New Dunlop Mini Fuzz Faces Hit Shelves

As a producer of pedals, Dunlop has always been a bit overshadow. That’s not to say that they haven’t produced a wide range of adequate pedals over the year; the company has even had its fair share of excellent releases. What that is to say is that for low end pedals, most consumers lean towards Boss, while high end products tend to favor boutique brands. However, with the release of Dunlop’s Mini Fuzz Face pedals, this could all change.

The original Fuzz Face was made popular for two specific reasons: first, it was the pedal of quite a few rock legends. The wild, warm distortion associated with the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, and even the Beatles was in large part due to the fact that these players used Fuzz Face pedals. The second reason the original Fuzz Face was popular was its simplicity; due to the straightforward nature of its wiring, the pedal is easier to duplicate or modify.

It was only a matter of time until a new Fuzz Face was announced, however. The news came during the Summer NAMM 2013, along with the notification of a new talk box. The Fuzz Face Mini is an odd, circular pedal, but it definitely retains the classic look and feel of its predecessors. Currently, six different lines of Fuzz Face Mini’s are available: original, germanium, silicone, and three tribute series pedals. In general, consumers can expect a germanium pedal to sound warmer, but be more susceptible to environmental damage than its silicone counterpart. The tribute pedals are dedicated towards Eric Johnson, Jimi Hendrix, or Joe Bonamassa. Each pedal has been specifically built to imitate the famous fuzz sounds of each of these musicians.

Though the new pedals promise to sound identical to the larger originals, something tells me they may sound a bit off. Regardless, these are solid fuzz pedals worthy of a place on any pedal board.