Are there any really great sites for comparing pedals?
In my ideal world, it would have all the following:

- Pedal taxonomy to let me navigate to lists of similar pedals - e.g. if I were looking at Fuzz, I'd love to see a grouping of all the Tonebenders, one of Muffs and one of FuzzFaces pedals. Ideally, there would be descriptions of each grouping (Tonebender=Page, Fuzzface=Jimi, etc) and comparisons of the pedals within each grouping
- For each pedal, links to video and/or audio clips
- Shootouts where available - similar to what Tavo just did with preamp pedals or what Gearmandude does
- And, since it's the ideal world, there would be the ability to enter the name of a well-known song and see what pedals (or pedal types) were likely used in its recording. For example, "which OD, distortion and fuzz pedals were used in Walk this Way?"

Since I'm assuming that no such site exists, other than searching through forums and youtube, are there a few sites that, used together, help you answer these types of questions? There are a few sites, like Tonefactor, that will link to video clips (usually from manufacturers) for the pedals they carry, but still nothing really comprehensive.

Note: I'd actually thought about creating a site like this, possibly as a wiki. If I did it, how likely would you be to use it? How about to actually contribute content (pedal descriptions & links, upload videos, etc)

pro guitar shop.com was one of the first to create good video using a $1700 royer ribbon mic and Universal audio 610 tube mic pre. great care involved in letting the listener hear a quality recording.

The listeners/watchers still complain that they dont use the right amp (a 65amps Soho is an amazing sweet amp btw) to demo guitars and pedals.. can win.

Plus most guys dont sit infront of their laptop like some of us with good near field reference monitors. They are either little plastic self powered computer speakers or worse.. tiny little laptop speakers or a cell phone. The paradigms are crazy (although to me if if cant be clearly represented on a small laptop, dont make it)

There was a website that reviewed fuzz pedals and had a virtual flash interface that let you turn the knobs.. that was cool but man thats a full time job :)

btw.. ever been here. my favorite since the 90s

http://www.musictoyz.com/guitar/index_gtrpedal.php

Pro Guitar shop http://proguitarshop.com/video-reviews

And Gearmandude on Youtube. If you can stand the Jack Black audio.:D

I hadn't seen Musictoyz or ProGuitarShop before. Pretty good sites, but still lacking IMO.
It's useful if you know what you're looking for, but there's no easy way to find all the Big Muff clones or Marshall-tone OD pedals.
And there's no easy way to pick 3 pedals and compare them.

And I like the Gearmandude videos but again, you have to know what you're looking for, or watch every one of his clips.

It seems to me that you should be able to search across all the attributes of a pedal:
- manufacturer
- effect
- effect sub-class (eg Muff vs. Fuzzface vs. Tonebender)
- components
- true bypass?
- country of manufacture
- handmade or mass-manufactured
- price point

There are probably a dozen other data points that would be relevant.

Then, once you narrow it down, all the manufacturer videos, user comments, Gearmandude videos, etc would all be really helpful.

I know that no system will be perfect and that playing a pedal through a Blonde Bassman will be very different than through my little Vox AC4TV but being able to narrow it down from hundreds of fuzz pedals to 5 or 6 that match my criteria would put me in position to go visit a few shops to test drive.

I guess as a web guy, I'm always looking for ways to leverage technology and content to get my answers. Unfortunately, I don't have a dozen friends who play guitar, where I would constantly see what gear they have. So, trying to learn from whatever sources I can.

i usually go based on the companies Reputation, and Proguitarshops.com and Gearmanndude demos.
also, you wouldn't happen to be looking for a Big Muff would you?
you mentioned the pedal a few times up there, my advice is to buy the one and only! i don't know many muff clones the one i have seen demos of are ok, but i dont think they have the charm the EH muff does. i have a Russian and a New York and love both.

i usually go based on the companies Reputation, and Proguitarshops.com and Gearmanndude demos.
also, you wouldn't happen to be looking for a Big Muff would you?
you mentioned the pedal a few times up there, my advice is to buy the one and only! i don't know many muff clones the one i have seen demos of are ok, but i dont think they have the charm the EH muff does. i have a Russian and a New York and love both.

best Pig Muff pi ever I ever owned

Skreddy - Mayo (Comparison 6 of 8) - YouTube

2nd Best big muff pi ever, that I'm going to own soon as I pay off the IRS damnabit...

Blackout Effectors Musket Fuzz - YouTube

I was using the muff more as an example, particularly because fuzz pedals tend to have such variation and it's incredibly confusing to try to decipher it all.
I would love to experiment with some fuzz pedals at some point but I know that if I start, I'll end up with a half-dozen variations. So, will get there eventually, but not immediately (and probably would start with a Tonebender before a Muff).

Thanks, though.

I was using the muff more as an example, particularly because fuzz pedals tend to have such variation and it's incredibly confusing to try to decipher it all.
I would love to experiment with some fuzz pedals at some point but I know that if I start, I'll end up with a half-dozen variations. So, will get there eventually, but not immediately (and probably would start with a Tonebender before a Muff).

Thanks, though.

i boost my big muff with a danelectro french toast
it's pretty sweet!

best Pig Muff pi ever I ever owned

Skreddy - Mayo (Comparison 6 of 8) - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKLYLI1XG3I)

2nd Best big muff pi ever, that I'm going to own soon as I pay off the IRS damnabit...

Blackout Effectors Musket Fuzz - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpOQ71m2if8)

:eek:
well, they don't suck!
The Musket would be my choice out of those two, but i like the EH muffs.
the price on the musket seems very good for what you get.

ULTIMATE muff site:
http://www.kitrae.net/music/music_big_muff.html

Kit is a Muff expert.

:eek:
well, they don't suck!
The Musket would be my choice out of those two, but i like the EH muffs.
the price on the musket seems very good for what you get.

Stomp Under Foot makes AMAZING muff replicas; ram's head, opamp, vioet ram's head, triangle, civil war, etc.
http://www.stompunderfoot.com/

and all reasonably priced, (skreddy pedals are fantastic muffs... but a bit costly, IMO).

Matt knows his muffs.

make sure to check out the Kit Rae muff resource i put above too.

happy fuzzing-

... also, IMO, there are only a few fuzz types... again IMO...
1.fuzz face.
two types; germanium and silicon.
germanium is a bit unstable according to temp/humidity. but god dang lovely sounding. alot of makers are including a 'bias' knob on them to correct that. i have an 'analogman nkt275' with a bias knob that sounds fantastic. first two floyd and jimi albums represent this sound.

silicon is stable, but the character is higher sustain/not intuitive to your volume knob, (the germanium cleans right up at lower knob settings on yer guitar. the silicon... not so much). next coupla floyd and jimi albums represent this.

2.octave fuzzes... think purple haze solo. the octavia, (original circuit), is pretty cool... but the foxx tone machine is a great refinement on the design, (on the octavia, you have to play upper octave on a neck pickup on a strat. on the foxx, you get all that and works with buckers and some nice 'ampeg scrambler' sounds in the bridge setting).

3.big muff. super smooth fuzz, but with much more sustain than a fuzz face or tonebender. there's several variations on the circuit so research before you buy.
hint-
'violet ram's head'= floyd; 'the wall.
'opamp'= smashing pumpkins; 'siamese dream'
'triangle'= floyd; dark side of the moon.

4.pro co Rat pedal. super super smooth fuzz, but it brings you into the distortion arena, yet still a touch fuzzy. think classic jeff beck.

there are boosters/overdrives/etc, (tube screamer/mxr od/boss od, and many modern ones like the fulltone OCD; i have one and LOVE it), but they're not 'fuzzes' per-se. but if you use them with fuzz... EPIC TONAL WIN.

and there's the mosrite 'fuzzrite', the vox 'tonebender', the ampeg 'scrambler', the shin ei 'companion'... all variations on the circuits... yet fantastic and specific sounding IMO.

and devi ever and zvex make some great 'modern' fuzzes... i have a few of those too and use them often in place of traditional distortion boxes.

so yeah; watch the demos on youtube and pro guitar shop and...

GET YOURE FUZZ ON!!!

ooohh more Gilmour

http://www.musictoyz.com/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/manx.jpg

ooohh more Gilmour

http://www.musictoyz.com/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/manx.jpg

nice one tavo,
check out the violet ram's head clone i scored for $50-
http://photobucket.com/muffpcb

I thought you found an original violet rams head for $50!!! I'm always looking for those old EH pedals. I once got a small stone that was full of pot inside. the guy hadnt used it for ages and must of forgot he stashed a doobie in there. :)

C-man.. the DeLisle fuzz, albeit a silicon fuzz has a really nice Fuzz Face sound that is like the Fulltone.. Its smooth and hendrix full but has clarity like SRV would get, plus it gets nice and fizzy without being shardlike for stoner rock. Definitely silicon fuzz face refined