GEAR VID: Shin Ei Super Fuzz VS. Wattson Classic Electronics FY6

the harmonic overtones of these pedals is what gives it so much wow

Now that the Watson's aren't in production, I'd love to know if you've come across anything else that has "that sound". I'm specifically curious if the Fredric Super Unpleasant Companion does it. I've been listening to so many (I might be into triple digits) "superfuzz inspired" pedal demos, and rarely feel I'm hearing the sound I'm after, and then I find your video and 5 seconds in I'm wide-eyed and proclaiming out loud to my dog "This! This is what I'm talking about Ringo!!!".

Super fuzz always wins,big muff is a big turd

I have both,the Watson is the only one that comes close to a real super fuzz

I tend to go for the higher gain mid – high range in the Wattson. The ? is for me, which one would be best suited with my CP504.

You would probably get that much variation on any two Shin Ei units. They all sound slightly different.

The Shin Ei sounds bigger/girthier to me…the Wattson is about 95% of the way there, the die hards are willing to pay for that extra 5%. Wattson sounds great for the $$ though.

Wattson more midrange. I like it!

The open sounds like what Boss was trying to replicate with the FZ-2 and when you play the high notes, that warm squishy fuzz tone sounds like an old silicon Fuzz Face. Watching this definitely makes me more interested in the Wattson pedal. Still hope to one day get to play on a Univox Super Fuzz.

shin-ei sounds more like my cup of tea,although the only difference to my ears is the wattson sounds brighter and less noisey then the shin-ei,but I think id get. more from the shin-ei fuzz.

rare and sooo expensive 🙁

I paid 25 bucks for the Crown labeled version (IDENTICAL) of this pedal in about 1967/68… I bought it as it was the CHEAPEST of the Fuzz boxes in those days. Absolutely pure Fuzz tones forever. Loved playing two notes and bending them for the wildest smeary fuzz. You could literally hear the two notes beating against each other…. Made the mistake of selling it on ebay for about 300 bucks. I bought a Wattson about 4 years ago and have to say that they NAILED the sounds that I loved. The only noticeable difference in sound was that the noise the original made was gone. On the Crown I could crank up it up, not play a string and it sounded like a wicked wind storm. It was monstrous and sometimes we would start a song by slowly cranking it up before anybody was playing and it got the crowd going "what the heck is that?" It disappeared (or I should say it was drowned out), once you started playing, but it was one noisy box. My other impression was that the Wattson might be just a shade less loud, but believe me, it is still plenty loud. The original had an on off switch and I would forget to turn it off and was always replacing the battery. Wattson uses the input switch to turn on the battery. The Crown needed you to unscrew the bottom plate to change it but Wattson has built in a battery holder compartment making it easy to change. I see that BYOC has a unit they call The Leeds which is supposed to be a clone electronically speaking of this unit and I plan to buy it and build it. Thanks for putting up this video. Great Job. And DON'T sell your original, you WILL BE SORRY!!!!!  

If you play in lower tunings the Wattson is a total monster.  The volume boost someone else mentioned below is a major asset if you're into heavier shit, and the tone throws a ton of weight around.  On top of that, the thing is a tank & very gig friendly.

great demo! the shin-ei sounds warmer, but the wattson is pretty close…

I like when you had them both on for a split second!

i like the original better. more low end grunge, and more upper end swirl that seems to come from playing dynamics. but i think the the watson sounds damn good as well. just a little more modern and less flubby/compressed.

i like flubby/ compressed!
thanks for doing the vid, nice work. i have a superfuzz vid on my channel, it didn't sound nearly as gnarly. search 'joegagan superfuzz', you'll get it.

I think the original sounds better. The Wattson sounds good but slightly different, and for the price they go for, I`d expect a more accurate representation.

Sold.

The Wattson being louder then the Shin-Ei is a design decision. Shin-Ei pedals have less output when the pedal is active than then the pedal is in by-pass. The Univox Super Fuzz I have is like this. The guys at Wattson saw this as a flaw and increased the gain in the output stage of the pedal.

To me the Shin-Ei sounds smoother and bassier with a deeper mid cut. The Wattson has more low mids and sounds a bit harsher. Other than that they sound darn close.

Are you using some kind of APP in your IPHONE for this recording. Sounds great!!!

Can you run these into a clean amp? I think you'd hear their differences more. Also, where were the volumes on the fuzzes set? I'm borrowing a friend's grey Superfuzz and IT'S CRAZY LOUD. So like barely on is unity. I noticed that the more predal volume pushing the amp, the more bass is generate. How does the Wattson compare?

The shin ei seems bassier with a slightly wilder octave. The wattson would probably cut better in a two-guitar band, though. It sounds a hair more "modern". Good demo!

great demo, I'll have one of each!