The Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1 is a fuzz pedal. Close alternatives include the Dunlop Joe Bonamassa Fuzz Face JB-F3 Copper Top and the JHS Pedals JHS 1966 Italy Tone Bender. It pairs well with the Marshall Bluesbreaker and the Fender Vibrolux 6G11.

Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1

Unknown brand · pedal

The Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1, designed by Gary Stewart Hurst in 1965, was the first Tone Bender fuzz, built as a louder, more sustaining answer to the Gibson Maestro FZ-1 Fuzz-Tone. Its three-transistor circuit runs on 9V rather than the FZ-1's lower voltage, giving it a raw, harmonically rich, high-gain fuzz that stays surprisingly clear on chords for a fuzz of its era. It is notably reactive to different pickups, producing a tasteful chime on single coils and a distinctive gating effect in the low end with hotter humbuckers. Fewer than 100 original units were built, some as custom jobs for Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, and it was famously heard on The Yardbirds' Heart Full of Soul.

What stands out

  • “• [Sound] Raw, gated germanium fuzz with a choppy, visceral attack — fuller and darker than MK2; described as absolutely gnarly and rude at full gain • [Use] Lead tones and vintage British rock rhythm; excels at single-note lines that need …”

    — from the community notes

  • “[Pros] ✓ Hard-gating behavior at low attack settings transitions to full fuzz explosion at max — a dynamic range ✓ Responds superbly to guitar volume rollback, yielding usable bell-like clean and mild crunch t…”

    — from the reviews

  • “yields bell-like cleans to crunch”

    — from the community notes

  • “It is notably reactive to different pickups, producing a tasteful chime on single coils and a distinctive gating effect in the low end with hotter humbuckers”

    — from the listing

Trade-offs

  • “making consistent clones difficult to find”

    — from the community notes

  • “heart full of soul”

    — from the listing

  • transistor
  • full
  • fuzz
  • gain
  • attack
  • cut
  • british
  • germanium

Genres the Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1 is commonly used in

  • Experimental
  • Soul
  • Rock
  • Alternative
    citedInferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag.
  • Classic Rock
    citedInferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag.
  • Blues Rock
    citedInferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag.

Amps that pair well with the Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1

Marshall Bluesbreaker

Marshall

25% match

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (bright → warm)

Marshall Bluesbreaker's warm balances out the bright tone

Comes later in the signal chain

Fender Vibrolux 6G11

amplifier

25% match

sits 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)

Fender Vibrolux 6G11 layers modulated onto an already fuzzy signal

Comes later in the signal chain

Ceriatone HRM 50

Ceriatone

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Feed a crunchy signal into Ceriatone HRM 50 and it comes out closer to mid-forward

Ceriatone Overtone Special HRM Bluesmaster 50

Ceriatone

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Stack Ceriatone Overtone Special HRM Bluesmaster 50 on top and a crunchy tone tightens toward mid-forward

Ampeg V-4

Ampeg

tonal match
$559via Reverb

Comes later in the signal chain

Ampeg V-4 takes that crunchy character and pushes it toward mid-forward

Ampeg BA 108

Ampeg

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Ampeg BA 108 pushes a crunchy tone toward mid-forward

Magnatone 460

Magnatone

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Run fuzzy into Magnatone 460 for more modulated on top

Gallien-Krueger Fusion 210

Gallien Krueger

tonal match
$1849via Reverb

Comes later in the signal chain

Gallien-Krueger Fusion 210 takes that crunchy character and pushes it toward mid-forward

Pedals that stack with the Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1

Ibanez Tube Screamer

Ibanez

29% match

pushes an already-dirty tonePushes an already-dirty tone harder and tightens it up. (crunchy → mid-forward)

Tone Bender MK1's transistor fuzz stacks ahead of the Tube Screamer for a thicker, more British-voiced wall of gain.

Comes earlier in the signal chain

Walrus Audio EB-10 Black Edition

Walrus Audio

28% match
$199.99via Reverb

gain stackingStacks two gain stages for more saturation than either produces alone. (fuzzy → clean boost)

Run fuzzy into Walrus Audio EB-10 Black Edition for more clean boost on top

Comes earlier in the signal chain

Old Blood Noise Endeavors Dark Star V3

Old Blood Noise Endeavors

27% match
$299via Reverb

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (dark → glassy)

Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1 leans glassy right where the dark tone needs it — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)

Comes later in the signal chain

Vox Wah Pedal (General)

Vox

26% match

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (dark → glassy)

Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1's own full 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% match
$215.59via Reverb

sits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor.

Put Caroline Guitar Company Parabola State Tremolo after Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1 in the signal chain, clear of Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1's own gain stage

Comes later in the signal chain

Walrus Audio Slö Multi-Texture Reverb

Walrus Audio

23% match
$209.63via Reverb

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (dark → glassy)

Where this leans dark, Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1 answers back glassy — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)

Comes later in the signal chain

Death By Audio Reverberation Machine

Death By Audio

22% match
$225via Reverb

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (dark → glassy)

Run Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1 after it and the dark edge settles into something more glassy — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)

Comes later in the signal chain

Alexander Pedals Quadrant Audio Mirror

Alexander Pedals

22% match
$199.99via Reverb

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (dark → glassy)

Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1's glassy balances out the dark tone — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)

Comes later in the signal chain

See all 12 pedals that pair with the Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1 →

Alternativessee all similar tone character →

Dunlop Joe Bonamassa Fuzz Face JB-F3 Copper Top

Dunlop

65% similarity

Shared character: use, attack, mix

JHS Pedals JHS 1966 Italy Tone Bender

JHS Pedals

61% similarity

“is a faithful boutique reproduction of the original 1966 Italian-made Tone Bender Mk I germanium fuzz circuit”

Spaceman Charon GE/SI Hybrid

Spaceman

60% similarity
$199via Reverb

Shared character: raw, fuzz, crunch

Crazy Tube Circuits Constellation OC41

Crazy Tube Circuits

59% similarity

Shared character: high gain settings, single coils, fuzz

Maestro FZ-1 Fuzz-Tone

Maestro

58% similarity
$430via Reverb

Shared character: raw, lead

Tru-Fi Two Face

Tru Fi

57% similarity
$209.95via Reverb

Shared character: grit, fuzz, high gain settings

Sola Sound Tone Bender Professional MKII

pedal

57% similarity
$244.49via Reverb

Shared character: attack, fuzz, gain

Tru-Fi The Spider Fuzz

Tru Fi

57% similarity
$199.95via Reverb

Shared character: raw, attack, fuzz

Warm Audio WarmBender Selectable 3 Circuit Fuzz

Warm Audio

56% similarity
$199via Reverb

Shared character: high gain settings, attack, fuzz

Spaceman Effects Charon

Spaceman

56% similarity
$199via Reverb

Shared character: fuzz, crunch, full

ZVEX Fuzz Factory

Zvex

54% similarity
$199via Reverb

Shared character: fuzz, response, vintage charm

Tru-Fi Tru-Fi Sammy Fuzz

Tru Fi

54% similarity
$189.95via Reverb

Shared character: single coils, attack, fuzz

See all alternatives to the Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1 (cheaper + boutique) →

Questions people ask

What are good alternatives to the Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1?+

The closest matches in character are the Dunlop Joe Bonamassa Fuzz Face JB-F3 Copper Top, the JHS Pedals JHS 1966 Italy Tone Bender, the Spaceman Charon GE/SI Hybrid.

What pairs well with the Sola Sound Tone Bender MK1?+

Strong matches from rig and tone-complementarity evidence: Marshall Bluesbreaker, Fender Vibrolux 6G11, Ceriatone HRM 50 — Marshall Bluesbreaker's warm balances out the bright tone.

Compare

Related searches