GEAR REVIEW
MAESTRO FUZZ-TONE FZ-M | Doug Doppler
KEY FEATURES
• 9V DC or Battery Powered
• Attack , Tone , and Level Controls
• Classic / Modern Mini Toggle
• True Bypass
• Sturdy Construction
As I mentioned in the companion story to this review , the Maestro FZ-1 was not the first effect that guitar players used . However , this little wonder set the tone for every stomp box to follow with an impressive list of firsts that include battery power , engaging via a foot switch , and enabling you to dial in how much drive you want to add to your signal . It might be commonplace now , but it literally started with this pedal .
Fast forward to 2022 and Maestro is once again breaking new ground . To celebrate the relaunch of the brand , I ’ ll be unpacking the history of the electric guitar , amps , and effects in an ongoing series designed to frame the significance that Maestro played in this journey . I ’ ll also be reviewing one of the new pedals , starting with the FZ-M ! Since I already unpacked the history of the FZ-1 in this month ’ s sister feature , we can get right to the goods !
Last month I bought a vintage FZ-1A so I would have it on hand when it came time to do this review . Although the FZ-1A is the second revision to the FZ circuit it ’ s pretty darned close to v1 and when playing the riff from “ Satisfaction ” it ’ s spot on . Which begs the question , how close does the FZ-M come ? If you flip the Modern / Classic toggle to Classic mode , crank the Attack ( amount of fuzz ) and Tone controls it is 90 +% of the way there , which is saying a lot . That said , there is way more to this box than that !