Let’s be honest: bass fuzz sometimes gets a bad reputation, and if you’re not sure what types of tone you’re after, how to refine your sound, or where to place your fuzz pedal in your signal chain, then don’t worry — we’ve got you covered! It’s far too common for bassists to abandon the idea altogether. We’ve all been there, hearing some killer distorted lows that we can never find when taking pedals for a drive. Understanding what’s going on inside the pedal and how different designs result in distinct profiles of distortion can make all the difference in selecting your sound. Moreover, just because something isn’t expressly labeled for bass doesn’t mean it can’t be a solid choice! Due to this tricky distinction, you’ll find a handful of options included that you might have otherwise never considered. Of course, we’re here to help you navigate that, and every bass-specific inclusion has been engineered by the best in the biz to ensure no shade of grit is ever out of view. How do you pick the right one? Don’t worry — we’ve got you. Here are our picks for the best fuzz pedals for the bass guitar.
Note: At Sweetwater, we know there’s no such thing as “best” when it comes to music gear. Every player and artist has unique tastes, which is what makes selecting gear so fun! The items on this list feature some of our favorite products from top manufacturers to help you start your buying journey! Explore these recommendations and dive into Sweetwater’s massive collection of gear on our online store. For personalized picks and expert advice, please contact our knowledgeable Sweetwater Sales Engineers at (800) 222-4700!
- Electro-Harmonix Bass Big Muff Pi Bass Fuzz Pedal
- Way Huge Pork and Pickle Smalls Bass Overdrive Pedal
- Source Audio Aftershock Bass Distortion Pedal
- Pro Co RAT 2 Distortion/Fuzz/Overdrive Pedal
- JHS Muffuletta 6-way Fuzz Pedal
- Walrus Audio Eons 5-state Fuzz Pedal
- MXR M84 Bass Fuzz Deluxe Pedal
- Aguilar Fuzzistor V2 Bass Fuzz Pedal
- Darkglass Duality Dual Fuzz Engine Mini Pedal
Electro-Harmonix Bass Big Muff Pi Bass Fuzz Pedal
Quintessential buzz for booming bass
In 1970, Electro-Harmonix would forever alter the pedal landscape with the release of its Big Muff Pi fuzz pedal, finding favor with such artists as Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmour, and Carlos Santana, just to name a few. While bassists loved it, EHX realized that a tailored bass solution would better fit a bassist’s needs. Enter: the Electro-Harmonix Bass Big Muff Pi bass fuzz pedal. Modeled from its treble-loving predecessor, the Bass Big Muff Pi features a straightforward, 3-knob array for volume, tone, and sustain parameters. However, unlike its sonic sibling, the Bass Big Muff Pi’s analog circuitry was engineered for use with the lowest reaches of the spectrum. From fricative fuzz to menacing malice, you’re guaranteed a broad swath of diverse dirt, especially with the bass boost switch. You even get dedicated outputs for dry and effects-laden signals for maximum tone crafting.
Way Huge Pork and Pickle Smalls Bass Overdrive Pedal
Diverse dirt in a pint-size powerhouse
Since its inception, Way Huge has commanded the attention of pedal enthusiasts with its ’70s-style aesthetics and inventive naming. Humorous as they are, you might be surprised to learn their pension for tongue-in-cheek names is anything but a way to mask an underwhelming product. The Way Huge Pork and Pickle Smalls bass overdrive pedal ups the ante by delivering a full-size suite of fuzz and overdrive in a pint-size package that doesn’t compromise on tone. There are more than just dedicated overdrive and fuzz modes, too. This two-in-one dirtbox delivers even more sonic terrain and can drive the British-style clean preamp into the fuzz circuit. If you’re feeling extra adventurous, then you can get under the hood to fine-tune tones via level, curve, and presence adjustments, culminating in a robust rig of flexible sound.
Source Audio Aftershock Bass Distortion Pedal
Three engines of cutting-edge control
This triptych of tone hides a bevy of bass-sculpting options. Still, on foundations alone, the Source Audio Aftershock bass distortion pedal would be enough to be the last distortion pedal any bassist might buy. Its 3-engine architecture boasts tube, heavy, and fuzz modes to traverse tonal terrain ranging from creamy overdrive and germanium fuzz up to modern metal’s pension for mid-scooped, scorched-earth lows. An intuitive control scheme lets you quickly explore and shape tone options throughout the spectrum without ever compromising on low-frequency heft. Because this is Source Audio, the physical pedal is just the beginning of your sound-crafting odyssey; it’s capable of MIDI control, storing up to 128 presets, and featuring a full suite of deep editing and patch discovery via the complementary Neuro Editor for desktop or mobile. You’ll find dozens of additional algorithms to download directly to your pedal. Did we mention that its flexible I/O stereo pair can function as an effects loop?
Pro Co RAT 2 Distortion/Fuzz/Overdrive Pedal
Legacy distortion with unmatched flexibility
Few pedals stir up debate quite like Pro Co RATs, but it comes from enthusiasm regarding which ones are the “best” pedals — all the way down to the serial numbers and batches of release. While those arguments will likely never be settled, they’re based on the shared conviction that Pro Co’s distortion is a superlative stompbox essential to every pedalboard, and the Pro Co RAT 2 distortion/fuzz/overdrive pedal expertly augments that tonal territory for modern malice. Armed with just three controls and one switch, this iconic hard-clipping distortion pedal hides a litany of harmonic-rich texturizing tools capable of dirty boost, British-style high gain, searing crunch, and everything in between. It’s a formidable fuzz box that can more than hold its own. When the RAT 2 is placed into a pedalboard arrangement, you’ll find its versatility even more valuable as you experiment with your signal chain.
JHS Muffuletta 6-way Fuzz Pedal
Six Sicilian-inspired sonics with gratuitous grit
JHS founder Josh Scott is nothing short of scholarly regarding his knowledge of pedal history and design; he regularly pursues projects to reinvigorate the guitar world with homages and reimagined takes on niche or oft-forgotten tones. The JHS Muffuletta 6-way fuzz pedal perfectly distills that sonic reverence, boasting an array of tonal flavors worthy of its Sicilian-inspired namesake sandwich. Five vintage-inspired fuzz tones include “The Civil War,” “The Russian,” “The Pi,” “The Triangle,” and “The ’73 Rams Head,” each precision-engineered to deliver distinct dirt. Volume, sustain, and tone controls let you refine each option without compromising the respective core character of each. What about that sixth option? Aptly titled “JHS,” this option features the company’s spin on the aural aesthetics of the era, trading compression for power with heavy-hitting mids that feel especially optimized for bass.
Walrus Audio Eons 5-state Fuzz Pedal
A pentacle of premium pedalboard power
It may be tempting to question how the Walrus Audio Eons 5-state fuzz pedal differs from the Muffuletta above. While they’re similar in their historic homage structures, Walrus Audio’s approach favors reimagining iconic tones through a modern lens rather than re-creating them as they were. And there’s no wrong way to honor the classics! Each of the Eons’ five states is derived from a tonal triumvirate of clipping styles: silicon, germanium, and LED. Each is recombined and fused in variable capacities to yield a gamut of textures that ranges from soft-clipped and smooth fuzz to aggressive, hard-clipped, and compressed sonics. Because each state is so distinct, you can be assured that the onboard controls evoke plenty of additional mileage with options. The voltage control lets you continuously attenuate your tone from 3-volt to 18-volt settings, resulting in a wild-card variable that gives you a new dimension of sonic sculpting.
MXR M84 Bass Fuzz Deluxe Pedal
Vintage-inspired fuzz retooled for today
Dunlop’s MXR Bass Innovations line reconfigures tones from MXR’s and Dunlop’s history of sound design for a contemporary iteration that balances spirit and style. The MXR M84 Bass Fuzz Deluxe pedal masterfully executes this promise by transmogrifying vintage, bold bass fuzz into a characteristically modern redux on iconic tone. MXR’s carefully crafted circuitry doesn’t just impress through its accurate preservation of your bass tone. Still, it offers distinct controls for wet and dry signal volume, allowing you to create nuanced shades of fuzz that capture the character of two independent amplifiers rather than a conventionally blended signal. Its straightforward design and economical form factor are packed with impressive, versatile power, capable of moving seamlessly between modern and vintage vibes. After all, MXR designed the pedal by modifying an authentic, vintage guitar fuzz circuit!
Aguilar Fuzzistor V2 Bass Fuzz Pedal
Analog-fueled, ’70s-style silicon sonics . . . and more
Beating at the heart of the Aguilar Fuzzistor V2 bass fuzz pedal is a silicon transistor and all-analog gain that puts ’70s-era fuzz at one end of your sonic spectrum and frenzied, chaotically clipping crunch at the other. While its core profile is steeped in vintage flavor, contemporary tones are never beyond the pale, especially with the fan-favorite tilt EQ feature that allows you to simultaneously cut and boost different frequency ranges to achieve a broad range of tight, wide, thumping, or punchy tones with ease. With the fuzz and volume levels being independently adjustable, you can explore various harmonics and overtones that you can tailor with the blend control. Brimming with heft and a timeless sonic core, Aguilar’s Fuzzistor V2 dares you to see — or hear — how far you can push it.
Darkglass Duality Dual Fuzz Engine Mini Pedal
A delightful contradiction of simplicity and versatility
Darkglass released its original Duality Fuzz to critical acclaim, bolstering bassists’ tones with a memorable array of styles and tones. After exiting the market, Darkglass meticulously re-engineered this fan favorite as the Duality Dual Fuzz Engine mini pedal, delivering what feels like an impossible range of tone-sculpting possibilities in an unassuming miniature package. Its two distinct circuits comprise a gated sawtooth wave and searing, high-powered grit. A stacked dyad of control knobs attenuates level and duality, letting you morph and blend between the circuits to dial in the sweet spot. For those with an ear for the finer details, the back plate pops off to provide access to blend and filter controls that alter the shape of the blending curve between circuits and the upper range of distorted tones, respectively.
Ready to Give Your Bass a Boost?
Sometimes, you need subtle sonic reinforcement. But other times may call for more drastic measures. The innumerable flavors of overdrive, fuzz, boost, dirt, and distortion afford any bassist a nearly endless number of tone-crafting opportunities. We understand that nailing down the right choice is easier said than done. Each option included here represents a sizable spectrum of sonic possibilities, but they’re hardly the entire spread. Plus, tone is elusive, right? One pedal that might sound great in one rig could be the wrong choice for another, even with the same bass guitar. With so many permutations in how you can configure and explore sound, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed, but our support in your pursuit of sound doesn’t stop with this writing. Sweetwater Sales Engineers are expertly educated and constantly engaging with vendors, designers, manufacturers, and more to remain on the cutting edge of knowledge — past, current, and future. If you are looking to take the next step for your bass playing, want to explore more bass fuzz pedals, or need assistance configuring your rig, then reach out to one of our Sweetwater Sales Engineers at (800) 222-4700 and get started today!
