The Discomfort Designs Neon Black Fuzz Booster is a fuzz booster pedal that combines two circuits in one enclosure: a fuzz and a two-flavored treble booster. Pedal of the Day, reviewing it on its release in August 2021, called it a combination of "two odd circuits" that makes "one powerhouse of a pedal." Each side has its own footswitch, so the two can be used independently or together1.
The Party Fuzz side
The fuzz side is described as a "Party Fuzz", as it's obnoxious, a little unpredictable and certainly loud, with no clean tones in sight. Seven NPN transistors are inside this side of the pedal, and Volume, Tone and Fuzz are the parameters present here1.
"described as a 'Party Fuzz', as it's obnoxious, a little unpredictable and certainly loud"
The treble booster side
The treble booster side is a two-flavored design built on high-pass filter circuits, which are circuits that cut low frequencies and let higher ones through. A toggle switch selects between the two flavors1:
| Toggle position | What it does |
|---|---|
| Left | A notch of the low frequencies is cut and a narrow band of upper-mids is boosted, resulting in a resonant, nasal character1 |
| Right | The boost is wider and focuses on a more traditionally treble band of upper-mid and high frequencies, creating louder and dirtier boost tones1 |
Switching and using both sides
Each side is switchable via its own footswitch, which Pedal of the Day describes as baby-soft relay bypass switches. Because the two circuits can be used independently or together, the pedal can cover boost and fuzz duties on its own, or stack the treble booster into the fuzz for a louder, dirtier sound1. For where a pedal like this sits among boost designs, see Boost Pedals, and for the fuzz side of the family, see Fuzz Pedals.
What reviewers said
Pedal of the Day had strong words for the maker as well as the pedal, writing that Discomfort Designs "has become one of our favorite pedal companies of late", and summed the Neon Black up as in your face, bold, screechy and fantastic1.
Videos
Pedal of the Day
The Pedal Platform
Questions
Is the Discomfort Designs Neon Black Fuzz Booster true bypass?
Each side of the pedal is switchable via its own footswitch, and Pedal of the Day describes the switching as baby-soft relay bypass. Relay bypass switches the signal with a relay rather than a conventional mechanical footswitch, which is how the pedal achieves its very light footswitch action while keeping the signal path intact when the effect is off.
Can you use the fuzz and the treble booster at the same time?
Yes. The pedal has separate switching for each side, and both circuits can be used independently or together, so you can run the Party Fuzz alone, the treble booster alone, or stack the two for a louder, dirtier combination.
What does the Party Fuzz side sound like?
Pedal of the Day describes the fuzz side as a Party Fuzz, obnoxious, a little unpredictable and certainly loud, with no clean tones in sight. It is controlled with Volume, Tone and Fuzz parameters, and seven NPN transistors are inside that side of the pedal.
How many transistors are in the Neon Black Fuzz Booster?
The Party Fuzz side of the pedal contains seven NPN transistors, according to Pedal of the Day's review of the pedal.
What does the treble booster toggle switch do?
The toggle selects between two treble booster flavors built on high-pass filter circuits with different characteristics. On the left, a notch of the low frequencies is cut and a narrow band of upper-mids is boosted, giving a resonant, nasal character. On the right, the boost is wider and focuses on a more traditionally treble band of upper-mid and high frequencies, creating louder and dirtier boost tones.
Sources (1)
- Discomfort Designs Neon Black Fuzz Booster, Pedal of the Day, 2021-08-23