Only 50 units of this limited edition Black Ash were produced.

It was only available in Japan and sold out as soon as it went on sale.

This is an unused item that has been stored as a collection item.

The following is a quote from the manufacturer's website.

The long-awaited limited reissue of the “Black Ash” fuzz, one of the most popular and expensive used fuzzes in the EarthQuaker Devices lineup, which is no longer in production.

EQD's current lineup of fuzz pedals includes the Hoof, Park, Hizumitas, and Dirts Transmitter, but the Black Ash is a different type of fuzz pedal from all of them, a Tone Bender Mk. In the words of Jamie Stillman, the founder of EQD and designer of the Black Ash, the Black Ash is “a fuzz that is a combination of the Tone Bender Mk.I and Mk.II. The fuzz sound has a fine texture, not to say it is like distortion.

The original Tone Bender Mk. I and Mk. II both use germanium transistors, but the Black Ash uses only silicon transistors to create distortion. Therefore, it is impossible for the sound to change depending on the temperature, as is often the case with products using germanium transistors, and there are no large individual differences. I and Mk. II vintage tones.

Originally, there was a trimmer on the board of Black Ash to fine-tune the behavior of the transistor at the time of shipment, and the trimmer was musical. However, the trimmer did not have the range, curve, and component strength to allow active movement, so we improved these three points and installed a “Bias Control” on the side of the chassis. This is only available on the CULT Limited model.

Turning the Bias control toward the front gives the sound a compressed feel, and turning it fully in the same direction produces a “buzzing...” effect, which is similar to a Velcro fuzz. When the Bias control is turned all the way down, the sound becomes more like a “buzzy” Velcro fuzz. Turning the control to the opposite direction increases the separation and volume of the chords, resulting in a more natural drive sound.

Having owned the original Tone Bender Mk.II and having used the “real” Mk.I, CULT feels that the Black Ash is made with the best parts of the original in mind. I would not say that it is exactly like the original (since it was not made with that goal in mind), but the exquisite amount of distortion and the comfortable high frequency saturation in the distortion make me feel the work of a person who knows vintage tones.