THE BIG MUFF π - A HISTORY OF ALL VERSIONS - Part 2
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SOVTEK DELUXE BIG MUFF PI (2018)
NOTE: This website is constantly updated as new information becomes available. Last update December 2018. Permission required to repost any information from this site in any ebay listing. Website and contents ©Kit Rae.
Released December 2018
Designers: Gino Maisano and John Pisani (core BMP circuit based on the Russian version of the original Bob Myer design)
PCB Numbers: EC-D168 Rev. A
True Bypass: Yes
Power: Current draw approximately 22mA at 9VDC. Runs off a 9-Volt battery or optional 9V power supply from Electro-Harmonix, 9.6DC-200BI (same as used by Boss™ & Ibanez™) 9.6 Volts DC. Other 9VDC AC Adapters capable of delivering at least 50mA will also work.
Packaging: Corrugated cardboard box
Place of Manufacture: Not specified. EHX uses parts sourced both domestically and foreign. PCBs are sourced from overseas and pedals are assembled and tested in Long Island City, New York, USA
After the success of the Green Russian Big Muff reissue in 2017 Electro Harmonix released this deluxe version in 2018 with many advanced sound shaping controls. It features the same core circuit and signature sound as the Green Russian and adds the mids controls from the standard Deluxe Big Muff, the Wicker switch from the Tone Wicker Big Muff, and the blend control from the Deluxe Bass Big Muff. This version allows for a switchable lead tone that is different from the stock Sovtek Green Russian sound, plus the ability to dial in some rhythm/overdrive tones, or top-boosted distortion tones.
Originally this was going to be a Deluxe Green Russian Big Muff, but it was decided to go with a color scheme that paid tribute to the blue and gray Sovtek Big Muffs made in Russia in the 1990s, nicknamed the "Civil War"(pictured above). The same circuit was used in both the Sovtek Big Muffs with the Civil War graphics and the green "Tall Font" Sovteks.
GRAPHICS AND ENCLOSURE - The enclosure is 4.75 (h) x 5.75 (w) x 1.5-inch (d), cast metal, two piece box with four screws on the bottom plate and four rubber pads. The graphics and fonts were influenced by the EHX Green Russian Big Muff reissue, with colors influenced by the Russian made Blue and Gray "Civil War" Sovtek Big Muffs of the 1990s. The base color appears white in photos, but it is actually a bone/gray color.
CONTROLS / KNOBS / SWITCHES - These are all of the specific controls, including the built in trim pots inside the pedal.
CONTROLS
- Classic VOLUME, TONE, and SUSTAIN control knobs, same as the Big Muff Pi classic
- BYPASS foot switch - standard foot switch with true bypass
- BLEND control knob - mixes the dry signal with the distorted signal
- GATE control knob - Noise gate to eliminate high gain hiss noise or hum. This is more for power chords with hard starts/stops, or for staccato playing. Not for for medium gain playing where you want the notes or chords to naturally trail off or decay, as they will be cut off. At certain settings you will hear an audible 'pop' sound when playing starts.
- WICKER switch - When switched on it creates a top end boost for more pronounced note attack, but also adds noise if you have the sustain set high. Dialing in some clean tone in with the blend knob while the Wicker is switched on allows for some interesting overdrive tones.
MIDS SECTION CONTROLS
- MIDS foot switch - activates the midrange circuit, which includes the Q switch, LEVEL, and FREQ control knobs, as well as the expression pedal function. The midrange circuit is only active when the bypass footswitch is engaged, so the midrange circuit will not affect your clean tone when in bypass mode.
- Q Switch - Switches the midrange circuit into LOW or HIGH bandwidth. LOW position covers a wide midrange spectrum. HIGH narrows the bandwidth more into the higher frequencies.
- LEVEL - boosts or cuts the midrange frequency set by the FREQ knob by +/- 10dB. 12:00 position sets a flat midrange, turning left cuts mids, turning right boosts mids
- FREQ - adjusts the midrange frequency sweep from 310Hz to 5.0kHz. Switching the Q switch in HIGH or LOW modes determines the bandwidth the FREQ knob uses.
- EXP jack - same midrange frequency control as the FREQ knob, but allows it to be controlled by an external expression pedal for wah wah type effects.
CIRCUIT - The core Big Muff section of the circuit circuit is the same as the Green Russian Big Muff reissue. It is built with normal through-hole style transistors, capacitors, and diodes. Resistors are small surface mount style. There is an internal buffer switch on the circuit board near the input jack that is set to unbuffered position at the factory. Switching the buffer on increases the high end frequencies of the signal. There are also three internal trim pots in the circuit board, labeled as follows.
INTERNAL TRIM POTS (refer to the Instructions Manual before adjusting these)
- 1 - High Q bandwidth - HIGH Q mode is set to be very resonant but not to self-oscillate
- 2 - High Q Output Volume - HIGH Q mode is set slightly louder than LOW Q mode
- 3 - MIDS EQ Output Volume - when engaged, the MIDS EQ creates a slight volume boost compared to the MIDS EQ in bypass for most MIDS knob settings. This trim pot allows you to fine tune the volume.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE SOVTEK DELUXE BMP AND THE STANDARD DELUXE BMP - The Deluxe Big Muff PI includes a Bass Boost switch and Attack control not found on the Sovtek Deluxe. The Sovtek Deluxe includes a Tone Wicker switch and Blend control not found on the standard Deluxe. The other primary difference is the sound of the core circuit. Since the Sovtek Deluce is based on the mid 1990s Russian circuit it has slightly more mid range and low end, and slightly less gain than the standard Deluxe, giving it a smoother sound. The standard Deluxe core circuit is based around the nano Big Muff circuit. You can set the controls to get similar tones on each, but you can also get tones on one that you cannot get on the other.
PACKAGING - 2-color corrugated cardboard box. "Your Back in the USSR" is printed on the inside box lid flap, a reference to the Beatles' song title. "Your" is not a typo error, it is intentional.
THE SOUND - See the section on the Green Russian Big Muff reissue for a description of the core sound. Like the Deluxe Big Muff, this is a veritable fuzz lab, but I like this Green Russian "Tall Font/Civil War" circuit as a platform for the base tone better than the one in the DBM. The number of knobs and switches may seem daunting to the non knob-fiddler musicians out there, but the Deluxe is really just a two-tone distortion that allows you to switch between the base Green Russian sound and a custom EQ'd sound. Once you find a favorite mids setting you like, you simply leave it and switch on or off when needed. When the mids stage is engaged there is a big volume increase, but it can be set to unity volume with the internal trim pot.
The Wicker is the same feature from the Tone Wicker Big Muff. It's like a top end boost. It basically lifts some of the top end roll off capacitors out of the circuit to add a bit more highs and bite. When engaged, highs and treble are retained when you dial the guitar volume down. That's something that was never really possible with a standard Big Muff. Switching the Wicker on with the sustain set high really high adds a lot of high gain hiss noise to the sound in between notes when not playing. That's where the noise Gate control comes in. The Wicker is usually used for high gain leads or heavy power chords, but it has other uses on this pedal.
The Wicker switch and Blend knob together are the two controls I found really interesting here, and I wish those were both footswitchable as a pair like the mids section. When the Wicker is on you can mix in some of the clean signal with the Blend knob, while retaining the high frequencies that get lost when the distortion is dialed down on a standard Big Muff. This opens up a wide range of possible rhythm and overdrive sounds. Add the switchable mids stage on top of that and there is a huge range of mid ro low gain tones available.
The Gate control is the same as the one on the standard Deluxe Big Muff. It's a basic gate circuit that kills the signal when it decays to a certain level. When it engages, the volume does not ramp down, it just stops. If you play something where the notes or chords are required to completely trail off and naturally decay, it may be tricky to use this. Also, at medium to low gain the Gate makes a slightly audible pop sound when you start playing. It's really more for high gain settings.
Like the standard Deluxe Big Muff, this one has a jack to connect an expression pedal. This allows you to control the Mids Freq knob with a foot pedal. Depending on where you set the knob, you can do comb filter effects like a traditional wah wah pedal, or more subtle or radical tone changes to accent notes or chords. It has a much wider range of tones than a traditional wah pedal. You can even set it to set it to scoop the mids, something a traditional wah cannot do. The High/Low Q switch also affects the frequencies the filter sweeps.
Overall, this is a very versatile pedal, and like the standard Deluxe Big Muff, there are a lot of interesting new tones to explore. For the "set it and leave it" crowd, or those of you that want the Russian Big Muff sound but could not make the standard Green Russian work with your mid-scooped amp, this is the perfect solution. With the tone shaping controls on the Deluxe you can make it sound great on just about any amp.
Shown above - 2018 Sovtek Deluxe Big Muff Pi Prototype
Shown above - The Deluxe Big Muff Pi Circuit
Shown above - The Sovtek Deluxe Big Muff Pi packaging
Shown above - Testing the assembled Sovtek Deluxe Big Muffs at Electro-Harmonix in Long Island New York. Each units is QC tested with a guitar before packaging.
Shown above - These are example settings for a mid-gain overdrive sound that works great for rhythm or
lead playing on a neck pickup. You can also dial your guitar volume down without losing the highs and treble
typically lost with a standard Big Muff. Adjust the Mids Level or Mids Freq knob to suit your amplifier.
HISTORY OF THE BIG MUFF PART 1 (vintage USA)
HISTORY OF THE BIG MUFF PART 3 (modern USA)
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