Construction and cosmetic concerns:
The sideways small-form factor is part and parcel with Zvex pedals and the Mammoth is no exception. Internally the circuit is very clean and well attached to the inside of the case. The layout has been very judiciously considered to allow a battery to fit in there. If you are a battery person, the standard 4 screw method applies here. My example here is dated 1/2006 and falls into the newer version which has both an onboard power connector and LED. Older versions of this pedal can be seen without these two features, though zvex sells a power plate extra to fix at least that part. These pedals are all hand painted by an artist which is part of what drives up the cost, but to be honest I really love that the company helps support artistic endeavors in this fashion. It adds a unique flavor to each pedal, and allows for limitless variations. I’ve seen some older pedals that have a pretty bad flaking problem, but this one is holding up extremely well… unsure if there was a paint process change at any point or I just got a ‘good one’.
Thanks for this unbiased review.
It gets frustrating viewing the forums to see this pedal praised and bashed like no other, so again, thanks for the honest look.
O as an FYI, I have one marked 04 and chipping of paint is not an issue.
The paint date on mine is 11/99 and a build date of 1/26/00. No paint chipping although I’ve only used it a handful of times since I got it in 2000.