Honey Special Fuzz - Schematic Anyone?

A.J. · June 18, 2011, 12:32:51 PM

Hi - just picked up a Honey Super Fuzz at a garage sale - seems to work intermittently - opened it up and there's a lot more going on in there than I expected.....

A whack of silicon transistors and two inductors....there's a volume knob and a slider switch that seems to turn the fuzz on or off and another foot switch adds a phased/tremolo sound.

No real control over the rate of phase or to control the fuzz - sort of a misbiased kind of buzzy fuzz - not particularly extreme.

Anyway - trying to track down a schematic to get it working happily again - not really getting anywhere - anyone out there familiar with this one?

A.J.

joegagan · June 18, 2011, 12:47:20 PM

??

aron · June 18, 2011, 12:54:08 PM

Wow! Looks cool though!

Mark Hammer · June 18, 2011, 01:44:58 PM

Waaaayyyyyyy too much stuff in there to let it rest at one knob and one slide switch!! Clearly something complicated is going on in there. This one needs, nay, demands deciphering.

A.J. · June 18, 2011, 02:56:20 PM

That photo's it exactly - it's in great condition - will be taking it apart, checking the traces, etc, mapping it out, in the next week or so - will post some gut shots....

A.J.

Govmnt_Lacky · June 18, 2011, 03:22:30 PM

Are those Fasels that I see in there??

Gonna keep an eye on this one

Mark Hammer · June 19, 2011, 04:23:04 PM

I'd also like to hear a better soundclip than the one it shares with a Superfuzz. The clip and accompanying video do not really make it easy to figure out what's going on.

analogguru · June 19, 2011, 05:28:24 PM

Quote from: Mark Hammer on June 19, 2011, 04:23:04 PM
.... do not really make it easy to figure out what's going on.

Maybe this could be from help :

http://f.hatena.ne.jp/Billl/20110323200645
http://f.hatena.ne.jp/Billl/20110323194628
http://f.hatena.ne.jp/Billl/20110323194048
http://f.hatena.ne.jp/Billl/20110323203146
http://f.hatena.ne.jp/Billl/20110323204216
http://f.hatena.ne.jp/Billl/20110323204616
http://f.hatena.ne.jp/Billl/20110323204758
http://f.hatena.ne.jp/Billl/20110323205424

analogguru

Mark Hammer · June 19, 2011, 08:14:52 PM

Thanks. I guess it's the "Special" part I'd like to understand a bit more about.

Gordo · June 19, 2011, 10:27:47 PM

You just gotta love the butt ugly look and the name "Special Fuzz". Very cool, can't wait to hear this one!

LucifersTrip · June 20, 2011, 01:22:28 AM

Quote from: Gordo on June 19, 2011, 10:27:47 PM
You just gotta love the butt ugly look and the name "Special Fuzz". Very cool, can't wait to hear this one!

exactly the reason I can't believe so many boutique builders put "pretty" pictures and designs on their modern clones....funny

DougH · June 20, 2011, 09:17:57 AM

That fuzz is "speshul"...

Mark Hammer · June 20, 2011, 09:58:24 AM

I don't know Doug. You have to wonder just who could inspire that kind of sound. Could it be, ohhhhh, I don't know.....SATAN!!!

Solidhex · June 20, 2011, 03:02:02 PM

Those are TDK inductors...

Pacafeliz · August 06, 2011, 11:54:48 AM

hello there, greetings from sunny Puebla, Mexico.

this is my 1st post. i must confess i have never built or repaired a pedal, and i certainly stink using the soldering iron (i can do the basic stuff on a guitar and/or recap an old fender). i'd LOVE to learn lotsa stuff here, so... hopefully...

anyway, i signed up here because of THIS thread.
i just so happen to have found TWO of these Special Fuzz pedals... of which none works correctly.

bummer.

dunno what's wrong; one has a massive volume drop, the other ... i don't even remember, i'm gonna have to plug 'em in again.

let me tell you I LOVE FUZZ. i love weird old sputtering sounds. i've had lots of them old Ace Tone fuzzes (SHOCKED to see one just sold on ebay for a friggin' $500!!!), and then some. oh and i don't leave my house without my beloved old Jordan BossTone.

but back to these... i'd love to have them working. i can/will post of the guts but all looks ok. so what could it be?
are these germanium transistors? i read about these being prone to "leaking" and needing to be replaced. really?

btw, i was looking thru that AnlaogMan book (guide to vintage effects), and he says that Honey (1967-1969) was actually what later on turned to become Shin-Ei. basically, the Special Fuzz is the daddy of the Super Fuzz. but i see the circuit/components are quite different.

so... i guess i won't be able to help, but i'd LOVE to hear a decent demo of its sounds (wink to the original poster).
and oh i pray to be able to (have) mine fixed someday.

thanks, and keep on rockin'...

Pat.

LucifersTrip · August 07, 2011, 03:12:43 AM

Quote from: Pacafeliz on August 06, 2011, 11:54:48 AM
hello there, greetings from sunny Puebla, Mexico.

let me tell you I LOVE FUZZ. i love weird old sputtering

welcome...and you've come to the right place...there are many fuzzers here to help you out

Quote
but back to these... i'd love to have them working. i can/will post of the guts but all looks ok. so what could it be?
are these germanium transistors?

troubleshooting that will probably not be a job for a novice unless you find an obvious loose wire or bad connection. I think I counted 13 transistors in that thing, while most vintage fuzzes have 2 - 3 !!!

those are silicon transistors...germaniums will have metal cases...though, some silicons also will have metal cases

Quote
and oh i pray to be able to (have) mine fixed someday.

thanks, and keep on rockin'...

Pat.

my suggestion is to actually start by building and troubleshooting a few 2 - 3 transistor fuzzes. then, you'll have a much better idea of what's going on and will have a much better chance of troubleshooting those.

you wrote "oh and i don't leave my house without my beloved old Jordan BossTone."

look how simple that is compared to the Honey (2222 & 3906 are the two transistors):
http://fuzzcentral.ssguitar.com/schematics/bosstoneschem.gif

good luck

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Honey Special Fuzz - Schematic Anyone?