The MXR Super Badass Variac Fuzz is a dirty and powerful fuzz pedal that has an incredible range of fuzz tones thanks to the Variac control. Just by adding a tone and voltage control this fuzz goes from just a great sounding fuzz to a powerful tool that can fit in to almost any style.
Variac Control
What makes this vintage fuzz so interesting is the use of the Variac control which lets you set the voltage of the pedal from 5v to 15v. At 15v you get a lot of headroom with plenty of space for almost overdrive sounding tones with plenty of gain but little compression. As you turn the pedal down you start to get some really compressed tones that can even get a bit glitchy at times.
Here’s what MXR say about the Super Badass Variac Fuzz
The Super Badass Variac Fuzz is a dream come true for guitar players chasing vintage fuzz tone. This tasty fuzz is aggressive and biting, and with the twist of a knob, you can drag it into that “dying battery” territory much prized by tonechasers-no need to manage a collection of half-dead batteries.
To create the Super Badass Variac Fuzz, the MXR design team dusted off a rare vintage silicon circuit, tuned it up, and added a Variac control so you can set the pedal’s voltage anywhere from 5 to 15V. For that wonderful saggy fuzz effect you get as a 9V battery loses its power, just lower the voltage by turning the Variac knob counterclockwise. Increasing the voltage raises the effect’s headroom, opening up the fuzz for a more transparent sound at 15V.
The Super Badass Variac Fuzz’s simple interface is rounded out with Tone, Output, and Gain controls, and it all comes in a road-ready housing with true bypass switching.
