What's the Difference Between a Guitar Fuzz and a Bass Fuzz ?
I want to add distortion to my bass tone, and I've been looking at both guitar and bass fuzzes. I'm trying to understand the difference. Don't both just distort the sound?
From an electronic standpoint, running a bass guitar through a guitar fuzz box will work fine. But you may find that there are tonal differences when compared against using a bass-oriented effect.
Sometimes, for example, you'll hear the sound of a guitar distortion or fuzz pedal described as great for “tightening up the sound” or having a really “tight” low end. One method these pedals use to tighten the low end is by filtering out the low frequencies. If you're a bass player, you want that low end — those pedals can thin out your tone and leave you with a layer of screeching, buzzing bees on top. Maybe that's the sound that you want; but if not, you might look for a fuzz or distortion with more low end response.
One “category” to consider are distortion and fuzz pedals specifically aimed at the detuned metal guitar player. Pedals like the Boss ML-2 Metal Core and the Red Witch Fuzz God II don't thin out the low end, so they work just as well on bass as on guitar.
Another category to look at is pedals that allow you to blend the clean or “dry” sound of the instrument back in with the distorted tone. This allows you to maintain the fullness and punch of the bass while adding the distortion that you crave. One bass distortion pedal that allows this is the EBS Billy Sheehan Signature Drive .
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