The Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz is a Black Arts Toneworks fuzz pedal, currently around $119. Close alternatives include the EarthQuaker Devices Hizumitas-Pba and the Russian Big Muff Pi. It pairs well with the Marshall Bluesbreaker and the 1959 Fender Tweed Deluxe.
Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz
Black Arts Toneworks · pedal
The Black Arts Toneworks LSTR is a high-gain fuzz designed to deliver the signature Black Arts Toneworks extended low end along with more overall fuzz gain than the Pharaoh, tuned for aggressive rhythm and lead fuzz in stoner rock, doom, and sludge metal. The tone control system produces a characteristically scooped, wide-sounding voicing that distinguishes it from standard Big Muff-style tone stacks. An all-out rock machine built for heavy music.
What stands out
“The Black Arts Toneworks LSTR is a high-gain fuzz designed to deliver the signature Black Arts Toneworks extended low end along with more overall fuzz gain than the Pharaoh, tuned for aggressive rhythm and lead fuzz in stoner rock, doom, an…”
— from the listing
“The standout quality is the distinctive scooped tone with extended bass that creates a wide, all-consuming fuzz character”
— from the community notes
“An all-out rock machine built for heavy music”
— from the listing
“The tone control sweep has a wider scooped range than a conventional Big Muff, spending most of its useful positions in very scooped or bass-boosted territory”
— from the reviews
“High-gain fuzz with a characteristically scooped, bass-extended voicing that sits differently from standard muff circuits, tuned for maximum low-end weight and aggressive high-gain saturation for heavy music”
— from the community notes
Trade-offs
“The heavily scooped nature limits effectiveness for lead tones requiring midrange presence and cut through a band mix”
— from the community notes
“Single-coil guitars can sound relatively thin in the midrange compared to humbuckers, which benefit most from the extended bass response”
— from the reviews
“the lstr delivers a maximalist fuzz voicing that privileges low-end weight and extreme saturation over midrange clarity and note definition”
— from the reviews
- fuzz
- bass
- scooped
- low end
- high gain
- sludge
- doom
- big muff
Price updated Oct 24, 2026
Genres the Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz is commonly used in
- Stoner Rock
- Rock
- Metal
- Doom Metal
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag. - Noise Rock
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag. - Grunge
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag.
Amps that pair well with the Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz
Marshall Bluesbreaker
Marshall
46% matchThe LSTR's scooped, sludgy fuzz pushes hard against the Bluesbreaker's naturally rounder low end, useful for doom weight without losing the amp's blues-rock character entirely.
Comes later in the signal chain
1959 Fender Tweed Deluxe
Fender
41% matchRun Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz into that transparent platform and it finally leans toward fuzzy
Comes later in the signal chain
Fuchs FBT-700
Fuchs
41% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
Push the FBT-700's punchy, midrange-forward headroom with the LSTR's own scooped, sludgy fuzz and the low end stays thick, not muddy.
Comes later in the signal chain
Hiwatt Custom DR20H
Hiwatt
39% matchThe LSTR's scooped, sludgy fuzz is a heavier, doomier gain than the Hiwatt's own bright, punchy headroom usually sees.
Comes later in the signal chain
Bad Cat Cub
Bad Cat
38% matchThe LSTR's scooped, sludgy fuzz pushes hard against the Bad Cat Cub's chiming, dynamic clean voice.
Comes later in the signal chain
Hiwatt DR103H
Hiwatt
36% matchInto a high headroom tone, Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz brings a pull toward fuzzy that's missing
Comes later in the signal chain
Traynor YCV40 Custom Valve Combo
Traynor
35% matchThe YCV40's spring-reverb, headroom-rich gain gives the LSTR's scooped, doom-voiced fuzz a versatile amp platform.
Comes later in the signal chain
Boss Acoustic Singer Pro
Boss
35% matchThe Acoustic Singer Pro's notch-filtered EQ and chorus give the LSTR's scooped, doom-voiced fuzz an unusual acoustic-amp platform.
Comes later in the signal chain
See all 144 amps that pair with the Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz →
Pedals that stack with the Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz
Ibanez Tube Screamer
Ibanez
37% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
The Screamer's mid-forward boost can tighten the LSTR's scooped, sludgy fuzz ahead of it.
Comes earlier in the signal chain
Soldano SLO
Soldano
30% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
Soldano SLO pushes a scooped tone toward mid-forward
Comes later in the signal chain
MXR Dyna Comp
MXR
24% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
MXR Dyna Comp's own bright character is the real reason this is worth trying
Comes earlier in the signal chain
Caroline Guitar Company Parabola State Tremolo
Caroline Guitar Company
23% matchsits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor.
Run Caroline Guitar Company Parabola State Tremolo after Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz in the signal chain, clear of Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz's own gain stage
Comes later in the signal chain
Mad Professor Supreme Matt Schofield Overdrive
Mad Professor
21% matchgain stackingStacks two gain stages for more saturation than either produces alone. (low gain → fuzzy)
Into a low gain tone, Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz brings a pull toward fuzzy that's missing
Comes earlier in the signal chain
Pigtronix Echolution
Pigtronix
16% matchsits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor. (fuzzy → modulated)
Put Pigtronix Echolution after Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz in the signal chain, clear of Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz's own gain stage — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)
Comes later in the signal chain
Hungry Robot Moby Dick V2
Hungry Robot
16% matchsits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor. (fuzzy → modulated)
Keep Hungry Robot Moby Dick V2 after Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz in the signal chain, clear of Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz's own gain stage — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)
Comes later in the signal chain
MXR CAE Wah
MXR
tonal matchComes earlier in the signal chain
Put MXR CAE Wah in front of Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz: a wah tracks picking dynamics best on the raw signal
Cheaper alternatives
Electro-Harmonix Russian Big Muff Pi Fuzz Distortion
Electro-Harmonix
66% similarityShared character: high gain settings, big muff, fuzz
Electro-Harmonix Green Russian Big Muff
Electro-Harmonix
60% similarityShared character: big muff, mix, fuzz
Electro-Harmonix Nano Metal Muff
Electro-Harmonix
60% similarityShared character: bottom end, metal, mix
DOD Chthonic Fuzz
Dod
57% similarityShared character: fuzz
Electro-Harmonix Ram's Head Big Muff
Electro-Harmonix
96% similaritysimilar tone character
Electro-Harmonix Triangle Big Muff Pi
Electro-Harmonix
95% similaritysimilar tone character
Boutique & premium upgrades
Black Arts Toneworks Crown of Horns
Black Arts Toneworks
66% similarity“sits tonally between the Pharaoh mid-forward voicing and the LSTR scooped character”
Greer Tarpit
Greer
65% similarityShared character: metal, fuzz
EarthQuaker Devices Chelsea V1 Low End Fuzz Driver
EarthQuaker Devices
60% similarityShared character: bass, big muff, fuzz
Black Arts Toneworks Sarcophagus
Black Arts Toneworks
59% similarity“combines the Pharaoh and LSTR fuzz circuits in a single enclosure with dedicated controls for each circuit”
Black Arts Toneworks Priestess Custom
Black Arts Toneworks
58% similarity“LSTR High Output (with vocal midrange)”
JHS Pedals JHS Muffuletta
JHS Pedals
58% similarityShared character: big muff, mix, fuzz
Similar charactersee all similar tone character →
EarthQuaker Devices Hizumitas-Pba
EarthQuaker Devices
65% similarityShared character: big muff, high gain settings, metal
Russian Big Muff Pi
Russian Big Muff
64% similarityShared character: big muff, fuzz, bass
EarthQuaker Devices Barrows V1
EarthQuaker Devices
64% similarityShared character: bottom end, mix, fuzz
Mr Black Mr. Black SludgeMaster
Mr Black
63% similarityShared character: single coils, metal, fuzz
Dunlop Way Huge Doom Hammer Fuzz, model WM45
Dunlop
61% similarityShared character: big muff, high gain settings, mix
Black Arts Toneworks Destroyer V2
Black Arts Toneworks
61% similarityShared character: heavy riffs, metal, fuzz
See all alternatives to the Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz (cheaper + boutique) →
Questions people ask
What are good alternatives to the Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz?+
The closest matches in character are the EarthQuaker Devices Hizumitas-Pba, the Russian Big Muff Pi, the EarthQuaker Devices Barrows V1. Budget picks: Electro-Harmonix Russian Big Muff Pi Fuzz Distortion, Electro-Harmonix Green Russian Big Muff, Electro-Harmonix Nano Metal Muff. Boutique upgrades: Black Arts Toneworks Crown of Horns, Greer Tarpit, EarthQuaker Devices Chelsea V1 Low End Fuzz Driver.
What pairs well with the Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz?+
Strong matches from rig and tone-complementarity evidence: Marshall Bluesbreaker, 1959 Fender Tweed Deluxe, Fuchs FBT-700 — The LSTR's scooped, sludgy fuzz pushes hard against the Bluesbreaker's naturally rounder low end, useful for doom weight without losing the amp's blues-rock character entirely..
How much does the Black Arts Toneworks LSTR Fuzz cost?+
Around $119 (live listing price, updated Oct 24, 2026).
Compare
- vs Electro-Harmonix Ram's Head Big Muff
- vs Death By Audio Fuzz War
- vs Electro-Harmonix Triangle Big Muff Pi