The Demedash Effects Spidola Germanium Fuzz is a fuzz pedal from the Winnipeg, Manitoba maker, and it was the company's first fuzz pedal. It uses the same germanium transistors found in the vintage fuzzes of the '70s, and it was described as the company's new Spidola Fuzz when Delicious Audio covered it in March 20231. It sits in the wider family of fuzz pedals.
What it does
The Spidola's circuit splits the signal after the first gain stage into lower and upper frequencies. The lower-end side of the tone gets an extra, separate drive stage, set by the Low knob, and is then reintegrated into the mix1.
That split-band approach gives the Low knob a wide range of character. Delicious Audio's Paolo De Gregorio described the two extremes1:
"Keeping the Low knob down can produce tones reminiscent of the vintage treble boosters (think Range Master), while turning it up to halfway or more will produce a meaty fuzz sound."
In other words, with the Low knob down the Spidola recalls vintage treble boosters, while at halfway or more it delivers a fuller fuzz voice1.
Controls
Guitar Pedal X's Stefan Karlsson, covering the pedal among the year's new fuzzes in December 2020, summed up the control set2:
"then a Preamp Push in front - to ramp up gain, and a Level Output control to temper the volume."
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Low | Drives the lower-frequency side of the signal separately before it is reintegrated into the mix1 |
| Preamp Push | Sits in front of the circuit to ramp up gain2 |
| Level (Output) | Tempering the volume2 |
Background
Demedash Effects describes the Spidola Germanium Fuzz as its new fuzz pedal1. It uses the same germanium transistors found in the vintage fuzzes of the '70s1. For how fuzz compares with other gain stages, see the site's pages on overdrive pedals and distortion pedals.
Videos
AndyDemos
Noise Generator
PSQRCL
Sources (2)
- Demedash Effects Spidola Germanium Fuzz, Delicious Audio, 2023-03-09
- Guitar Pedal X, Guitar Pedal X, 2020-12-18
