The Blackout Effectors Fubär Fuzz is a limited edition analog fuzz pedal built around a Tone Bender MkII circuit with a triplet of silicon devices. RockBoard's PedalPedia describes it as "a wild five-knob, do-it-all fuzz exploration device," and says it "represents the entire timeline of fuzz, from the smooth glissando machines of yore to more modern oscillating" gated fuzz sounds1.
The maker places it in the family of the "monstrous, limited edition Blackout Fuzz Bear," calling the Fubär a pedal from that expanding universe1.
The controls
The Fubär carries five knobs, which is what sets it apart from a straightforward three-knob fuzz. The one control Blackout Effectors names specifically is the EXP knob, which RockBoard's PedalPedia describes as "a second Sag control, switchable as a preset with the associated footswitch"1.
Sag, in fuzz terms, refers to starving the circuit's voltage to change how it responds and breaks up, so having two Sag-type controls, one of them assignable to a footswitch preset, gives the player a way to move between two distinct fuzz behaviors mid-song1.
The pedal also has a dedicated expression jack rated at 10kΩ, the common impedance for expression pedals, so a standard expression pedal can sweep the EXP parameter live1.
The Fubär draws 40mA at 9V DC, center negative. That is more than many simple fuzz pedals take, so it is worth checking what your power supply output provides before adding it to a crowded daisy chain.
Where it comes from
The circuit's starting point is the Tone Bender MkII, the three-transistor silicon fuzz design. RockBoard's PedalPedia states that "at the heart of the Fubär is a Tone Bender MkII circuit, built with a triplet of silicon devices"1. The MkII is one of the historic fuzz circuits, and silicon transistors give it a harder, more aggressive edge than the germanium versions of early fuzzes. The Fubär takes that base and expands it with the five-knob layout and the switchable second Sag control rather than reproducing the original circuit as-is.
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Questions
Is the Blackout Effectors Fubär Fuzz a Tone Bender clone?
Not exactly a clone, but it is built on one. Blackout Effectors says that at the heart of the Fubär is a Tone Bender MkII circuit, built with a triplet of silicon devices. Rather than reproducing the original exactly, the pedal uses that circuit as the base for a five-knob design the maker describes as covering the entire timeline of fuzz, from smooth glissando machines to modern oscillating gated fuzz.
Is the Fubär Fuzz analog?
Yes. Blackout Effectors lists the Fubär's circuit type as analog. It is a silicon-transistor fuzz based on the Tone Bender MkII circuit, not a digital modeling pedal.
What power supply does the Fubär Fuzz need?
The Fubär Fuzz runs on 9V DC with a center negative plug, the standard arrangement for most pedalboard power supplies. It draws 40mA, so a standard daisy-chain supply shared with several other pedals may be tight; a dedicated or higher-current output is the safer choice.
Can you use an expression pedal with the Fubär Fuzz?
Yes. The Fubär has an expression jack that takes a 10kΩ expression pedal. The jack controls the EXP knob, which Blackout Effectors describes as a second Sag control that can be switched as a preset with the associated footswitch, so an expression pedal can sweep that parameter live.
How is the Fubär Fuzz different from the Blackout Fuzz Bear?
Blackout Effectors positions the Fubär Fuzz as coming from the expanding universe of the monstrous, limited edition Blackout Fuzz Bear. The Fubär is its own take on that territory: a five-knob fuzz exploration device built on a Tone Bender MkII silicon circuit, with an expression jack and a switchable second Sag control, covering everything from smooth vintage-style fuzz to oscillating gated sounds.
Sources (1)
- Fubar (Fubär) Fuzz by Blackout Effectors, RockBoard PedalPedia, 2026