Sound Quality
This is a
fuzz for fuzz lovers… and definitely not for the faint of heart (or those who
dislike fuzz).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69txX_i082M&feature=youtu.be
With
the Bias down low (less agitation or burping) and the Fuzz as low as it can go,
you start off with a good dose of fuzzzzzz (the extent depends on how low or
high the Bass and Treble knobs are).
Some fuzz pedals are more subtle, and they add some warmth, saturation
or grain to an already clean or slightly dirty channel, e.g., David Gilmour’s
tone. The Fuzz Bender, on the other hand
starts off noticeably and simply continues to climb into thick and boisterous
proto-metal, psychedelic doom. And
because the Fuzz Bender has both Silicon and Germanium gain stages, you get a more
subtle fuzz tone when the Fuzz knob is turned more toward the left, whereas you
get a thicker and more saturated tone with the Fuzz knob turned toward the
right. There is an increase in volume as
you crank the Fuzz knob, but nothing excessive (which is good, and which means
you don’t have to constantly adjust the Level knob every time you tweak the
Fuzz knob). The Bias knob increases the
spit to the point of splatter – so much so that the Fuzz Bender almost sounds
gated as you riff out some choppy double-stops while in that position. The two tone knobs, Bass and Treble, add some
great impact in the overall tone, from thick heavy bass to a sizzling treble,
and definitely add to the volume (they act as boosters to the main signal). I suspect there is such great range in the
Bass and Treble (from fully off to up fully) to accommodate muddy vs. thin
pickups, but also to accommodate bass guitars.
The Fuzz Bender offers some serious tone sculpting and unique, wide-
ranging fuzz sounds from smooth to breaking-up obliteration.
Reliability/Durability
A medium-sized pedal the Fuzz Bender measures 112 mm
(L) x 90mm (W) x 55mm (H) with knobs (4.4 x 3.5 x 2.16 inches). The heavy duty chassis has a feel of steel
(by its weight), although it could be aluminum.
It has a powder coated white paint job with orange
lettering/graphics. Coupled with the
extra large knobs (the Level and Fuzz seem large enough to turn with a foot)
the pedal definitely has a retro vibe to it, as though working with an old
transistor radio. The footswitch produces a solid click when the
pedal is engaged and disengaged. All
five knobs, controlling Level, Fuzz, Bass, Treble and Bias are heavy plastic
and could withstand any foot stomping that may drift in their directions
(adding a ‘tallboy’ Barefoot Button would have a foot tower over the
knobs). All knobs have good quality pots (smooth and solid when turned). The cable input and output, as well as the power
input is located in the back, which saves on pedalboard space, but also keeps
them in a more secure location. The Fuzz
Bender does not work via battery power and requires a standard 9VDC (center -)
power supply, while consuming only 15mA of power.
Price/Value
A 3-transistor hybrid
fuzz with bias control, I consider this pedal to be an ‘over-the-top’ fuzz when
you want some thick, massive tones, whether smooth or broken-up (via the
Bias). Even with the Fuzz turned all the
way down (and the pedal engaged) there is an obvious moderately-heavy fuzz
tone, which only accentuates as you crank up the levels. The only way to keep it subtle is to keep the
Bass and Treble controls low and while dialing back on your guitar’s
volume. The Bias offers anything from
‘off’ (no effect) to slight breaking up, to a splattering and almost gated type
effect, making it ideal for choppy syncopated rhythms. The
Tone controls are fabulous, in that you can get that searing trebly fuzz tone
or that deep and heavy Doom metal type of quality. There is a massive amount of headroom with
this pedal, and you can feel the air being pushed – particularly as you crank
up the Volume and Bass. Robert Keeley is
known for making quality pedals (at great prices) that sound darn good, and the
Fuzz Bender is no exception. At $149
this pedal is both affordable and a must-have for Fuzz aficionados. I have tested, played and reviewed several
fuzz pedals and the Fuzz Bender has carved its own niche for sound, diversity
and uniqueness.
General Comments
Volume or output is
controlled by the Level; turn it down when first engaging the Fuzz (and
powering up your gear). The Fuzz Bender
has a lot of headroom, and so I find keeping the Level around 9-10 o’clock
sufficient in most cases. The quality or
nature of the Fuzz is relative to where you place the Fuzz knob – the more you
turn it counter-clockwise, the more subtle the fuzz flavor, whereas the more
you turn it clockwise, the more saturated and heavier the fuzz. Obviously there is a mixing and meshing of
the two, with the extent depending on where you dial in your sound. The Bias offers a lot of splat, and it
produces a breaking-up quality even when turned up slightly to about 8-9
o’clock, and then burps like crazy from 12-noon onward. The Bass and Treble knobs are awesome; you
get sizzling bright fuzz that cuts through the mix, but also a super heavy Doom
and Gloom fuzz that is dark, but still defined in its character (or anything
between). The heaviness of the Bass
becomes apparent around 12-noon and beyond, whereas that cutting-edge Treble
seems to hit hard at 3-o’clock. Of
course, these specs are based on a thick and warm preamp (The Countess V4 by
Victory) and the Petrucci MESA 4x12 cabinet (which is considered ‘dark’) that I
used in the demo.
Reviewer's Background
Brian Johnston is a guitar gear enthusiast who
likes to develop reviews and demo videos on stuff he likes. His YouTube channel is CoolGuitarGear.