Gear Review: Third Man Records Bumble Buzz Pedal

Jack White's record label, Third Man Records, is branching out in all directions. Adding to his product line is the Bumble Buzz effects pedal. I wouldn't call it a guitar pedal because his demo video has a bass guitar and a fiddle running through it. This pedal is heavy in fuzz and clip. There are no knobs to adjust so it is truly a one trick pony. The name is true to its tone as it has a buzz type fuzz with a slight warmth. it is then heavily gated to cut the hum and feedback that is not necessarily desired. the gating almost gives a stutter effect which adds to the "Jack White"-ness. There is also a harmonic effect that limits the output to two maybe three strings of the guitar. I have found running an overdrive or EQ pedal after this adds new tone features to the sound output that can help control frequencies and eliminate some unwanted overtones.  I don't mind listening to this pedal straight into an amp as it has an amazing amount of character, and sits nicely in a mix of bass and drums.

(The standard model is black. To get the yellow version of the pedal you have to become a Vault Member)