My Spaceman Effects Rumblefuzz II has landed - and is just as thunderously good as I thought it would be
The Rumblefuzz I was the very first Spaceman Effects pedal created back in 2009. I did not return to the pedal fold until 2016 - where these were obviously long since gone - while I still lived in hope of snagging one eventually - but second hand prices of over $2000, and at times near $3000 made it look somewhat unlikely. My good friend Henry Kaiser kind of rubbed my nose in this regard - as he own serial number #001 of that first Rumblefuzz.
So I was delighted with this reissue - and once I realised it was going to be a limited affair - I rapidly ordered one! Turns out I was just in time - as my serial number indicates - #057 out of 60.
When you’re in the chase for certain pedals - your expectations become elevated, and occasionally the reality doesn’t quite match the perception. But in this instance we most definitely hit that instant wave of satisfaction.
I love pedals which are generous with the range of each of their dials - particularly in the volume department - and this pedal wholly meets my preferences.
Controls - Fuzz (Output Volume), Rumble (Bass : Tight > Fat), Bite (Gain), 3 x *|= switch : 3-way variable Bias + Compression + Presence options.
There’s a little complexity in the control topology - in terms how how things are labelled or not! Fuzz here means Output Volume, Rumble is fairly obvious, while Bite seems to be a mix of gain and sizzle. And then of course we have the somewhat slightly mysterious ’*|=’ 3-way switch - where you get 3 different combinations of Bias + Compression + Presence. I feel that the middle setting is the most neutral, Top delivers a little more intensity, and bottom delivers the most intensity - where that’s usually a bit much for me - I tend to live mostly on the top 2 settings.
The Rumblefuzz II really is thunderously good - as with so many of those Spaceman Fuzzes - there is a real potency to the output of this fuzz - and it sounds thick and rich, and fully satisfying.
It also combines beautifully with the two Octave Fuzzes I currently have on the board. I'm not sure it's going to usurp my Sputnik 1 as my all-time favourite Spaceman Fuzz - but it runs it very close.
So delighted that I managed to snag one!
There are lots of sweet spots to be found on those dials - where currently I'm loving the following :
Fuzz @ 4 o'c, Rumble @ 1:30 o'c, Bite @ 2:30 o'c, *|= switch set to top!
The Rumblefuzz II is currently sold out - for this 60 White and 100 Blue Colourway units - but we will see other special editions of this pedal later - likely in ever smaller quantities. Possibly one of those much loved Chrome or Copper variants!
These were priced at $349, and you can read more about said pedal on the Spaceman Effects Website - while you wait for the next limited edition batch to be released - which is likely a few months out still!
Oh - and in case you did not notice - I changed out the knobs for some I ordered in from Small Bear. That pedal probably better suits a slightly darker red colour of knobs - which mean I need to get some more of those ones I ordered in from Love My Switches - which I used on all my Bispell Audio Pedals! Alas I did not have 3 of those remaining - while the pedal looks pretty sweet anyway with those Small Bear Knobs - which are a slightly lighter red!
Demos
12 Degrees of Saturation 2023 Compact Edition
