FEA Labs Unveils Photon Fuzz II Pedal
FEA Labs has updated their flexible Photon Fuzz pedal with a second version. The Photon Fuzz II includes the original pedal’s tones with added functionality.
Made for both bass and guitar, the pedal is named due to a component in the circuit that utilizes infrared light to control the FET used in the fuzz. Its drive and bite controls work in tandem to create the character of the fuzz tone. “The drive sets the overall gain stage for the distorted signal, which is then driven into the bite stage of the circuit,” the company writes. “The bite control sets the activation point where the fuzz distortion engages upon (bites into) the signal. The level control adjusts the overall output level of the fuzz signal.”
It has a 2-band EQ section with 14dB of boost or cut for Low and High frequencies. A pre-fuzz high-pass filter can be adjusted with internal DIP switches for setting the amount of low frequencies processed by the fuzz circuit. Other features include a dry blend and an octave distortion stage.
The new version has an active coring noise reduction (ACNR) circuit to enhance usability. “The ACNR can be set to just attenuate the background noise that high-gain analog circuits produce, or with heavier settings, used as a gating effect for a choppy fuzz sound,” they explain.
The FEA Labs Photon Fuzz II is available now with a direct price of $275.
FEA Labs Photon Fuzz II Pedal Features:
| Small footprint design: 4.5″ by 3.5″ |
| 18V circuitry for more headroom from a 9V battery or 9V DC adapter |
| Activation footswitch (stomp switch) with HQ buffered bypass when the pedal is not active |
| Octave footswitch (stomp switch) to activate the octave distortion feature |
| Drive, Bite, and Level controls to shape the fuzz tone |
| 2-band active EQ for additional fuzz tone shaping |
| Dry blend control with configurable low-pass filter |
| Octave distortion control with configurable low-pass filter |
| Pre-fuzz high-pass filter settings of 55Hz, 110Hz, or 220Hz |
| Dry blend low-pass filter settings of full band (off), 160Hz, or 1600Hz |
| Octave distortion low-pass filter settings of full band (off), 500Hz, or 4000Hz |
| ACNR (active coring noise reduction) on the fuzz signal |
