The Area 51 Fuzzwah is a wah wah pedal with an added gain stage that produces a fuzz tone, built by Area 51 Tube Audio Designs. The idea, in the maker's words, was to "take the classic wah circuit and add an extra gain stage to it"1. It sits in the territory covered by wah-wah pedals and fuzz pedals at the same time.
What it does
The added gain stage does two things to the wah sound. According to the maker, it "smooths the sweep of the wah out, and accentuates the upper mids", which the maker says makes it "sound like an old Clyde McCoy"1. At higher gain settings, the maker describes it as producing "a killer sounding fuzztone whose character changes with the wah treadle position"1, so rocking the treadle reshapes the fuzz as well as the filter sweep.
The fuzz part of the circuit is bypassable. When it is off, the maker says the pedal is "a straight-up Area 51 Wah"1, which links it to the Area 51 Fuzz side of the maker's range.
Where it came from
The Fuzzwah began as a one-off build. The maker says: "I built a special one-of-a-kind wah wah for a good friend who has since passed on." The pedal was developed from there into the product described on the maker's page1.
Demo and review
The maker's page includes a demo video played through a 5E3 Deluxe style amp set for mild to moderate breakup, at about 6 on the volume knob1. The maker also notes that the Fuzzwah was reviewed by Vintage Guitar magazine1.
Videos
area51tone
Sources (1)
- Area 51 Fuzzwah, Area 51 Tube Audio Designs, 2017
