ll good things come an to end, and when the stock of NOS transistors ran out, the Jam Fuzz Phrase Ltd went out of production. Not wanting to disappoint, the folks at JAM developed the Fuzz Phrase Si, a silicon fuzz developed to emulate the best qualities of germanium fuzz pedals with silicon consistency.
The Fuzz Phrase Si is a simple affair: Level and Gain. But in our experience that's all you need, and the pedal is very responsive to volume and tone adjustments on the guitar. Simply put, the Fuzz Phrase is a remarkably rich and articulate pedal that combines big fat tones and exceptional note definition that makes it great for Rock, Punk Pop, Grunge...and even soaring blues solos.
Many fuzz pedals strike us as "momentary effects" in that they make cool sounds, but not necessarily something you would keep on for the entire song. Not so with the Fuzz Phrase. The overall character of the Fuzz Phrase is a warm top end and an overall smooth tonal character. If you push the gain way up it will get a little raspy, but never verges on lo-fi, spitty, or ripping velcro. And boy, does it thicken up single notes and chords. Our beloved Jam Rattler was also on the board, and we think of that as a pretty fat pedal. The Fuzz Phrase goes it one better with even more generous low end and overall sense of heft. Despite that, it holds together really well chugging D-Standard riffs and also exhibits excellent sustain when soloing in the upper registers.
Like a good fuzz pedal, the Fuzz Phrase gets progressively leaner and cleaner as you roll off the guitar volume. You can run your guitar at half volume and play cleanly with great touch sensitivity, and when it's time to step out front, roll it up and let loose.
Other Fuzz pedals are more bratty, buzzy, raw and better suited to Punk and more aggressive styles. But whether you are punching out some Green Day or channeling Jimi, the Fuzz Phrase has a sophisticated meanness that makes is more musical and useable than many Fuzz pedals on the market. The Fuzz Phrase is worthy successor to it's now-discontinued sibling, and at roughly half the price a very good value.
In the words of JAM Pedals.....
Drawing inspiration from its germanium predecessor, the Fuzz Phrase Si encapsulates the rich harmonic profile and dynamic response of the esteemed Fuzz Phrase Ltd. It strikes a perfect balance between sought-after tonal characteristics, long sustain across the register and "clean-ability" rivalling the best vintage germanium fuzz circuits.After the meticulous testing of various silicon transistors, the BC107s emerged as the unequivocal choice. We then proceeded to fine tune elements of the circuit specifically to these transistors seamlessly embodying all the attributes synonymous with the Fuzz Phrase legacy.
1. Sets transistor bias (factory-set at 4.5V) 2. True Bypass 3. Works with 9V battery or 9V DC adaptor (tip-negative) 4. Power consumption: 3 mA 5. Dimensions (jacks, pots etc.included):7.5 x 12 x 5.6 cm / 2.9 x 4.7 x 2.2 inches 6. Weight: 250g / 0.55 lbs
