Zander Circuitry Cafetiere

The Zander Circuitry Cafetiere is a distortion and fuzz pedal made in the UK by Zander Circuitry. Zander describes it as a "torn-down, rebuilt and expanded take on the Interfax Harmonic Percolator (HP-1)", a cult 1970s fuzz circuit, and says it will do "everything from a clean treble boost to a spitting/gated 'Jack White' style fuzz and everything in between"¹². It sits between categories: as the maker's own page asks, "Is it a distortion? Is it a fuzz?"¹.

The pedal first appeared in October 2018 as an evolution of the Harmonic Percolator with a second gain stage and a 6-way clipping selector³, and reached its V4 form, the Cafetiere V4 Distrofuzz, in March 2022 with 8 clipping modes³. The standard model is listed at $200.00 USD¹.

The Harmonic Percolator lineage

The original Interfax HP-1 Harmonic Percolator is a two-transistor fuzz that pairs a PNP germanium transistor with an NPN silicon one, letting it run in a standard negative-ground configuration⁵. Gearnews describes it as "a unique circuit using a rare mix of silicon and germanium transistors"⁶. The original 1970s units used 2N404 germanium and 2N3565 silicon transistors⁷², and the circuit is known for its "signature even-order harmonics saturation"⁸. Premier Guitar called it "a simple yet fascinating circuit which readily lends itself to tweaking and improvement"⁹.

The originals are extremely rare and highly sought-after, with the transistors and some components gooped or obscured to hide the design⁵. That mystique has produced a steady stream of interpretations: Fredric Effects builds a silicon version of the hybrid circuit¹⁰, Pedal of the Day reviewed the BSRI Audio Hydrazine as "a modern interpretation of the Interfax Harmonic Percolator"¹¹, and Cat Box Customs' Bean Machine is another variant of the circuit¹².

Zander's take keeps the circuit's character but changes its heart: the rebuild swaps the original's one germanium transistor for a silicon one¹. The circuit "has gained a bit of a cult following over the years", as Zander notes, "inspiring a number of clones from smaller builders"¹.

The controls

The Cafetiere's five knobs go beyond the usual gain-and-volume setup. Two of them, Input and Starve, shape the circuit in ways most fuzz pedals do not offer¹.

The Starve control is the inherited Percolator trick: starving a fuzz circuit of voltage makes the sound decay unevenly and compress the attack, which is where gated, spluttering fuzz textures come from. Delicious Audio noted the purple pedal "also sports a Starve knob" when it launched in 2018¹³.

The eight-position clipping selector

An eight-way rotary switch selects the clipping diode configuration, a feature Guitar.com's reviewer noted is "common to most of Zander's current dirt devices", also appearing on the Zander Circuitry Cranium⁴. Zander describes each option¹:

• Germanium: the baseline clipping character
• Asymmetrical germanium: "A more aggressive version of germanium."
• Silicon: "Louder, brighter, and a little bit brittle."
• Transistor/MOSFET: "Similar to silicon, but sweeter and crunchier."
• LED: "Louder again, with less saturation and more punch."
• Asymmetrical LED: "A more aggressive version of LED."
• No diodes: "Loads of output and much less gain."
• Eighth position: completes the 1 to 8 selector range¹

The V4 Distrofuzz version carries the same 1-8 rotary clipping diode selector³.

Blast mode and the two footswitches

Two footswitches control the pedal: Engage turns it on and off, and Blast activates Blast mode¹. Blast mode "turns the gain all the way up, and activates a second volume control for seamless transitions between low and high-gain sounds"¹, so you can set a quiet rhythm sound and a full-gain lead sound and move between them with one press.

The switching is flexible in another way: both momentary and latching operation are available, so holding a footswitch down temporarily engages an effect and releasing it returns you to your previous sound³. Guitar.com's review confirms the latching and momentary switching, and that either channel can be engaged from bypass⁴.

Versions and editions

The Cafetiere has evolved across versions since 2018. The V4 Distrofuzz, launched in March 2022, brought the clipping selector from the 6 modes of V2 up to 8 modes³¹³. See the Cafetiere V4 Distrofuzz page for that version's details.

Alongside the standard pedal, Zander offers the Custom Shop Cafetiere, a limited run built on the same circuit. It differs in finish and in transistor choice rather than in function¹⁴:

• Enclosures: powder-coated in Army Green, Blue, Gloss Black, Matte Black, Gold, Gun Metal Gray, Mid Gray, Pink or Purple, most as one-offs¹⁴
• Knob colors: Green, Blue, Purple, Pink, Red, Orange, Yellow, Gray or Black¹⁴
• Transistor pairings: Stock, High Gain or Low Gain¹⁴
• Price: $200.00 USD¹

The Stock pairing is "the same as our standard Cafetiere model (somewhere in the middle)"¹⁴. Low Gain is "closer to the gain level of the original Harmonic Percolator circuit which offers a more open and overdriven fuzz sound", while High Gain gives "a heavier and more compressed sound that gets more spitty and gated at higher gain settings"¹⁴. For players chasing the original HP-1's feel, the Low Gain pairing is the closest of the three.

What reviewers said

Guitar.com reviewed the Cafetiere in June 2022 at £149 GBP, describing it as a fuzz/distortion pedal made in the UK with true bypass, powered by a nine-volt mains supply only⁴. Reviewer Richard Purvis's verdict:

The review's control list matches the maker's: gain, tone, starve, input, blast output level, normal output level, the eight-way rotary clipping switch, and the normal and blast footswitches in latching and momentary forms⁴.

Power and practical notes

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