DopeFX Boba Fuzz

The DopeFX Boba Fuzz is an analog fuzz pedal built on the circuit of the ZVEX Sylvia Massy Woolly Mammoth, the pedal ZVEX describes as "a monstrous fuzz pedal"¹. DopeFX's own description is that it is "spawned from the 'Woolly Mammoth' but takes it a LOT further"². Where the original is a single-minded fuzz, the Boba Fuzz adds a mids control and a two-position mode switch, so one pedal covers everything from a huge, bottom-heavy fuzz to a tight, sharp distortion².

What it does to your sound

The mode toggle switch is the heart of the pedal. It gives two choices: a huge bottom-heavy fuzz, or a tight, sharp distortion RockBoard's PedalPedia describes as ideal for chugging palm-muted riffs². The mids control works with it: as RockBoard's PedalPedia puts it, "The mids pot transforms this from a limited scooped, bass heavy fuzz to a punchy, fuller fuzz"². Used together with the mode switch, you can create a tighter, more focused fuzz or distortion².

That mids control is also what makes the pedal usable on bass. The input is described as "For Bass & Guitar (or anything else you fancy plugging into it)"², and being able to bring midrange back into a scooped, bass-heavy fuzz is exactly what a bass player usually needs from a fuzz. See also bass pedals.

How to play it

DopeFX suggests running the pedal at full gain and using your guitar's volume knob to tame it if you want, saying this "gives much more effective results"². That is a familiar trick with analog fuzzes: rolling the guitar volume back cleans up the clipping while keeping the pedal's character intact.

Power

The Boba Fuzz runs on 9V DC, center negative, and draws only 1mA². That is a very light load, so it will sit happily on any standard pedalboard supply.

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