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Captain Coconut 2 Owner’s Manual
The FuzzFoot section is based on the most famous fuzz of all, the Dallas
Arbiter FuzzFace. The FuzzFace has gone down in history as one of the most
erratic, but coolest sounding fuzz effects ever made. They all sounded slightly
different due to a number of variables including temperature, transistor gain
and quality, battery level and pickup output levels. FuzzFaces could sound
dull, bright, smooth, gritty, and sometimes so choppy that they were even
unusable. The FuzzFoot circuit addresses all of the common complaints
about the FuzzFace, while retaining the same basic transistor-based circuit.
The "Grit" knob controls the transistor bias, which is the key to getting the
coolest sounds. The "Drive" knob gives much better distortion control than the
original "Fuzz" knob found on the FuzzFace. The FuzzFoot can be adjusted to
work great with most wah wah pedals and is surprisingly easy to tame. The
input of the FuzzFoot likes to see a single coil guitar pickup. For the best
results, buffered, non-true bypass pedals are not recommended in front of
the FuzzFoot (or in your signal chain at all, for that matter).
There are several different ways to use the FuzzFoot. Here are some exam-
ples for getting some great sounds.
Bright, Kazoo--like Fuzz: If you set your amp up with a clean, bright tone, and turn the
FUZZ control all the way up, you’ll get that familiar “kazoo” type of fuzz sound. It’s a
sound with a lot of high end but not a ton of sustain. This sound is good for record-
ing, but it can be a bit too extreme for live use because of the massive tonal contrast
when switching from clean to Fuzz.
Ovverdrivve Fuzz--boost: Set your amp up for a nice, slightly dark overdriven sound. A
tube amp or high quality overdrive pedal is recommended. Kick the FuzzFoot in with
FUZZ around 80%, and GRIT around the middle, or lower. Using the volume control
on your guitar, you can go from a semi-clean tone, to a nice, fat lead fuzz boost just
by turning the guitar’s volume knob. TIP: You’ll get the best results if your guitar uses
a LOG TAPER volume pot and your pickups are passive. This is the key to getting the
best, most organic sounds out of the FuzzFoot. By achieving a balance between your
amp’s natural overdrive and the distortion that the Fuzz adds, you can get that magic
tone that most electric blues players long for. There’s a definite chemistry between the
Fuzz and the amp, so take the time to experiment. This is the best setup for the
FuzzFoot and it sounds great when used at the same time as the Provibe.
Clean boost: If you already have enough overdrive in your setup and don’t need a
fuzz, you can use the FuzzFoot the same way you would use a clean boost pedal for
pushing your amp harder. By turning the FUZZ control down, there's plenty of gain
available and the signal is slightly compressed. Use the GRIT control to dial in just
enough sputter in order to add some classic character to your leads.
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