“A class act, delivering fat, smooth and richly…

“A class act, delivering fat, smooth and richly textured fuzz that can attain a fierce edge”: ThorpyFX Hanami Germanium Fuzz review

ThorpyFX Hanami Fuzz pictured against a cracked textured surface.

What is it?

There’s something delightfully different about ThorpyFX’s latest pedal: instead of the usual military-derived theme, this one is decorated with a floral graphic.

The pedal takes its name from the Japanese custom of ‘Hanami’, where people gather to enjoy the transient beauty of cherry blossom season. But plug it in and you’re more likely to be enjoying the transient beauty of a ripping guitar solo – this is one powerful fuzz pedal!

New fuzz pedals don’t appear in a vacuum, they are usually an evolution of a previous design, and Thorpy describes the Hanami as “a natural successor sonically from where the Boneyard left off… [sitting] perfectly between the Boneyard and the Fallout Cloud”.

Now, the fact that the Boneyard was based on Tone Bender sound and the Fallout Cloud channelled the vibe of the very first (Triangle) Big Muff makes the Hanami a very interesting sonic prospect.

The circuitry here features four NOS military-specification germanium transistors and a NOS germanium diode, plus there’s a transformer isolated input, which means you can place the pedal where you want in the signal chain, rather than directly after your guitar like many fuzzes.

Unity gain is around 10 o’clock, leaving plenty for a boost should you want it.

Specs

PRICE: $399/£329
ORIGIN: UK
TYPE: Fuzz pedal
FEATURES: True bypass
CONTROLS: Level, Boost, Treble, Bass, footswitch
CONNECTIONS: Standard input, standard output
POWER: 9V DC adaptor (not supplied) 35mA
DIMENSIONS: 65 (w) x 125 (d) x 53mm (h)
CONTACT: ThorpyFX

Usability and sounds

This is a pedal that sounds smooth with loads of girth in the midrange and it has a really low noise floor compared with most fuzz pedals. The Boost knob doesn’t just increase the fuzz, it also changes the tonal content, bringing in more presence and saturation until beyond three o’clock. And while still retaining the thickness, it transitions into a sizzly, more aggressive rasp, with great note definition all the way.

In an A/B test, Tone Bender and Big Muff characteristics were in evidence, but the Hanami is its own thing and had an advantage over our vintage examples in interactive treble and bass knobs, which are not only ideal for carefully tailoring your fuzz experience to suit your electric guitar and amp but also capable of shaping the midrange profile for more radical transformations – without ever getting anywhere near an unusable sound.

The circuitry doesn’t allow totally smooth clean-up with guitar volume, but you can drop the volume down to get more of a glitchy gated-fuzz sound.

Verdict

Verdict: ★★★★½

Guitar World verdict: With low noise and real-world tonal flexibility via the treble and bass knobs, ThorpyFx’s Hanami is a class act, delivering fat, smooth and richly textured fuzz that can attain a fierce edge.