1. Overview
2. Initial thoughts
3. Video Overview
4. Samples
5. Picture Gallery
6. Construction and cosmetic concerns
7. Conclusion
8. View All

From the maker:

description:
clean boost with fuzz undertone
works well with bass, guitar, vocals, synths, drums, and anything else you can run through it.

controls:
volume knob : lots of gain on tap.
control knob : changes fuzz intensity and character.

specifications:
true bypass
mxr sized enclosure
boutique quality components
incredibly low mA draw
silicon transistor based
9 volt, 2.1 mm, negative tip power jack
9 volt battery snap inside (unscrew the back plate)

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Initial thoughts:

Hot on the heels of my review of the Devi Ever Bass Fuzz I follow with a view of another creation from her shop: The Year of the Rat.
Listening to samples, and exploring some of the other pedals in the line have always lead me to believe that subtly wasn’t something I was going to get from a Devi Ever pedal, but lo and behold… it happened.

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Video Overview

Overview Video:

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Samples

Positions for Testing (in o’clocks):

1. Volume 3, Control 9
2. Volume 12, Control 12
3. Volume 11, Control 5

Note: Headphones or good speakers required. Bass samples!

P Bass

Position	Sample
1	1
2
3
1	2
2
3
1	3
2
3
	Mix

Active J

Position	Sample
3	1
	2
	3

Fretless

Position	Sample
3	1
	2
	3

Short 5

Position	Sample
3	1
	1.5
	2
	3

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Picture Gallery

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Construction and cosmetic concerns:

Basic mxr sized boxed painted in a nice red sparkle color, it seems pretty durable and after a couple of drops has yet to chip or scratch up. Logos and and label consist of single sticker adhered to on the front.

The insides appear a little unruly but the “shake test” revealed nothing at all. There is no clip for the battery, but with the case being so small, it’s not really going anywhere once inserted and this appears to be true for all of the small box Devi Ever line (or at least the 3 I’ve tried). The circuit itself is free-floating and has been swaddled in tape to keep it from bouncing around the inside of the box. I would prefer a mounted board personally, but Devi mentioned it in our conversation:

Hopefully the other pedals will please you in some way as well, and I’m already cringing at the inside shots of the Year of the Rat (we haven’t updated the inside board yet to more “boutique” standards, so it’s going to look not-so-boutique, but I’d like to go ahead and say for the record, that after five years of building and selling thousands of pedals, I’ve never had one returned to me broken due to my use of electrical tape and friction!

<repeating rant>Side layout of jacks is fine, but I still always end up struggling with power taps that are located just below the jack, I feel like I’m always fighting with it when I want to use it. Battery access is the standard 4 screw system.</repeating>

Power is disengaged when there is a battery present and a guitar cable is not inserted in the in jack. If you are using a power supply the pedal will power up even if the guitar cable is no present (not sure why this second behavior matters, but I figured I’d mention it).

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Conclusion:

This is not a bass fuzz, but it is very usable by bass. The pedal in most settings is acting as a boost and doing very little to impact the frequency outputs. It’s the sonic equivalent of a ‘cherry on top’, where you get all the good flavor you put into the cone, with a little extra sumthin sumthin… While this is unlike a lot of other fuzz pedals that I’ve tried I do like it, even though it’s a tad subtler than I would normally go for.

With the control cranked to 5 o’clock the fundamental note and attack are there AND you get some sparkly fizz thrown in on the side. For people that are overwhelmed by fuzz and how to use it in a band context this will be a great pedal, because you can probably use it without offending any but the most conservative of guitar players, because at the core you still sound like you!

Quick playing and ringing arpeggios aren’t impacted negatively in your core sound, but the fuzz sitting on top does get a little indistinct.

An affordable pedal, excellent usability on bass and a more subtle flavor than your average fuzz will make this a great choice for some people. Is this the time of renewal and change as fortold in the Chinease Zodic for Devi Ever as “the new fuzz conservative”? I doubt it, but let the year play out before making a decision!

As always, if you have any questions, leave a comment or let me know

Note: A rating of 5 = acceptable and should considered a ‘good’ basic score

Sound Category: Clean, Fizzy, Subtle
Construction: 4
Versatility: 4
Sound: 7
Value: 8
Overall: 6
Adding to the collection:Yes