MJM London Fuzz - very dark and noisy! Help!!

[The P-Man]

I have an early germanium London Fuzz that I have a love/hate relationship with. On its own, through my JCM800 it sounds great although it is very dark (to the point that I exclusively play through my bridge pickup).

It's also very noisy when in proximity to power supplies or used in conjunction with other pedals such as my box of rock or microvibe even though I always have the London at the front of the chain.

There seem to be a few fuzzes on the market that might suit my needs better such as the Sunface and the Oxfuzz. However, what I don't want to do is shell out on another Fuzz Face to realise this is a inherent issue with all pedals of this type.

I have tried different amps, different volumes, different stacking combinations but nothing seems to leave me 100% satisfied with the pedal despite all the positive reviews of it!

Has anybody else experienced problems with the London in particular? Should I just sell the London and get another type of FF or am I doing something wrong?!?!:facepalm

[wingwalker]

Ge Fuzz Faces are a bit darker/thicker than say an Si Fuzz Face but I don't find them to be unusable with neck pickups, in fact I love that sound!

Not at all trying to bash the MJM but I'll say this, I have 2 Sunfaces, both Ge and neither give me the issues you're having...

If you wanted a slightly brighter than normal Ge Fuzz Face the AnalogMan wiht the standard Ge trannys (NOT the NKT's and not the UK/TI) are a bit brighter than the NKT's and the gain is just a hair more than the NKT's or if you want even more top and and lots more gain the High Gain NKT's or the UK/TI trannys are an option or maybe even an Si version with BC108's...

[The P-Man]

thanks man,

The London is odd, on any other pickup combo apart from the bridge it sounds VERY dark and wooly at full tilt although it does clean up nicely...

The Sunface is definately on my radar although the Oxfuzz sounds pretty great especially for the price so I might go down that route.

I love Fuzz Face tones so I'm determined to make it work with my rig!

[JRC4558Dude]

Ge Fuzz Faces are a bit darker/thicker than say an Si Fuzz Faces.

I agree that GE fuzzes sound darker than silicon. I've always been puzzled by TGPers who say that GE fuzzes are brighter. I have a Analogman Sunface KKT 275, and it is definitely darker to my ears than my Dunlop JH-F2 Fuzz Face (which is silicon, of course.)

I totally understand the OP's frustration with GE fuzzes. I don't have any experience with the MJM fuzzes, but I agree that fuzzes can be a pain in the butt to work with. Maybe the Subdecay Flying Tomato or MI Audio GI Fuzz or Neo Fuzz may give you the classic fuzz tones you're looking for, but with a bit more flexibility...

[wingwalker]

I can't speak about the OX Fuzz either but my AM Sunfaces are tops!

[mrp3118]

I like to run my fulldrive and blues Devil in front of Germanium London Fuzz. From my ears it gives a brighter sound to it.

[The P-Man]

I agree that GE fuzzes sound darker than silicon. I've always been puzzled by TGPers who say that GE fuzzes are brighter. I have a Analogman Sunface KKT 275, and it is definitely darker to my ears than my Dunlop JH-F2 Fuzz Face (which is silicon, of course.)

I totally understand the OP's frustration with GE fuzzes. I don't have any experience with the MJM fuzzes, but I agree that fuzzes can be a pain in the butt to work with. Maybe the Subdecay Flying Tomato or MI Audio GI Fuzz or Neo Fuzz may give you the classic fuzz tones you're looking for, but with a bit more flexibility...

Such a cool sound and such a pain in the ass to work with!:messedup Thanks for the suggestions on alternatives, I'm quite keen to persevere witht he more traditional type for a bit. I tried a MXR Classic 108 (the one with the buffer) which sounded great but lost just a little of the raw Fuzz Face sound IMO

[wbm68]

I have an early germanium London Fuzz that I have a love/hate relationship with. On its own, through my JCM800 it sounds great although it is very dark (to the point that I exclusively play through my bridge pickup).

It's also very noisy when in proximity to power supplies or used in conjunction with other pedals such as my box of rock or microvibe even though I always have the London at the front of the chain.

There seem to be a few fuzzes on the market that might suit my needs better such as the Sunface and the Oxfuzz. However, what I don't want to do is shell out on another Fuzz Face to realise this is a inherent issue with all pedals of this type.

I have tried different amps, different volumes, different stacking combinations but nothing seems to leave me 100% satisfied with the pedal despite all the positive reviews of it!

Has anybody else experienced problems with the London in particular? Should I just sell the London and get another type of FF or am I doing something wrong?!?!:facepalm

You may be doing something wrong.
How is you JCM800 set? Is it set to clean, semi dirty or full on distortion?
Generally you would want to run a FuzzFace into either a clean or semi clean amp. The more amp distortion you have the darker the London Fuzz will sound and the noisier it is. I suggest you try running the London Fuzz into a somewhat clean'ish amp, turn the pedal volume and Fuzz all the way up and mess around with your volume guitar knob.
Generally single coils will give you better results than high output humbuckers.
If your pedal is just noisy in different locations on different power outlets, it may have a technical issue.
Also, you CANNOT use a shared power supply with it, e.g. a OneSpot will not work. Fuzz pedals need their own dedicated power supply or an isolated power outlet from e.g. a Voodoo Labs P2.

Fuzz pedals are different then OD or Distortion pedals and you would need to adjust how you think about them somewhat. Sounds weird, but i had to go though this too being an ex metal head.

[The P-Man]

You may be doing something wrong.
How is you JCM800 set? Is it set to clean, semi dirty or full on distortion?
Generally you would want to run a FuzzFace into either a clean or semi clean amp. The more amp distortion you have the darker the London Fuzz will sound and the noisier it is. I suggest you try running the London Fuzz into a somewhat clean'ish amp, turn the pedal volume and Fuzz all the way up and mess around with your volume guitar knob.
Generally single coils will give you better results than high output humbuckers.
If your pedal is just noisy in different locations on different power outlets, it may have a technical issue.
Also, you CANNOT use a shared power supply with it, e.g. a OneSpot will not work. Fuzz pedals need their own dedicated power supply or an isolated power outlet from e.g. a Voodoo Labs P2.

Fuzz pedals are different then OD or Distortion pedals and you would need to adjust how you think about them somewhat. Sounds weird, but i had to go though this too being an ex metal head.

Thanks for the suggestions. I run the London with a carbon battery so the noisyness often comes from just sitting next to powered pedals! You might be right that there is a technical issue - it picks up the throb of my microvibe even when the MV is off and when my guitar volume is full down it starts to hum loudly.

I've tried all settings with the JCM800, fat clean sounds, edge of breakup sounds (my go-to setting) and everything in between. I've messed with the EQ - the whole nine yards! I always believed that Fuzz Faces were best run flat out and controlled from the guitar volume (which I have done with the London) but I've also tried lower settings with the fuzz which have worked well due to it being a very gainy pedal.

[traynor_garnet]

I sold my MJM London Fuzz because of noise and its overly dark tone. I picked up a Fulltone 69 and stopped looking at GE fuzzes! Seriously, the bias and contour (mids) knobs on the 69 are it. I can dial the fuzz right where I like it and add some mids to cut through. To top it off, the pedal is wonderfully eq'd and nowhere near as dark as the MJM. Some guys swear by their London fuzz but, like any fuzz pedal, there will be variations within the same line/pedal.

I've owned a few MJM pedals and always found their stock eq is either "off" somehow, or that that the available tone controls were too drastic (adds too much boost or cut).

TG

TG

[The P-Man]

I sold my MJM London Fuzz because of noise and its overly dark tone. I picked up a Fulltone 69 and stopped looking at GE fuzzes! Seriously, the bias and contour (mids) knobs on the 69 are it. I can dial the fuzz right where I like it and add some mids to cut through. To top it off, the pedal is wonderfully eq'd and nowhere near as dark as the MJM. Some guys swear by their London fuzz but, like any fuzz pedal, there will be variations within the same line/pedal.

I've owned a few MJM pedals and always found their stock eq is either "off" somehow, or that that the available tone controls were too drastic (adds too much boost or cut).

TG

TG

That's how I hear the London. I think I just need to move on and accept that it doesn't work for me!!

[monkmiles]

Hmmm, sounds like there might be an issue with your London fuzz. Though, as said, germanium fuzz generally isn't as high gain as a silicon fuzz and is typically darker...yet in an organic way.

I have a newish one (newer design) and I don't experience the noise issues you have...and I have a Micro Vibe in my chain as well. I power mine with it's own power adapter (as opposed to battery).

I also don't crank the knobs. I keep the fuzz knob around 1:00-3:00 and the volume knob around 1:00. Then I adjust my volume knob for the amount of fuzz I want.

[floydfanatic]

Very dark and noisy eh? Sounds like a GE Fuzz face to me.

[Windup 43]

I have a mini London w/ bias and it's neither dark or noisy, one of my favorite fuzzes. I've heard the older ones are a bit darker which may be due to different trannies being used...

[tjmicsak]

If it is a Ge fuzz and you have no bias control then maybe it's the hot weather. Try putting it in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.
Also the sweet spot is at about 8.5 to 9 on the guitar knob. Cranking full bore is going to get way to dark and wooly on a Fuzz Face type pedal unless you have real bright single coils.

[Windup 43]

If it is a Ge fuzz and you have no bias control then maybe it's the hot weather. Try putting it in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.Good point. My Peppermint Fuzz got all out of whack in the heat this summer, had to constantly mess w/ the internal trimmer.

[wbm68]

Thanks for the suggestions. I run the London with a carbon battery so the noisyness often comes from just sitting next to powered pedals! You might be right that there is a technical issue - it picks up the throb of my microvibe even when the MV is off and when my guitar volume is full down it starts to hum loudly.

I've tried all settings with the JCM800, fat clean sounds, edge of breakup sounds (my go-to setting) and everything in between. I've messed with the EQ - the whole nine yards! I always believed that Fuzz Faces were best run flat out and controlled from the guitar volume (which I have done with the London) but I've also tried lower settings with the fuzz which have worked well due to it being a very gainy pedal.

I have both a London Fuzz (Ge old Style) and a '69 Fulltone. The London is a great pedal, but the Fulltone '69 beats it any day. In my opinion, the Fulltone '69 is by far the best Ge Fuzz pedal as it is build so well, and sounds so good.

I would suggest you try your London with just the guitar and amp and see what happens. If it is still noisy, contact MJM. I'd also take the pedal and try it with different amps. I found that some of my Fuzz pedals sound great with one amp and horrible with a different amp.