The Catalinbread Giygas is a fuzz pedal from Portland, Oregon maker Catalinbread, announced in May 2020. It is a three-transistor silicon fuzz with a clean blend circuit and a mid boost, voiced to stay loud and fuzzy without turning muddy, and its EQ section is built to handle lower-tuned instruments12.
Inside, the signal path runs the fuzz into a gyrator-based mids boost and then into a tilt EQ circuit, which is what gives the pedal its unusual flexibility for a fuzz2. Catalinbread later released a revised version, the Giygas Fuzz, which keeps the concept but reworks how the gain is generated3.
What it is and where the name comes from
The name comes from outside music entirely: Giygas is the antagonist of Earthbound, the Super Nintendo classic, and Catalinbread named the pedal after the game's final boss7. The pedal itself is a straightforward proposition: fuzz, a mid boost, a clean blend and a two-band-style EQ, all in one box.
Delicious Audio's Alex Maiolo described the circuit as "super fuzzy and loud, but voiced to avoid muddiness, and engineered to give you options"2. The clean blend is a big part of that: mixing your dry signal back in keeps the attack and definition that a full-on fuzz can wash out, which is also why the pedal works for bass and down-tuned guitars.
The controls
The Giygas carries five knobs: EQ, Mids, Blend, Loud and Fuzz65. The EQ and Mids knobs are the heart of the tone shaping, and both are detented, so you can find your way back to a neutral setting.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Fuzz | Sets the amount of fuzz, from a warm, slightly gritty boost with the knob down to full fuzz up3 |
| EQ | Tilt EQ, detented and flat at 12 o'clock; clockwise boosts frequencies above 900Hz and cuts below that point4 |
| Mids | Mid boost control, also detented and flat at 12 o'clock4 |
| Blend | Mixes your clean signal back in with the fuzz8 |
| Loud | Output volume8 |
On the Fuzz knob, Catalinbread's own description of the circuit family is direct: with the knob all the way down you get a warm, slightly gritty boost, and all the way up a rich fuzz3. The maker's take on the pedal at its extremes is blunt: "A dimed Giygas is a truly wonderful thing."3
Inside the pedal there is an internal trimpot that provides 10dB of boost or cut at 40Hz9. That is low-end trim rather than a player-facing control, useful for matching the pedal to a bass rig or a dark amp.
How the tilt EQ works
The EQ knob is a tilt control rather than a conventional treble or tone knob. It is flat at the 12 o'clock detent. Turned clockwise, it boosts everything above 900Hz while turning down everything below that center point; turned counterclockwise, the balance shifts the other way4. In practice that means one knob moves the whole pedal brighter or darker rather than adding treble on top of an unchanged low end.
Guitar Pedal X's Stefan Karlsson noted that the same tone stack, a tilt EQ plus mids contour, also appears on Catalinbread's SuperCharged Overdrive, and counted the Giygas among his long-term favorites6.
Power and practical matters
The Giygas runs on an external power supply and does not use batteries1. There is no battery option as a fallback, so it needs a power supply on the board at all times.
What reviewers said
Gearnews' reviewer was positive about the pedal's flexibility, particularly its EQ and its handling of lower-tuned instruments1:
"I'm pretty impressed by this pedal and think it could be perfect for many applications. For starters, it is flexible EQ-wise and its ability to handle lower-tuned instruments will be a huge bonus for many players"1
Guitar Pedal X included the Giygas in its 2020 roundup of the year's best new fuzz pedals, calling it "a great super versatile silicon fuzz with some really smart controls"5.
Price and availability
At launch the Giygas was available for preorder at $199.99, with units shipping from 1 June 202049. Guitar.com listed it at $199.99, and the UK RRP was GBP 1994. By the end of 2020 Guitar Pedal X carried it at $199 / £1895. Catalinbread has since superseded the original with a revised Giygas Fuzz, which incorporates new tricks to replace the original's cascading equalizer-stage gain3.
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Questions
What does the Catalinbread Giygas name refer to?
The pedal is named after Giygas, the antagonist of Earthbound, the Super Nintendo game released in the 1990s. Catalinbread has a history of quirky names for its pedals, and this one borrows its title from the game's final boss.
Does the Catalinbread Giygas run on a battery?
No. The Giygas runs on an external 9-Volt power supply and does not use batteries, so you will need a pedalboard power supply or a dedicated 9V adapter to run it.
Is the Giygas a silicon or germanium fuzz?
It is a silicon fuzz. Reviewers describe it as a versatile silicon fuzz with smart controls, and its circuit uses three transistors with a mid boost and a clean blend, rather than germanium transistor clipping.
How does the Giygas tilt EQ work?
The EQ knob is a tilt control with a detent at 12 o'clock, where it is flat. Turning it clockwise boosts frequencies above 900Hz while cutting below that point, and turning it counterclockwise does the opposite, shifting the whole tonal balance darker or brighter.
How much does the Catalinbread Giygas cost?
At launch in May 2020 the Giygas listed for $199.99 in the US, with a UK RRP of GBP 199. Guitar Pedal X later carried it at $199 / £189 in its 2020 fuzz roundup.
Sources (9)
- The new Giygas by Catalinbread: a three-transistor box full of delicious fuzz tones, gearnews.com, 2020-05-21
- Catalinbread Giygas Fuzz, Delicious Audio, 2020-08-17
- Giygas 2K Fuzz, Catalinbread Effects
- Catalinbread unleashes the ferocious Giygas fuzz, Guitar.com, 2020-05-21
- Guitar Pedal X, Guitar Pedal X, 2020-12-18
- Guitar Pedal X, Guitar Pedal X, 2023-11-10
- Catalinbread launches the Gallery Series with custom art Naga Viper, Guitar.com, 2020-08-19
- NAMM 2020: Catalinbread Giygas fuzz/EQ and Epoch Boost, gearnews.com, 2020-01-17
- Catalinbread's Giygas promises to unleash torrents of “brawny and fierce” fuzz, Guitar World, 2020-05-20
