Quick Hit: Aguilar Fuzzistor Review

One of Aguilar’s newest members to their family of all-things-bass is the vintage-looking Fuzzistor. And in this case, it’s perfectly appropriate to judge a book by its cover. Housed in a rugged and weighty orange-metal enclosure devoid of gaudy graphics, the Fuzzistor feels as if you could throw it across a parking lot and it would laugh at you. A quartet of smooth-dialing knobs for blend, level, tone, and fuzz govern the silicon transistor-based pedal that runs on either a universal power supply or 9V battery. (Kudos to the one-screw sliding back plate for ease of battery swaps.)

With the tone set at noon, fuzz at 10 o’clock, and the blend at 9 o’clock (giving me about a 25/75 wet/dry mix), the Fuzzistor pushed out a warm-bodied distortion for a big, classic ’70s rock tone. Almost maxing out the fuzz dial and pushing the blend to the 3 o’clock range and higher took me to the extreme side of fuzzy goodness, akin to a herd of pissed-off bumblebees buzzing in sync. Still, the low-end body stayed intact with the fuzz hanging on tight—not just a sloppy mess by any stretch. Chances are good that many a stoner-rock bassist could find their personal nirvana in this orange box. I also especially dug the sensitivity of the tone knob (which only affects the distorted signal) and the available nuances it provides the fuzz when sweeping through the dial’s range.

Alongside its peers, the Fuzzistor sits about in the middle of the price spectrum at $159. And you certainly get what you pay for when you consider its solid build and the range of fuzz on tap.

Test Gear: 2001 Fender Precision, Gallien-Krueger 800RB head, TC Electronic RS410 cab