SRS EQ Exciter fuzz (1977)

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I like a good mystery...

You may remember a while back when we posted a demo video of the rare (as in the only one ever seen) SRS EQ Exciter. This crazy and heavy fuzz from the late 70's was (and for the most part still is) a bit of a mystery. So I have been sitting on this post for a while not knowing if any other information would pop up about "SRS", and since none has I've decided "well, let's do this anyways!"

About 2 years ago now, there were a couple of random pedals on ebay that I had never heard of before; one was the SRS VCO Disco and the other was the EQ Exciter. They looked like early clones of DOD pedals, but I really had no idea what they sounded like. And the biggest problem was the seller's written descrptions, which were probably the worst and most ambiguous "details" for a pedal auction I had ever read. This left the possibilities wide open, so I really had no idea what they sounded like, but that "VCO Disco" name did have me intrigued. Also, the fact that I had never heard of them before is always a good way to hook me in...

So I bit on the VCO Disco pedal, leaving the EQ Exciter to whoever wanted to take that chance.

Well, after receiving the VCO Disco I found out that it was an envelope filter (apparently a copy of the ehx Doctor Q). To me, that made sense with the name it had; but then I found out about the EQ Exciter, and after realizing that it was definitely NOT an equalizer, NOT an exciter, NOR was it a booster of some kind, I knew I had to have it!

So long story short; I found myself in a trade with a friend, and here she is 2 years later in my little collection!!!
(thanks, you know who you are ;)

If you read the other post and listened to the demo, you will get a pretty good idea of what it sounds like, so I won't get too redundant here. But I will touch on the main points for you.

The tone itself is reeeeeaaaaaaal FAT! And anyone who has read this blog before knows that I love my fuzz with some big bottom to it; well the SRS EQ Exciter delivers that for days! It's one of the most punishing and loud pedals I have ever played through, and sounds even more killer on bass. If I could describe the overall tone, I would compare it to the squelch of a Shin Ei FY-2 mixed with the meat and balls of a silicon Fuzz Face.

The other thing that is really cool about this pedal is the tone control. It has this huge sweep to it that sounds more like a Moog synthesizer than a fuzz. It's really unique for a pedal, and I wonder why more builders don't employ that same technique in their stuff?

So that's it.

The mystery remains unsolved on this one, because we still do not know anything about this company, "SRS". Whether they made more pedals than these two, where they were located, if it was just one guy building effects for friends? I have no idea...

But if you do know any of these little details, please let us know. I would love to find out more.///

Thanks for reading!
-ed