Spaceman Sputnik III Cadet

The Spaceman Sputnik III Cadet is a germanium fuzz pedal from Spaceman Effects, the machine-made Cadet Series version of the Sputnik III. Like the handmade original, it is an all-germanium fuzz built around NOS Soviet-era germanium transistors and diodes, and Spaceman describes it as the third iteration of its all-germanium Sputnik fuzz circuit¹. The Cadet Series uses surface-mount components to bring the price down, but the Sputnik III Cadet retains the NOS germanium transistors and diodes of the original².

Spaceman says the circuit can cover a wide spread of fuzz character, from smooth, gritty, vintage and modern through thick, thin, buzzy, bassy, splatty, sputtery, noisy and velcro-ripping, to controlled or completely off-the-rails¹. It carries a list price of $219.00¹.

A germanium fuzz with NOS Soviet-era transistors

Germanium transistors, the older kind of transistor used in 1960s fuzzes, are the heart of the Sputnik circuit. The Sputnik III Cadet uses new-old-stock (NOS) Soviet-era germanium transistors and diodes, the same core parts as the handmade Sputnik III¹. When the Sputnik III was announced in 2020, Guitar.com reported that Spaceman called it "an homage to the golden era of electronics and is brimming with vintage s"⁴.

The Cadet version is the affordable route into that circuit. Guitar Pedal X reported in October 2025 that Spaceman released machine-made Cadet Series versions of the Polaris at $199 and the Sputnik III at $219, reduced from earlier edition prices, with the Cadet series using SMT components while the Sputnik III retains its NOS germanium transistors and diodes². The pedal is housed in a durable cast aluminum enclosure with screen printed faceplates and raw metal enclosures¹.

An input transformer, carried over from the Sputnik II, is there for pedalboard-friendly integration: Spaceman says it ensures the Sputnik III will behave anywhere in your signal chain¹.

The controls: Calibrate, Range and Drift

The Cadet keeps the Sputnik circuit's unusual control layout. The two main knobs work as a pair¹³⁵:

The CALIBRATE control is the Sputnik's take on a tone knob. On the full Sputnik III, Pedal of the Day described how Calibrate works with the Filter toggle, selecting differing frequency rolloff slopes and letting you set the tonal filter for the fuzz⁷. The tone control is a mix of both its predecessors' tone controls, and the toggle switch on the full version offers mid-scooped and flat settings alongside the wide-range CALIBRATE control³.

Drift mode is the wild card. It introduces sonic corruption to the output signal, and Guitar.com noted at launch that it had been upgraded with momentary functionality⁴. It is footswitch actuated, taken from the Sputnik II and enhanced with that optional momentary function, so you can set the switch to either latch or only act while held¹. Delicious Audio described the combination plainly:

The full handmade Sputnik III adds a SCAN control (a chaos scrambler that works with Drift mode) and a Signal volume control alongside Calibrate and Range²⁹⁸; the Cadet streamlines the panel to Calibrate, Range and the Drift footswitch²⁹⁸.

Power and connections

Power comes in at 9V DC, negative center. Spaceman lists a bypass current draw of 8.5 mA¹; a separate Spaceman product page for the Sputnik III lists 57 mA, so the two maker pages disagree on draw, and either figure is comfortably within the range of a typical isolated pedalboard supply¹³.

The expression jack is a 0-5V DC TRS jack for an EXP or control voltage source, protected against over and reverse voltage, so you can sweep the pedal from an expression pedal or external control gear¹. Input resistance is 1 Meg Ohm¹.

Third in the Sputnik line

The Sputnik III is the third iteration of Spaceman's all-germanium fuzz circuit¹. The line began with the original Sputnik, continued through the Sputnik II and its IIb and IIb Deluxe versions, and the mid-size Sputnik III arrived in 2020¹⁰. Guitar.com described the III as inheriting and expanding on several features of its predecessor, the Sputnik II⁴.

Spaceman positions the mid-sized form factor as a middle ground: an enhancement in function over the original Sputnik, and an enhancement in practicality over the Sputnik II³. Pedal of the Day's reviewer liked the result, calling the new mid-sized enclosure "awesome" and saying it gives you the same tones as the first two incarnations in a smaller box⁷. At launch the Sputnik III came in a standard edition plus three limited-run designs: Black, Red Moon, and a Soviet-inspired Red⁴, and it was released both in a limited hand-made version and a more affordable mass-produced one⁵. The handmade NOS version is now sold out³, which leaves the Cadet as the current way to buy the circuit.

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