Gear Hunter

Upon first glance at the Imperial MKII, you might be intrigued by its charmingly retro appearance. Inspired by the JEN Jumbo fuzz, which is one of Solid Gold's favorite vintage fuzzes, the Imperial MKIIs four sliders, textured black paint and bold red graphics shows you can immediately tell that this pedal means business.

If a ripping, royally raucous fuzz, with impeccable manners, is what you seek in your tone conquest or whether you are chasing those soaring Gilmour-esque leads that propel you to the far side of the moon, then look no further than the Imperial MKII.

So, what is the JEN Jumbo Fuzz and what makes it so awesome? JEN Elettronica was an Italian manufacturer who made pedals for Vox, Dallas Arbiter and Sound City (among others), in addition to making equipment under their own brand. The Jumbo Fuzz was their spin on the venerable EHX Big Muff that swapped the knobs out for sliders and added a nifty germanium noise gate. In terms of sound, the tuning of the Jumbo Fuzz lies somewhere in the Rams Head camp - not overly scooped or woofy, with a nice gain range - just a great sounding pedal!

While the Jumbo's noise gate is a great feature and gives this BMP variant a unique attack with practically zero noise, vintage units vary greatly from one unit to another, with some gating too much and others not at all. Capturing the Jumbo Fuzz's vibe and redesigning the gate was essential to the Imperial redesign.

The Imperial MKII package is completed with dual LED indicators (one for bypass and the other indicating the gate status), top jacks, true bypass switching and, of course, our retro sliders and vintage inspired artwork.