Aclam releases The Mocker fuzz pedal based on Vox UL730 circuit

November 24, 2023 · 2 sources

Aclam has released The Mocker, a fuzz pedal built as a replica of the internal fuzz circuit in the Vox UL730 amplifier, as reported on November 24, 2023.

The company says it bought an original UL730, serial number 3042, in September 2017 and traced its circuit¹. The Mocker is described in the manual as "a faithful replica of our own VOX UL730 amp (S/N: 3042)"¹. The pedal uses New Old Stock Phillips OA200 diodes, which the manual calls "the very same diodes found on the UL amp series"¹. The manual also states that "The Mocker is an extended version of the original Vox UL series fuzz circuit while retaining its essence"¹.

The controls are Volume, Bias and Tone, plus a footswitch and LED¹. The Bias knob sets the operating point of the circuit's second transistor; the manual says turning it counterclockwise gives a gated, spluttery sound and turning it clockwise moves toward more sustain and then a compressed tone¹. The Tone knob replaces a fixed resistor in the original circuit's low pass filter with a potentiometer¹. The pedal has relay true bypass, and the manual says units from serial number 201 upward indicate overpowering or reverse polarity at the power supply¹.

The manual lists the reference as AP0050-2¹; an earlier manual version gives AP0050². Neither the manual nor the report gives a US price or a ship date. The manual says the first run of 200 units sold out in four days and that the company later found another lot of diodes to make more¹.