Latent Lemon – Hurts

Batch from November 17 has sold out. Sorry if you didn't manage to grab one. We'll be in touch with Latent Lemon Audio to bring more Hurts to Pedal Markt.

The infamous Harmonic Percolator circuit tuned for maximum tone. Capable of filthy sub octave and wilful feedback, through to just a hint of grit, or an amp slamming transistor booster. Definitely more than just a fuzz.

As in the original HP-1 the Hurts uses both germanium and silicon transistors carefully selected and graded for both sound and gain. Inside it has a couple of trimmers, one to tune in the octave "sweet spot" and one for gain compensation in case of oscillation.

It uses 1N695 germanium diodes as in the original HP-1 and has a switch to change to silicon diodes which are slightly louder (my favourite on bass). In the mid position this switch bypasses the diodes making it a loud transistor booster that really pushes the front end of an amp. I have bought up the last of the best quality 1n695 diodes I can find, unlike the alternatives these germanium diodes bring out the octave effect whilst ensuring adequate output from the vintage pedal circuit.

I wanted a Harmonic Percolator that sounded something like Steve Albini’s, but couldn't find the sub-octave throaty HP-1 sound I was looking for - especially after I luckily got to record an old 70s original Ed Giese Interfax HP-1 which sounded amazing! Anyway, back in 2012, after more breadboard experimentation and research than is probably healthy, I came up with the Hurts pedal. Although I have now changed the name from 1000 Hurts to Hurts, it is still exactly the same circuit.

Controls:

• Harmonics - fuzz/distortion gain
• Sputter - transistor bias
• Balance - output volume
• Deep switch - allows more low frequencies into the circuit and also adjusts the circuit to help prevent oscillation. Perfect for Bass and Doom!
• Diode switch - Ge = germanium diodes, Si = silicon diodes, centre position = diodes bypassed.

Internal trimmers:

• Octave: adjusts the octave “sweet spot”. Set diode switch to Ge and Harmonics to max for strongest sub octave effect.
• Gain Compensation: It is recommended to leave this trimmer alone unless your pedal oscillates, in which case back it off slightly.

9V power - standard 9V DC. 2.1mm centre negative
Enclosure size: 120 x 94 x 42
Current draw - 33mA
Battery: no