The Danelectro Cool Cat Fuzz is a compact fuzz pedal in the Cool Cat line, a family of budget-priced effects that also includes the DC-1 Cool Cat Chorus. It carries three controls, Volume, Tone and Fuzz, crossing the front face of the unit, and carries an MSRP of $3912. Guitar.com's Samuel Roberts described the Cool Cat line generally as "a two-knob machine with few frills," which gives a fair sense of the series' no-nonsense approach3.
What it does
As a fuzz pedal, the Cool Cat Fuzz sits in the lineage of the Foxx Tone Machine style of circuit. Premier Guitar's review recommends it as a lower-priced alternative to the Foxx Tone Machine, while being clear that "the Cool Cat Fuzz is not the same as a Foxx"1. It also lacks the Octave/Sustain switch that its ancestor, the French Toast, carried, so players looking for the octave side of that design need to look elsewhere1.
The reviewer's verdict on the sound was positive:
"I heard that same psychedelic grind, that electric wire, hive of bees sound that I heard in vintage and reissue units"
For the review clips, Premier Guitar recorded with a Tele Deluxe with SD Fat Cat humbuckers, Volume and Tone knobs on full, through a modified Epiphone Valve Junior stack1.
Circuit and construction
The Cool Cat Fuzz is not powered by germanium transistors, which separates it from many vintage-style fuzz designs1. The Cool Cat series as a whole is built for the floor: JHS Pedals' product page notes that "The Cool Cat series offers a solid metal casing, true bypass switching, metal jacks and superb tone," and adds that "It even has a real photo lens inside!"4.
The Cool Cat Fuzz has no Octave/Sustain switch, unlike its ancestor the French Toast. If you want footswitchable octave from Danelectro, the 3699 Fuzz is the company's later reissue of the Foxx Tone Machine with that feature1.
Where it sits in Danelectro's range
Danelectro has returned to fuzz territory repeatedly, and the Cool Cat Fuzz is the company's take on the octave-fuzz formula stripped down. Unlike its ancestor, the French Toast, it has no Octave/Sustain switch, and it is not powered by germanium transistors1. What it keeps is the price: $39 MSRP1.
Videos
Robert Renman's Master Guitar Academy
Robert Renman's Master Guitar Academy
Guy Capuano
Questions
Is the Cool Cat Fuzz the same circuit as the Foxx Tone Machine?
No. Premier Guitar's review recommends it as a lower-priced alternative to the Foxx Tone Machine, but notes plainly that the Cool Cat Fuzz is not the same as a Foxx. It also drops the Octave/Sustain switch that its ancestor, the French Toast, carried, so it is a simpler two-knob take on that style of fuzz rather than a clone.
What does the Cool Cat Fuzz sound like?
Premier Guitar's reviewer, recording with a Tele Deluxe with SD Fat Cat humbuckers through a modified Epiphone Valve Junior stack, wrote that he heard the same psychedelic grind, the electric wire, hive of bees sound, that he heard in vintage and reissue Foxx Tone Machines, at a fraction of the price.
Sources (4)
- Danelectro Cool Cat Pedals Review: Fuzz & Overdrive, Premier Guitar, 2008-12-16
- Danelectro DC-1 Cool Cat Chorus, Pedal of the Day (www.pedal-of-the-day.com), 2020-03-12
- 15 best chorus pedals to buy in 2019, Guitar.com, 2019-09-24
- DANELECTRO COOL CAT MOD, JHS Pedals
