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which fuzz would work best with an octavia?

PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 5:32 pm
by mudster
I've got a Chicago Iron octavia which is like a tychobrae. Of the BJFE fuzz units (or MP), which do y'all think would work best after an octavia? I was kind of thinking PPF because the octavia is a pretty wild effect and the fuzz can actually help reign in the bloom in a good way, but I'm interested to hear your opinions, especially if you have actually tried it :wink:

Re: which fuzz would work best with an octavia?

PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 10:42 pm
by Donner
or Ive always loved any fuzz into the Honey Bee - more aggressive the fuzz the better 8)

Re: which fuzz would work best with an octavia?

PostPosted: Tue Mar 17, 2009 3:22 am
by soulsonic
I recommend getting the Octavia modified so it sounds good and not splattery. Stock Octavias are pretty much a total splat fuzz and the Tycobrahe one seems especially so...
I'm just saying because I've been on a DIY octavia kick lately and I found that much can be done to improve the sound from stock and I don't think stacking it with anything would help... it's too much already... if anything, it needs tamed.

Re: which fuzz would work best with an octavia?

PostPosted: Tue Mar 17, 2009 12:11 pm
by Donner
yeah thats what running the Oct into the HB does , same with other unruly fuzzes - gets em sweet and smooth Honeyfied! :mrgreen:

Re: which fuzz would work best with an octavia?

PostPosted: Tue Mar 17, 2009 12:41 pm
by Bobby D
i have to agree.....octavias works best into a low gain overdrive...NOT into another fuzz...yuck! 8)

Re: which fuzz would work best with an octavia?

PostPosted: Tue Mar 17, 2009 9:07 pm
by mudster
I'm not so sure about that Slim - I think a good fuzz can tame them on the one hand, but also complement the splats with fuzz bursts - now I know that it is hard as hell to describe sounds in words, but I think there is a good potential enhancement there. I think a mellow od works pretty well on the input to an octavia, but I want something on the other side. I like the honeybee idea (still waiting on mine from Harri's store) as it has true touch sensitivity - i.e., actually sounds different with different input intensity/attack.

Anyway, I was looking at a picture of Doyle Bramhall Jr's pedalboard and noticed he had a Chicago Iron octavia running right into a Analog Man Sunface (NKT).

Now, I could be wrong, but I want to try it out.

Rock on.

Re: which fuzz would work best with an octavia?

PostPosted: Tue Mar 17, 2009 9:09 pm
by Bobby D
mudster wrote:I'm not so sure about that Slim - I think a good fuzz can tame them on the one hand, but also complement the splats with fuzz bursts - now I know that it is hard as hell to describe sounds in words, but I think there is a good potential enhancement there. I think a mellow od works pretty well on the input to an octavia, but I want something on the other side. I like the honeybee idea (still waiting on mine from Harri's store) as it has true touch sensitivity - i.e., actually sounds different with different input intensity/attack.

Anyway, I was looking at a picture of Doyle Bramhall Jr's pedalboard and noticed he had a Chicago Iron octavia running right into a Analog Man Sunface (NKT).

Now, I could be wrong, but I want to try it out.

Rock on.


well, when it comes to pedals, there is really no "wrong" way to do it, you're right :mrgreen:

it really depends upon the two pedals -- and also your amp!

honeybee will sound good for sure......on either side of it!

Re: which fuzz would work best with an octavia?

PostPosted: Tue Mar 17, 2009 9:53 pm
by DocRock
I used to use a FoxRox Octron > D*A*M MkII ... and it was spectacular.

Re: which fuzz would work best with an octavia?

PostPosted: Tue Mar 17, 2009 10:23 pm
by Donner
yeah the Octron is very tasty ............

one of my favorite tricks is still the Candy Apple Fuzz on octave but with the fuzz turned down all the way - and driving that into an OD or Distortion.....

Re: which fuzz would work best with an octavia?

PostPosted: Wed Mar 18, 2009 9:41 am
by mudster
soulsonic wrote:I recommend getting the Octavia modified so it sounds good and not splattery. Stock Octavias are pretty much a total splat fuzz and the Tycobrahe one seems especially so...
I'm just saying because I've been on a DIY octavia kick lately and I found that much can be done to improve the sound from stock and I don't think stacking it with anything would help... it's too much already... if anything, it needs tamed.



Well you are totally right about the Tychobrahe effect, but on the other hand, it is a pretty unique sound. There are a lot of octave effects that are way smoother, but they don't have the untamed quality that can be kind of cool. It is the kind of effect that sounds SO good when it is working great and SO bad when it isn't! They are kind of fun to mess with to.

I have an old BBE bass octave effect that is very smooth, tracks great, and is small. It is sort of like the micro-pog, which is also fun. Despite them being octave effects, they are in a whole other class of effect from the old school octavia madness.

The best thing is that it is fun to play around with them. I like hearing what you guys do because you do things I've never tried much, like stacking overdrives.

Enjoy, friends!