When we decided to develop a FUZZ, we wanted it to be unique, multi-faceted and not a straight clone of a classic from yesteryear, since those are readily available. We also wanted to tap into the deep knowledge of our friend and fuzz aficionado Garrett Immel, a name you might recognize from such bands as Satan's Pilgrims, The Ghastly Ones, and Venturesmania. In his search for his ideal fuzz, he ultimately developed his own pedal in 2006, called the D-67. Garrett produced 50 of them, of which approximately 20 were given to friends and other players he admired. The remainder were retailed through Primitive Sound in Burbank, CA. Since then the D-67 has become legendary and is highly sought after in surf and garage circles. While the circuit of the D-67 was based on that of the Mosrite Fuzzrite®, what made it special was that Garrett incorporated a variable MASS control designed to counter the tendency for fuzzes to wash out on stage and become indistinct. This became our starting point for the USA side of the SurfyFuzz. As development continued, Bjorn added the HARMONICS function and made other adjustments to the circuit that took it even further from being a copy of the D-67 or Fuzzrite®. To further enhance the versatility of the SurfyFuzz, Garrett suggested having a toggle to introduce a different fuzz sound similar to Japanese octave style fuzzes from the late 60s, such as the AceTone Fuzz Master. As with the USA side, it is not based on any specific vintage fuzz, but does take inspiration from those classic Japanese fuzz sounds.
