Ghoib Elektronik Clang Invasion

The Ghoib Elektronik Clang Invasion is a fuzz pedal that replicates the Interfax HP-1 Harmonic Percolator, the clangy and noisy fuzz from the early 1970s. Where the vintage original mixed silicon and germanium transistors, the Clang Invasion rebuilds the circuit with all-silicon transistors, a change the maker made in an effort to increase volume, gain and brightness. It was announced in January 2023 and added to Delicious Audio's roundup of Harmonic Percolator clones and evolutions.¹

The original it copies

The Interfax HP-1 Harmonic Percolator is extremely rare and highly sought after, and part of the reason is that its transistors and some components were gooped or obscured in the original, which has made exact copies difficult. Aion FX describes the circuit as a two-transistor fuzz using a PNP germanium transistor paired with an NPN silicon, running in a standard negative-ground configuration.³ Jack Orman, writing on the AMZ Guitar Effects Blog, counted the Harmonic Percolator among commercial examples of PNP transistors operated off a positive supply.⁴

Because the original's parts are hard to identify, replicas differ in how they interpret the circuit. The Fredric Effects Silicon Harmonic Percolator, for example, uses entirely silicon transistors manufactured 40 years ago in the former East Germany, according to its maker, and Premier Guitar described it as a revised version that swaps the original germanium components for carefully chosen vintage silicon transistors.⁵ The Clang Invasion takes the same all-silicon route.

What it does to your sound

Delicious Audio's Paolo De Gregorio described the result as an HP with tons of output and punch, and excellent dynamic range, which allows it to respond beautifully to guitar volume knob adjustments.¹ In other words, the silicon rebuild is presented not just as a louder version of the Percolator but as one that cleans up and opens up as you roll the guitar's volume control down, the kind of touch response players usually look for in a fuzz they intend to keep on all the time.

Controls and size

The pedal carries two sliders, B for Balance and H for Harmonics, as listed in Guitar Pedal X's review.² The enclosure is a standard vertical 1590BB, which Guitar Pedal X notes is half the size of the original, a practical difference for anyone who has seen how large vintage Percolators are.² Delicious Audio likewise notes that the enclosure here is much smaller than the vintage original.¹

Price and availability

Guitar Pedal X listed the Clang Invasion at $299 USD in its May 2024 review of Harmonic Percolator-style pedals.²

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