Fuzz Face: Modification: by Alfonso Hermida
Facial History: The "Fuzz Face" Fuzztone pedal has been around for a long time. It first appeared in the late 1960's; no historical reference to this unit would be complete without a nod to Jimi Hendrix. With all much deserved respect to those who followed his lead, (and his "leads"), Jimi made this pedal famous... period. There was more than one version, even early on: One copy sounds
round, and bouncy, another version had a tone quality like an industrial grinding machine. Both of the originals are collector's items. This reporter should be forthcoming at this point; and admit to finding one of the "grinders" as a lad. "This is what Jimi used, kid", I was told as I beheld the grayish disk
in the glass case at Music City. It had to be good.
Y'all know the drill: Got home, and fired it up through my little Fender combo, which couldn't be turned up past 3-4, (cause of the neighbors). It just flat out didn't happen people; know what I'm sayin'? Though there was a load of fuzz, I correctly surmized that it was Jimi who was beefed up!
During the recent retro epoch, many old pedals have been reissued,
and copied, or licensed to the pure of heart, and vividly unscroupulous
alike. The current, and recent reissue of the Fuzz Face is one of
those pedals that seems to be underwhelming people. Fortunately,
we're now able inject a positive vibe into this little drama above.
Designer/builder Alfonso Hermida has developed a modification using the same board that comes inside the Fuzz Face, but he replaces various components, and adds some new ones that bring out the best qualities of the pedal's sound. This mix of components was developed from a lot of research, and is not a generic quick fix approach. He's able to Mod new, and used pedals alike,
providing the same results for disappointed folks, who are already Fuzz Face reissue owners.
Previously Modified pedals are also available, for those yet to take the plunge. We took the time to listen to an unmodified Face, and then fired up the Modded version.
Alfonso's work helps the pedal sustain better: listen to one chord struck moderately, and allowed to ring with no other influence. The high end of the fuzz setting becomes more intense with this Mod, it eventually starts to develop an edge if you care to push it that far. At slightly less extreme settings, the overall tone smoothes out more evenly than the current stock reissue. Below you can hear the volume on the guitar backed off, then turned up again; showing the ability of the Fuzz Face to clean up or thicken, with a small twist on the guitar's volume pot. We had the fuzz turned up, the contrast can become an almost totally clean sound, on slightly less intense settings. Even when the fuzz, and volume are getting a workout, there's still punch, and articulation in the sound. The pedal we tested resisted becoming shapeless, and uncontrollable. Very important.
Take a listen for yourself, see what you think. Please note: the guitar used here was a Les Paul with P-90 pickups. We used a clean 20 Watt Amp; its volume set at about 2-3, through one Celestion "Greenback 25 RI" in a closed cabinet. The Big/Thick sound below, is mostly this pedal at work.
If you like the basics of your Fuzz Face pedal, but it keeps coming up short, this Mod is well worth considering. Check it out! Questions re: the above should be directed to the builder: alfonso.hermida@verizon.net
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