Don’t Let the Size Fool You: This Fuzz is Loud –
The Dunlop FFM6 Band of Gypsys Fuzz Face Mini is such a cool piece of gear. If you are a fan of Hendrix, this pedal absolutely does the thing. Dunlop spent a ton of time digging into the exact tones from Jimi’s later shows like Woodstock and the Fillmore East. What they found was that his famous red Fuzz Face actually had a modified Octavio circuit hiding inside. They stripped away the octave up signal to give us this aggressive and biting distortion in a tiny housing that actually fits on a modern board.
This specific model captures that era where his sound became even more snarling and bold. In my opinion, it has a lot more thickness and grit compared to the FFM3. It provides a rich and saturated texture that feels massive through a loud tube amp.
One of the coolest things about this simple two knob design is how it interacts with your guitar. Even though it only has controls for volume and fuzz, you can get a huge range of tonality just by using the volume knob on your guitar. When you roll it back, the fuzz cleans up into a beautiful glassy chime. This is the magic of the dual transistor style circuit. It responds to every tiny adjustment of your hands and your instrument.
There is one important note to keep in mind though. This pedal may be the mini vision but it is incredibly loud. In order for it to truly do the Hendrix thing, you really need to open her up and let it breathe. When you crank the volume to get that legendary sustain, it can be a lot of decibels.
If you want that iconic singing fuzz, you have to be ready for the volume that comes with it. I am sure Hendrix himself wouldn’t expect anything less.