BAE Royaltone

The BAE Royaltone is a silicon fuzz pedal from BAE Audio, a company better known for its classic British preamps and EQ units. It was announced at Musikmesse in April 2018 as a dual silicon fuzz stompbox modeled after vintage English fuzz circuits, and it stands out from most fuzzes by adding a three-band EQ that can be switched in independently of the fuzz itself¹.

Guitar.com described the character of the pedal at launch:

Performer Magazine's reviewer, Chris Devine, placed its sound in the classic British fuzz tradition, comparing it to the Vox Tone Bender, and summed up his verdict as "classic British fuzz, EQ is very flexible, sounds great!"²

What it is and what it does to your sound

The Royaltone is an analog silicon fuzz. Its circuit lineage goes back to the British fuzzes of the 1960s, and Performer Magazine's reviewer heard it as similar to the Vox Tone Bender². The circuit uses low noise transistors along with a selection of ceramic, electrolytic and mica capacitors, which the reviewer noted as part of staying true to the British tradition².

What separates it from a straight vintage-style fuzz is the EQ. Besides the fuzz and tone shaping, the pedal carries a three-band equalizer, so you can push or cut bass, mids and treble rather than working with a single tone knob¹. For a player used to fuzzes with one or two controls, that is the Royaltone's main point of difference.

The controls and switching

The control layout splits into two groups. Two oxblood colored knobs, Attack and Level, cover the fuzz side: Attack sets the fuzz amount and Level sets the fuzz level. Three black knobs, Bass, Mid and Treble, handle the EQ section².

Two footswitches do the switching: one engages the fuzz and the other engages the EQ section, so the EQ can be used on its own as a tone shaper with the fuzz off². Individual LEDs show when the fuzz or EQ is engaged².

Performer's reviewer found the EQ useful but subtle, writing that "The EQ adds in that extra tweakability spice. It's a bit subtle, but it works just where you want it to"². His one hardware criticism was that the footswitches might be a bit close together for individual use².

Power

The Royaltone runs on a 9V battery or a standard 2.5mm 9V power supply².

How it compares and what reviewers found

Against other fuzzes: silicon transistors make it more temperature stable and consistent than germanium fuzzes, and the low noise transistors mean the pedal is not adding unwanted hiss. Performer Magazine's reviewer put it directly: the pedal is not quiet, but "it's bringing in the noises you want, not hiss and static"². He also tested it with both humbuckers and single coils and reported being really happy with the overall results, so it is not a pedal that demands a particular pickup type².

BAE's earlier stompbox, the BAE Hot Fuzz, covered similar classic British fuzz territory at the same $225 street price; the Royaltone adds the switchable three-band EQ on top of the fuzz².

Tone Bender roots and the Musikmesse launch

The Royaltone itself was unveiled at Musikmesse in April 2018, when BAE Audio announced it as a dual silicon fuzz modeled after those vintage English circuits¹. That Pedal Show later included the BAE Audio Royal Tone in a roundup of modern Tone Bender inspired fuzz pedals, in a segment starting at 36:25³.

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