Life is Unfair collaborates with Boston Manor on Bad Machine weapons-grade Hyper Fuzz evolution - including Independent Boost, and with HM-2 and MT-2 accents
Life is Unfair’s Grindle has birthed a monster gain machine here - which at its core is a totally killer improvement / evolution of Boss’s FZ-2 Hyper Fuzz, while it delivers a full gain range from Boost, through Overdrive, Fuzz / Octave Fuzz, and onto High Gain Distortion / Fuzzstortion. This is a general all-rounder gain machine, while most will use it for its more aggressive side no doubt!
This is a genuine collaboration between Grindle, and Mike Cunniff from the band Boston Manor - each of those brought their own ideas to the table - where Mike is the author of the HM-2 Frequency insert, and Independent Boost, and where Grindle then suggested the addition of an MT-2 profile boost for Mode V.
The control topology is wholly genius here - with so many different possibilities. And a vast range of gain and volume on tap - from Clean Boost to earth-shattering High Gain Fuzzstortion - and everything in between!
Controls - Level, Active Bass, Active Treble, Gain, Boost, Bass Frequency : 105Hz / 86Hz, High End : 3.2kHz Shelf Filter / 960Hz + 1280Hz HM-2 Twin Peaks, Reverb = Fuzz into Boost, Modes - as below :
MODES
- I : Signal is routed through the input gain stage & EQ, bypassing the clipping & filter sections to operate as a Boost / Overdrive
- II : Thick Mid Frequency Fuzz with subtle Upper Octave
- III : Mid Scooped Fuzz with more Prominent Octave Artefacts
- IV : Combination of Modes II & III
- V : Additional +5dB boost at 105Hz & +10dB at 4.9kHz for a metallic edge (MT-2 profile)
At its core the Bad Machine started off as an FZ-2 derivation - with that Boss pedal’s 3 modes - Fuzz I, Fuzz II, and Gain Boost - where a variation of that 3rd Gain Boost option becomes the Mode I on the Bad Machine, in a slightly more logical arrangement, with the FZ-2’s first two modes coming after that - such that Fuzz I on the Bad Machine is Mode II, and Fuzz II is Mode III.
The next two Modes are Grindle evolutions - with Mode IV combining II & III for heavily saturated Mids, and Mode V adding in a further MT-2 (Metal Zone) profile boost on top.
So you have elements of 3 of Boss’s most lauded pedals in the mix here - the core FZ-2, then with HM-2 and MT-2 add-ons. I misread the instructions the first time around and took the Mode V to be a further HM-2 style gain boost - but no - it’s very much inspired by Boss’s second best seller of all time - the Metal Zone!
If you screw the back plate off you have access to a couple of dip-switches - which allow you to set the Footswitches to Momentary Mode (Down | Off) - by default those are both Latching (Up | On).
I'm already a huge fan of the FZ-2 and have had that pedal in my reference collection for many years now, probably not quite as much of a fan of the circuit as Electric Wizard - the key ambassadors of the FZ-2 sound - where I believe they would absolutely love this new evolution.
I really like this pedal with the Independent Boost applied all the time - and into the front (meaning the 'Reverse' option is the only setting I don't use!). That generates more Harmonics and Texture and makes everything sound even more interesting - it also boosts up the volume further - all good things in my book!
Having the Boost into the front of everything just gives you a much richer, and more immersive wall of sound as such - of course you need to dial things in slightly differently across the various modes. While with everything on this pedal - all the Modes are really useful here. And where my own personal favourites are I, II and V. And yes it delivers an exceptional sort of Harmonic Overdrive for me - which responds really well to guitar volume cleanup. The Bass and Treble controls are superb - as are the two Bass Frequency options - where I mostly have that setting in the lower register, but on the Scooped Modes (III & IV) I tend to prefer to have that switch in the up position.
The real surprise here is the Peak - HM-2 style Twin Peaks Frequency Profile - which adds more grit and sharpness to your profile, and actually does genuinely interesting things across all 5 Modes.
One of Grindle's own favourite sounds from his pedal is Mode I with the Treble cranked and Peak option selected, that gets you fantastic 70's solid state amp overdrive vibes.
Several of us have been pressing Boss for a FZ-2W Waza Craft edition - for the best part of 10 years now, while this Bad Machine kind of makes that surplus to requirements - I can't see Boss putting this extensive a feature set into one of their compact units - besides - you wouldn't be able to accommodate an independent boost on one of those - and that's such a big part of the appeal of this device for me - with all those extra harmonics that it generates.
Some players seem happy to live mostly on the Fuzz Mode, without the Boost, and some prefer the Boost coming after the Fuzz (Reverse) just to drive the volume up a touch. While for me - the Bad Machine is at its peak prowess with the Boost permanently engaged into the front of the Fuzz - that lifts the pedal into next level magnificence territory.
There are some other decent extended-range takes of the FZ-2 out there, including the Pepers' Pedals Humongous Fuzz - while the Bad Machine is the Emperor of that domain now - just superb every which way - sounds utterly fantastic - and genuinely operates beautifully across all those levels of gain - it's such a clever pedal - well done to Grindle and Mike here - they definitely struck gold. Props to Gwion at Holy Island Audio also who oversaw the printing of these enclosures.
I knew I was going to get a Bad Machine from when it was first announced, while Grindle informed me there would be forthcoming additional colourways - so I decided to wait and see what would materialise. The first editions were in the familiar Boston Manor Red and Black, while these second editions in pink and light blue are more typical of the Life is Unfair colour scheme. I really like both versions - and with the first edition you get those cool textured early Boss style knobs, but overall I'm glad I held out for the later edition - that is certainly a better match for my Life Is Unfair Violet Oscillation variant too - which is mostly pink also.
The Bad Machine goes for £230 and equivalent ($313) on the Life Is Unfair Reverb Store - money well spent for such a monster gain pedal - which covers you for such a vast range of tones and textures. This one comes very highly recommended - absolutely essential for anyone who gravitates towards the FZ-2 / Electric Wizard sound - and of course fans of Boston Manor - where this pedal delivers quite a bit more!
Oh and for a final bonus factoid! If you're wondering what the BM13 FY1 code after the pedal name stands for - it represents the year Boston Manor was founded - '2013', along with the first 3 digits from their Blackpool postcode - FY1!
Demos
