Cat's-Eye - Mutha' Fuzz Distortion
Reviewer: Nick
Testing Gear:
Gibson SG
Fender '79 Telecaster
Line 6 Flextone 3+/ Laney 30w valve combo
Ibanez TubeScreamer
Colorsound Octivide
The Cat's-Eye - Mutha' Fuzz Distortion is based on the brown/tan Ross Distortion made in Kansas in the late 70's. For this reason, I was very excited to try this pedal as the tan Ross Distortion has been a permanent fixture in my set-up for a long time. For anyone unfamiliar with the Ross Distortion, I think what sets it apart from others is its tube sounding warmth. I've not tried the MR ED 'Brown Sound' pedal but to my ears, the Ross can give the sweetest 'brown sound' that I've ever heard.
Pedal Construction
The first thing I noticed was the weight of the pedal, this thing is seriously solid. In fact I would have to say it is quite probably one of the best pedal casings I have come across. Everything about it oozes quality and attention to detail. I love the positive feel of the controls, they feel expensive and the paintwork is thick enough to take a severe beating on the road with no worries.
Sounds
This pedal is very quiet in operation and this combined with the True Bypass switching and the indicator LED is a massive improvement on the Ross.
I use several different guitars live or in the studio, a tele, couple of different strats, SG and a Line 6 Variax and ran them all through the Mutha' Fuzz Distortion. This pedal is amazingly transparent and with the controls on full the tone of every guitar still shone through. This is the same with chord work, I found that full chords rang out distinctly without mushing up.
I have used this pedal for everything from blues to Sabbath to Pantera styles and it quite simply works in all of them. Stomping on it to boost a Tube Screamer for lead work sounds awesome. A slightly overdriven Marshall with this in front of it and it was the EVH 'Brown Sound' the versatiliy is endless.
Summary
This is a pedal that truly shines in every area. It exudes quality in every aspect and I can imagine it being in the arsenal of many pro's and top studios.
I still love my old Ross pedal and think that there’s enough difference between them to warrant having both.
Cat's-Eye have taken a great old classic and created a modern classic. They are also really nice people to deal with and it’s obvious through their creations that they have a passion for what they do.
Seriously Recommended!
