The RoomMate D’luxe was announced at NAMM, where the Fuzztopia was out late last year - where I did not manage to fit it into my schedule.

It seems very timely now since the RoomMate D’luxe is in the same format - and those 2 pedal pair very well together. 

The RoomMate D’luxe delivers 8 x Tube saturated Modes covering off all the main Reverb food groups - Room, Hall, Plate and Shimmer Hall.

And the Fuzztopia Dual Channel Fuzz + Distortion is fairly distinct for having separate Dry ...

This is the 2nd Iteration for this article - where we go from a selection of 13 to 16.

I landed 4 of these these last year - the Crazy Tube Circuits Heatseeker, Flattley Outlaw, Fortin Kali, and Tubesteader Gainlord.

And two early this year - the Car Martin PlexiRanger and Seymour Duncan Diamondhead

We have 4 distinct types of pedals here across 4 format sizes (Compact / Mid-Horizontal / Mid-Vertical / Large) :

1. Dedicated Dual Channel Plexi + JCM800 Overdrive / Distortion with

What we have here is a similar technology to that featured on recent Positive Grid Spark Modelling Amps - where you use AI Prompts to define sounds and effects.

The Polyend Endless consists of a main 3-Knob Pedal Unit with Swappable Magnetic Face Plates, and a ’Playground’ App (currently in Beta) - for generating the various effects and algorithms.

The pedal further has dual footswitches - so you can assign one for tap-tempo or boost duties presumably. In and Out ports are TRS ...

The Ian Thornley Signature Thornicus Dual Channel Fuzz / Octave Fuzz seems to be only the second circuit to use the same enclosure format as its Discovery Analog Delay - with a stupid portion at the front which features the footswitches.

It’s interesting that the Fuzz and Octave Fuzz have wholly identical independent controls - 2 x Sustain, Mids, Level, Tone. With independent footswitches per channel also!

The Thornicus Fuzz seems a little oversized for my preferences, and part of me ...

So we have a new unique artwork edition with different controls, and an added ’Crunch’ switch.

I have and love the stock green MKIIS variant as pictured on the left.

I’m not sure I need another variant, but I am kind of tempted!

The Anniversary Jumbo Fuzz goes for $199 / £199 and equivalent, and is widely available at dealers already.

Stock Controls - Loudness, Sustain, Scoop, Filter, Crunch.

XXX Anniversary Controls - Loudness, Crunch Switch, Sustain, Lo, Filter, Hi.

...

The new style of enclosure has come a long way since the original gloss black and copper face-plate early devices. I’ve enjoyed every era of Fjord Fuzz, and the new standard is every bit as striking - and as instantly recognisable. You can still spot a Fjord Fuzz pedal from a mile off. And Daniel typically removes all brakes and limitations for each circuit - so you always guarantee a fuller flavour!

This is the 4th or 5th iteration of Vibe circuit - where the last 2 iterations (Frei & ...

Citadel Electronics is Santiago Alvarez (ex Marshall), Tommi Otsavara (ex Darkglass Electronics), and Torsten Woelle (ex Hughes & Kettner) in a very formidable new partnership - with an excellent mid-priced full-range offering! Quite a pedigree really in terms of the principals involved.

They seem to be active currently in UK and EU territories - but don’t seem to have spread to the USA yet - possibly that will happen after NAMM - where they’re sure to have a stand!

Their initial ...

So this is a cool recent project from Vox - which purports to be Vintage-inspired and Germanium sounding - but utilising BC108 vintage silicon metal can transistors.

Interestingly the BC108 is the more aggressive Type II Fuzz Face variant, where it’s typically the Type III BC183 or 2N3904 transistor that is the most Germanium sound-alike one.

Evidently Vox have used a supporting cast of components to add the more softer Germanium style of grit to what is a fairly distinct and high gain ...

I really liked what I heard from the demos of this pedal. Which is another one of those sort of fuzzes for people that don’t like fuzzes. A lot of the heavy lifting / shaping here is down to the use of Germanium Clipping Diodes.

We have a silky Vintage Voice 1, and a slightly sharper / more aggressive Modern Voice 2.

Controls - Level, Attack (Fuzz Intensity), Vintage Voice 1 / Modern Voice 2, Tone 1 for Voice 1, Tone 2 for Voice 2.

I ended up mostly at 2 o’clock on every dial, while...