"fuzzstration" help needed!

[DSL74]

Getting frustrated (or fuzzstrated as the case maybe) with my Hendrix fuzz face JHF1, just not getting enough fuzz/hair from it, even stacked with a TS808 after it. I only 'gig' at home these days at fairly low volume levels on a 15 watt tube amp. So question is, should I get a DLS MKIII (Catalinbread demo sounds great in this application, but I have been fooled by YT demos before) and keep the Hendrix, or sell it and get a Wampler Velvet instead. What do you guys think? Darn it, I want to sound like EJ in my bedroom!

 

[HayekFan]

Are you plugging the guitar straight into the fuzz face? If so, try putting a buffered pedal in between. This will give it more gain and sizzle. You might try running the TS into the FF with the TS's output cranked to drive the fuzz face harder.

 

[DSL74]

Are you plugging the guitar straight into the fuzz face? If so, try putting a buffered pedal in between. This will give it more gain and sizzle. You might try running the TS into the FF with the TS's output cranked to drive the fuzz face harder.

Chain goes: Strat-FF-TS808-flanger-delay-reverb. So a buffer between the FF and the TS808, or between Strat and FF?

 

[macmax77]

with this Dunlop pedal a buffer will only kill it.
Try it alone with the amp and see.

 

[DSL74]

with this Dunlop pedal a buffer will only kill it.
Try it alone with the amp and see.

Tried it alone, but not much happening. It was better with the TS808 after it, but still not enough fuzz.

 

[Blix]

Try the TS before it, that should be gain enough..

It's the "wrong" way to use them, but there's pointers to that's how EJ ran them in the 80's.

 

[RocksOff]

A fuzz of any sort will often seem anemic at very low volumes. A big part of the fuzz 'magic' sound is how it interacts with speaker cones.

 

[HayekFan]

with this Dunlop pedal a buffer will only kill it.
Try it alone with the amp and see.

Buffers don't kill fuzz faces. They make them brighter and fuzzier.

 

[snow and steel]

This may be a dumb question, but...

... you DO have all the knobs up as far as they will go, correct? a fuzz face simply doe snot sound 'right' unless its run this way [which is why I dislike them - too much of a volume jump when you turn them on so you can't use then on and off in a song].

 

[Blix]

This may be a dumb question, but...

... you DO have all the knobs up as far as they will go, correct? a fuzz face simply doe snot sound 'right' unless its run this way [which is why I dislike them - too much of a volume jump when you turn them on so you can't use then on and off in a song].

Nah, you definitely don't have to crank a Fuzz Face for it to deliver IMO.

 

[DSL74]

This may be a dumb question, but...

... you DO have all the knobs up as far as they will go, correct? a fuzz face simply doe snot sound 'right' unless its run this way [which is why I dislike them - too much of a volume jump when you turn them on so you can't use then on and off in a song].

Yep, fuzz all the way and volume knob almost all the way. Tried it with different settings too, little less fuzz, volume all the way etc.

 

[Blix]

Yep, fuzz all the way and volume knob almost all the way. Tried it with different settings too, little less fuzz, volume all the way etc.

Tried the Tubescreamer first yet?

 

[DSL74]

Tried the Tubescreamer first yet?

Not yet, but will give it a shot soon. Just curious if I would be better off with a Wampler Velvet, or what about running a VL Giggity before or after the fuzz face?

 

[Blix]

Not yet, but will give it a shot soon. Just curious if I would be better off with a Wampler Velvet, or what about running a VL Giggity before or after the fuzz face?

Back in the day, when his fuzz tone where crazy good, like in his first instructional video, the amp he used had a lot to say, but man those Dumble SSS's are hard to come by So a Giggity to simulate that kind of tone might work good.
But he did (most likely) run a TS into his FF back then, looking forward to hear your results.
Also, his FF has BC183 transistors, I don't know how much those differs from the 108's in yours.

 

[DSL74]

Back in the day, when his fuzz tone where crazy good, like in his first instructional video, the amp he used had a lot to say, but man those Dumble SSS's are hard to come by So a Giggity to simulate that kind of tone might work good.
But he did (most likely) run a TS into his FF back then, looking forward to hear your results.
Also, his FF has BC183 transistors, I don't know how much those differs from the 108's in yours.

Think the BC183's are a bit warmer, plus he has a lower voltage bias on his fuzz. But I am just trying to get into the ballpark and actually didn't like the EJ fuzz I had awhile ago.

 

[Blix]

Think the BC183's are a bit warmer, plus he has a lower voltage bias on his fuzz. But I am just trying to get into the ballpark and actually didn't like the EJ fuzz I had awhile ago.

Yeah I sold my EJ fuzz too. I've had other BC183 fuzzes though that were killer, but the Dunlop were just too polite for me. I like his old fuzztones much more.

 

[Sterling#Sound]

Someone mentioned it already, but yes you need to have fuzz all the way up and volume at 75% or more. In addition I find a Fuzz Face sounds better with an amp that's already fairly crunchy.

 

[colonoscopotamus]

Someone mentioned it already, but yes you need to have fuzz all the way up and volume at 75% or more. In addition I find a Fuzz Face sounds better with an amp that's already fairly crunchy.

This. However, since you described your chain as having all your modulation and delay before the amp, I'm assuming you're using the amp as a clean platform sort of thing.
in which case, the dls, or another amp sim pedal, might work to get you where you want with your fuzz. Another option might be the mxr bc108 fuzz, which is the only ff variant I've played that was capable of sounding really good into a clean amp (im sure there are others out there, but that's the only one I've tried).
No experience with the velvet, so no help there.
good luck with it.

 

[DSL74]

This. However, since you described your chain as having all your modulation and delay before the amp, I'm assuming you're using the amp as a clean platform sort of thing.
in which case, the dls, or another amp sim pedal, might work to get you where you want with your fuzz. Another option might be the mxr bc108 fuzz, which is the only ff variant I've played that was capable of sounding really good into a clean amp (im sure there are others out there, but that's the only one I've tried).
No experience with the velvet, so no help there.
good luck with it.

Will look for a used DLS MKIII, just don't want to spend over $100 for one, in case it doesn't work out.
Thanks.

 

[CaptainAwesome]

I know you mentioned the pedal knobs are all the way up, but just to confirm is your guitar volume on 10?