THE BIG MUFF π - A HISTORY OF ALL VERSIONS - Part 2
Click on any Big Muff in the image below to go directly to that section
VERSIONS 7 - 8 (1990 - 2009)
NEW SENSOR AND THE SOVTEK RED ARMY OVERDRIVE
After crashing twice in the US, Mike Matthews turned to the contacts and sources he had made in Russia back in 1979 to start up new business in the mid 1980s. After Perestroika the Soviet military industrial complex had collapsed in Russia. The former military factories, now out of work with the lack of military cotracts, were desparately looking for work to make any type of consumer goods. Matthews saw an opportunity to buy inexpensive integrated circuits (ICs) from them, and later vacuum tubes, to sell around the world. Selling ICs got Matthews back on his feet and he started a new company in 1988, New Sensor Corp, which included a distribution center in the USA.
In 1989 he created a new brand a amplifier vacuum tubes under the label Sovtek (name combines words Soviet and technology), contracting them to be made in the 53-year-old ExpoPul factory in Saratov, Russia. New Sensor supplied tubes to many of the top amplifier makers at the time, like Mesa Boogie, Marshall, Peavey, and practically all of the tubes used by Fender. In 1998 Matthew's New Sensor company purchased the entire ExpoPul vacuum tube factory, which was the largest tube maker in the world at that time, and Mike stopped selling ICs. They now make tubes for such brand names Tungsol, Svetlana, and Mullard, among others. By 2001 Matthews had reacquired the Electro-Harmonix name, and New Sensor brought a line of high quality E-H branded vacuum tubes to the market. His girlfriend, Irusha, who's father was co-inventor of Russia's hydrogen bomb, ran all of his operations in Russia.
Matthews had seen the collector value of his old 1970s Big Muffs and other E-H pedals soar over the years, and people back in the States were saying he should bring them back on the market. It was not long before he resurrected the line of E-H pedals, this time entirely made in Russia. I believe there are as many versions of these Russian Big Muffs as there are American made versions. Around 1990 Matthews was in St. Petersburg (formerly Leningrad), a political and cultural center of russia for over 200 years. It was there that he hooked up with two colonels who operated a small factory that had made training equipment for the military. Since the equipment they made incorporated electronics, it was not a big stretch for them to jump over to pedal making. Matthews discussed with them the idea of having a Big Muff made in Russia, but he did not have a lot of money at the time to invest in new tooling to make one. The colonels liked the idea and agreed to pay for all of the set up costs and built them for New Sensor. They came up with a rugged, military looking pedal, with a reinforced top plate under the enclosure box cover, and large metal foot switch casing, making them very sturdy. They copied the Big Muff circuit, but it was not identical to any USA made version.
The first of the Russian made pedals from New Sensor was the Red Army Overdrive, produced around 1990. Matthews must have thought the riskae name would appeal to US customers who would find it very cool to own a pedal made in Russia, and the myth that these were made from scrap military parts did not hurt either. The military wood crate with Russian lettering that these were packed in just added to the mystique. Contrary to popular belief, these Russian made pedals were not made with spare tank parts, ammunition boxes, land mines (!), or any other junk-scrap military weapons. They were made in a former Russian military equipment factory. Some of the circuit board components and wire may have been stock that was made or purchased during the Cold War era, but that is as close to military parts as it gets.
Technically this is not a Big Muff since it was not actually called a Big Muff, but I am including it here as a historical reference. It is a Big Muff circuit, and the later Russian Big Muffs were essentially this same pedal with different graphics. This is probably the rarest of all the Russian made Muffs due to the ultra cool graphics on the top panel and the small number that were manufactured.
CONTINUE TO THE RED ARMY OVERDRIVE PAGE HERE, WITH MORE INFO AND PHOTOS OF BOTH VERSIONS
THE SOVTEK GRAY AND GOLD RUSSIAN BIG MUFF π - VERSION 7
Circa 1991
Circuit Board Number: BM - 01.00.000
True Bypass: No
Power: 9V battery only. To connect to a standard Boss type AC power supply, use a 9V battery adaptor like the 1 Spot CBAT.
Packaging: Wood crate box with Russian lettering
Place of Manufacture: St Petersburg, Russia
I call these Russian made Big Muffs Version 7, since these were technically the 7th incarnation. There are many color variations and slight design changes to the boxes, but rather than give each of these an individual version number, which would be very confusing, I have decided to group all of these 1990s era Muffs under the V7 category, with revision letters denoting the notable changes. This pedal was released approximately a year after the Red Army pedal, and Sovtek Muffs with this color are very rare. It is the exact same pedal as the second edition Red Army Overdrive made in St. Petersburg, but with graphics changes. In 1991 Matthew's had reacquired the Electro-Harmonix trademark, allowing him to once again make an official Electro-Harmonix Big Muff. It shipped in the same military style wood crate with Russian lettering as the Mike Matthews Red Army Overdrive. Some people call this the "Civil War" version, but I believe that nickname started with the later version, with the blue and gray color scheme.
GRAPHICS AND COLORS - The Red Army Overdrive name was removed and changed to the words BIG MUFF and ELECTRO-HARMONIX. MADE IN RUSSIA was changed from Russian to English letters, though the Russian letters would later return on the green Sovtek Muffs. Some people have called this the Big Muff II, due to confusing the mathematical symbol for Pi for the roman numeral II, but it was intended to be the Pi symbol. The bottom panel was painted a battleship-gray color and the top panel was anodized a silver-gold color, or champaign color, with dark blue printed graphics.
CONTROLS - Identical controls to the Red Army Overdrive, but the pots were mounted as such that none started with zero in the same place. The arrow-top plastic knobs, which are the same ones used on the last Red Army Overdrive pedals, were tapered and gray colored. They were prone to breaking and poorly designed. Some may have been molded in black. There were circular indicator arrows molded into the knob tops, but it was almost impossible to use these as indicator marks. The pots were stamped metal cases or green potted cases like the Red Army Overdrive.
CIRCUIT - Identical to the second edition Red Army Overdrive. PCB board #BM - 01.00.000. Transistors were Russian E type, metal can TO18 style case, or black plastic, half-cylinder TO92 cases with white or green dots on top. Power was from a 9V battery only.
ENCLOSURE BOX - Cast aluminum bottom panel and a sheet metal top panel. There were four outer box screws. Four more screws under the top panel held another steel plate in place that held the pots and covered the circuit board. This was a very sturdy case, built like a tank, though that was the only quality part of this Muff. It was made with cheap plastic input and output jacks, which were soldered directly to the circuit board, with no nut to secure them to the box. They simply poked through two silver rimmed holes in the box. They were prone to coming loose or breaking. The plastic battery door cover was engineered poorly and did not stay in place for long. Most 1990s Russian Muffs are missing the door. The plastic knobs also broke easily. A red LED light shows when the circuit is on. It had four rubber feet on the bottom. The battery door was plastic, fit loosely, and was prone to falling out.
CLONES OR SIMILAR PEDALS - Stomp Under Foot CWM Fuzz, Blackout Effectors Musket, Montgomery Appliances Civil War Fuzz.
THE SOUND - Identical to the second edition Red Army Overdrive. The bass and treble of the tone varies slightly from unit to unit.
Shown above - The V7 gray/gold Russian Big Muff
THE SOVTEK “CIVIL WAR” RUSSIAN BIG MUFF π - VERSION 7 Revision A
Circa 1991-1994
Circuit Board Number: BM-01.00.000, BM-1-01.00.000
True Bypass: No
Power: 9V battery only. To connect to a standard Boss type AC power supply, use a 9V battery adaptor like the 1 Spot CBAT.
Packaging: Wood crate box with Russian lettering
Place of Manufacture: St Petersburg, Russia
This "revision A" was the same as the 'gray and gold' version Sovtek Big Muff made in St. Petersburg, but with color changes. This version has been nick named the “Civil War” model in the U.S. due to its color scheme, and possibly the font used. During the U.S. Civil War (1861-1865) the Confederate Army uniforms of the South were gray, and the Union Army uniforms of the North were blue. The Civil War armies were sometimes called “The Blue and the Gray”, and Civil War Big Muff nickname came from the blue box/silver-gray top/blue ink, and the gray box/silver-gray top/blue ink color schemes. As mentioned earlier in this section, contrary to popular belief, these Russian Big Muffs were not made with Russian spare tank parts, ammunition boxes, land mines(!), or any other junk-scrap military weapons. They were made in former Russian military electronics factories, so some of the circuit board components and wire may have been made or purchased during the Cold War era, but that is as close to military parts as it gets. They shipped in the same military style wood crate with Russian lettering as the Mike Matthews Red Army Overdrive.
GRAPHICS AND COLORS - The bottom panel was painted blue or battleship gray color and the top panel was a silver anodized metal color with dark blue graphics. The blue graphic color varied. The paint was very poor quality and chipped and scratched very easily.
CONTROLS - Several different knob shapes were used during the production runs. I have seen some with gray tapered cylinder shaped knobs like the previous Muffs, black tapered cylinder knobs, black cylinder knobs identical to the Red Army version, and black dimple topped knobs with ridged sides, among others. The knobs used do not seem to correspond with the order these pedal were produced, but varied from time to time. It is hard to say why, but I assume there were availability issues in Russia, so if one knob supplier was out of stock during a particular Muff production run, E-H may have purchased different knobs from another supplier. Also keep in mind that some Sovtek Muffs being sold have had the knobs replaced with aftermarket, non original knobs. However, all of the knobs pictured below are actual production knobs. There were also at least three different large foot switches used, with varying sizes and shapes.
ENCLOSURE BOX - Identical to the previous version. Cast aluminum bottom panel and a sheet metal top panel. There were four outer screws. Four more screws under the top panel held another steel plate in place that held the pots and covered the circuit board. The finish and mold cleanup on the box bottom was typically very rough. It was made with cheap plastic input and output jacks, which were soldered directly to the circuit board, with no nut to secure them to the box. They simply poked through two silver rimmed holes in the box. These had four rubber feet on the bottom which were prone to falling off. The battery door was plastic, poorly engineered, fit loosely and was very prone to falling out.
CIRCUIT - Identical to the second edition Red Army Overdrive, with dual capacitors in each of the first three circuit stages, likely 1n0K value each, equivalent to 500pF. This large cap value would remain on all Russian Muffs going forward, until it was changed to a single 470pF cap for the second edition green Russian Muff. PCB board #BM-01.00.000, later changing to #BM-1-01.00.000. The sound of these Sovtek Big Muffs was much smoother, darker, and lower gain than the USA Muffs likely due to this larger capacitor value. They were also smoother and bassier than most of the green Muffs and black V8 Muffs that would follow. The pots were the familiar green potted style though some were made with the stamped metal style like previous editions. Transistors used were Russian E type, either metal can TO18 style case, or black plastic, half-cylinder TO92 cases with white dots on top. A red LED light shows when the circuit is on.
Many of the Civil War Big Muffs have a hand drawn/painted serial number on the circuit board, usually red or white. You can see a few examples in the photos below (email a photo if you want to join the club). I believe these are actual sequential numbers of the units as they were made, though apparently this practice did not occur through the entire production run. It is unlikely the number is sequential for the entire production of this version. The numbering was more likely repeated monthly or annually, or possibly repeated with each color or graphics change. The highest number I have seen is 1738. The numbers also appear on some of the early green boxed Big Muffs that followed this version, and many of those numbers are lower, indicating the numbering was resequenced.
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CLONES OR SIMILAR PEDALS - Stomp Under Foot CWM Fuzz, Blackout Effectors Musket, Montgomery Appliances Civil War Fuzz.
THE SOUND- Identical to the second edition Red Army Overdrive. Sort of a mix between the V1 and V3 Muffs, but with a fatter bottom end and slightly less gain. All of the 1990s Sovtek Muffs (Civil Wars, Green Russians, Black Russians) had very similar component values, and had very similar sounds to each other, but the Civil War tone was special. It was very dark and bassy, but with a smooth and clear mid range. Those mids were still scooped out like a typical Big Muff, but the Sovteks had more mids than vintage USA models. On average there was less gain than previous Muffs, but a very musical clarity. It sounds identical to the second edition Red Army Overdrive, though the bass and treble of the tone varies from unit to unit. It is noticeably smoother and has less grit than the later green Russian and black Russian Big Muffs, which is probably why they are the most favored and desireable of all the Sovtek Big Muffs.
Shown above - Early V7 Civil War Big Muffs with wood crate packaging. The blue and gray paint scheme led to the nickname "Civil War" big muff
Shown above - V7 Civil War big muff with blue box and circuit board serial numbered 703
Shown above - Early V7 Civil War Big Muffs showing the three of the four different knobs types used. Left to right - gray tapered arrow-top knobs, black tapered arrow-top knobs, and black flat-top cylinder knobs
Shown above - V7 Civil War Big Muff circuit boards. Identical to the second edition Red Army Overdrive board.
Shown above - V7 Civil War Big Muffs with the large ridged knobs commonly seen on later Green Russian Big Muffs
Shown above - Sovtek dimple top knobs used on V7 "Civil War", green, and black Russian Big Muffs. Some had the indicator mark filled with white paint. The plastic battery door fit loosley and was prone to falling out. Some battery doors were molded in red color.
Shown above - V7 Civil War Big Muff interior and circuit boards. Note the hand written red serial numbers on some of the boards, and military style wiring harness.
Shown above - A pristine V7 Civil War Big Muff, serial #148. Note the missing plastic battery cover. They were poorly designed and prone to falling out.
PINK FLOYD/DAVID GILMOUR BIG MUFFS - David Gilmour used a Civil War model on Pink Floyd's Division Bell recordings and the 1994 Division Bell tour.
SOUND CLIP 3 - Civil War Big Muff tone only and TC Nova delay
SOUND CLIP 4 - Civil War Big Muff with Boss CS-2 Compressor before it and TC Nova delay.
THE SOVTEK GREEN “CIVIL WAR” RUSSIAN BIG MUFF π - VERSION 7 Revision B
Circa 1994
Circuit Board Number: BM-1-01.00.000
Editions: 2 -box style and colors changed for the second edition
True Bypass: No
Power: 9V battery only. To connect to a standard Boss type AC power supply, use a 9V battery adaptor like the 1 Spot CBAT.
Packaging: Wood crate box with Russian lettering, a very cool feature for American collectors
Place of Manufacture: St Petersburg, Russia
There were several variations on the Civil War BMP color scheme in the mid 1990's as the colors transitioned into the all green color most commonly seen on later Big Muffs. These "Green Civil War" transition Muffs are very rare. First editions are essentially the same as the previous Civil War editions made in St. Petersburg. These BMPs shipped in the same military style wood crate with Russian lettering as the Mike Matthews Red Army Overdrive.
GRAPHICS AND COLORS - Graphics were identical to previous Civil War Muffs, though the blue printing changed to black for the second edition. The bottom panel color was changed to military green for the first edition, then the entire box changed to green for the second edition. The paint was very poor quality and chipped and scratched very easily.
CONTROLS - The six examples I have seen of the second edition, and most of the first edition, include the arrow-topped gray plastic knobs used on some of the previous Muffs and the first edition Green Russian Muffs that would come later. Foot switch sizes and shapes varied as on the previous Civil War version.
CIRCUIT - Essentially the same circuit as the previous Civil War version. PCB board #BM-1-01.00.000. The unmarked dual capacitors in each of the first three circuit stages from the previous versions were now marked 1n0K, equivalent to 500pF, which I assume was what the unmarked caps on the previous version were. This large cap value would remain until it was changed to a single 470pF cap for the second edition green Russian Muff. Transistors were Russian E type, either metal can style, or black half-cylinder shapes with white dots on top. Power was from a 9V battery only, and the battery cover was very prone to falling out. A red LED light shows when the circuit is on. These had four rubber feet and shipped in a wood box.
As on the previous Civil War version, a hand drawn/painted serial number appears on most of the circuit boards, usually red or white. You can see a few examples in the photos below. I believe these are actual sequential numbers of the units as they were made. It is unlikely the number is sequential for the entire production of this version. The numbering was more likely repeated monthly or annually, or possibly repeated with each color or graphics change. The highest number I have seen for this version is 1523. The numbers also appear on some of the early Green Russian Muffs that followed this version, and many of those numbers are lower, indicating the numbering was resequenced.
ENCLOSURE BOX - First edition box was the same construction as previous Civil War Muffs, with the same plastic battery door cover. The die cast box then changed to a new style with ridged sides at the mold parting line for the second edition. They were also given a new plastic battery door, though it still fit very loosely and was prone to falling out like the previous door. If you look at the front end of the second edition box, there are two small notches to accommodate the new battery door design. These boxes were finished roughly with sloppy polishing and sloppy clean up of the mold flashing. It was made with cheap plastic input and output jacks like all previous Russians, which were soldered directly to the circuit board, with no nut to secure them to the box. They simply poked through two silver rimmed holes in the box. This style box carried on into the "Green Russian" version.
CLONES OR SIMILAR PEDALS - Stomp Under Foot CWM Fuzz, Blackout Effectors Musket, Montgomery Appliances Civil War Fuzz.
Shown above - Examples of V7 Civil War Big Muffs with a green box bottoms, but same graphics, box, and battery door as previous editions. The one shown left uses original knobs and on the right shows after market knobs
Shown above - The box changed to a new mold for the second edition, with ridged sides. The plastic battery door changed to a slightly different shape and design also, but it still fit loosely and was prone to falling out. The green color varied from time to time on this short run. The blue Civil War graphics were changed to black. A rare transition model to the Green Russian Big Muff that would follow.
Shown above - V7 Civil War Big Muff made with the new second edition all-green die cast boxes with ridged sides. A rare transition model to the Green Russian Big Muff that would follow. PCB serial #9
Shown above - Another example of the last V7 Civil War Big Muff with PCB serial #1523
THE SOVTEK “GREEN RUSSIAN” BIG MUFF π - VERSION 7 Revision C
Circa 1994-1998
Editions: 3. First edition with cast metal ridge-sided box, second edition with graphics change but same box, and third edition with six screw all sheet metal box and metal battery door
Circuit Board Numbers: BM-1-01.00.000 (first edition), BM-1-01.00.001(second and third editions)
True Bypass: No
Power: 9V battery only. To connect to a standard Boss type AC power supply, use a 9V battery adaptor like the 1 Spot CBAT.
Packaging: Wood crate box with Russian lettering. There were two version of the box graphics. Third editions Muffs had "BM" added to the graphics.
Place of Manufacture: St Petersburg, Russia
The Green Russian Big Muffs Pis are the most common Sovtek BMPs to be found from the 1990s era. The tank like military appearance made these very mean looking pedals, and very desirable. They shipped in the same military style wood crate with Russian lettering as the Mike Matthews Red Army Overdrive, and previous Sovtek BMPs, though the box graphics changed sometime during the third edition run. These were made in St. Petersburg Russia.
Contrary to popular belief, these Russian BMPs were not made with spare tank parts, ammunition boxes, land mines (!), or any other junk-scrap military weapons. They were made in a former Russian military equipment factory operated by two Russian colonels. Some of the circuit board components and wire may have been stock that was made or purchased during the Cold War era, but that is as close to military parts as it gets. It is interesting to note that there actually was a Russian tank called the BMP. No, not for Big Muff Pi, but for Bronevaya Maschina Piekhota. It was an armoured personnel carrier developed during the Cold War for transporting Infantry on the battlefield. It was heavy, very reliable, but it had relatively thin armour (sound familiar?). It was first seen in public in November 1967 at the Soviet Red Square parade.
The Russian BMP tank and the Russian BMP pedal - which, contrary to popular belief, was not built built from old tank or military scrap parts
GRAPHICS AND COLORS - Produced in the late 1990s, the two-tone Civil War Sovtek Big Muff color scheme had already changed to an all green colored box with black graphics. Now the graphics changed to simpler Big Muff letters. There were three editions. The first edition had the "tall-font" Big Muff letters. In addition to the English MADE IN RUSSIA markings like the previous Muff this version also had the the same words in Russian letters silk screened on the front end. The Russian letters were last seen on the Red Army Overdrive but never appeared on a Russian Big Muff until now. They remained on every Russian Big Muff until E-H stopped making them in 2009. The second edition graphics changed to rounded “bubble-font” Big Muff letters arounf 1995. The third edition retained the bubble-font graphics, but the box changed to a six-screw, light weight all folded sheet metal box with a metal battery door cover. The letters CE were added to the box end graphics. The CE marking certified that a product has met EU (European Union of 27 member states with an economic and political standard) consumer safety, health or environmental requirements. The green color varied during the production as you can see by the photos below, though some of the variation in color is due to different lighting and white balance conditions of these photos. Most were an olive-drab military green, though some were a shade lighter or darker, and some were bright grass-green. I assume the St. Petersburg factory must have had problems with consistency from the paint suppliers in Russia. The paint on the first edition "tall-font" green Big Muffs was very poor quality and literally flakes off. Most tall-font Muffs are like this, but later bubble-font Muffs have better paint.
CONTROLS - Some early examples have been seen with the same gray knobs that were used on some of the early, and very last green Civil War Muffs, but most have the black dimple topped knobs with ridged sides. There were at least four different large foot switches used during the production, with varying sizes and shapes.
CIRCUIT - First and second editions had the same circuit as the transition Green Civil War Big Muffs, though the PCB trace art (#BM-1-01.00.000) was replaced with a new one (#BM-1-01.00.001) for the thrid edition. Some third editions had a different trace pattern on a "T" shaped PCB, with no PCB#. Second and third editions changed the dual 1n0K capacitors in each of the first three circuit stages to a single 470pF cap. This cut some of the bass from the tone and made them slightly grittier and less smooth sounding than the Civil War Muffs, but more like the first edition Red Army Overdrive with 430pF caps. Component and transistor types varied from unit to unit. Transistors were Russian E type, either metal can TO18 style case, or black plastic, half-cylinder TO92 cases with white dots on top. Power was from a 9V battery only. A red LED light shows when the circuit is on.
As on the previous Civil War version, a hand drawn/painted serial number appears on some of the circuit boards, though this is rare. I believe these are actual sequential numbers of the units as they were made. It is unlikely the number is sequential for the entire production of this version. The numbering was more likely repeated monthly or annually, or possibly repeated with each color or graphics change. Apparently the practice was discontinued for the second edition Green Russian, and all Russian Muffs that followed.
ENCLOSURE BOX - The first editions had the same four-screw, die cast boxes with ridged-sides and sheet metal tops as the previous green Civil War version, and the same plastic battery door cover. Some of the first editions had the ridges polished off like the Civil War Muffs, though this was rare. These boxes were finished rough with sloppy clean up of the mold flashing. The second edition had the same box, though the printed graphics changed. There were four rubber feet glued to the bottom of the box, prone to falling off, the same as previous editions. The third edition changed to a less expensive six-screw, light weight, all folded sheet metal box with a metal battery door cover. The rubber feet were screwed to the bottom of this edition.
The all plastic jacks, which were previously soldered directly to the circuit board and poked through holes in the back of the enclosure, changed on all three green editions to having a nut to secure them to the enclosure back. Unfortunately, this nut was also plastic and broke easily. For some reason, on the third edition, the input and output jacks were switched to be in the reverse position of all previous Russian Muffs. All three types were very tough “tank” like boxes, but the plastic jacks were of poor quality and the plastic battery doors were notoriously loose and prone to falling off. The battery door changed from plastic to a metal door for the third edition sheet metal box. Some of the metal doors were also very loose. Costs for New Sensor to have these made in Russia were increasing every six months or so and these changes were made strictly to keep the retail price low.
CLONES OR SIMILAR PEDALS - First edition: Stomp Under Foot CWM Fuzz, Blackout Effectors Musket, Montgomery Appliances Civil War Fuzz. Second and third editions: Stomp Under Foot GRM Fuzz, Blackout Effectors Musket, Earthquaker Devices Hoof, Absolutely Analog Green Russian.
THE SOUND - Sort of a mix between the V1 and V3 Big Muffs, but with a fatter bottom end and slightly less gain. The first edition green Russian (tall Big muff font) tone is very similar to the "Civil War" Sovtek Big Muffs. Second and third edition green Russians changed to lower cap values. Those greens have bit more grit and bite, less bass, and most have more sustain than the Civil War versions, but they are not as smooth sounding. The bass and treble of the tone varies slightly from unit to unit, but the differences are usually minor. They are a favorite of bass players due to the low gain and huge, bass friendly bottom end they produce. That bottom end is also a reason some do not like the Russian Big Muffs. Listen to the Black Keys for some great examples of the Green Russian in use.
Shown above - First edition V7 Green Russian Big Muffs with the tall font, four-screw, three-piece, ridged-sided die cast boxes. The grass-green models with gray knobs were among the first produced. As you can see in the photos, most of these have very poor paint jobs. The paint can begin to flake off after only a few years. They shipped in the same military style wood crate with Russian lettering as the earlier russian Big Muffs and the Mike Matthews Red Army Overdrive.
Shown above - First edition V7 Green Russian Big Muff with the ridged-side box, stock knobs, and rare intact plastic battery door. Note the black plastic washers securing the jacks to the box, a new feature for this version.
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Shown above - First edition V7 Green Russian Big Muff with the ridged-side box. Note the poor paint that is literally flaking off
Shown above - First edition V7 Green Russian Big Muff with the ridged-side box. Nearly identical to the example above. Many first edition greens had blue wire or blue mixed with other colors. Though component brand types varied, components values were generally the same from unit to unit.
Shown above - First edition V7 Green Russian Big Muffs with the die cast ridged-side box and aftermarket knobs. Muff on right is a second edition with "bubble-font" graphics
Shown above - Another first edition V7 Green Russian Big Muff with with "bubble-font" graphics on a ridged-side box
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Shown above - Sovtek dimple top knobs used on V7 "Civil War", green, and black Russian Big Muffs. Some had the indicator mark filled with white paint.
Shown above (left to right) - A second edition V7 Green Russian box with “bubble-font", a third edition from around 1995 with the new six screw, all sheet metal boxes, and much improved paint. For the third edition the enclosure box bottom and battery door cover were changed to all sheet metal and the input and output jack positions were reversed. The graphics on the wood crate box also changed around this time to the "BM" version shown above.
Shown above - Second edition cast metal V7 Green Russian Big Muff box with "bubble-font" graphics
Shown above - A few third edition V7 Green Russian Big Muffs sporting a "T" shaped circuit board with a new, unumbered PCB trace pattern, and two-piece, six screw, all sheet metal box. The third edition sported a new metal battery door, though the doors loosened up over time and often fell out like the previous plastic doors. The third editions had a much thinner enclosure than the previous Russian Muffs, though still quite durable.
Shown above - Various third edition V7 Green Russian Big Muff circuit boards
Shown above - A pristine V7 third edition Green Russian Big Muff with two-piece, six screw, all sheet metal box, and wood crate
Shown above - A V7 third edition Green Russian Big Muff with two-piece, six screw, all sheet metal box. This one sports a new PCB trace pattern, the third for the Green Russian Muffs. You will find this same PCB trace in the black boxed V7 Big Muffs, shown below
THE SOVTEK “BLACK RUSSIAN” BIG MUFF π (LARGE BOX) - VERSION 7 Revision D
Circa 1998-2000
Circuit Board Numbers: BM-1-01.00.001
Editions: 2. Graphics changed and footswitch size changed for the second edition.
True Bypass: No
Power: 9V battery only. To connect to a standard Boss type AC power supply, use a 9V battery adaptor like the 1 Spot CBAT.
Packaging: Wood crate box with Russian lettering
Place of Manufacture: St Petersburg, Russia
GRAPHICS AND COLORS - These transition models are fairly rare. The military green sheet metal box from the previous version changed to all black with yellow graphics. Otherwise, this was identical to the green, six-screw version. This solved the problem of inconsitent green color from the Russian paint suppliers for the previous version. The first edition was made with both large and small foot switches. A second edition production model changed graphics to the "shadow-outline"BIG MUFF font, the same font used on the vintage USA V3 Muffs and later V9 Muffs. The words INPUT and OUTPUT and DISTORTION-SUSTAINER were also added to the box top graphics. The word DISTORTION was changed to SUSTAIN below the center knob. The word SOVTEK was also removed from the graphics and never appeared again on a Russian made Big Muff. The black color varied from shiny black to dull black. The yellow ink shade also varied during the production run.
CONTROLS - Russian made foot switch supply had started to become a problem at this time so smaller foot switches had to be imported to St. Petersburg from the USA and Mexico. That is the reason you see some of these with the smaller switch. Eventually the Russian foot switch factory went out of business. All knobs were the black dimple topped type with ridged sides, though later production switched to a new chicken head style knob. The input and output jacks remained in the reverse position like the previous third edition Green Russian Big Muffs.
CIRCUIT - Same circuit and PCB trace as the third edition Green Russian Muffs. PCB #BM-1-01.00.001. Transistors were Russian E type. Power was from a 9V battery only. A red LED light shows when the circuit is on.
ENCLOSURE BOX - Identical to the green, six-screw sheet metal box from the previous Green Russian Muff, though some second edition boxes have longer metal ridges welded inside the box bottom than others. Jacks had plastic nuts to secure them to the box back. These had four rubber feet screwed to the bottom. Some of these boxes have four digit date stickers inside the box lids. The first two digits are the week of the year and second two are the year. It is unknown if these are final build dates or dates the lids were made or coated. Regardless, the date indicates the pedal could not have been built any earlier than this date.
CLONES OR SIMILAR PEDALS - Stomp Under Foot GRM Fuzz, Blackout Effectors Musket, Earthquaker Devices Hoof, Absolutely Analog Green Russian.
THE SOUND - The tone is the same as the last V7 green Russian Big Muffs. Just different box color and graphics. The bass and treble of the tone varies slightly from unit to unit for each edition, but the differences are usually minor.
Shown above - V7 first edition "bubble-font" Black Russian Big Muff in the large six-screw box with small foot switch, imported from the West, and one with the large Russian made switch
Shown above - V7 second edition Black Russian Big Muffs in the large six-screw box, with large footswitch, and with new "shadow-outline" font, and the word "DISTORTION" changed to "SUSTAIN". Note the wider metal ridge tabs inside the box bottom. These are different than the short ridges in other Black Russians and sheet metal boxed Green Russians. The PCB trace pattern is the same as the last Green Russian Big Muff PCB.
Shown above - V7 second edition Black Russian Big Muff in large six-screw box, with short metal tabs inside, chicken head knobs, and small foot switch
THE “BLACK RUSSIAN” BIG MUFF π (SMALL BOX) - VERSION 8
Circa 1999 to 2009
Circuit Board Numbers: BM-1-01.00.001, 3.000.0001
Editions: 2. First edition with heavy six screw box, and second edition with four screw light weight box
True Bypass: No
Power: 9V battery only. To connect to a standard Boss type AC power supply, use a 9V battery adaptor like the 1 Spot CBAT.
Packaging: Wood crate box with Russian lettering. Graphics were different than the previous wood box. Later changed to a corrugated cardboard box with orange printing
Place of Manufacture: St Petersburg, Russia
The was the final version of the Russian made Big Muff. It sold for much less than the reissue USA Big Muffs that were made at the same time. The circuit was a favorite for modders because it was very easy to change components for customizing the tone and gain. The costs for New Sensor to have these made in Russia had increased over the years, leading to cheaper, less expensive enclosure boxes. This version saw another cost cutting change - a smaller enclosure box than all the previous Russian Big Muffs. Unfortunately, the manucturing costs the St. Petersburg factory charged New Sensor eventually outweighed the demand, so the V9 was discontinued in 2009. The Sovtek Muffs had not been available for quite some time in the UK and Europe and as of 2009 they were no longer being offered by EHX in the USA. The introduction of the USA made Bass Big Muff was one possible cause for the decline in sales for the Russian made Muffs, but overall E-H was not happy with the quality. A future collectible? Almost certainly.
GRAPHICS AND COLORS - For Version 8, the graphics remained the same as the later production large-box V7 Revision D version listed above. The only difference was that MADE IN RUSSIA was also added to the back panel under the input jack. The graphics on the wood crate these shipped in changed to the "CE" version pictured below. The CE marking certified that a product has met EU (European Union of 27 member states with an economic and political standard) consumer safety, health or environmental requirements.
CONTROLS - The round dimple-topped plastic knobs from the previous version changed to “chicken head” style knobs. All V8 Muffs used the small foots witches, which were imported from the USA.
CIRCUIT - There were a few component value changes made from the previous version, and new PCB trace art. The PCB number remained the same as before on early untis (#BM-1-01.00.001), but later changed to Russian letters for RBEM (Russian Big Muff) and #3.000.001. Transistors used were BC549Cs or BC547C type. Power was from a 9V battery only. A red LED light shows when the circuit is on.
ENCLOSURE BOX - For Version 8, the black and yellow Big Muff moved into a slightly smaller box. The first edition of this box was a heavy duty six screw box. Later a second edition came out with an even lighter weight, four screw box. The input and output jacks remained in the reverse position like the previous Green and Black Russian Big Muffs. Four rubber feet were screwed to the bottom. Some of these boxes have four digit date stickers inside the box lids. The first two digits are the week of the year and second two are the year. It is unknown if these are final build dates or dates the lids were made or coated. Regardless, the date indicates the pedal could not have been built any earlier than this date. These had four rubber feet on the bottom.
V8 Big Muffs shipped in a wood crate with "CE" version graphics, different from the previoys version 7 Big Muffs. Packaging later switched to a less expensive corrugated cardboard box until the end of production.
CLONES OR SIMILAR PEDALS - EHX Bass Big Muff, Stomp Under Foot GRM Fuzz, Blackout Effectors Musket, Earthquaker Devices Hoof, Absolutely Analog Green Russian.
THE SOUND - Almost identical tone to the V7 Green Russian Muffs, but slightly less clarity and slightly less bottom end on the examples I have played. Most people would not notice the difference. The bass and treble of the tone varies slightly from unit to unit, but the differences are usually minor. These are discontinued, but the V11 Bass Big Muff sounds very close.
Shown above (left to right) - V8 Black Russian Big Muffs in the first edition, small six-screw enclosure box, with small footswitch imported to Russia from the West, made around 1999. These shipped in a wood crate with the "CE" version graphics, but later changed to a currugated box to save on costs
Shown above (left to right) - V8 Black Russian Big Muff corrugated boxes, V8 second edition four-screw box. The AC power jack on the one on the right is an aftermarket modification
Shown above - A 2008 V8 Black Russian Big Muff in the second edition four-screw box with 547C transistors. Note the lack of an AC power adaptor jack. Versions 7-8 only run on 9V DC power. This was the last Big Muff ever made in Russia
HISTORY OF THE BIG MUFF PART 1 (vintage USA)
HISTORY OF THE BIG MUFF PART 3 (modern USA)
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