled and doesn't sound good, regardless of the pickup. On the lead channel, it works the best with the bridge pickup, and thickens up the tone a little, taking away some of the treble, and adding some harmonics. Nice Sound!

Dunlop metal shell seems to be quite sturdy. Before I had it modified I jokingly used it as a frisbee (never really dropped it and yes, it did used sound like crap). I crossthreaded the screw holding on the bottom plate long ago, so I've been using duct tape to keep the lid on (Nice rustic look). Now it is velcroed to my pedal board, nice and safe

Analog Man's solder job looks top notch. It is a hell of a lot cleaner than many effects I've seen (especially my Roger Mayer Crossroads). I gig without a backup. Besides if it falters (which I don't expect it to do), it is not a crucial part of my rig and I can get by without one for a while.

Analog Man is top notch. I noticed his fuzzface section on his web page (www.analogman.com) I emailed him some questions and he promptly replied and was very informative. He really knows his stuff, and cares about his customers. I am quite impressed with his business and I'm highly considering his Clone Clone chorus (maybe a tubescreamer also)

I play blues/rock in a original band. The fuzzface is not my main sound, but a tool that if used tastefully can bring forth emotion. The sound is much, much better than the original. I had been looking for a new fuzz pedal, but I decided to get my old one modified and save some money. I have no idea how mine stacks up against a Roger Mayer, Lovetone, ZVex, Fulltone etc... My suggestion is if you have a Dunlop Fuzzface, spend a little cash and make it sound better.

2 knobs volume and fuzz. Guitar volume is key to adjusting amount of fuzz. Very sensitive to this adjustment.

Pedal has a very usable fuzz compared to before mod. Sustain is excellent and fuzz is smooth and creamy. No AM radio stations picked up germanium transistors. Alf installed an internal trimpot which is way cool!! Gets that Buddy Guy fuzz I've been looking for.

Definitely depend on it but beware the transistors do not like heat so it'd be a good idea to have a backup if possible.

AnalogMan is awesome!! He support is second to none!! Alfonso Hermida is also great!!

Buy a fuzzface cheap and send it off to Mike for the mod, you won't regret it!