We Build A Fuzz Face With Markus Reeves [Germanium & Silicon]

[@ryanhillclimber]

You guys have breathed new life into my musical world. I’ve since joined a band, built a couple of boards, and have even made a couple of pedals I’m very proud of. I know others have benefited at least as much as I have. Cheers boys!

[@ThatPedalShow]

That’s wonderful to hear Ryan. Thank you for being here!

[@Tsudkyk]

Proper!

[@janniklasjansen6561]

First Johnny building a guitar, now Markus building a Fuzz - what a way to start the year.

[@smarkalet9078]

Next comes the amp build?:)

[@elstoof]

@@smarkalet9078 did a video with Rift a while back

[@smelltheglove2038]

Dang, forgot it was Friday!!! These “hands on” episodes are f’in awesome!!!!!

[@Gniff85411]

Please bring Markus back sometime. What a quality guest, and an incredibly fun show.

[@aaronnickell3717]

Wonderful episode, gentlemen. It'd be great to see Markus build one of his point-to-point fuzzes!

[@ThatPedalShow]

We may do that on the next visit…. :0)

[@300Foxes]

Mick: "Joe Bonamasa gave me this" Markus: "honk" I loved that part 😄😄

[@tareum420]

Jeorge Tripps has been sooooo kind with you guys !!!! I really like the way he improved the fuzz faces at dunlop. Peace and Love to You !!!! (and thanks Jeorge & Markus !)

[@ThatPedalShow]

Amen to that!

[@nmcgregor1990]

I Used to gig with that awesome dude! So happy to see Markus on one of my favourite KZbin channels 😁❤ His pedals are gorgeous too!

[@chriscottguitar4287]

I’m loving this maker bent you guys are on. I really love to technical aspects of the instrument and effects. Would love to see more of it!

[@ThatPedalShow]

We’ll do more during the year Chris. Can’t do it every week of course, and the hard bit is finding gems like Markus and Jonny who can spare the time…. Instead of sending the marketing team who just want to sing from the company hymn sheet. We’ll do our best!

[@chriscottguitar4287]

@@ThatPedalShow You always do! And we love you for it!!! 😃

[@neilmeansneil]

Just lost an hour playing with my £20 "Fuzz Face" pedal that a built last year, I hadn't realised how much I could control the Fuzz with Volume and Tone controls on my guitar, a true revelation! Great Vid, thanks guys!

[@cesarpicco6398]

Absolutely love it when Markus makes it on to TPS! This episode is pure gold!

[@gargantula3274]

I'm so happy to see Marcus on the show. Between the acid etched enclosures and the point to point wiring, his pedals are somewhere between fine art and dark magic.

[@victorbm3679]

Hi, I'm from Spain, and you don't know how much I needed this video, thank you very much. I've been so lost and didn't really know where to start.

[@andersoncordeiro7447]

Watching "the master" building one of this, why shouldn't I!? Thanks for the inspiration of today! Greetings from 🇧🇷

[@perryadams3159]

When soldering heat sensitive components, it's best not to solder every lead in order.. solder 1 lead, go to another component to solder, come back to the second lead, etc. I learned that from a technician who was trained in soldering from a NASA solder training class..

[@JoshClarkson]

from fuzz face to space race

[@reeveselectro]

Good point 👍 I'll not pilot mine for Jupiter then 🤩🤩

[@perryadams3159]

@@reeveselectro you obviously have done this for a long time and know what you're doing; just sharing because it does help to be less stressed when dealing with heat sensitive components. We used to have to do this when components lifted during wave soldering, and 80% of the time we were able to save the component.

[@reeveselectro]

All valid points, sorry if my reply seemed sarcastic it wasn't meant that way ... I was thinking more about Jimi 'to your right you will see Mars' .... anyway, the heat thing: having the luxury of room in the enclosure let me leave an inch or so of component lead, so the heat thing wasn't a concern. It was mentioned more as advise that commentary. Now if it was a rack module board with tight clearance and the transistors had to be upright and down to the board it would be a different issue. Leaving the legs long on the reverse side and clipping alligator clips as heat sinks, being slower would be the order of the day. 👍👍

[@kevincaliva2449]

I actually learned this lesson the hard way with 3PDT switches. On my first ever kit build, I soldered all 9 terminals in short sequence. The material that keeps the terminals in places actually melted a bit, then hardened again. I didn't think much of it until the switch failed about 6 months later. Lesson learned!!

[@gnerd99]

This pedal has ‘mojo’ and mythology right off the bat. The mystery bag from George Tripps, the fabled transistors that Analogman ran out of and the ‘assembled by Markus Reeves’ cred. You’ve done it again boys!

[@ianfreddy3804]

I love how all the music is from a few weeks ago. Good Stuff Gents!!!

[@ThatPedalShow]

Thanks Ian! Yeah, we now have our own incidental and background music. Ha!

[@mgiliberto]

Both episodes with Markus are great. Thanks for having him on. Btw, it appears TPS is now at 300K subscribers, or near enough. Congrats, D&M.

[@GiovanniBottaMuteWinter]

As an amateur diy pedal builder and a TPS aficionado, this video was a double whammy of fun and pleasure for me! Thanks guys!

[@cass2771]

Always a delight to see an expert in their field, to listen to what they have to say - even the bits said in passing are really good to hear. And to see how they avoid and (with respect) correct errors.

[@guitarnutbolinuli5788]

Great episode; thanks to Mr. Reeves and TPS.

[@lucasmccarthy9905]

What a gracious and insightful guest this episode! 👏

[@corpse-in-orbit]

Markus Reeves seems like the nicest, most discerning bloke, and I'd love to see him just show up every so often and comment on whatever you guys are doing. Fascinating about the upper range of the silicon transistor - when I ordered a Sun Face with the BC 183, the first thing Mike Piera told me was that "most people like these with the fuzz a little below maximum. You'll see why."

[@davidkenneth3983]

Thanks for your appearance bro.!cool

[@alastairrae7752]

TPS is knocking it out of the park at the minute. The build of Dan's guitar was the most sublime documentary and this episode was fabulous too (but has left me infuriated that my kit Fuzz Face - with very similar components - sounds way inferior!). Thanks both and all the best for 2022!

[@67er_matze97]

huge joy and inspiration to watch this episode. Kudos to Markus !! ..and you guys !!

[@timchalmers1700]

Fascinating and instructive, as always !!

One of the best episodes ever!! A huge delight to watch the whole process! Cheers, guys!!

[@seanpatrickwatkins640]

Pure serendipitous coincidence, I put on my Reeves Electro t-shirt when I got up this morning. I just have to say I absolutely love my Black Hat Sound #57 and it's a joy to see you three together for a couple episodes!

[@davedavem]

Fantastic play-throughs! The difference even between the two telecasters through them was amazing.

[@vminator]

It's nice to hear someone who knows what they are talking about. Love your work! Cheers from Stacks FX!

[@johnnyennis9864]

The soundtrack during the ready-made fuzz face is killer! That clarinet player is awesome!

[@ThatPedalShow]

Isn’t he/she/they!? Free Apple Loops.

[@davedavem]

The inside of that Reeves Electro pedal gave me the fuzz.

[@dougmishoe1336]

Great fun! Markus seems like a cool dude. 👍

[@JoshCMinecraft]

One of the things that I would recommend pointing out is component selection. Those nkt275’s were most definitely binned for being within a specific range of gain, and the other components were also probably selected based on their quality and tolerance standards. I’ve been doing some DIY pedal work and circuit design for the last few years, and have found that finding quality components is not always as simple as going on digitech and finding the first option that comes up for the spec you’re looking for. Just something to think about, loved the video guys!!

[@duel2k7]

They aren't vintage. They are the reproduction ones that Dunlop use.

[@stratnut]

That's what I found too. I bought a number of "vintage" transistors a while back, including "sought after" Mullards OC44s etc. I measured the hfe and how leaky they were. I found that only 1 or 2 in every 10 had the correct gain and were not too leaky. Disappointing (and costly) experience!

[@crumpred805]

I'm warm & fuzzy now ... thanks for this fantastic episode.

[@danwhitfield7494]

Hey guys. I have watched for years (since the beginning), but never commented. So, you can see how this has been very impactful. I have played for decades, and have many amps including several Marshalls, black face Fender, and others. I have never had a fuzz, because I didn't like the sound, but recently after seeing several posts (mainly by you guys), bought a germanium fuzz face. I own dozens of pedals (mostly OD and distortions), seeking the holy grail of the perfect distortion, but never found the perfect combination of amp, tubes, speakers, pedals and guitar for what I was looking for- the perfect tone! After including the fuzz face now, I am a believer! Using the volume, I can have any level of, not just distortion but tone I am looking for, and used with other pedals, I can vary so many... levels of guitar I have never had before. Thank you so much for what you do and what you obviously love through your videos. Keep up the fight. There are so many more viewers who are out there, but never comment who are supporters of the show. Thank you and keep it up.

[@ThatPedalShow]

That’s awesome Dan, nice one! Thanks for being here.

[@amalgamaudioLV]

That sg junior with the BC108... phenomenal... Best sound in this show!

[@scottakam]

Thanks gentlemen. Messing around with pedal circuits is good fun. Breadboards are great for that.

[@TheBeriking]

HEAR YE, HEAR YE! I do be declaring (with no authority whatsoever) the first week of January as *“TPS Masters’ week”* during which master craftsmen at the absolute pinnacle of their art will share their wisdom and experience with us lowly mortals. A sacred tradition to be continued throughout the ages (or at least hopefully as long as D&M want to do it). This week has been absolutely fabulous, we witnessed true greatness every day! Thanks to Jonny and Markus for being so generous with their knowledge, to Jeorge for providing the impetus for this episode so long ago, and to Dan and Mick for keeping raising the bar on what TPS can become. Here’s to many more outstanding Januaries of excellence!

[@ThatPedalShow]

Ah, nice. We like it!

[@TheHowardSinclair]

Blissful sounds to compliment my Saturday morning coffee. Informative, inspiring and intense :) Thanks chaps!

[@copperaudio9664]

🎸 This episode made me feel all fuzzy inside. Thanks guys! 🍒

[@drbalchin1]

Been waiting since the Jeorge Tripps' show for this one!

[@grenslitt]

Great job on that video boys !!

[@sroelit]

What a blast. Obviously I don’t know any of you personally, but the energy that manages to seep through KZbin makes me smile. You just seem like generally good people who enjoy being with each other and enjoy guitars. Thanks.

[@ThatPedalShow]

Thank you Seth!

[@spencerfreed6947]

Thanks gents and Marcus!!! Been waiting for this episode since you got the kit...brilliant! And man, you guys have two new spectacular sounding fuzz pedals. Looking forward to your visit to Reeves Electro!! Happy new year and thanks for all you do to inspire!

[@widowmaker88]

This was a brilliant watch. I got into pedal building via kits over the last year or so. Done five so far, the latest being a Univibe clone. Lots of fun putting them together and painting the case.

[@EricNielsen85]

Man, this channel is simply awesome.

[@ThatPedalShow]

Thank you Eric!

[@Adamhauk22]

What a great video. I wish I had something like this when I started getting into building amps n Pedals. Great stuff guys

[@giuseppebaja]

Instant TPS Classic episode. Gonna be one of those ones you watch again and again, this is a true Fuzz Face essential

[@marcvianello511]

Micks noodling really made those fuzz box's shine molto bene ☺

[@ThatPedalShow]

Thank you! I think.

[@nilsx3020]

Watching this makes a perfect Sunday morning laying by the beach in the shade on the Seychelles to overcome guitar withdrawal. Cheers guys, off to a great new year!

[@ThatPedalShow]

Oooof! Nice work!

[@mattelder9147]

Awesome shirt Marcus

[@camhaines5482]

Its my meditation zone watching other people build cool stuff. Also that SG junior!

[@jrchanning]

Fantastic episode, I preferred the Copper Fuzz overall, Markus was a terrific guest 😄

[@murfmurphy6212]

Great show. I cant believe someone else does the geeky two pairs of glasses thing that I do when soldering.

[@patrickroche7997]

Love the selection of wall art noted at 19:00 in!

[@simon_patterson]

Congratulations on 300k subscribers! I'm glad to be one of them.

[@ThatPedalShow]

Thank you kindly!

[@mke7605]

I created my first pedal last year, a treble booster pedal. It’s now on my board and sounds fantastic. It was a great learning project as well. I plan to make more in the future.

[@Les537]

Warning. It will lead to building your own amp! :D

[@mke7605]

@@Les537 I’ll first try another pedal I guess 😃

[@noakwesterberg]

Nice video! I have been longing to see some pedal building action on your channel.

[@andsoistopped]

Loving the use of the band videos as soundtrack. They sound absolutely superb. Well done Mickalous.

[@ThatPedalShow]

Thanks Tony!

[@vincet68]

Maximum rebound! From acoustic gorgeousness to raw fuzz goodness - oh my, we are such lucky puppies 😎

[@brownmonkeybananayellow]

Killer playing dudes!

[@ThatPedalShow]

Thank you!

[@alanhunter4564]

Yes best episode this year so far. As an electrician i found really informative. Would like to more about other circuits.

[@zelimamata]

That adesive tape is what I needed in the last three years! Thank you, Markus, for giving us this tip, I was organizing a board an hour ago and very angry with the resistor's legs. I was expecting Marks to build one of his dead bug circuits.

[@thinkthirsty1305]

remarkable timing, gentlemen. I have just received a BYOC Silicon FF clone in the mail, which I plan to undertake this weekend. First time! If I electrocute or solder myself, know I went down with a heart full of pride.

[@dekleinebozewolf]

Great show!, and hearing that Strat through a Fuzz Face into that Marshall, well it can't get much better that that.

[@davedavem]

Fuzz tones before the solder was cold. Love it!

[@joelhabrial3897]

Great episode! The first pedal I built was an 808 tube screamer. It was great fun, and I have found that I am much more willing to mod things I’ve built than pedals I’ve bought. Several years after that, I built and modified a tweed Deluxe, and this year I’ll be trying my hand at Les Paul Jr Double Cut. Start small, and you could be building yourself some amazing gear! Love the show! Cheers!

[@ThatPedalShow]

Nice!

[@motorosso3349]

While I am not a pedal guy, I do enjoy hearing the demo at the end. Thanks!

[@stuart_rose]

You had me at NKT. Happy 2022 tonerds! 🤓

[@jayseb]

Having built a few pedals, but still sucking solid at it, very fun to see and get these details. Fuzz Rules. Very cool. Cheers.

[@chrishepburn1503]

I smiled when Dan talked about the mid range in the BC108. I was trying to pinpoint why I liked that over the NKT275 and as soon as he said that it made sense. I've always liked a more mid focused guitar sound. That being said they both sound brilliant.

[@ThePippin89]

I've finally worked it out. I've been watching your videos for years and always thought Dan looked familiar. Finally I have figured out why! He looks like a miniature Brian Posehn!!!!

[@MajoPedal]

juicy one, never expected silicon transistor can do better than germanium for the classic fuzz tone, now I'm think about to build a silicon sun face for myself, thanks for the great job as always, really enjoy it.

[@bigwavedave8492]

What a great guy have him on loads!!! very cool

[@jonathanduffett8374]

Now you’re spoiling us! My first effects unit was a home made fuzz unit made from a circuit in a book as a teenager in the late 70s / early 80s followed by a treble booster and tremolo which I built into a single enclosure. The fuzz if hit hard cut out then came back in fizzing like a can of bees, the treble booster was piercing through my dad’s stereo which I played my home made guitar electric through (well duh) and the tremolo sounded like the helicopters in Apocalypse Now. I learnt a lot! Everyone should build something sometime. If only to appreciate the stuff available now.

[@ThatPedalShow]

Jonny! Hope you’re well sir. Happy new year to you!

[@jonathanduffett8374]

@@ThatPedalShow Happy New Year Gentlemen. Loving the recent content. Here’s to good things ahead.

[@BMitchell]

Excellent video! Does my heart good to see them using Quality solder. Kester no clean!

[@joshuaalaniz3940]

I need this episode dearly

[@greentaichi]

Loved this episode guys. Thanks, as ever, for all your hard work. Btw, just been through the podcast back catalogue. Downloaded a bunch to listen to whilst doing housework. The first ever live VCQ is just over an hour long 😂 What was last week 2h45min! Leg ends indeed 🙂🙏

[@gbarge4]

Brilliant episode. All the production nuances (fading in and out, warm lighting, clear angles) are tip top. Markus. What a great guy. So knowledgeable and yet subtle and gracious. Makes me want to pull out my various fuzzes and attempt again. I've been at the other end of the spectrum lately. Well done, guys. -G

[@ThatPedalShow]

Thank you G! And for noticing the edit bits. :0)

[@gbarge4]

@@ThatPedalShow And the music! I forgot to mention the soldering music! It was perfect!

[@AncientMarinerYT]

I'm very pleased to wear my 'All You Need Is Fuzz' tee shirt. :-)

[@Ekis86]

More of this type of content please :D

[@cowbellstudios6326]

You guys should sell the caged fuzz face in a mini version as merch!

[@dwaynejessome1728]

Honk LOL - from the minute I heard the Lemmy reference laugh, I knew I was going to like Mr. Markus Reeves. Great episode!

[@andsoistopped]

Love the double glasses.

[@ginoames]

This is awesome! Love this kinda stuff.

[@gordonrankin3995]

FYI, do note that this schematic was derived from the Tonebender 1.5 version. Some of the Germanium transistor FF used a 47K in both the feedback and in place of the 33K resistor. The willy nilly use of parts was one of the things that meant you had a good, bad or great FF. The Tonebender of course had a 5uF cap instead of the 2.2uF. The Q1 is biased pretty much at cutoff and it is what really creates the Fuzz sound. The Fuzz Face is really simple but the big problem is getting correctly matched transistors. For my Glass Packs I use Q1 hfe =~ 80 and Q2 hfe =~120. Sometimes kits will have pots to bias these to the exact amount of gain and bias. Markus, I use dual glasses as well :) hfe is the current gain of a transistors. I use the NPN Mullard Germanium OC140/950. I do this so I can use standard 9V+ supplies as PNP like the NKT275 require a positive ground, negative 9V. So most current germanium PNP pedals either use battery only or a voltage inverter IC. NKT275 on eBay are matched sets between $35 - $199 and again who knows what you are getting. When I went down this rabbit hole after the Macari episode I probably bought 60 before I found enough to build a couple FF/Tonebender v1.5s. Funny fixing a Focal powered monitor for a friend today... and yes had to take pics to remember where the wires went :) Great show guys!

[@zeroamplification]

OC140 are superb. Sadly any available NKT275 on ebay have not been genuine for years. Also sadly the ones featured in this part kit are also not genuine. Newmarket never printed horizontally with NKT and the part number 275 on the same line.

[@chedhead3278]

Cheers guys, really enjoyed that.

[@Sammywhat]

Dan's playing is quite inspiring!! Nice opening riffs kind sir!!

[@ThatPedalShow]

Ah, cheers Sammy 🙏

[@trevorarthurson6815]

Nice to hear someone soldering instead of “soddering”.

[@justinbalog]

The TPS Band BG music is worth the price of admission alone. Great work TEAM!

[@ThatPedalShow]

Thanks Justin!

[@justinbalog]

@@ThatPedalShow you bet, looking forward to 2022 with you!

[@mattgilbert7347]

Happy New Year, gents. Hope you have a great one. Legends, you are :)

[@johnfritzenjr.1240]

Great episode 👏👏👏

[@ruffryder13]

I'm just getting started building my own pedals, so their is right up my alley. Great stuff!

[@druwk]

Markus is such great builder. Been KZbin stalking his stuff for a while. I missed a couple of pre-order windows on his site, but I will get some of his stuff! Really looking forward to hearing his new Zo pedal?

[@reeveselectro]

So am I 😬😬 it's nearly finished 🔥🔥🔥

[@TheGuitar4002]

You guys are making great content thus far in 2022. A guitar build and now this. What’s next, and amp build? I sure hope so.

[@ThatPedalShow]

Ha! It’ll subside to boring old me and Dan for a while. But we do hope to do more of this stuff going forwards. Cheers!

[@fisheyedblues6489]

What a great episode...really interesting..I pick both!!

[@MrStrato81]

Building pedals is really cool. I have already done several (kits), not all of them turned out equally well but I had a great time and you learn a lot.

[@peterperrone6128]

Another great episode, gents. Call me a gear head but watching Markus solder the 'bits' to the pcb board was fascinating! I'm almost able to tell a transistor apart from a capacitor and a resistor now!

[@nickharrington12]

Fantastic Episode. I fully expected this to be similar to the Rift Amps episode where Dan proficiently builds a working Fuzz Face, Mick burns himself while piecing together a functioning yet terrible looking Fuzz Face and Markus, in the same time frame, teaches and explains the process while soldering up one of his pedal works of art! Cheers guys and happy new year.

[@ThatPedalShow]

Just for the record, neither of the Rift amps worked within two days. We were both awful! Hahahhaha

[@nickharrington12]

@@ThatPedalShow HAHAHA, that's pretty funny. My apologies for singling you out Mick. I always wondered why we never saw a follow up show with those amps.