Best fuzz to build for garage rock?

[Meehah]

I'm looking to build a fuzz to replicate the sound of the nasty 60s fuzzes that have that garage rock sound. I've built quite a few efects so I'm pretty comfortable with soldering and constructing on veroboard and perfboard. I really want to avoid buying transistors from eBay or any vintage models and would rather just buy some from my local Jaycar (Australian electronics store, like RadioShack would be to Americans). I don't mind if that means sacrificing some tone, it's a lot cheaper and less complicated for me so I feel it pays off (not for everyone, but I'm not someone who obsesses over the tone much. Anyone got recommendations?

[thermionix]

To me, nothing says "nasty 60's garage fuzz" like the Maestro FZ-1 or FZ-1A.  But those are Ge.  Si fuzz is a different sound, but maybe it's more like what you have in mind.  Pink Jimi Photon had a thread not long ago about "a Si fuzz face that doesn't suck" or something like that.  I didn't really follow it, but maybe he's come up with a concoction that gets more of a 60s Ge tone out of modern Si parts.

[Hatredman]

May I suggest this one?

http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=95712.0

Scarlett Johansson uses a Burst Box with her Telecaster.

[goo]

build a Joe Gagan`s easy face.
to me it`s much better than regular fuzz face.
add a bias knob and input cap blend switch/knob, and you`re there.
you can also use sockets for the transistors.

[Cozybuilder]

Try one of Gus Smalley's circuits, for instance "A Somewhat Different Fuzz", or the "Cool One Knob Fuzz"

http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=104029.0

http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=111894.msg1030810#msg1030810

[antonis]

Nothing to add except the fact of some "mild" distortion pedals (like Guv' nor..) could turn into a nasty fuzz by simply overloading them..

[Mark Hammer]

Orpheum, Fuzz-Rite, Shin-Ei Companion, Bosstone,  All good candidates.

A critical dividing line, however, is whether you expect to play single-note lines or chords.  Those fuzzes associated with iconic garage rock riffs are not always the best units for playing chords.

Note: this is what I meant to type, before software delays moved stuff around.

[Kennt82]

You want a Fuzzrite

[duck_arse]

strewth, cobber, how's it goin?

I like the fuzzrite, but you'd probably want the silicon vershun, so look for Gus's ritefuzz instead. and the bosstone is a cracker, too, if a little odd. the superfuzz has always been all silicon (bar the clipping diodes, obvs).

best bet, buy a breadboard, try em all.

[soma89]

Definetely the fuzzrite for leads..stay away from that smooth, super sustainy fuzzes (big muff etc). I also like a nice fuzzy overdrive for chords.

[Derringer]

a suggestion made to me a looong time ago by Earthscum when I was looking for something to get a similar vibe

First distortion stage of the Big Muff using MPSA13. 0.1uF input cap, 470k base to collector, 100k base to ground, 10k-22k from collector and tie the emitter straight to ground. .1uF to a 100k volume. Now ya gots a good gritty boost, and just drop a couple back to back Si diodes in parallel with the 470k. If ya want some kind of gain control, you can do a 1k pot between emitter and ground with a 10uF cap from the wiper to ground in typical fashion.

[Ben Lyman]

I'll throw in the Rush Pep Box fuzz as a candidate. Originally designed in 1965 by Pepe Rush with Ge, then almost immediately redesigned by WEM for production with Si.
The Beatles and The Animals had one, It's so simple like a Fuzz Face but so nasty and rasty:
http://revolutiondeux.blogspot.com/2012/03/wem-watkins-rush-pep-box-fuzz.html

[roseblood11]

Basic Audio Scarab Deluxe (with added tone switch, see the layout that I posted at the other forum), Catalinbread Merkin Fuzz, Lovepedal Karl Fuzz, the D*A*M pedal that wants to be a modern version of a Tone Bender (I built it, but can't remember the name)

[cnspedalbuilder]

Haha you are going to get a thousand answers that will make you regret this question.

The big muff is the single most common fuzz used in garage bands, IMHO, and Mudhoney named their first EP after it. (I've never tried the Univox Superfuzz which is the other half of the EP's title)

A "rams head" big muff is like Mudhoney or Jack White in a box. The only warning is that BM's tend to get buried in the mix so it helps to up the mids to compensate.

The Vox Tonebender Mark II is another good choice, as you probably know, Jimmy Page used it on his more dirty tracks.

Although it's technically not a fuzz, the Rat is also a swiss army knife for any garage band sound. I always tell people that, with a Rat and a Big Muff you will not go wrong, particularly with a Fender amp.

[Addy Bart]

I found that the Colorsound One Knob Fuzz (with the 820 ohms resistor swapped for a pot) can make some great 'Nuggets' tones. The Shinei FY-2 also for its raspy sound and intermodulation on chords.