North Hollywood, Calif. – At the 141st AES Convention, BAE Audio [AES booth 1101], a manufacturer known for its high quality preamplifiers, equalizers, and compressors built to classic specifications, has announced that its first guitar stompbox, Hot Fuzz, is now available. The Hot Fuzz is a dual-stomp effects pedal that combines the power of a classic top boost with a premium 70s-style fuzz. While BAE Audio’s preamplifiers and DI boxes are already popular with guitar players, this marks the first product intended specifically for guitar players by the company.
The genesis of the Hot Fuzz began with a personal quest for a long-lost tone by BAE Audio CEO Mark Loughman. “I’m a guitar player myself, and I didn’t feel like there was a stompbox on the market that captured the singing sound of a classic 70s fuzz, the kind that just cuts right through the mix,” Loughman said. He delved deep into 70s era fuzz technology in his quest for the right tone and was ultimately able to isolate the key components and locate suitable transistors to recreate it. “My reference point was the lead guitar tone on the Isley Brothers version of ‘Summer Breeze,’ and I would say we nailed it,” Loughman says.
Loughman, an avid user of a vintage treble booster, knew putting the classic fuzz he’d captured and a recreation of the classic treble booster under one hood would exponentially expand the tone possibilities of his new stompbox. With two independent true-bypass footswitches control the boost and fuzz sections of the pedal, the Hot Fuzz enables users to dial in their perfect fuzz tone, then kick in the boost at a key moment to push their saturation over the edge. The boost section features a single gain control, while the fuzz section features controls for bass, treble, juice (fuzz), and gain (output). Like all BAE Audio products, the Hot Fuzz contains all discrete components and is hand-wired in California.
Loughman is pleased to launch the Hot Fuzz as BAE Audio’s first entre into the area of guitar effects. “Guitarists, like recording engineers, are very discerning about the sounds they’re chasing,” he says. “BAE Audio has delivered first class studio tools that meet engineers’ highest standards for many years, and we’re happy to offer something in that spirit for guitar players. It will also allow those guitar players who are not yet familiar with our studio gear a chance to experience BAE Audio quality for the first time. What they may not know is that there is no going back.”
The Hot Fuzz is shipping now and is available through authorized BAE Audio dealers. For more information and a list of authorized dealers, please visit http://www.baeaudio.com/
