Frybread Fuzz goes germanium.

As of 6/7/24, the Germanium Frybread Fuzz is not available.

Small batch, huge tone.

We’re releasing a small batch of Germanium Frybread Fuzz! These units will be made in extremely small quantities and will only be available for 24 hours at NativeAudio.com.

Germanium.

After no small amount of tinkering and testing, we’ve decided to release this very limited run of germanium equipped Frybread Fuzz! Why germanium? Well, germanium fuzzes have long been sought after for their richly complex harmonic distortion, as well as their exceptionally responsive feel. Pair this with Frybread Fuzz’s ability to be placed anywhere in the chain, and you get a fuzz that is inspiringly musical, and easy to incorporate into any existing rig.

TLDR.

Who’s it for?

The Germanium Frybread Fuzz is designed for musicians seeking an intuitive, versatile, and vintage-voiced fuzz that can be placed anywhere in your chain.

What’s it for?

Germanium Frybread Fuzz is a transistor-based fuzz with a prominent mid-forward characteristic that delivers everything from beautiful low gain boost to searing, heavy fuzz.

Frybread – A tribute to a Native delicacy.

Germanium Frybread Fuzz is a tribute to my Blackfeet (Amskaapi Piikuni) heritage and a tasteful dive into a traditional Native American bread. Frybread is versatile bread made with a simple set of ingredients that can be enjoyed with honey, jelly, or as an Indian Taco by topping with chili and your favorite taco toppings. Germanium Frybread Fuzz artwork features the dynamic duo, Stan the Pan and Frybread Man on a limited edition cocoa brown satin finish.

Each Germanium Frybread Fuzz includes Pretty Bird Woman’s frybread recipe printed on the back of the pedal, ensuring that you’ll always have great tone and great food wherever you go. And remember, nothing cooks better than grandma’s recipe, so you’ll definitely enjoy this one!

All fuzz, no fuss.

We have been loving the sounds and versatility of Frybread Fuzz, but we wanted to explore what would happen if we added germanium to the equation, and the result was better than we could have imagined! Germanium Frybread Fuzz’s gain range is expanded to go cleaner AND dirtier than the original. At minimum gain settings, you get a touch responsive, pushed amp sound that works equally well for stacked gain staging, or as an always on edge of breakup tone. Moderate to medium gain levels result in massive distortion tones, with noticeable compression that feels as good as it sounds. Cranking the fuzz gives you classic fuzz tones with soaring sustain and complex gated goodness, all while offering easy placement in your chain without wrecking your sound.

What makes a great fuzz?

In designing Germanium Frybread Fuzz, there were several points we thought were critical to delivering the best fuzz possible. It was important to us that it not be a one trick pony, but rather offer the player a wide range of sounds. We also wanted to keep the noise floor low, because what good is a fuzz if all you’re hearing is hiss and hum? Lastly, we wanted it to perform predictably, regardless of placement in the signal chain. Below is a list of features that allowed us to accomplish these goals.

• Germanium transistors for classic, vintage-voiced fuzz.

• Brown Satin powder coat finish.

• Inverted Frybread Fuzz artwork.

• Multi-buffering stages for input and output signal conditioning.

• Pickup simulation for epic fuzz tones regardless of signal chain order.

• Four-layer PCB design to reduce noise and provide a satisfying fuzz experience.

• Each fuzz has been independently tuned to maximize fuzz character and response.

• Dual-purpose volume/filter control to maintain optimum tonality across all volume levels.

• Dual-purpose fuzz/filter control to adjust both gain and frequency in parallel to capture the ideal fuzz character.

• Bread control slices high-frequency content to dial in the perfect amount of bite.

• Smart switching enabling both latch and momentary switching.

Buffered is tougher.

What’s the pros of our buffered bypass? Our buffered bypass won't mess with the highs or lows of your original signal, and it definitely won't give it an unnecessary boost. But here's the real bonus: when you're dealing with a bunch of patch cables or running long instrument cables, the signal stays true to its original sound. So, whether you're jamming with a tangled mess of cables or rocking out on a stage with some serious distance between you and your amp, rest assured that your sound will always stay pure and unaltered with our buffered-bypass design.

Less picky, to get playing quickly.

Dude, that fuzz has to be first in the chain." It's a lie we've all been sold. We're all about breaking rules here at NativeAudio, which is why we wanted to create a pedal that sounds exactly the same regardless of its position in the signal chain. We cooked up a cool pickup simulator that we've integrated into the design. I know what you're thinking, "that sounds super digital, dude." Don’t worry, it’s a 100% analog solution that utilizes the same technology found in your pickup and integrates it right near the transistor-based fuzz circuit. This ensures that the fuzz circuit will always see the same impedance, whether the Germanium Frybread Fuzz is at the beginning, middle, or end of the signal chain. This means you can spend less time worrying about pedal order, and more time actually playing!

Precisely tuned to perfection.

We tried a whole slew of germanium transistors before finding one that delivered in all the ways we wanted. The search was worth it! The germanium really warms up the overall character of Frybread Fuzz, while also adding tons of compression that you can feel in your playing. Historically, germanium can be inconsistent from unit to unit, but we take time to fine tune each Germanium Frybread Fuzz to perfection before it leaves our shop.

Four is the magic number.

Typically, an effect pedal will use a two-layer printed circuit board (PCB) design, which consists of two copper layers on the outside and is separated by a dielectric or non-conducting material in the middle. The two-layer setup is solid for most applications. 

However, issues arise when the circuit board becomes crowded with a ton of signals and components, especially for pedals designed to amplify signals like fuzz. This is where the four-layer board design becomes advantageous. Although it may seem like overkill, using four layers instead of two provides better handling of noise and signals. Problems such as electromagnetic interference (EMI), electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), and ground issues are significantly reduced due to the additional options offered by the four-layer board design. So, for a pedal intended to amplify the instrument’s signal, this four-layer design ensures that it performs as intended, resulting in a more enjoyable and low-noise fuzz experience.

More at work than meets the eye.

The fry control on Germanium Frybread Fuzz is actually adjusting two parameters at the same time! That’s right, in addition to adjusting your pedal’s volume, the fry control is also tied to an internal high-pass filter. This helps ensure that Germanium Frybread Fuzz reacts in a musical manner at any volume level.

The perfect bite.

In addition to Germanium Frybread Fuzz’s mid-forward characteristic sound, the bread control helps you dial in just the right amount of bite by acting as a high-cut filter. This allows you to easily set the perfect amount of high-frequency content to cut through any mix whether you’re in your bedroom, in the studio, or on the stage.

Great sounds no matter where you set the knobs.

You hear it a lot in the pedal world, “Fuzz has to be cranked to sound right”. For many fuzz pedals, this is sadly true. They sound great with everything maxed, but try to dial in something using lower volume or gain and it becomes a muddy mess.

We wanted Germanium Frybread Fuzz to deliver inspiring and musical tonality across its range. To accomplish this, we designed the fuzz control to adjust not only the amount of signal sent into the fuzz circuit, but to also shape how the signal clips. This results in a smooth, and consistent sweep of the fuzz range, allowing for powerful fuzz tones even in lower gain settings.

Switching made fun.

Each NativeAudio pedal utilizes smart switching. How does smart switching work? Our pedals can tell how long you hold the switch, then determine which mode to use. Latch mode is your traditional switching method where you press the switch quickly and the pedal turns on. Momentary, on the other hand, works by holding the switch down, playing your riff, then releasing when you’re ready to turn the pedal off. Either switching method will get the job done but it’s all about giving you the flexibility to shape your sound.

A big thank you.

We love what we do here at NativeAudio, and we couldn’t do it without your love and support. Our aim is to share culture in a cool and exciting way, and I believe Germanium Frybread Fuzz truly embodies this by offering a fun way to dive into the culture of Native cuisine while also delivering a flexible and consistently great-sounding fuzz. We hope you enjoy it and can’t wait to see the creativity this fuzz inspires!

Much love.

-Mike Trombley, Founder

Let’s make some noise!

Now that we’ve explored the possible, let’s go and create the impossible. Visit here for Frybread Fuzz.