Fuzz!

March 22, 2009 8:38 PM

You know that guitar sound at the start of "Touch Me I'm Sick"? Or when Keith plays the big riff in "Satisfaction"? That's fuzz. I love fuzz, and I was very happy to stumble across this fine documentary about fuzz pedals and their makers. Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 7, Part 8 Should be enough there to sustain your interest for a while... (Previously...)
posted by awfurby (28 comments total)

Looks like I'm not getting to bed on time. Thanks for this.
posted by Ironmouth at 8:46 PM on March 22

"[S]ustain" our interest? Stealth pun?
posted by el_lupino at 8:52 PM on March 22

Awesome find!
posted by peewinkle at 8:53 PM on March 22

god bless you
posted by es_de_bah at 9:06 PM on March 22

Best. Post. Ever.
posted by pwedza at 9:52 PM on March 22

Honestly, this is far more interesting that I would expect it to be (not being into music on the creation side myself). This is really fantastic though, and has amazingly managed to make me totally forget about playing Fallout 3 for awhile.
posted by Stunt at 10:01 PM on March 22

Fuzz peddler.
posted by twoleftfeet at 10:32 PM on March 22 [2 favorites has favorites]

Excellent post, thanks (but you are going to hell for the sustain pun, sorry I don't make the rules)
posted by doctor_negative at 11:38 PM on March 22

This post is made of awesome. Pure fuzz awesome.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 11:45 PM on March 22

Bonus Yura Yura Teikoku clip with massive fuzzbox footage (to make up for the pun).
posted by awfurby at 12:10 AM on March 23

Part 6: Content rejected.
posted by metaplectic at 12:27 AM on March 23

Zachary Vex = Windom Earle.

This is great. I was a little nervous in the beginning that it was going to be the usual parade of Famous Musicians (what is up with Billy Gibbons' hat, anyway?) but it settled nicely into the world of dorky mad scientists that I wanted to see, God bless 'em.
posted by louche mustachio at 12:28 AM on March 23

Part 6: Content rejected.

Boooooooo. I came back looking for that.
posted by louche mustachio at 12:29 AM on March 23

Superfuzz Bigmuff
posted by bardic at 12:46 AM on March 23

I bought this documentary on DVD last year at SXSW for 5 bucks. It's worth it just to see the Electro-Harmonix guy give a tour of the factory with a parrot on his head.
posted by chillmost at 1:51 AM on March 23

Documentaries are great, so thanks for the post. But godDAMN do I hate fuzz. Just wanted to note that here, because I only ever hear fuzz-positive statements and I'd like it to become known that not everyone enjoys the sound of bad connections.
posted by DU at 4:19 AM on March 23

Germanium on the cranium.
posted by Hovercraft Eel at 4:23 AM on March 23

Autoharp played through a Big Muff and an overdriven tube amp sounds ... fuzzy.
posted by scruss at 4:27 AM on March 23

not everyone enjoys the sound of bad connections

I think I must have a bad connection, because every time I plug into a thread, DU is there introducing distortion.

What would be the chances of shutting up once in a while? Seriously, less crapping on and more conversation?
posted by Wolof at 4:43 AM on March 23 [2 favorites has favorites]

Germanium on the cranium. :)

That old germanium is hard to find, making reproduction of some of the classics like the Fuzz Face very difficult.
posted by caddis at 4:43 AM on March 23

Sorry, I had forgotten the definition of "conversation", which is "100% adulatory, with no dissent brooked".

I liked the documentary, even though I hate fuzz. What's the problem with that?
posted by DU at 5:47 AM on March 23

Small Bear Electronics is a good resource for those who might like to roll their own, as is amzfx. Also see General Guitar Gadgets for quality kits and GEO Guitar Effects.
posted by Enron Hubbard at 5:52 AM on March 23 [2 favorites has favorites]

Did anyone eles's browser flip out at the end of part eight? It was like Opera stomped on a crazy pop-up-sustain pedal!
posted by orme at 5:57 AM on March 23

I liked the documentary, even though I hate fuzz. What's the problem with that?

You and me both.

Awesome post BTW. I love seeing and hearing the voices behind the pedals. That said, I have to agree with DU. Fuzz, when used sparingly, is cool but for fucksakes, I'm not 12 and don't have a need to have my senses ass-raped to enjoy some serious rocking. Another thing too is that DSPs are as good if not superior to pedals for reproducing any fuzz/distortion imaginable if you're willing to play with them for a bit. Companies like Line 6 and DigiTech are making some amazing shit that flies in the face of the whole boutique/OMG-RARE-TOEN!!1 crowd.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 7:51 AM on March 23

Christ on a crutch, people, it's not a pun! It's a goddam double entendre. PLEASE get it straight.

Thanks for the post! I'll probably have to watch it this weekend, but it's bookmarked.
posted by Devils Rancher at 8:47 AM on March 23

Build Your Own Clone is another good kit source (I built an Armstrong Twin). If you're a little more experienced, Tonepad is a great source of PC boards that you can build as pedals or any way you want (I'm building a TS-808 clone from this board).
posted by tommasz at 9:32 AM on March 23 [1 favorite has favorites]

My own personal addiction is daisy-chaining Tube Screamers.
posted by kersplunk at 4:25 AM on March 24

awfurby, you are a poet and a scholar. Thank you.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 8:42 PM on March 28