Fuchs Audio Technology acknowledges the passing of Les Paul (1915-2009)

Photo: Andy Fuchs, Jay Jacobs, Les Paul, and Chris Ambadjes, some old friends from Long Island, circa 1982/3.

One day, while walking home from school, I discovered an old white metal hamper in someone’s trash. Since I was the kid who always took home the broken TV, record player, or stereo, I peeked inside. It was filled with 45 records from the 50’s and 60’s. I took them home and began playing them. There were records by Sam Cooke, Chuck Berry, Brook Benton, the Beatles and others, all who impressed and influenced me musically. None more than Les Paul. Many of the 45’s were by Les Paul and Mary Ford. His dizzying runs, his stellar guitar tones, and Mary’s angelic voice mesmerized that 10 year old, and left an indelible impression on me that remains to this day.

The more I learned about his musical and electronics career, the more I felt drawn to him as someone who’s life amazingly was an eerie harbinger of what my life became as a musician, and a technician and, eventually, a manufacturer. At 23, I was invited to Les’ home and jammed with him one night. I had serviced his former rhythm guitarist Wayne Wright’s amps for many years, and when the phone call came I was honored to go and in total awe of the experience. We talked guitars, music, electronics, and I’ll never forget his wit, his knowledge, and the willingness to spend time with a techno-geek like I was at the time. Thanks for passing through my life. Sorry about that guitar pick I snuck out of your house with. Thanks for signing a few guitars.

Vaya Con Dios (Go With God), Les Paul.

Andy Fuchs

[06/02/09]
New Plush® Pedals Announced. Now In Production: Plush® Tube FX Loop™ and Good Verbrations™!

The Plush® Tube FX Loop™ is the most affordable and flexible all-tube external effects loop on the market! Unlike other “tube pedals,” the Tube FX Loop™ features a power supply with a unique regulated switching technology that takes the incoming 9 volts and converts it up to the optimal 300-Volt high voltage a tube really needs to operate best. In addition, a precision 6-volt DC regulator provides consistent DC power for the tube filament assuring lowest noise and consistent performance despite any changes to incoming line voltage. It can also be used as a tube buffer to convert an incoming high impedance signal to a low impedance for long cable runs or driving a pedal board. The recovery (gain) stage can be used to boost the level of a guitar or pedal board with a true tube audio stage. It provides a warm sweet utility gain stage with a multitude of uses. The Tube FX Loop™ features a unity gain cathode follower to work with any amp that has passive preamp output - power amp input patch jacks, and not a true active effects loop like Ceriatone, Dumble, Bludotone, Brown Note, Quinn, and many other amps. It has a send level control and high headroom. The return portion of the loop features a high impedance input (250-K) and a low output impedance (5-K) with its own level control as well. The loop can be run in series or parallel modes, and features a level adjust switch for rack or pedal style effects. A 9-volt DC adaptor is provided. Like all Fuchs pedals, the Tube FX Loop™ features solid cast aluminum powder coated enclosure with heat cured silk screening, dual sided heavy circuit boards, premium switches and controls, and premium electronic parts throughout. Retail: $329.00.

Good Verbrations™. The same innovative reverb circuit in our Verbrator™ is now available as a dedicated reverb pedal! Unlike many other reverb pedals, Good Verbrations™ allows you to adjust both the level and decay of the reverb signal. You can adjust from a tight short decay, to a long and lush decay, and with total musicality. The reverb circuit is an audiophile grade 16-Khz bandwidth digital circuit. Good Verbrations™ is extremely low noise, simple to operate, and it can run on guitar or -20-db loop level operation. Like all Plush® pedals, Good Verbrations™ can run on a 9-V battery or a DC adaptor, features an ultra-bright LED, and features solid cast aluminum power coated enclosure, heat cured silk screening, dual-sided heavy circuit board, premium switches and controls, and premium electronic parts throughout. Retail: $249.00.

[11/06/08]
Coming by the end of 2008! New Pedals: Pure Gain Plus™ and The Verbrator™

The Pure Gain Plus™ combines two of the world's quietest gain boosts with an A/B box. Based on an ingenious suggestion by Dweezil Zappa, the Pure Gain Plus™ allows you to both balance and boost the levels of two guitars (for example a single coil and a humbucker guitar). It switches to mono operation when only one instrument is plugged-in, allowing it to function as a three mode booster: bypass, and two discrete boost levels.

Like the Pure Gain™, when the boost level is at ‘0’ position, the booster acts as a buffer, reducing your guitar’s impedance to about 20-K, allowing it to drive long cables or additional effects on a pedalboard with minimum sonic impact. Until you’ve heard the increase in clarity, detail and reduction in noise this impedance change can bring, you haven’t heard what you’ve been missing!

9-V battery or DC adaptor powered, the Pure Gain Plus™ features bright LEDs for each input as well as showing which boost channel is engaged. When the unit is bypassed, the respective LED blinks, and when active it turns solid. Like all Fuchs pedals, the Pure Gain Plus™ features solid cast aluminum power coated enclosure, heat cured silk screening, dual-sided heavy circuit boards, premium switches and controls, and premium electronic parts throughout. It is covered by a 5-year warranty with a retail price of $249.

The Verbrator™ is a new multipurpose pedal which combines an all-tube effects loop with a studio grade reverb featuring a 32-Khz clock speed for full 16-K audio bandwidth. The Verbrator™ is our most innovative pedal offering to date. It’s an effects loop, it’s a reverb, it’s both!

Unlike other “tube pedals,” the Verbrator™ power supply features a unique regulated switching technology that takes the incoming 9 volts and converts it up to the optimal high voltage a tube really needs to operate best. In addition, a 6-volt DC regulator provides consistent clean DC power for the tube filament assuring lowest noise and consistent performance despite any changes to incoming line voltage.

The Verbrator™ can be used as a pedal on a pedal board as a reverb pedal. It features a level control and decay control allowing you to have a short medium or long decay reverb algorithm. It can also be used as a tube buffer to convert an incoming high impedance signal to a low impedance for long cable runs or driving a pedal board. The recovery (gain) stage can be used to boost the level of a guitar or pedal board with a true tube audio stage. It provides a warm sweet utility gain stage with a multitude of uses.

The effects loop portion of the pedal features a unity gain cathode follower to work with any amp that has passive preamp output - power amp input patch jacks, and not a true active effects loop like Ceriatone, Dumble, Bludotone, Brown Note, some Marshall models and others. It has a send level control and high headroom. The return portion of the loop features a high impedance input (250-K) and a low output impedance with its own level control as well. The loop can be run in series or parallel modes, and features a level adjust switch for rack or pedal style effects.

9-volt DC adaptor provided, the Verbrator™ features a unique “window” showing the tube. Like all Fuchs pedals, the Verbrator™ features solid cast aluminum powder coated enclosure with heat cured silk screening, dual sided heavy circuit boards, premium switches and controls, and premium electronic parts throughout. It is covered by a 5-year warranty, excluding the tube, with a retail price of $369.

[9/12/08]
By popular request, Fuchs Audio Technology has now introduced
the ODS-HRM

The original ODS preamp architecture was influenced by the D-style amps of the 70's and 80's, and will remain in production in all power ranges from 30 through 150 watts.

The new ODS HRM is heavily influenced by the 90's style D-style circuit architecture, and adds a unique, very flexible internal post overdrive tone stack, which provides a full range of adjustment for high, midrange and lows after the overdrive stages. In addition to allowing a player to tune both his clean and dirty tones to perfection, the overall overdrive gain architecture cleans up exceptionally well from the guitar. The HRM amps are articulate, yet can be warm, juicy and organic at the same time. The main tone controls now incorporate many of the innovations we designed for our Clean Machine™ amp, and include gain boost, mid boost, selectable mid boost frequency, and a mid/low turnover switch, which adjusts the frequency point at which the mid and low controls operate. This provides for more tonal flexibility and a wider range of clean tones.