Which fuzz pedal for active bass?

[skampino]

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

[Mr. Foxen]

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.

[skampino]

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.

[Mr. Foxen]

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.

[thisnameistaken]

[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.

[burno70]

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.

[johnirvine]

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]

[tayste_2000]

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.

[1976fenderhead]

Zoom Ultra Fuzz, if you can find it.

[Muse_Cubed]

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.

[gnasher1993]

[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.

[pantherairsoft]

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!

[Silent Fly]

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.

[pantherairsoft]

[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!