Cats-Eye ESP Hybrid Fuzz

Two knobs to wield the sound of this little guy, so it?s pretty simple. You won?t be bent over it like a cast member of Deadwood panning for gold.

The unit requires a 9 Volt battery, or an AC Power Adapter with a mini jack connection. This mini jack is the only reason the Ease Of Use rating isn?t a 10. This pedal requires a mini jack that is negative tip positive shield, or perhaps the reverse. At any rate, the configuration is not usable with the 3 different pedal boards I have owned since acquiring the pedal. This being the case, I have committed to using either batteries, or an AC Power Adapter. The folks at Cats-Eye ESP are kind/classy enough to provide the Power Adapter when you purchase the pedal. This act of generosity makes the issue easy to resolve. I have used both batteries and the power adapter scenarios regularly, and although I am no Eric Johnson, the sound and performance are similar either way.

When used with the clean channel of an amp, it is dead quiet. When used with a lead/gain channel, it adds a little hum, but that is to be expected. Regarding the actual tone of our aforementioned friend, 2 specially matched transistors, 1 germanium and 1 silicon, make this the prize of the fair. The germanium gives it the warmth and bottom end, and the silicon ads the bite and gain, or so I am told.

Before I start waxing about my romance with this pedal, let me speak of past relationships. I always use Humbuckers in set neck guitars, with no Wah pedal in sight. This distances me from the Hendrix sound everyone else seems to refer to when they talk about Fuzz pedals. The Cats-Eye ESP sight even has a few testimonials that refer to this Hendrix vibe. Sorry, but that ain?t my thing. I am more of a Sabbath, ZZ Top, Queen kind of guy. Think thick, punchy, and juicy with texture. I am not sure if it is a ?Brown Tone? thing, although I am a fan of ?Brown Eyes?, but I think you catch my drift.

Regarding my past loves I have ?known? The Rat, The Rat 2, Big Muff Soviet, Big Muff NYC, Guyatone TZ2, Guyatone Fuzz 2000, Boss FZ-2, Boss OD-2, Boss MT-2, Ibanez Tube-King, Ibanez TS-808 (mid 90?s metal case reissue), Voodoo Labs Bosstone, Snarling Dogs Fuzz Buzz, Fulltone Distortion Pro, Vox V810 Overdrive, Dunlop Fuzz Face Reissue, Dunlop Fuzz Face Reissue (Modded), Danelectro Fabtone, Danelectro French Toast, Line 6 Uber Metal, Nine Volt Nirvana Dinosaur Fuzz, Nobels FU-Z, and finally the Pharaoh Amps Sweet Cheetah.

All of these pedals, including the Hybrid Fuzz have been run through the following amps: Fender Blues DeVille 60watt 4x10, Fender Hot Rod DeVille 60watt 4x10, Ampeg Reverb Rocket 2x12, Traynor YCVWR 40watt 1x12, Laney VC-30watt 2x12, Peavey Tube Raxx Preamp into a QSC 300watt Power Amp into a Peavey 1x15 / 2x10 cabinet, Carvin SX-200 2x12, Carvin SX-300 2x12 stacked on a Carvin 4x12 cabinet, and finally a Gorilla 15watt 8? combo and a Gorilla 80watt 10? combo. Sorry no Marshalls or Mesas, they pissed me off as a youth.

I have owned and used all of these concurrently. The Hybrid Fuzz is what I prefer by a long shot. The first 6 months I left it on 100% of the time, and relied upon my pick-up volume and selector switch for tone and control. I think this pedal just sound capitol. Chords have clarity, single notes punch through, and over all it simply adds a professional touch to my playing, in that it reacts to and encourages dynamic.

This ties in to the next section, so read on my brothers. However, I will say that the powder-coated enclosure is as secure and tank-like as they come. The wiring inside is clean, professional and sets a standard for efficiency.

As they go, germanium transistors can be inconsistent, even with the appropriate amount of testing, which is perhaps one of the reasons silicon started getting used. This pertains, because around the 4-month mark, my little main man of Fuzz lost his gusto. The pedal operated, but it just didn?t have the volume or ferocity I had become accustomed to. The power source and battery connections were correct, just no more gusto.

I sent an e-mail to the Cats-Eye ESP crew and Dean, being a gentleman, a scholar, and owner of the company asked that I send it back to meet its maker. Dean replace the transistor and had it back to within 5 biz days. The knob positions changed a little, but that?s the beautiful magic of germanium transistors, you give a little to get a lot. The pedal has sounded great ever since.
Furthermore, the true bypass switch that is used with this pedal has a plastic stem. I wore some hiking boots to rehearsal one time, and in the heat of action my boot tread caught the switch and snapped the stem. This was my fault for showing up to practice dressed like Paul Bunyan. However, after another e-mail to Cats-Eye ESP, Dean agreed that although it wasn?t a warranty issue, for a few extra dollars he could replace the switch.

I asked if it could be replaced with a metal stem, and they replied that the plastic stem is rated for 35,000 switches and that because of the plastic, the switch is quieter, and doesn?t yield metal shavings that over time tend to degrade the switches performance. I considered it a good sell and opted for the original type switch, which was again returned to me within a week. Since then I?ve gone back to only wearing high heels when I play. They flatter the junk in my trunk better anyway.

I have been acquainted with my little friend the Hybrid Fuzz for about a year now. It has helped me to achieve tonal qualities that I have sought after for quite a few years. I only use Fuzz boxes nowadays, not distortion, not overdrive. In questing for the tone I hear in my head I have exhausted a good number of mass produced pedals and a few boutique ones. While this pedal is obviously not in the realm of a ZVEX, Roger Mayer, or a Lovetone, the fact is that is does not pretend to be. It?s a shinning example of a boutique Fuzz that will make your guitar playing sound professional, and not like someone who is looking for an excuse to get away from the wife and kids. Multiple notes have clarity and dynamic while the overall tone has texture and punch. By simply using your guitars volume knobs, the tone can go from catastrophic Fuzz to a perfect overdrive. I consider myself somewhat of an apostle of Fuzz, and the Hybrid Fuzz is scripture I am willing to spread. Simply put, most pedals are like the McRib, and the Hybrid Fuzz, well that?s like a trip to Ruth?s Chris.