skampino Posted July 9, 2010 Share Posted July 9, 2010 I've heard some fuzz pedals aren't suitable for active basses so does anyone know what ones are. Obviously I don't want one that washes out the bottom end. BTW do active basses pose the same problem when using fuzz or any ohter effect on a GT6b multi fx processor? Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Foxen Posted July 9, 2010 Share Posted July 9, 2010 Actives cause impedance trouble with some fuzzes. Shouldn't be an issue with digital models of fuzz. The Woolly Mammoth doesn't like actives, not sure about others, the Big Muff can give an output drop if your bass is very hot, as it outputs same level whatever you put in. SFX do a gizmo to correct the impedance issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skampino Posted July 9, 2010 Author Share Posted July 9, 2010 Hot bass? Sorry not sure what that means. I've got Sterling Ray 34. Appreciate your advice about the impedance issue but don't want to buy an extra pedal; surely there's one out there that is compatible with an active bass and won't give a noticeable drop in output or low end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Foxen Posted July 9, 2010 Share Posted July 9, 2010 Those are the only two I can think of that don't agree with active basses, although I don't use an active bass, so it isn't my area. Hot just means a lot of signal coming out of the bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisnameistaken Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 [quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='890901' date='Jul 9 2010, 10:46 PM']Actives cause impedance trouble with some fuzzes. Shouldn't be an issue with digital models of fuzz. The Woolly Mammoth doesn't like actives, not sure about others, the Big Muff can give an output drop if your bass is very hot, as it outputs same level whatever you put in. SFX do a gizmo to correct the impedance issue.[/quote] TBH I recently shifted a Woolly Mammoth and the issues with active preamps are greatly exaggerated. It sounded great with my Warwick, and spent most of its life in the middle of my board with Boss buffers infront of it. I never felt like I needed to adjust the input impedance for it. Although I did once try to run my upright bass's piezo pickup into it, and that didn't work at all, all I got was a loud cracking sound and then silence, but to be fair piezo pup impedance is insanely higher than anything a guitar fuzz pedal should expect to see. My other favourite bass fuzzes are the Wren & Cuff Pickle Pie 'B' (if you want a traditional creamy fuzz with plenty of bass available and a clean blend built in), and the Chunk Systems Brown Dog which puts some people off because it doesn't have a tone knob, but it's designed to be filtered externally. Both are truly excellent designs that work very, very well on bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burno70 Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 I've only got active basses and the Malekko B:assmaster and Blackout Effectors Musket Fuzz both work fine. Have a look on talkbass. In the Wiki in the effects section theres a list of fuzzes with a comment regarding whether they're active friendly or not. I don't think it's been updated for a while but it's still got a fair amount of fuzzes on there which should help you out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnirvine Posted July 12, 2010 Share Posted July 12, 2010 Try these... they're pretty much specifically made for active bass: [url="http://www.stompboxpedals.com/pedal/big-john-hairy-balls"]http://www.stompboxpedals.com/pedal/big-john-hairy-balls[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tayste_2000 Posted July 14, 2010 Share Posted July 14, 2010 Other options that have buffers in them are Subdecay Tomato Fuzz MI Audio Neo Fuzz MI Audio GI Fuzz Also the Mojo Hand Huckleberry V2 can handle active basses, the V1 can't Malekko B:assmaster is fine as well with actives, though to me the ge version just sucks ass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1976fenderhead Posted July 15, 2010 Share Posted July 15, 2010 Zoom Ultra Fuzz, if you can find it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muse_Cubed Posted July 18, 2010 Share Posted July 18, 2010 AFAIK, germanium-transistor-based effects don't like active basses very much. Correct me if I'm wrong. I've got a Fuzzrocious Green Stache - it's awesome, like a green Big Muff but holds the low end ver well and has more crunch..they're not easy to find but they crop up in the second hand section from time to time. My other fuzz is a Wren and Cuff Pickle Pie B which is versatile but aggressive and a bit more harsh sounding than the Green Stache.. I also use a Zvex Mastotron for chainsaw type fuzz, if you're looking for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gnasher1993 Posted July 18, 2010 Share Posted July 18, 2010 [quote name='Muse_Cubed' post='898131' date='Jul 18 2010, 03:53 PM']AFAIK, germanium-transistor-based effects don't like active basses very much. Correct me if I'm wrong.[/quote] Not really. Unfortunately it's not that simple. For example, a germanium fuzz face won't always work with active basses but a Tonebender works fine. It's usually to do with input impedance rather than transistor type. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pantherairsoft Posted July 18, 2010 Share Posted July 18, 2010 My AB-Synth by Fuzzhugger is the most brutal crazy sounding fuzz I have ever heard and it loves Active Basses. It is very sensitive to the input volume and I find if you roll the volume off on the bass by about 20% it is the biggest Fuzz around! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silent Fly Posted July 18, 2010 Share Posted July 18, 2010 The [url="http://www.sfxsound.co.uk/mainpage.asp?page=micro_fuzz"][sfx] micro-Fuzz[/url] works fine with active or passive basses. I think the MXR El Grande or the MXR Blowtorch are also ok with active basses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pantherairsoft Posted July 18, 2010 Share Posted July 18, 2010 [quote name='Silent Fly' post='898297' date='Jul 18 2010, 07:14 PM']The [url="http://www.sfxsound.co.uk/mainpage.asp?page=micro_fuzz"][sfx] micro-Fuzz[/url] works fine with active or passive basses. I think the MXR El Grande or the MXR Blowtorch are also ok with active basses.[/quote] Agreed on the Blowtorch... And Max's Red Dragon am Micro Fuzz are fantastic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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