Crossing paths with the Black Cat Super Fuzz
Black Cat Pedals have been around a long time. Born in Texas in 1993, the company was started by early boutique builder Fred Bonte, but in late 2007 he discontinued the line. Now, with the company restructured and the line revamped, Black Cat is back! Using Fred’s original designs, but with a modern boutique makeover, these hand-wired, made in the USA boxes are looking to reclaim some of their former glory. We had the chance to get our hands on a new Black Cat Super Fuzz and run it through its paces. But did we find a purring, fuzzy kitten or an angry stray with claws?
The Black Cat Super Fuzz is a modern turn on the original Univox Super Fuzz pedal made by Japan’s Shin-ei in the 1970s. Part of its sound is derived from its two-stage octave doubling circuit – beneath a massive wall of fuzz is a touch of upper octave. The pedal has two knob controls and a mini-toggle. The Balance knob controls the amount of signal that passes through the first stage to the second stage amplifier. The more signal that is allowed to move from stage to stage, the more distortion it creates. The Expander knob controls overall output, or volume. The Tone toggle allows the user to switch between a scooped mids wall of fuzz and a funky, muted notch-filter lead tone.
Unboxing the Black Cat Super Fuzz – which comes in the standard little white pedal box – you find the pedal itself with a nice black pouch, an instruction sheet, warranty card and a Black Cat logo sticker. The pedal sports a groovy black-sparkle paint job that reflects greens and reds in different light.
First with the Les Paul, we dial up a little mid-level Super Fuzz. With the Balance knob at noon and the Expander at around 3 o’clock, let’s check out the Black Cat in action! First you’ll hear the clean tone, then the fuzz with the Tone toggle to the left, then the same settings with the Tone toggle to the right.
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The Super Fuzz has a sweet treble buzz that blends into the thicker fuzz tone with the initial toggle setting, but the low end is still present and tight. When you flip the tone toggle to the right, you get the signature wall of fuzz tone – thick, fuzzy and in control yet still with that hint of treble buzz the rounds out the sound. Over to the Strat, bridge pick-up, we get more aggressive. With the Balance dimed and the Expander at 2 o’clock, here is a simple three-chord progression. First clean, then mean with toggle left, and then mean with toggle right.
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The fuzz is more tinny with the single coils of the Strat, but creates its own unique, and infinitely usable tone. Again, with the tone toggle right, the sound is beefier and more spatial. Up the neck pick-up on the Strat, we’ll head up the fret board so some of the octave tones become more pronounced. With the Balance at around 10 o’clock and the Expander dimed, here is the Super Fuzz. First clean, then fuzz/toggle left and wrapping up with fuzz/toggle right.
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Above the 12th fret, you can really here the up octave at work on single notes. This is prevalent on using either of the tone channels available and adds retro character to gritty lead lines.
The Black Cat Super Fuzz is a treat – a solid Univox-styled fuzz that captures the flavor of the original. It is a noisy pedal, but hey… it’s a Super Fuzz. We had more fun with the Black Cat using the humbuckers of the Les Paul, but that leans hard on our tendencies to open everything up and get as massive as we can! If you’re looking for a Super Fuzz style pedal in the sub-$200 category, the Black Cat Super Fuzz is worth your time and money! That’s our opinion anyway… your mileage may vary.
PLEASE NOTE: All YMMV Review clips are played through a Fender ’65 Princeton Reverb RI using Lava Clear Connect cables. No reverb or other effects were added to the clips. Guitars used in this review include a 1979 Gibson Les Paul Custom and a 1998 Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster.
