The level knob and turbo switch only work in lo-glitch mode. Once it’s on, you can use the center knob to adjust oscillation and curtail or increase the turbo treble. By turning on all three modes (lo-glitch, hi-ring, and turbo) you can access positively paint-peeling sounds—high and low octaves with fragmented fuzz and all sorts of beeps and boops.
You do sacrifice some functionality for the convenience of the smaller package. The toggles are obviously harder to use in performance than the footswitches on the Phantom. And in a performance, that can
Button Masher’s Delight
Starting in lo-glitch mode, I matched the Pocket Arcade up with a Stratocaster and a silverface Fender Bassman. Banging out a few chunky power chords yielded chaotic, Fuzzrite-style tones along the lines of Ron Asheton’s “I Wanna Be Your Dog” intro. The fuzz is bright but still heavy, with a touch of lower octave. Rolling off the guitar’s tone control will shave off some of the harshness, if you’re not a complete ’60s-fuzz devotee. Engaging the turbo switch in lo-glitch mode kills some of the singing sustain and introduces a dose of frazzled electronics. With the turbo knob around 10 o’clock, hard pick attack induces choppy oscillation that’s more pronounced amid higher-pitched tones. Turning turbo up to 3 o’clock increases sustain and adds a synth-like tone akin to the nasally burst of the Moog used on the White Stripes’ “Icky Thump.” An extreme setting like this mostly masks your guitar’s true voice, but you can more easily strike a balance if you use a single-coil-equipped instrument and stick to the B and high E strings. Using humbuckers or the second and fourth switch positions on a Stratocaster reduces the transparency even more, though both result in a little more sustain.
Ratings
Pros:
Lots of modulation and tone bending in a small pedal.
Cons:
Trickier to use live than the Phantom Arcade. No battery option.
Tones:
Ease of Use:
Build:
Value:
Street:
$175
Fuzzhugger(fx)
fuzzhugger.com
Unleashing lo-, hi-, and turbo modes together is a blindfolded bronco ride—practice is definitely required if you want to master a fuzz tone this hectic. Using either single-coils or humbuckers (Eastwood Alnico Hot-10s, in this case) yields an all-out fuzz battle, with stretched octaves, pitch modulations, and oscillating ghost notes. Blending two pickups usually produces a buzz-saw texture that sails over the notes, and pushing turbo past 1 o’clock generates white noise when you’re not playing. Extreme turbo settings can also introduce a lot of high-end spikiness, so be vigilant about dialing it back when you hear errant treble content.
The Verdict
Given how packed-out pedalboards are getting these days, it’s becoming increasingly important for stompbox manufacturers to give their offerings a lot of bang in a small footprint. Even so, it’s pretty tough to make space-saving pedals this quirky. The Pocket Arcade offers up a myriad of weird tones without giving up too much space. While it’s well suited to humbuckers, if you’re into really shaking up a tune, it’s more searing with a set of single-coils. The basic fuzz settings sound fantastic, provided you like things on the Tone Bender/Fuzzrite side of the spectrum. If you’re just into the most basic fuzz tones, 175 bucks may be a bit rich. But if you love the capacity to startle a listener, the shock potential that the Pocket Arcade serves up makes it worth every penny.
Have you ever wondered what a 2,000-pound bee sounds like? What about the world’s largest lightsaber? The answer to both may exist within your bass rig while working the Bass Bloom pedal from FuzzHugger. The Bass Bloom is a harmonically rich fuzz pedal, and it’s capable of creating the aforementioned tones, as well as an array of fuzzy, synth-like sounds.
A Box a-Bloomin’
The Bass Bloom is based on
FuzzHugger’s Algal Bloom,
their popular fuzz pedal for
guitarists, and its personality
is manipulated through its
five control knobs. The gain
dial determines the amount
of overdrive in the signal,
while the bloom expands the
fuzz tone by adding harmonic
detail and sustain.
Engaging the starve (aka texture) feature, which is controlled with an unmarked knob, adds another dimension to the pedal’s fuzzed-out sounds. Turning it clockwise limits the amount of power that reaches the circuit, simulating the sound of a dying battery. And FuzzHugger wisely provides two volume knobs on the unit—one for the clean signal and one for the fuzz. This allows a player to temper the effect while still maintaining the fundamental bass tone. Avoiding the potential hazards of using 9V batteries, this well-designed pedal is powered only with an adaptor. FuzzHugger believes this environmentally friendly and financially beneficial approach optimizes the performance of their pedals.
The Buzz, the Fuzz, and
Some Nasty Bass Face
For this review, I tested the Bass
Bloom by running it through a
Phil Jones D-600 amp and two
Glockenklang 112 cabinets. As
for basses, the pedal was put
through its paces with a Nash
P-style and a fretless Warwick
Jack Bruce Survivor. It’s ironic
that lurking within this floral
box are some pretty beastly
sounds. After just a brief period
of knob experimentation, the
variety of tones that came from
the Bass Bloom elicited more
“dude faces” from listeners than
a Keanu Reeves convention.
Manipulating the bloom and gain dials created some formidable fuzz with both basses. Starting with the Warwick fretless, I was able to create tones ranging from synthy P-Funk to flatulent, Les Claypool-like dirt. And when I went to my detuned Nash, boosting the bloom evoked a burly buzz that was capable of handling any stoner-rock gig. I could even cop a Cliff Burton-esque tone by combining the Bass Bloom with a wah pedal. FuzzHugger’s latest offering for bassists also tracked low barre chords and double-stops with quickness and definition.
Ratings
Pros:
Versatile fuzz tones that preserve the low
end. Solid construction.
Cons:
Not for fans of 9V power.
Tones:
Ease of Use:
Build:
Value:
Street:
$169
Fuzzhugger
fuzzhugger.com
Limiting the amount of power that reaches the circuit, the starve feature does exactly what its name implies by making the overall tone a bit brittle. To my ears, this control knob seemed most effective up to about the 12 o’clock position. Overall, the Bass Bloom offered endless textures of fuzz, while effectively preserving the low end of both basses.
It Had, Shall We Say,
Intestinal Fortitude
After satisfying my ears in the
more controlled environment
of my practice space, it was
time to bring
the Bass Bloom
to the stage.
And not with
some clean,
fancy-pants
rig, but rather
a ’70s SVT.
Driven by
the Nash
P through the cranked SVT,
the Bass Bloom sounded like
a swarm of giant bees flying
into a buzz saw. My bandmates
laughed in awe of this mighty
tone—and then asked me
to turn it down. It’s a great
feeling when we bassists can
sonically intimidate our guitar
brethren, and the Bass Bloom
proved to be perfectly capable
of doing this.
The Verdict
The FuzzHugger Bass Bloom
allows you to create a spectrum
of different fuzz tones that
work well with both active and
passive basses. Bassists from
rock to funk camps can find a
number of useful sounds within
its responsive controls, all at a
price point that is competitive
with its peers. If you’re looking
to transform your bass tone into
a buzzing beast, the Bass Bloom
may belong in your garden.
