The Massive FX Pedals Alchemist is a hand built heavy fuzz, the company's take on the vintage, germanium Burns Buzzaround from the late '60s and early '70s. Delicious Audio describes it as a Dynamic Heavy Fuzz with massive buzzy and trebly tones, imparted by triple NOS AC125 germanium transistors1. In a later fuzz buying guide, the same publication wrote that "Massive takes the already-unruly Buzzaround and punches up the gain and volume for a seriously wild fuzz"2.
The controls
The Alchemist's four knobs are unusually interactive. Delicious Audio's buying guide notes that the controls are so interactive it is difficult to definitively label what each one really does, but that if you had to, there is master volume, mids, fuzz, and treble2. The product page gives each knob a fuller description1:
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Master Volume (the "Money" knob, symbolized by the Deniro symbol) | Below 50% is labeled Dark Energy, above 50% is labeled Light Energy |
| Tone Shape, or "Balance" | Primarily a mids control: above 12 o'clock increases mids, below reduces mids and thins the tone. It adjusts the Fuzz Bias with direct effect on the mid EQ range |
| Fuzz/Sustain Amount | Controls the amount of fuzz. Turned all the way to the left, the guitar is not heard |
| Timbre/Tone/Attack | Primarily a treble control. It interacts with the Fuzz Bias (the Moon knob) and can dramatically affect fuzz treble plus a slight effect on pick attack. Above 12 o'clock adds treble |
The Tone Shape and Timbre knobs both reaching into the fuzz bias is what makes the labeling so slippery: turning one changes how the other behaves, so the four knobs work more as one interactive system than as independent EQ and gain stages12.
Because the Tone Shape and Timbre controls interact with the fuzz bias, settings do not behave like those on a conventional fuzz. Expect to work the knobs together rather than set each one independently1.
Built on the Burns Buzzaround
The original Buzzaround is a fuzz pedal from the '60s that Delicious Audio describes as not too dissimilar from the Tone Bender, but heavier sounding, and one that has become a collector's item3. BLAMMO! Electronics' product page describes the wedge shaped pedal, officially named the Buzzaround, as built by hand on tag board from 1966 to 1968 in England by Baldwin-Burns Ltd.4. JMI later commissioned a limited series of 50 faithful reproductions, hand-built in England5.
Massive FX's Alchemist is one of the modern takes on that circuit. The company builds each pedal with hand selected components and extensive listening to each component, which Delicious Audio says yields one of the most usable tone monster fuzzes1.
The white edition
At NAMM 2019, Massive FX owner and designer Yosef Sanborn came to the Delicious Audio Stompbox Booth to shoot a video of the limited white edition of the Alchemist1.
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Questions
What transistors does the Massive FX Alchemist use?
The Alchemist uses three NOS AC125 germanium transistors. Delicious Audio's product page describes the pedal as a Dynamic Heavy Fuzz with buzzy and trebly tones imparted by those triple NOS AC125 germanium transistors, and the same publication's fuzz buying guide repeats the three-transistor specification when describing the pedal's occult-themed take on the Buzzaround.
What is the Burns Buzzaround?
The Buzzaround is a fuzz pedal from the 1960s, officially named the Buzzaround and built by hand on tag board from 1966 to 1968 in England by Baldwin-Burns Ltd. Delicious Audio describes it as not too dissimilar from the Tone Bender but heavier sounding, and it has become a collector's item. JMI later commissioned a limited series of 50 faithful reproductions hand-built in England.
Who designed the Massive FX Pedals Alchemist?
The Alchemist was designed by Yosef Sanborn, the owner and designer of Massive FX Pedals. Sanborn demoed the limited white edition of the Alchemist at the Delicious Audio Stompbox Booth at NAMM 2019.
What do Dark Energy and Light Energy mean on the master volume?
On the Alchemist, the master volume knob, symbolized by the Deniro symbol, is described as the Money knob. Below 50 percent of its travel it is labeled Dark Energy, and above 50 percent it is labeled Light Energy, dividing the knob's range into two zones.
Was there a white edition of the Alchemist?
Yes. Massive FX showed a limited white edition of the Alchemist at NAMM 2019, where owner and designer Yosef Sanborn demoed it at the Delicious Audio Stompbox Booth and shot a video of the pedal.
Sources (5)
- Massive Pedals Alchemist Fuzz, Delicious Audio, 2019-02-12
- Best Burns Buzzaround Fuzz Clones & Evolutions In 2023, Delicious Audio, 2023-02-15
- Soundslice FX X-Ray Box (Buzzaround Fuzz), Delicious Audio, 2023-02-15
- Buzzaround, BLAMMO! Electronics
- TONEHOME, TONEHOME
