The SolidGoldFX Imperial MKII is a gated Muff-style fuzz inspired by the 1970s JEN Jumbo fuzz, itself based on the Big Muff.

JEN Elettronica was an Italian manufacturer which made pedals for the likes of Vox, Dallas Arbiter and Sound City. The JEN Jumbo Fuzz utilised faders instead of knobs and added a germanium noise-gate. 

Imperial MKII Design

Key to the Imperial MKII's design is its 4 faders, high-impedance JFET preamp and noise-gate. The circuit is based on the "Ram's Head" Big Muff

While some fuzz pedals are notorious for not playing ball if they're not the first pedal in your signal chain, the high-impedance JFET preamp of the Imperial MKII ensures that wherever you place this fuzz, it will sound awesome.

Aiming to capture the Jumbo Fuzz's unique character but with modern reliability and consistency from unit to unit, the Imperial MKII noise-gate utilises silicon transistors rather than germanium, with an improved envelope generator. The result is next to no noise from this fuzz, with no loss of sustain either - its response is fast and smooth.

Imperial MKII Controls

The Imperial MKII features 4 faders:

 Vol Controls the output volume

Tone Dial in a brighter or darker sound. Interacts with the Contour control

Contour Boosts or cuts the mids for a range of tones. Interacts with the Tone control.

Fuzz Controls the amount of gain/fuzz

Imperial MKII Demos Imperial MKII Features

• Retro-styled Muff-type fuzz pedal based on 1970s JEN Jumbo fuzz
• JFET preamp allows you to place it anywhere in your signal chain
• Noise-gate provides great clarityand tight responsee
• Handmade in Montreal, Canada
• True bypass
• Top-mounted jacks
• Power: 9V DC (centre-negative) - not included
• ~15 mA