Change comes slow in the world of
fuzz. Sure, there are always refinements
on the form, but in the ears of
many players, the templates were perfected
decades ago in the stinging, furry bite of
the Fuzz Face, the snarl and grit of the
Rat, and the unmistakable sludge of the
Big Muff. So when Wampler Effects was
inundated with pleas to release their own
fuzz pedal, they wanted to enter the fray
with something unique.
Wampler’s way to a more unique fuzz
took a more aggressive route, one inspired
by the sounds of players like the Smashing
Pumpkin’s Billy Corgan. In taking that
path, Wampler created a fuzz worthy of its
namesake—a demon prince of tone rising
from the depths, wholly intent on obliterating
everything within earshot.
A Demon Rises
Wampler touts the Leviathan’s circuit as
completely unique and not derived from
any fuzz pedal in particular. Instead, the
company used the sounds of a few specific
players as ideals. Corgan’s tone on the
Pumpkins’ 1994 landmark album,
Siamese
Dream, was a major influence, and as some
modern metal fans might guess, the ripping
sounds of stoner-rock darlings Mastodon
were also inspirational.
The Leviathan’s control layout is fairly
conventional, though it might seem busy
to fans of old two- and three-knob fuzzes.
A simple 2-band EQ—Treble and Bass—
shape the low- and high-end content, while
Volume and Gain knobs control level and
fuzz content. The clipping mode can be
switched between germanium or silicon
diodes via the Roar/Rumble switch—effectively
flipping between wider and more
compressed fuzz tones.
Though most gigging guitarists these
days have ditched batteries in favor of
multi-outlet power supplies, it’s still a
hassle to unscrew the back panel to replace
the battery. It wasn’t a huge deal with the
Leviathan, as I didn’t need to change the
battery after playing it for several hours,
but having a simple battery door would
have been a nice convenience.
It Came from the Deep
The tones that lie in wait within the
Leviathan are not subtle. In fact, this has
to be one of the most raging, over-the-top
fuzz pedals I’ve come across in quite some
time. Using a Stratocaster routed through
the Leviathan and into a Bogner Barcelona
40-watt combo, I set all of the controls
straight up, flipped the clipping switch
to Roar (germanium-diode mode), and
dug into some early-’90s Seattle-inspired
riffage. The sound was burly and very
aggressive, with great top-end bite and a
pummeling, grinding midrange. Backing
off of the Strat’s volume knob coaxed some
detail back into the tone but sacrificed
high-end bite—nothing a small adjustment
of the Treble knob couldn’t fix.
It was simple to get a super-aggressive
fuzz, too, but the pedal can get a little
muddy if you don’t take the time to set
things up right. Some of the sweet spots for
lead playing aren’t as effective for rhythm
work, either (though this is not uncommon
for aggressive fuzz units). Extreme Treble
and Bass settings yielded hairy, unruly
tones perfect for modern stoner rock. If
that type of music is your bag, then the
Leviathan is an absolutely perfect choice.
Avoiding tones that don’t sound like
your speaker is imploding requires conservative
use of the Gain control. But
just a little gain goes a long way and can
really add some muscle to your amp.
Even with the Strat’s relatively low-output
pickups, I dialed in a very thick,
’90s-grunge rhythm tone with the Treble
at 11 o’clock, Bass at 1 o’clock, Gain at
1 o’clock, and the Barcelona’s master volume
at almost 3 o’clock. The tone was fat
and defined, and single notes sustained
with a sweet, singing quality.
Moving the clipping switch to the
Rumble (silicon diode) position boosted
the gain significantly, but it also lowered
the volume significantly. In order to get the
fuzz at unity gain with the bypassed tone, I
had to crank the Volume knob up to the 3
o’clock position.
Blood and Thunder
Humbuckers are a great match for the
Leviathan, too, provided the pedal’s Gain
control isn’t turned up too high. My Les
Paul gave the pedal an entirely new voice.
Fuzz pedals that can preserve the guitar’s
natural tone aren’t commonplace—especially
those that have as much gain on tap
as the Leviathan does—but in this instance
the Les Paul’s heft came through loud and
clear, with a massive amount of low end.
Staying conservative with the Gain control
and finding a sweet spot with the Treble
and Bass knobs was key to obtaining a great
tone that remained present with a band mix
but that also retained the expansively hairy
tendencies the Leviathan was designed for.
Still, I found that the pedal seemed to sit
better with single-coil pickups—their low
output and bell-like attack seemed to bring
out the most pleasing frequencies.
The Verdict
If you’re looking for a fuzz pedal that lives
at the more extreme and pummeling end of
the fuzz spectrum, the Wampler Leviathan
is up to the task. It’s a force to be reckoned
with, but that power rarely comes at the
expense of your guitar’s natural tone. It’s
capable of subtler fuzz tones, but it excels
at super heaviness—and it
will kick out the
biggest, burliest fuzz tone you can get from
a stompbox. This is a pedal truly deserving
of its name.
Buy if...
only the most aggressive and ballsy
fuzz tone will do.
Skip if...
you require smoother, more refined
fuzz suitable for classic-rock
type tones.
Rating...
