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Friday, March 25, 2016

Zvex Fat Fuzz Factory

For Fuzz Friday, here's a layout for the Fat Fuzz Factory in a 1590B in a more traditional orientation. All pots are board mounted as well as the Fat Switch. For C1 and C2 you'll probably want to experiment with values. Using an on/off/on switch gives you an extra option over the original. 3.3uF is a good place to start with one of them. Just a note, whatever value you chose will be in parallel with the existing 100nF cap. Thanks to p0mp0 for sending in his layout.


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37 comments:

  1. ChrisMarch 26, 2016 at 11:34 AM

    you have wrong at gate, comp and stab pots.
    GATE: 1st and 2nd legs are contecting with GND and 3th leg connect with 470ohm.
    COMP: 1st and 2nd legs are contecting with 47k and Emmiter of Q3 and 3th leg connect with stab pot 3th leg.
    STAB: 1st and 2nd legs are contecting with 9V dc and 3th leg connect with the remaining circuit.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsMarch 26, 2016 at 1:03 PM

      There seems to be differences between the various schematic on the net and either way will work. This layout follows this schematic (which I trust):

      http://basicaudio.net/Fuzz%20factory%20schem.PNG

      Delete
    2. ChrisMarch 26, 2016 at 2:00 PM

      Ιn both cases it will work properly but the pots will operate reverse!

      http://cdn.toptenreviews.com/rev/scrn/medium/54098-inventobox7.jpg
      This schematic is from vxter Inventobox then contain fuzz factory, if we take the case of Volume pot that the 1st leg is connect with GND then we conclude 3 leg of pot connect at square shape on pcb... with this logic out the other connection of pots!!!

      Delete
    3. UnknownApril 24, 2018 at 1:24 PM

      Chris Ver is telling no lies. Your both schematics of the fuzz factory from this blog are with these 3 pots connected incorrectly. Yes they will work, but will operate reverse.

      Delete
  2. Mike FlanaganMay 6, 2016 at 10:38 AM

    For the man with "Ample taste"!

    ReplyDelete
  3. bibiAugust 3, 2016 at 8:03 AM

    what is the real value of c1 and c2 in the official fat fuzz factory?
    For Q2 and Q3 , AC128 or AC122?
    thanks a lot

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsAugust 3, 2016 at 4:05 PM

      I don't remember off the top of my head. Use sockets and experiment. Zvex has used several different transistors for Q2-3. AC122, 125, 128 should all work. Again, socket and experiment with PNP germaniums.

      Delete
    2. UnknownApril 25, 2018 at 8:35 AM

      I found that 224nf for C1 and 1uf for C2 works the best and gives a lot of useful tones.

      Delete
  4. UnknownAugust 13, 2016 at 7:29 AM

    O.k. it works... Crazy(!!!) Fuzz. it's a bit wierd though, the volume of this thing is monstrous, i get to 9 on the knob and its WAY more than unity. maybe there is something wrong with my build?

    also, if you use Taydas pots (with dust covers) either take off the covers or spae out the holes (with the drilling template). I found that using so many onboard pots is very tricky...

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  5. UnknownAugust 13, 2016 at 8:21 AM

    Oh, and the switch doesn't seem to do anything. I've put all sorts of caps from 3.3uF to 100uF, no change in signal... :(

    ReplyDelete
  6. UnknownAugust 16, 2016 at 8:49 AM

    And dimensions for PCB printing? anybody knows please? :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsAugust 16, 2016 at 9:30 AM

      There are PDFs pre-scaled and with the dimensions for all layouts in the Transfer Image Library tab at the top of the page.

      Delete
    2. blakolOctober 22, 2017 at 3:24 AM

      There is no pdf of this pedal in the Zvex folder of Transfer Image Library

      Delete
    3. Effects LayoutsOctober 23, 2017 at 10:29 AM

      It's combined with the regular Fuzz Factory PDF.

      Delete
  7. Marcello M.September 6, 2016 at 7:22 AM

    Hi. Do you have a drilling template for horizontal orientation? Do you know if it fits in a 1590b with 15mm sized pots? Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsSeptember 6, 2016 at 7:33 AM

      Assuming you wire the majority of the pots offboard it should fit fine horizontally. Don't have a drilling template for it that way though. The other Fuzz Factory layout fits ok in a 1590b and it's designed for the controls to be laid out like the original.

      Delete
  8. IvMJanuary 7, 2017 at 7:28 PM

    Anyone verify this one?
    I'm between this and the standard FF: I want to use 1590B and omit the spdt switch

    ReplyDelete
  9. andrea83January 24, 2017 at 5:08 PM

    I'm new to electronics, so maybe my question could be stupid. The Fat Fuzz is nothing but a Fuzz Factory with a switch right? so how could Fat FF not work if the FF is working? there's nothing different but a 1M resistor, what's its function? thank you a lot! this site is really great!

    ReplyDelete
  10. JayBuickMarch 11, 2017 at 7:16 PM

    oh yes, I've build this one over half a year ago and it works quite similar to a vexter fuzz factory. Only change i've made is using AC132's. It does oscillate great in the low end as well as high end. Only two things that I would like to change but didn't manage to sort out yet. Being that it's a very bright sounding fuzz, using it on my bass I loose a lot of low end. The other thing is that despite socketing I never found the right values for the capacitors on the switch. I barely hear a difference when it's not oscillating. It's not as fat as I hoped it to be but unlike many other pedals that aren't suited for bass this one gets toyed around with lot's of times.
    Verified!

    ReplyDelete
  11. andrea83March 19, 2017 at 6:20 PM

    thank jay for verifying! I built it and it works great! I used ac128 and for caps I put 10nf instead of 100nf and then 100nf and 1uf on the others, the difference is noticeable and I find it fat enough on my guitar. thanks guys!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Michael GalanMarch 20, 2017 at 9:46 PM

    can i build it with silicon pnp's instead?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsMarch 21, 2017 at 9:31 AM

      You could, though you'd need to modify the biasing. It's not just going to work if you throw in silicon transistors. It's designed for low hFE germaniums.

      Delete
    2. Michael GalanSeptember 29, 2017 at 10:09 PM

      Sir which resistors should i adjust for the biasing. Thanks and sorry for the long follow up

      Delete
    3. UnknownMarch 26, 2022 at 12:04 PM

      It would work,.most of the the pots change the biasing anyway..

      Delete
  13. brunoApril 22, 2017 at 2:28 PM

    when i turn the volume all the way down on my guitar i hear a lot of noise, is it normal? when the gate or comp knobs are up it doesn't do it. y used matsushitas b175 for transistors.

    ReplyDelete
  14. JiomyJanuary 5, 2018 at 7:53 PM

    Even though it is verified nobody figured that the comp stab and gate are reversed? Great sounding fuzz and very compact layout...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsApril 25, 2018 at 11:39 AM

      Seems the schematic Pompo and I based this one on had the pot lugs labeled incorrectly. It's been fixed.

      Delete
  15. santiJanuary 22, 2019 at 3:11 AM


    hello first of all congratulations for your work, I'm not an expert I wanted to ask you if you've ever built a fuzz factory 7 because I can not find anything about it,thanks a lot!

    ReplyDelete
  16. UnknownFebruary 10, 2019 at 7:36 AM

    build this pedal but when i turn it on my Stab pot was burned. WTF?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownJanuary 22, 2021 at 5:37 AM

      I think that a low value resistor between +9v and pot leg should do the job and prevent stab pot from getting burned.

      Delete
    2. NOCJanuary 13, 2022 at 8:15 PM

      Same thing happened to me. Burnt 3 pots before i realized a trace from the base of Q1 was shorted to ground. Broke the short and she fired right up.

      Delete
  17. ÍcaroJuly 3, 2019 at 7:28 PM

    Is my stab pot burning what might be happening? I checked and there are no short on the tracks

    ReplyDelete
  18. MayAugust 1, 2019 at 1:58 PM

    this pedal is negative center power supply?

    ReplyDelete
  19. Pergunte aqui !(Tudo o que você quer saber .)December 2, 2020 at 1:52 PM

    are all schematics open source?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsDecember 2, 2020 at 2:11 PM

      All layouts are for DIY use. If you'd like to use them commercially, let me know and we can talk about a license.

      Delete
  20. ThéoOctober 7, 2021 at 9:56 AM

    Hi !
    I saw some comments about burning and reversed potentiometers, has it been fixed on the actual schematic ? :)
    Thank you !

    ReplyDelete