Octaver Fuzz Pedals

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The original Octavia Fuzz circuit was designed in 1967 by engineer Roger Mayer specifically for Jimi Hendrix. The circuit uses ring modulation and frequency doubling to create an octave up above whatever you are playing. The resulting signal is then sent to a fuzz.

The Octavia Fuzz effect wasn’t available commercially until the early 1970’s. A company from California, named Tycobrahe, released a knock off version of the pedal. Roger Mayer believed it was inaccurate, and a cheap rip-off, of his original Otavia model. As a result, Roger Mayer started his own company, where he manufactured and distributed many versions of his custom pedal.

History

In early 1967, Roger Mayer was helping Jimi Hendrix develop new sounds for his new musical project. In February of that year, Roger built a frequency doubling device, specifically for Jimi’s guitar. He used this unique sound for his legendary solo in Purple Haze. The song Purple Haze changed the musical landscape, for many musicians, to this day. His solo displayed a unique guitar tone, that had never been heard before. It was noted for sounding otherworldly. Roger named this new unit, The Octavia, while Jimi called it Octavio.

Roger Mayer is not the inventor of the frequency doubling electronic circuit. He designed a device, that delivered the frequency doubling effect to Jimi’s guitar.
This was the first octave up device, made for a guitar. It was the beginning of a new sound in rock music. It led to a huge following of imitators, who wanted to produce the sound that Roger and Jimi had made.

After designing pedals for Jimi Hendrix, in the ’70s, Roger Mayer started his own studio recording equipment company. He specialized in designing pro analog recording consoles and gear. His company is still in business, as he continues to build classic guitar effects. He composes his designs from studio-grade components, and focuses on recording applications.

The lengendary OCTAVIA is Roger Mayer’s most famous and distinctive creation. It is featured on Purple Haze, Fire, Little Wing, Machine Gun, One Rainy Wish, and Little Miss Lover, all by Jimi Hendrix.
The Octavia Classic comes with one hard-wired output and two buffered outputs, for various routing options. The Rocket is a simpler version, with two knobs and a flashy appearance.

The OCTAVIA produces a sound that is an octave higher than the note you are presently playing. This doubling effect is accomplished through electronic mirror imaging techniques that are program sensitive. They respond to the feed-forward inputs of the person playing the guitar. The electronic circuitry is analog, and will react to all the harmonic overtones, that are played. It is a one-of-a-kind effect.

Electronically it is an analog circuit, with the properties of a frequency doubler, envelope generator and amplitude modulator. There are additional frequency shaping filter circuits. The effect produced can vary from subtle to wild, by adjusting the settings, and it will respond to the attack of the player. A clean guitar tone from the guitar can produce “ring modulated” overtones.

It works best first in the pedal chain and with single-coil pickups. To really bring out the upper octave sound, play one note at a time above the 10th fret on the neck pickup, with the fuzz turned down.
Turning up the gain will deliver a chunky, vintage, fuzz sound.

Octave fuzz mixes the input signal with a synthesized signal, one octave, lower or higher, than the original. The synthesized octave signal is taken from the original input signal by halving, octave-down, or doubling, octave-up, the frequency. This is from the two-to-one relationship between the frequencies, of musical notes, which are separated, by an octave.

Death By Audio Evil Filter Octave Fuzz

Octave Up

Octave-up effects usually use full wave rectification using diodes to “fold up” the negative part of the waveform to make a new waveform an octave higher in pitch.

69′ Psych Series Band Of Gypsys Fuzz

Jimi Hendrix ’68 Shrine Series Octavio Fuzz

Octave Down

Octave-down effects are typically produced by converting the signal to a square wave, and then using flip-flop circuits to divide the frequency by two. This creates a buzzy synthesizer like tone. The MXR Blue Box used this method to create a two octave drop (expanded to include one octave down in later re-issues). Jimmy Page used a Blue Box to record the solo on Led Zeppelin‘s Fool in the Rain.

Octave Fuzz pedals combine aggressive fuzz distortion with an octave effect that can greatly thicken the sound. It gives you the most aggressive type of distortion you can get. It has been around for decades and it is still the #1 choice for all players who need lots of screaming notes.

Boss OC-5 Polyphonic Octave

An Octaver Fuzz pedal combines the aggressive, fuzz, distortion sound, with an octave effect. It produces a heavier and thicker sound. The result is some of the most aggressive types of distortion you can get. This old school effect has been around for decades and remains a strong favorite. It is still a top choice for many guitarists, who like to play a lot of crying and screaming notes.

Jimi Hendrix ’68 Shrine Fuzz Face

Jimi Hendrix Fuzz Face

The trick with Octave Fuzz pedals is that the fuzz effect sounds amazing when combined with the signal that’s one octave up or down. In that case, this super-aggressive type of distortion gets a completely different flavor, which goes in a wide range from vintage guitar screams to modern synth-like tones.

That’s why octave fuzz pedals are such amazing tools, which are versatile enough to cover a wide plethora of music styles. Of course, that’s the main reason why many guitar players prefer the octave fuzz pedal over a standard fuzz pedal, so the number of these 2-in-1 pedals is growing every day.

Wampler Fuzztration Fuzz & Octave

Jimi Hendrix ’68 Shrine Series Band of Gypsys Fuzz

Octave and pitch effects are most commonly placed at the front of your signal chain. They should come after your tuners and volume pedals, with a clean signal going into it. This will give you the cleanest input signal, which means the note can be easily tracked.

Octave pedals should also be positioned before any distortion or overdrive effects. The reason is because they work optimally when a clearer signal is coming through the unit. This allows the unit to track notes and reproduce them effectively. It will make better transitions with other effects within your signal chain.

MXR Poly Blue Octave

Shaky Jimi Vibe

Octaver fuzz pedals can be used on a bass guitar. It will give your bass a distortion type sound. It works best on bass guitars, that have single coil pickups, because they produce the thickest distortion. Octaver fuzz also works well on guitars with humbucker pickups.

If you decide to add this effect to a bass, you want to make sure that it will accent the sound of your bass. You need to adjust the tone knob setting. If the tone knob is too high, then you will get a very distorted sound. If the tone knob is set too low, the pedal will not produce enough distortion and will not be as effective. It is important to experiment with different tone knob settings, until you find the best sound for your bass.

Way Huge Swollen Pickle Jumbo Fuzz

Jimi Hendrix ’68 Shrine Uni Vibe Chorus/Vibrato

If you’re looking for an octave pedal, and you intend to use it for live performances, you need something reliable. There are so many versions of this effect, make sure you choose a quality pedal.

If you want to add a little extra grit and distortion to your guitar sound, you should consider this effect. They are great for screaming solos, or for adding depth to rhythm playing. Check out one of the recommended pedals on this page, to add to your collection.

Siete Santos Octavio Fuzz

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Beetronics Vezzpa "Octave Stinger"

THE OCTAVE STINGER COMES WITH AN OP-AMP HEART THAT CAN PRODUCE AN EXTREME HIGH-PITCHED BUZZ. ON FUZZZZ MODE YOU GET A BIG WALL OF FUZZ, GREAT FOR THE COOLEST RIFFS AND POWER CHORDS. TURN DOWN THE SUSTAIN CONTROL TO GET A SPITTY FUZZING TONE OR TURN IT UP FOR A GATED SUPER HIGH GAIN FUZZ. ON STINGER MODE THIS WASP GETS AGGRESSIVE, BRINGING UP THE HIGH OCTAVE AND CUTTING THROUGH THE MIX.

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Pigtronix Disnortion Fuzz

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Third Man Plasma Black Coil

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Electro-Harmonix Op-amp Big Muff Pi Fuzz

The circuitry of the new EHX Op-Amp Big Muff Pi —sometimes also referred to as the IC or V4 Big Muff— has been faithfully re-created while several practical enhancements have been added including a compact, die-cast chassis and true bypass switching. “The Op-Amp Big Muff was popularized by the brilliant Billy Corgan who first used it on the Smashing Pumpkins’ epic 1993 album Siamese Dream.

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JHS Muffuletta Fuzz

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Wampler Fuzztration

The Fuzztration isn’t a pedal designed to really play ‘nice.’ It’s brash, raspy, doomy, in-your-face fuzz from top to bottom. Sure, it can get some classic Floyd sounds, but it’s not just another classic with added EQ options.

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Warm Audio Foxy Tone Box Fuzz

The new Foxy Tone Box from Warm Audio is a hyper-accurate recreation of one of the most sought-after and beloved fuzz pedals of all time

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OC Bass Octave

The pedal recognizes two or three-note chords and trigger the lowest note. Control the level of the original tone and mix in the octave effect. Choose between High, Mid or Low Range – which relates to the character of the sound of the sub-note. Sub-notes are perhaps most effective when playing on the higher frets, and could add a nice touch just slightly blended into the original tone, especially on a solo on bass or guitar. The OctaBass works really good together with distortion.

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