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The Phobos Germanium Fuzz is a clone of the Colorsound / Sola Sound Tone Bender Mk III. While the first version was essentially the same topology as a Fuzz Face, and the second version added a gain stage in front, this third version from 1967-1968 was a completely different circuit, using a Darlington-pair transistor configuration to drive a third transistor, followed by a tone control which the earlier versions were missing.

While the Mk. III Tone Bender was itself a variation of the Baldwin-Burns Buzzaround, it had a few variants of its own, both official and unofficial. The Vox Tone Bender was a licensed variant with a few parts substitutions. The Park Fuzz Sound by Park Amplification (Jim Marshall’s side-brand) was a contemporary clone. The Elka Dizzytone and the Prescription Electronics Yard Box were two others. Aside from the Buzzaround, all of the rest of these variations can be build on this PCB.

A note about the name: the original Colorsound / Sola Sound unit was not called the “Mark III”, but the Vox-licensed version was. As a result, this circuit is commonly called both the “Mark III” and the “three-knob” Tone Bender. This project will refer to it as the Mk III to differentiate it from the Mk II, which is available as another project called the Deimos.

The Phobos project has a voltage inverter which allows you to power the effect with a standard center-negative adapter while maintaining the positive-ground operation of the original. The PCB also includes biasing trim pots so you can dial in a perfect bias without having to swap out resistors.

The Vulcan Octave Fuzz is a recreation of the fOXX Tone Machine, first released in 1971 and discontinued in 1978. The Tone Machine is a thick fuzz that uses a phase splitter and complementary rectifier to create an octave overtone.

The Tone Machine has a lot in common with the Fender Blender, but with a more pronounced octave and smoother tone, as well as the ability to disable the octave by turning off half of the phase splitter. And the tone is not unlike the Superfuzz, although it uses a different method of octave generation to get there.

The Vulcan is faithful to the original, but with two added modifications. First, the octave switch (normally just “on” or “off” in the original) now has a 3rd setting allowing you to bypass the series diode in non-octave mode. See build notes for more details on this.

The second modification is to the tone control. The tone control of the original is somewhat similar to the Big Muff, but many people find it’s difficult to get good sounds from the treble side of the rotation. By increasing the value of the treble-side tone capacitor, it improves the usability. A switch has been added to let you choose between two different capacitors in addition to the original.

The Prism FET Amplifier is a pedal conversion of the obscure but highly sought-after BOSS® FA-1 FET Amplifier. The original, which was manufactured from 1980 to 1984, was an always-on effect that clipped to your belt and ran on a 9-volt battery.

It’s a solid and versatile circuit, but the non-standard implementation prevented it from getting much attention—although it was famously used by The Edge which caused vintage prices to skyrocket.

The Prism is the same circuit in an alternate format, converting it to a standard pedal with a footswitch, LED and 9V adapter jack.

The original FA-1 used the long-obsolete HA1457W chip, which is a single version of the LM1458 (as evidenced by the similarity of “1457” and “1458”, and similar datasheet specifications). For the updated version of the Prism, extensive A/B testing was done to verify that the LM1458 performs exactly the same as two HA1457Ws and is sonically indistinguishable.

As a result, this new version eliminates the option to use the HA1457W and only supports dual op-amps. However, the previous version of the Prism is still available if you really want to use the HA1457W.

The Oceanid Optical Compressor is adapted from the Pete Cornish OC-1 Optical Compressor, originally released in 2014 and traced by Aion FX in 2019.

Cornish pedals are best known for being extremely expensive. There are two reasons for this. First, the build quality and reliability is unmatched. Second, the mysterious nature of them, partially due to the fact that the circuit is obscured and partially because of the A-list of clients such as David Gilmour and Brian May. The OC-1 in particular names Paul McCartney as an owner.

The OC-1 is an original circuit, and it bears the marks of careful design, without any clear comparisons to anything else out there. It uses the LDR-to-ground method of volume reduction as seen in early optical limiter circuits like the LA2A, but the methods of generating the LED control voltage from the envelope are unique, and the clean-blend circuit is a little more complex than what you normally see.

The Oceanid is a faithful reproduction of the OC-1 circuit, but with one major addition: an internal slide switch allowing the pedal to be used in true-bypass mode instead of buffered bypass. As with the Klon KTR, the buffered mode is “almost always better”, but with this feature, you can determine for yourself.

The Penumbra Bass Fuzz is inspired by the ZVEX Woolly Mammoth and Mastotron, taking elements from each but with some modifications for better usability.

The Woolly Mammoth is a full-frequency fuzz with no low-end cut, making it great for bass, but of course it works great on guitar as well. It features controls for fuzz level, EQ, pinch (pulse width of the wave form) and output volume. The Mastotron added a few controls but is otherwise identical.

The Penumbra is a combination of the two, including the Subs (Low) toggle but not the “Relax / Push” control. This has been replaced by a transformer-based pickup simulator, originally designed by Jack Orman of AMZ and used by others including Earthquaker Devices in their Erupter pedal.

Like many vintage fuzz circuits, the Woolly Mammoth works best when it’s the first pedal after the guitar. If its input signal is too low-impedance (i.e. coming from a buffer or an active pedal), it can drastically change the character of the effect. The pickup simulator will convert any input impedance into the impedance of a guitar pickup, so the Penumbra will behave as it should no matter where it’s placed in the chain.

This pickup simulator is on a toggle switch, allowing it to be easily bypassed. This way you can leave it off if the Mammoth is the first pedal in the chain. When the pickup simulator is turned off, the Penumbra is sonically identical to the original Woolly Mammoth / Mastotron circuit.

The Lumitron Resonant Filter is an adaptation of the Musitronics Mu-tron III, designed by Mike Biegel and originally released in 1972.

The Mu-tron III was the very first commercial envelope filter pedal, also called an autowah, using optocouplers to dynamically control a series of frequency filters based on the level of the input signal. The vocal-like effect was quickly embraced by musicians and soon became a characteristic effect of entire genres, particularly funk. Notable Mu-tron III users include Bootsy Collins on bass, Jerry Garcia on guitar, and even Stevie Wonder, who used it on a Clavinet.

Musitronics was sold to ARP in 1979, who produced the pedals until 1980. Mike Biegel later contracted with Electro-Harmonix to release an updated version of the circuit in 1995, called the Q-Tron, as well as the Bi-Filter rack unit with expanded features. The original Q-Tron was later adapted as the Mini Q-Tron, Micro Q-Tron, and Q-Tron+, the latter two of which are still in production.

In 2019, the Mu-tron brand was resurrected with Mike Biegel once again designing new effects. The Micro-Tron IV is an updated version of the Mu-tron III, with modernized circuitry, CV input and output, and swappable optical modules for different reaction times and filter characteristics.

The Lovetone Meatball (available as our Spectron project) was based on the Mu-tron III with a greatly expanded feature set. If you wish the Lumitron had a lot more knobs and switches, it’s worth a look.

The Maelstrom Bass Drive is based on the Darkglass® Microtubes® B3K, a CMOS-based drive circuit, with some additional tweaks adapted from the Vintage Microtubes.

The B3K started life as the Microtubes 2K, which was originally posted to the DIYStompboxes forum by Douglas Castro in 2008. After finishing university, he moved from Chile to Finland in 2010 and started Darkglass Electronics as a commercial entity.

During this time, he continued to work on the design, and the updated Microtubes B3K became Darkglass’s first product. While the original 2K was not described as a bass drive, the B3K and all subsequent Darkglass products have been designed for bass players and primarily marketed as such.

As the name implies, the original Microtubes 2K was inspired by the EHX Hot Tubes from 1979 as well as some other CMOS-based designs in the DIY community. However, by the time it had evolved into the B3K, it really bore no resemblance to any other circuits. A single overdriven CMOS stage is used for the clipping tone, contrasting with the cascaded inverters used by other similar circuits.

The Vintage Microtubes followed in early 2013. It’s essentially the same circuit as the B3K, but it removes the two toggle switches and adds a new control called “Era”, which is a midrange tone control.

The Maelstrom is a direct adaptation of the Microtubes B3K, with the Era control ported over from the Vintage Microtubes (renamed to “Tone” on the kit enclosure). With the Era control turned down, it’s identical to the standard B3K. The PCB build doc also includes part substitutions to build it to full Vintage Microtubes specs if you’d like.

The Elysium Ambient Delay is an adaptation of the Ibanez EM5 Echo Machine, a late addition to the Soundtank “5 Series” produced from 1996 to 2000.

The EM5 was designed to emulate tape delay units from the 1970s. While the delay IC is technically a digital chip with an analog interface, similar to the PT2399, there is a great deal of filtering applied to the delay signal—including a diode-clipping overdrive stage, similar to the Tube Screamer—which gives it a warm, ambient, and very analog sound that adds depth and substance without getting in the way or muddying the tone, suitable for any style of playing.

Like the rest of the Soundtank series, it was generally overlooked during production, and could be found for $50-70 up until a few years ago. But it has slowly grown to mythical status, particularly after Dave Phillips of LA Sound Design brought attention to the fact that he includes it in many of his professional pedalboards and that it’s his favorite always-on delay. Today, it rarely sells for less than $300.

The Elysium is an exact recreation of the EM5, except that the JFET switching has been converted to true bypass. The original EM5 was notorious for its unreliable switching, so this is a significant improvement on the Soundtank version while keeping the signal path identical.

The Deimos Germanium Fuzz is a clone of the Sola Sound Tone Bender Mk. II (two-knob) that was produced and sold by Macaris in London beginning in late 1966. It was one of the pioneers of guitar effects pedals, hugely influential both musically and electronically to everything that followed.

While the previous version of the Tonebender was essentially the same circuit as the Fuzz Face, the Mark II version added a single-transistor boost/buffer stage in front of it, increasing the drive level but also making it play nicer with effects that come before it.

The Deimos project is a faithful reproduction of the Tone Bender Professional Mk. II with one big enhancement: a voltage inverter has been added which allows it to be powered with a standard center-negative adapter while maintaining the positive-ground operation of the original. The PCB also includes trim pots so you can dial in a perfect bias without having to swap out resistors.

In addition, the 125B update of the Deimos adds a toggle switch allowing you to bypass the first transistor stage to convert it into the previous version of the Tone Bender, often referred to as the “1.5”. (There is one other capacitor that had a different value in the 1.5 circuit, but it has very little impact on the sound.)

The Cygnus Distortion/Sustainer is adapted from the Pete Cornish P-2 and G-2, two Big Muff-based pedals that share a PCB but with several part differences to distinguish them.

Cornish pedals are probably best known for being extremely expensive. There are two reasons for this. First, the build quality and reliability is unmatched. Second, the mysterious nature of them, partially due to the fact that the circuit is obscured and partially because of the A-list of clients. The P-2 was originally designed for David Gilmour, while the G-2 was developed with Lou Reed.

Inside, the circuit is a basic Big Muff with a few changes such as a simplified hi-cut tone control and the famous class-A transistor buffer design. The P-2 is similar to a Ram’s Head Muff, while the G-2 was designed to be much lower gain with a drastically different EQ as well as germanium clipping diodes. In fact, until the G-2 it was traced in 2009, people had no idea it was a Muff derivative. The P-2 was traced by Aion FX in 2023.

The Cygnus is a faithful reproduction of the P-2 and G-2 circuits. The kit is for the P-2 version, but the parts list in the PCB build document includes both variants. The default is the P-2 circuit, while each G-2 change is listed in the “Notes” column.

We’ve made one major addition in our project: an internal switch allowing the pedal to be used in true-bypass mode instead of buffered bypass. As with the Klon KTR, the buffer mode is “almost always better”, but you can be the judge of that.

The Corvus Distortion / Sustainer is a clone of the 1977-1980 “op-amp” EHX Big Muff Pi, a redesign of the classic Big Muff circuit using op-amps instead of transistor gain stages. It was designed by Howard Davis, a brilliant EHX engineer who also invented the Memory Man delay and Electric Mistress flanger as well as the Deluxe Big Muff Pi.

He was tasked in the redesign with getting a similar sound to the Big Muff, but the circuit itself bears no resemblance to the earlier 4-transistor circuit apart from the tone control. Therefore, while it was the only commercially-available version of the Big Muff for several years, today it’s seen as a fully separate circuit. (In 2017, EHX reissued this version of the Big Muff, formally adopting its formerly unofficial name, the “Op-Amp Big Muff Pi”.)

The Corvus is more specifically based on the 1978 revision, which added a “Tone Bypass” switch. As inferred by the name, this switch fully bypasses the tone stack for a more raw and aggressive sound.

The Corvus is a direct adaptation of the 1978 circuit except for the inclusion of an optional modification to the gain control, originally conceived by Analogguru. This converts the op-amp configuration into a variable gain stage, whereas the stock unit uses a fixed gain boost followed by a volume control. With this modification, the op-amp isn’t amplifying the signal any more than it needs to. However, the original version can also be built if preferred (see build notes for details).

The Cepheus Amp Overdrive is adapted from the Pete Cornish CC-1, traced by Aion FX in 2020, and the GC-1 which we traced in 2023. The GC-1 claimed to be an original circuit, but we found it to be identical to the CC-1 other than changes in component values.

Cornish pedals are best known for being extremely expensive. There are two reasons for this. First, the build quality and reliability is unmatched. Second, the mysterious nature of them, partially due to the fact that the circuit is obscured and partially because of the A-list of clients such as David Gilmour, Brian May and Pete Townshend.

Like the OC-1 Optical Compressor, the CC-1 is a fully original circuit that’s not based on anything else. It’s designed primarily with op-amps, beginning with two feedback clipping stages, each with resistors in series with the diodes to soften the effect. The two-stage stacked clipping gives a very amp-like feel that responds naturally to playing dynamics or increased input signal levels.

After the clipping section, there’s a three-band active tone control adapted from manufacturer application notes (see figure 7 on this page), essentially a Baxandall with an extra band for midrange. There is also a gain boost so the output level can be compensated if the tone controls are cut.

The Cepheus is a faithful reproduction of the CC-1/GC-1 circuit, but with one major addition: an internal slide switch allowing the pedal to be used in true-bypass mode instead of buffered bypass. As with the Klon KTR, the buffered mode is “almost always better”, but with this feature, you can determine for yourself.

The Andromeda Deluxe is an adaptation of the Nordland ODR-C, a boutique overdrive first traced by Aion FX in 2021, based on the Nobels ODR-1.

The ODR-1 was originally released in 1992, designed by Kai Tachibana as an original circuit for Nobels. Intended as a budget alternative to the Tube Screamer, the build quality was less than stellar, but to those who played it, it was undeniable that the circuit itself was something special. It steadily increased in popularity over the following decades until the present. Today it’s often seen in lists of the top 10 overdrives of all time.

In 2019, Kai decided to revisit the ODR-1 and update it with a few new features under his own Nordland brand name. The result is the ODR-C Custom Overdrive, a brilliantly-designed handmade pedal that occupies the opposite end of the spectrum from the ODR-1 in both build quality and price.

It features three new controls: a low cut that fixes the bass-forward tone of the original, a midrange control that can boost or cut, and an “overdrive de-compress” (ODC) control that gradually adds higher-threshold clipping diodes in the soft-clipping stage. Each of the three knobs can be set to a position that emulates the original ODR-1, so the core circuit is the same despite all the added features.

The Andromeda Deluxe is based on the audio path of the ODR-C, only cutting out the complex polarity protection and LED dimmer circuit. Side by side, they sound the same. But we’ll reiterate that the original ODR-C is fantastic piece of engineering and it’s worth it if you can find one. Check out the tracing journal if you want to see what we’re talking about.

Introducing the Great British Drive™ — a British breaker-style overdrive, supercharged for modern performance. We’ve reverse engineered the DNA of what so many players loved and turbo-tuned it with huge output, soaring sustain, and expanded headroom, while keeping the vintage character intact — with every nuance of your playing fuelling its voice.

Features:

• Heavily souped-up breaker-style circuit with explosive punch, massive dynamic range, and expressive touch sensitivity • Independent Level, Drive, and Tone controls • Handcrafted in the UK for ultimate quality • Standard 9V power input for convenience • True bypass switching for clean signal

The Great British Drive™: vintage blues drive, rebuilt with modern muscle.

Introducing the Great British Drive™ — a British breaker-style overdrive, supercharged for modern performance. We’ve reverse engineered the DNA of what so many players loved and turbo-tuned it with huge output, soaring sustain, and expanded headroom, while keeping the vintage character intact — with every nuance of your playing fuelling its voice.

Features:

• Heavily souped-up breaker-style circuit with explosive punch, massive dynamic range, and expressive touch sensitivity

• Independent Level, Drive, and Tone controls

• Handcrafted in the UK for ultimate quality

• Standard 9V power input for convenience

• True bypass switching for clean signal

The Great British Drive™: vintage blues drive, rebuilt with modern muscle.

Introducing the Great British Drive™ — a British breaker-style overdrive, supercharged for modern performance. We’ve reverse engineered the DNA of what so many players loved and turbo-tuned it with huge output, soaring sustain, and expanded headroom, while keeping the vintage character intact — with every nuance of your playing fuelling its voice.

Features:

• Heavily souped-up breaker-style circuit with explosive punch, massive dynamic range, and expressive touch sensitivity • Independent Level, Drive, and Tone controls • Handcrafted in the UK for ultimate quality • Standard 9V power input for convenience • True bypass switching for clean signal

The Great British Drive™: vintage blues drive, rebuilt with modern muscle.

The Mythos Pedals - Spartan Series Olympus Overdrive marks the first in the Spartan Series from Mythos, which is an homage to the earliest, labor intensive designs that put Zach and the Mythos brand on the map. Sourcing the best possible components this three-knob overdrive takes it's inspiration from the Gainster/Hoochie Mama circuit that has become hot on the used pedal market. Dynamic, tweed-like voicing that runs well as a low gain boost all the way up to an a full on overdrive. As always, a great, versatile and usable pedal from Mythos.

From Mythos: The Olympus features Volume, Presence, and Gain controls. These three knobs are incredibly interactive, the tonality changes with the gain low and high so you have to use the Presence to voice the high end to fit your rig depending on how much gain you like. The overall voicing is ever so slightly mid-pushed and is often compared to classic “Tweed” amps of yesteryear. The Gain control allows you to go from a very natural boost to a gnarly drive sound that doesn’t step on the toes of your rig, just nudges it to an angrier sound.

The “Spartan” Series features the highest quality components I could find. Low Tolerance Carbon Comp Resistors, Large Wima Capacitors, as well as Silver Mica and Polystyrene caps offer up the smoothest and most natural high end. The Op-Amp in this circuit is a Texas Instruments TL072CP which has incredibly low noise and in overdrive circuits it offers up an responsive feel with nice clarity.

In addition to all the high quality through-hole style components the “Spartan” series features SMT designs that do all of the power filtering and protection as well as other utility features. None of the SMT components are in the audio path of the pedal.

FUGGEDABOUTIT

He’s back, and of course he’s changed his name. He’s the guy you need to know if you want to get the job done.

• Maybe you want to boost a truckload of amps? Fuggedaboutit!

• Need to rough up some lowlife pedals that won’t give up the goods? Fuggedaboutit.

• Maybe that single coil is trying to talk a little too cute? Fuggedaboutit…

• That humbucker is wise-crackin’ too loud and you want to clean up his act? Fuggedaboutit!

• Got a rig that’s trying to play it squeaky clean and you need to dirty him up a bit? Fuggedaboutit.

• Need a job done by a guy that has guts made of high voltage amp parts? Fuggedaboutit!

The Fuggedaboutit pedal was designed to overdrive, condition, or boost your signal before vintage amps. other pedals, and amp simulators.

The Volume control sets the output level, any setting on this control is useable, but most will fall between 9 o clock and 1 o clock for unity gain.

The tone control sets the overall brightness and tightness, but it also increases gain a bit as it is turned up.

Most users will find 11 o clock to 3 o clock to be the sweet spot, but again, anything works here. low setting have lots of weight and keep the pedal a low gain affair.

The Gain control sets the sustain and harmonic content. Truly anything goes on the gain control, and I recommend you explore the range with your different guitars an amps. Boost an amp by setting the gain very low and the volume high can have exceptional results, while using higher gain settings and then keeping the output at unity can be the ticket with you need to control volume and have a switchable clean sound.

The left toggle chooses between stock bess content and enhanced bass. When boosting amps the stock setting with keep things tight, and when playing at unity and letting the Fuggedaboutit carry the OD sound the enhanced bass is often a good choice, it can also work miricles with that Strat Bridge pickup.

The right toggle chooses the symmetry and picking dynamics. Set to the left, you have the stock setting, this is assymmetric, many peole feel this is the tweed sound, and blends really well with cranked vintage amps. Set to the right, you get the dynamic attack setting, this is smoother and punchier, which works when you need to push smooth gain and operate at unity gain into a clean amp.

Please use a 9-30 volt DC negative tip adaptor to power the Fuggedaboutit.

We finally did it! We made a distortion pedal. For Black Friday 2025 Mythos Pedals is releasing The Victor, a tribute to one of the most iconic hard clipping distortion pedals of all time. The Victor is a Through Hole type build using the best parts we could get. Wima Caps, OP07CP Chip, NOS Carbon Comp resistors populate the purple circuit board inside this new limited release.

Sonically The Victor has an improved Filter and Distortion control, with a better range and taper. The overall amount of low end has been boosted slightly and the max distortion level has been brought down to make this pedal a touch more responsive and dynamic. The iconic sounds of that vermin-inspired gain box are here and built to the highest degree possible from the team at Mythos.

The Victor features:

• Through Hole Construction with NOS components.
• True Bypass Switching
• Volume, Filter, Distortion Controls
• Quality Top Mount Panel Jacks
• Custom Bent Metal Enclosure

The "Gainster" Overdrive/Boost Pedal

Add more gain to your guitar playing with minimal coloration to your signal. This pedal is designed to preserve the tone of your guitar and every nuance of your playing style while adding a convincing tweed-like growl.

Features:

• Powder coat finish with hand painted graphics on each pedal.
• Full size internal components.
• Hand-wired, point to point on a premium fiberboard circuit card (just like my amps).