EarthQuaker Devices unveiled four new pedals at NAMM 2015, two of which are re-issues of classics now in a smaller format (which is definitely a trend appreciated by musicians when pedal board real estate is a necessity). The first of these re-packaged re-issues, the Hummingbird tremolo, is one to desire above others due to its mode switch. It has 3 speed controls – slow LFO, medium LFO and ‘super fast.’ There’s also a jack for an expression pedal to control the rate. The slow and fast speeds now go even slower and faster, and the depth knob can now be set so low that you can use it just as a clean boost when not using it as a tremolo. The Sea Machine is the other reissue. It is basically just a sized-down version of the classic Sea Machine with the minor addition of an LED to show the rate, even when disengaged.
The first of the new offerings is the Fuzz Master General ( (pictured, video below), a take on the vintage Japanese Ace Tone Fuzz Master FM-2, with a bit more gain range than the original. It has three clipping modes including Germanium diode, silicon diode, and open mode which gives you nothing but pure transistor fuzz. This pedal also gives a nice ring modulator tone, great for some seriously edgy sounds flirting with granular effects.
Lastly the Park Fuzz Sound is a collaboration with Park Amplifiers in an effort to recreate their famous fuzz sound. Earthquaker Devices founder and pedal designer Jamie Stillman succeeded with this faithful tribute, and past power/voltage issues have been updated for complete rig integration. It has fairly simple controls consisting of volume, fuzz, and treble bass. The fuzz can be dialed in from very slight to full cascading tones. “ – Adam Lippman
