ZVEX Germanium Woolly Mammoth

The ZVEX Germanium Woolly Mammoth Mod is a limited edition version of ZVEX's Woolly Mammoth fuzz pedal, announced in July 2018. The standard Woolly Mammoth is a silicon-based fuzz that Premier Guitar called "Z.Vex's bass creation, the Woolly Mammoth"¹², and the germanium version swaps in "rare 'spam can' germanium transistors" in place of the silicon ones². Guitar.com described the result as "a warm, vintage-y fuzz that works just as well for electric blues leads as biting punk riffs"².

What the germanium mod does

Germanium and silicon transistors clip differently, and germanium fuzzes are generally sought for a softer, older-sounding edge. In this case the change is at the heart of the circuit: Guitar World reported that "ZVEX's Woolly Mammoth fuzz pedal is now available with a Germanium Mod"³, and Guitar.com noted that many players "would already be familiar with the silicon-based variant" before this version "kicks things up a notch"². MusicRadar described it as "a new version of its popular Woolly Mammoth fuzz pedal, which is now available with a Germanium Mod"⁶.

Visually, the germanium version is easy to miss: gearnews.com reported that "the only difference between the standard edition and this limited edition version is a sticker on the front"⁷.

Controls

The pedal keeps the classic ZVex four-knob layout⁷:

Where it sits in the Woolly Mammoth family

The Woolly Mammoth line has grown into several versions beyond the original silicon pedal, which is covered on its own page at Zvex Woolly Mammoth:

• Woolly Mammoth 7, the hand-painted version⁸
• Sylvia Massy Woolly Mammoth, which ZVEX Effects presents as "a monstrous fuzz pedal"⁵
• Woolly Mammoth Vexter, the standard production version, listed as sold out on ZVEX's site as of October 2026⁹

Videos

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