Beetronics releases Tuna Fuzz, a fuzz pedal in a tuna can

September 17, 2024 · 5 sources

Beetronics released the Tuna Fuzz, a fuzz pedal built into a tuna can, on September 17, 2024¹. The pedal is sold directly by the company rather than through dealers and distributors¹.

The Tuna Fuzz is a vintage-style fuzz with a single control, called the Stinker knob, which acts as a master volume². The level of fuzz is preset, and players can reduce it with the guitar's volume knob³⁴. The pedal has true bypass switching, input and output jacks, an LED, a 9V DC power supply jack and a footswitch². It has no battery compartment and runs on an external 9V DC supply³⁴. A Tunabee design on the circuit board is visible through the plastic back cover¹². Gearnews reports it is made in the USA².

Guitar Pedal X describes the circuit as a three-transistor silicon fuzz, "supposedly based on one of Filipe's very original fuzzes," and calls its sound "fairly Fuzz Face adjacent"⁵. That account of the circuit is the publication's own; the other reports do not give a transistor count. Gearnews describes the pedal as "based on some of Beetronics' favourite vintage fuzz boxes"².

The enclosure is a nod to founder Filipe Pampuri's early days, when limited funds led him to repurpose tuna cans as pedal enclosures, and he taught classes in Brazil on making pedals that way¹³. According to the company, "Our artisan bees have sourced real tuna cans, and every can is hand-drilled right here in our hive"³.

The US list price is $99, sold directly through the Beetronics webstore¹⁵. Guitar.com and MusicRadar give the price as $99.99³⁴. MusicRadar reported on September 20 that the first batch had sold out and that Beetronics was taking orders for the next⁴.