Dunlop Fuzz Face

The Dunlop Fuzz Face is a fuzz/distortion pedal built to the vintage Fuzz Face design, one of the most widely recognized fuzz circuits in guitar history. The current Fuzz Face Distortion, model JDF2, is constructed to vintage specs around the original germanium PNP transistor arrangement, which Dunlop describes as producing "a rich, creamy fuzz sound"¹. In stompbox lore, the Fuzz Face Distortion sits among the icons, and FUZZ FACE is a registered trademark of Dunlop Manufacturing, Inc.¹²

The circuit behind it is a two-transistor fuzz that produces a characteristic high distorted sound, with jack in, jack out, a battery clip, and a DPDT foot-switch³. Its round enclosure styled as a face, with two knobs for eyes, a foot-switch nose, and a brand label mouth, came from designer Ivor Arbiter, who got the idea after seeing the circular base of a mic stand⁴.

What the Fuzz Face does

The Fuzz Face takes the guitar's signal and clips it into a thick, saturated fuzz. Animals Pedal describes the design as one of the world's best known fuzz pedals, with a thick, fat fuzz sound and the expressive ability to change to sparkling clean using only the guitar's volume knob, a combination that has attracted guitarists worldwide since the 1960s. The circuit's input stage is a feedback network that reduces its theoretical gain to about 18.6 dB, and its 2.2uF input capacitor blocks DC, removing hum and protecting both pedal and guitar³.

What sets the design apart for many players is that interaction with the guitar's volume control. MusicRadar's reviewer found that "turning down a couple of notches cleans up the dirtiest of Fuzz Faces because they're so sensitive to what's coming in the input"⁸. On the JDF2 specifically, MusicRadar's advice is to run the fuzz control on full and use the guitar's volume control to alter the tone⁶.

The controls: Volume and Fuzz

The Fuzz Face keeps the original two-knob layout. Per Dunlop's manual for the JDF2, the VOLUME knob controls overall effect volume and the FUZZ knob controls the amount of fuzz⁷. The same two controls appear across the Mini models and the Jimi Hendrix versions⁹⁵¹⁰.

The original circuit used a 1K linear Fuzz pot, which put almost all the action into the last 25% of the rotation, and a 500K audio-taper volume pot as the output level control³¹¹. That taper behavior is part of why vintage-style Fuzz Faces feel like they jump from clean to full fuzz over a small part of the knob's travel.

Germanium and silicon versions

The Fuzz Face was originally built in the 1960s with germanium transistors, and later circuits moved to silicon¹²¹³. The first few years of production used germanium, but by 1969 germanium had fully given way to silicon devices⁴. Dunlop has released both germanium and silicon transistor versions to cater to different preferences¹⁴.

• Germanium: PNP transistors, used in the germanium models; claimed to have a warmer, creamier, smoother sound³¹⁵. The best-sounding matches use a low-gain transistor in the first stage (β of about 70 to 80) and a high-gain transistor in the second stage (β of about 110 to 130)³.
• Silicon: NPN transistors, used in the silicon models; higher gain, a bit harsher with some more high end³¹⁵. Analog Man notes the silicon versions came out around 1969, using BC108 and BC109 types, and are fuzzier and brighter than germaniums².

Dunlop's Mini range, introduced in 2013, covers both camps: the FFM2 Germanium Fuzz Face Mini takes its tones from 1966 to '68 era pre-silicon Fuzz Faces¹⁶, while the FFM1 Silicon and other minis are higher-gain models with silicon transistors⁸.

History: from Arbiter to Dunlop

The Fuzz Face was created in 1966 by Arbiter Electronics in London¹⁴, launched that same year¹⁷, and Arbiter Electronics manufactured the pedal from 1966 to 1975³. The design drew on contemporary fuzz pedals like the Maestro Fuzz Tone, designed by Glen Snotty, and the Sola Sound ToneBender, designed by Gary Hurst³. The pedal was re-issued from 1986 to 2000³, and the Fuzz Face has maintained its popularity among guitarists since¹⁴.

Dunlop's reissue line reproduces specific eras of the original. The Jimi Hendrix Fuzz Face Distortion is described by Dunlop as a meticulously faithful reproduction of the 1969 to 1970 Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face that Jimi used on classic albums such as Electric Ladyland¹⁸¹⁹. The Band of Gypsys Fuzz Face Mini (FFM6) reproduces a unit Dunlop says sounded like a completely different animal from any of the other Fuzz Face pedals in Jimi's arsenal, snarling with a far more aggressive, biting tone²⁰. The Eric Johnson Signature Fuzz Face came out of Johnson letting Dunlop's Fuzz Face expert, Jeorge Tripps, get inside his prized late '60s Fuzz Faces to recreate their vintage sounds with modern consistency²¹.

What reviewers said

Reviewers have generally found the modern Dunlop versions deliver the vintage character in a reliable package²²¹⁶²¹:

• MusicRadar on the FFM2 Germanium: "Late '60s Fuzz Face tones. Modern build quality."¹⁶
• Premier Guitar on the FFM2 Germanium: "A great vintage-style Fuzz Face at a great price."¹⁵
• MusicRadar on the JDF2 noted the pedal has no provision for a mains adapter, and sounds best with its fuzz control on full⁶.

On the Jimi Hendrix Fuzz Face Distortion in a Guitar World video review, Pete called it "One of my favorite pedals ever," while noting it has no power socket or battery compartment, so you have to remove the back plate to change the battery, a compromise he found worth it both for its raw sound and as a collector's piece²³.

In JHS Pedals' demo of the Band of Gypsys edition, Josh's guidance was to crank the fuzz control and use your guitar volume to clean it up, and his verdict on the sound was simply that "it sounds awesome"²⁴.

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Guitar World's video review covers the JMH-1's matching cosmic swirl finish, its lack of a power socket, and how it cleans up when the guitar's volume is rolled back²³.

Who uses it

The player most associated with the pedal is Jimi Hendrix, whose original 1969 to 1970 Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face is the unit the Dunlop Jimi Hendrix model reproduces¹⁸¹⁹. Eric Johnson is known to use a silicon transistor version of the Fuzz Face with excellent tone results²⁵²⁶, and his signature model with Dunlop followed from that²⁵²⁶. The Jimi Hendrix version also carries modern features such as a status LED, with a current draw of 3.4mA²⁷.

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