The Big Muff Pi Home Page

THE BIG MUFF π PAGE

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•OEM VERSIONS .....................•BIG MUFF CLONES

•TIPS FOR BUYING A VINTAGE BIG MUFF ...................•BIG MUFFS CURRENTLY ON EBAY

•READING VINTAGE BIG MUFF POT DATE CODES ..................•THE BIG MUFF CIRCUIT - A Simple Guide

•A FUZZ AND MUFF TIMELINE - Release dates for all versions and dates for early fuzz pedals

•VINTAGE BIG MUFF REPLICAS and PEDALS INSPIRED BY THE BIG MUFF CIRCUIT

•HOW TO DISASSEMBLE A VINTAGE BIG MUFF ...............•REPLACEMENT BIG MUFF PARTS

•BIG MUFF SCHEMATICS and MODS - Dana's excellent Big Muff website

•BIG MUFF LINKS, SOURCES, and RESOURCES - Links to other informational websites, BMP mods, and BMP makers

This website is dedicated to one of the most popular and cherished stomp boxes in the history of Rock and Roll, and my favorite distortion/fuzz box, The Big Muff π. There are very few websites dedicated to the Big Muff, so I created this site with all of the information and history I have gleaned from various sources over the years, including some good photo references (pix from my collection, stolen from ebay auctions, and sent to me by other generous Big Muff owners) and audio clips. I think it is the most comprehensive one on the web. I have tried to sort out Muff fact from Muff fiction and clarify some confusing or contradictory details from other websites and articles, as well as include a comprehensive history about Electro-Harmonix and the story of the Big Muff's origin for all you Muff junkies.

The first Big Muff π was released to the world by Electro-Harmonix in 1969, and in full production in 1970 (not 1971 as many sources state), though variations of it appeared earlier than that. Electro-Harmonix referred to the pedal as “The finest harmonic distortion-sustain device developed to date”, and it was. Fuzz pedals like the Fuzz-Tone and Fuzz Face were very popular in the late 1960s and the Big Muff was a very different and fresh take on the fuzz territory. The first well known recorded use of the Big Muff was in 1972 on The Carpenters' power ballad hit Goodbye to Love, with a hard rocking fuzz solo played by Tony Peluso, very ahead of it's time for the pop music market. The Isley Brothers scored another huge hit with the Big Muff in 1973 with That Lady , featuring an incredible outro solo played by guitar master Ernie Isley. Both of these solos were recorded directly into the mixing board, without even using an amp! Later the Big Muff made it into the rock and roll world with scores of other users, from David Gilmour of Pink Floyd, to Jack White of The White Stripes (a detailed list of users can be found HERE)

The Big Muff had an independant four stage silicon-based circuit that did not have the limitations of the typical guitar-into-fuzz circuits around at the time. It could go anywhere in a pedal chain, and the tone was not at the mercy of the temperature of the old style Germanium transistors like a Fuzz-Tone or Fuzz Face. The Muff had monstrous loads of gain and sustain, and a monstrous sound to go along with it, from thunderous mud to hammering treble. It was the first fuzz pedal with such a huge bottom end, and it stepped on just about any typical fuzz pedal out there. There is a characteristic underlying harmonically doubled octave mixed into the Muff tone, sometimes described as the Muffs "buzz" or "fizz". It was quite different from what was a common "fuzz" tone at the time. The tone sweep ranged from huge, dark, bassy sludge to thick, piercing, buzz saw treble, all with a deep mids scoop. Somewhere in the middle was a "sweet" spot that just about anyone could dial in for the signature Big Muff tone.

BIG MUFF ERAS - There are four primary eras of the Big Muff, each with their own unique tones, and each model having several variants, along with some other odd related models. They were first manufactured in the USA, then jumped over to Russia, then back to the USA again, and are now mostly assembled and tested in the USA, with parts made overseas. Many Big Muff users and collectors will tell you that every Big Muff sounds different, even among the same version, which is somewhat true, but I think there are four unique tone eras that just about every Muff falls into:

The Vintage USA Big Muff tones -V1 Triangle, V2 Ram's Head , V3, V6, Little Big Muff(original one knob version)

The Vintage op-amp Big Muff tones - V4,V5, Little Big Muff (op-amp version), Deluxe Big Muff "blend" version, Deluxe Big Muff "series/parallel" version

The Sovtek Big Muff tones - V7, V8, V11 Bass Big Muff

The modern NYC Big Muff tones -V9 USA reissue, V10 Little Big Muff, V12 Tone Wicker

Within each of those tone eras you can find slight variations, even within the exact same model, but they still have the characteristics of their own eras. Rather than trying to use just words to explain these tonal differences, I will be adding sound clips of each (work in progress). The IC based Big Muffs like the V4 and V5 op-amp Muffs, the two Deluxe Big Muff op-amp versions, and the Little Big Muff op-amp version, are not considered real Big Muffs by many since they are not made with the traditional four stage circuit. They do have have similar clipped/scooped mids tones as the V3 Big Muffs, though perhaps less organic, and they were intended to sound, and do sound, like Big Muffs, so I am including them.

WHAT DEFINES A VERSION? - One thing you may notice I have done on this website is to re-number the Big Muff π versions differently than what some other sources have used. I have included Russian made Big Muffs in the numbering sequence along with USA made Muffs, since there is a clear sequence to the times each were made, with just a bit of crossover. In my opinion, a true version change must involve a major change to the box shape, a change to the control layout, and/or a major change to the circuit. Graphics and color changes alone should not constitute a version change, especially since they changed so frequently. Many other resources I have found do not seem to be aware of the sheer number of different versions of Big Muffs that have been made, which is one of the things that interested me in collecting them. Within each of the version changes I have tried to list all the variations in graphics, knob shapes, and the circuits that I know of, listing these as "editions" of a particular version. Since photos of the circuit boards and diagrams of the circuits are already very prevalent on the web I have not put many Big Muff schematics on this site (for now), other than a few from my collection, but links to sites that have them are in one of the links above. I have included many photos of the various circuit boards for reference to those of you interested in purchasing or learning about vintage Big Muffs. Hopefully these will aid in seeing the differences in board designs and components used throughout the years to help you determine if a Muff is all original or has been modified. There are also some tips for buying vintage Muffs in a link above, as well as links to other Big Muff websites.

Note that I do not include some Big Muff variants here that are not actually built on the Big Muff tone circuit, such as the Muff Fuzz, Metal Muff, and Double Muff. None of those are actual Big Muff circuits, and none have any of the signature characteristics of a Big Muff's tone. Those items will be listed in a separate section (coming some day). Real Big Muff circuit variants like the two Deluxe Big Muffs and the vintage Little Big Muffs will be added soon.

If you have anything Muffish to contribute to this website, find an error, or can clarify a detail or date, please contact me.

Enjoy,

Kit

“I don’t think they (guitarists) buy the Big Muff because they are loyal, they buy the Big Muff because it has a unique tone character. The Big Muff is cascaded overdrive sections that go through diodes that clip, and that are filtered properly…so that you get a really sweet sustaining tone. And then you can still blend in a little edge with that. That’s the secret of the Big Muff.”

Mike Matthews in 2010

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THE BIG MUFF π VERSIONS - A Simple Summary of the Sounds

VERSIONS - How many versions of the Big Muff are there and what are the differences in the sound? That is a common question that many beginners to the Big Muff ask, and the answers I see on some websites vary from wildy inaccurate, to woefully incomplete. In their defense, it can be confusing considering all the different versions and wildly varying circuits. The Big Muff is usually regarded as a fuzz pedal, but is more of a distortion pedal with fuzz-like qualities, and a hint of a harmonic-octave-thing (the "fizz" or "buzz") going on within the sound that gets stronger more gain you add. All Big Muffs have a similar scooped mids sound, and a clipped distortion tone that is quite unique and "muffish" - but the variation in tones from version to version is quite broad, and there is a large variance in tone from unit to unit of any particular vintage version. There were many versions, and sometimes several variations (editons) within each version denoted by graphics, enclosure, control, or circuit changes. When we look at the circuits of the older Muffs, like the version 1 "Triangle" or version 2 "Ram's Head" Big Muffs for example, we see wide variations of component types and values from unit to unit. These are not all different "editions". That is simply how they made them at the time. Here is a quote from Mike Matthews, owner and founder of Electro-Harmonix.

"I’ve never done this, but if you were to take five Big Muffs from the same production line from 1973 and listen to all five, you would probably hear something different out of every one".

Here is another quote about David Gilmour's Big Muff from Pink Floyd's guitar tech, Phil Taylor.

"I introduced David to the Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi in 1974. He liked it, and he has continued to use one ever since. David has tried many of the different incarnations and models over the years, but his original has often been preferred for most things. Finding another that sounds the same is not easy, I have even placed six in a row that externally appeared to be identical to his original, and they all sounded different. Often, when you look inside, some components and values are different..."

WHICH BIG MUFF SOUNDS THE BEST? - That all depends on what kind of sound you are after. One persons favorite Big Muff may sound like garbage to another person. Depending on the circuit components values, there is a wide range of possible tones. You can have anything from the Isley Brother's Who's That Lady tone, David Gilmour-ish huge and articulate Pink Floyd tones, grungy/bluesy tones like the White Stripes or Black Keys, to Smashing Pumpkins, Dinosaur Jr. or Wata stoner/doom/drone "wall of sound" tones. Pristine Big Muff tones sound best through clean amps with lots of head room, but certain Muffs can also sound great in combination with small amps or amps with lots of natural breakup. Another tonal exploration is to stack an overdrive pedal before or after the Big Muff, to create blended tones. Overdrives often blend well with them, and one of the best to use is the old Muff Fuzz/Little Muff from the 1970s, or the modern version, the Muff Overdrive.

The variety of Big Muff tones all amount to subtle changes in the component values that make one Big Muff sound different from another. You will find similar variations in other vintage pedals, such as the original Sola Sound Tone Benders or Fuzz Face, though none as wide ranging in tones as the Big Muff. Trying to pin down what makes one "version" sound different from another is tricky without having dozens of examples to compare for each version. For example, it is very easy to compare one sample of a Triangle Big Muff and one sample of a Ram's Head Big Muff and by those two examples state a generalization about differences in tone. That would be accurate for those two samples, but a very inaccurate generalization for all Muffs of those two types, as multiple examples would need to be heard for a truer picture. Another mistake people make is setting the knobs in exactly the same position when comparing Big Muffs of different types. I have seen this done time and time again in gear demos on youtube and other websites. Setting the potentiometers (pots) identically may not result in the closest matching tone if the circuit component values are different, especially in the tone circuit, so the pots should be adjusted until you hear the tone of one Muff match or approximate the tone of the other. I have found that by doing this, differences in tone from several Muffs of the same type do not appear as different after all. That said, I have tried to compare multiple examples of the different models to get an accurate picture, and have found there are some noticeable changes in the Big Muff tones from different time periods that allow them to be grouped into general categories. Past the sound, a true "version" or "edition" of a particular version should have a significant circuit design change, or component value changes that were repeated as a real production revision, or a significant external control, enclosure, or graphic design change. Click the link below for a summary of the different Big Muff sounds.

TONAL DIFFERENCES IN ALL BIG MUFF VERSIONS - A SIMPLE SUMMARY

There is a lot of talk about vintage Big Muffs sounding better than modern Big Muffs, and I have heard it said to me many times that the V1 Triangle Big Muff sounds the best. In reality, there is not really a definable difference in a Triangle Big Muff and a Ram's Head Big Muff, other than the enclosure. They both spanned the same wide range of possible sounds, because they both spanned the same wide range of possible clipping, feedback, and tone stack filter combinations. Most of the opinions I have heard, stating a Triangle Big Muff sounds like this, or a Ram's Head Big muff sound like that, come from people who have only heard one or two examples of real vinatage Big Muffs, or more likely, people who have only ever heard clones made from one or two specific circuit tracings. In reality, you could have a V1 made one week in 1970 that exaclty matches the sound of a V2 made in 1973 because the components values happen to match on those weeks, then a V1 made the following week in '70 may sound identical to a V2 Ram's Head made in '74. They varied that much in production, but overall, these combos only produced about four or five Muff tones distinctly different from each other, and then dozens that fall in between those with very monor differences. The circuit is very susceptible to minor changes however. Thats is why there are so many that sound different from each other.

Below is a basic rundown on the tonal differences. A much more detailed explanation of the different versions can be found here.

ODD BIG MUFFS THAT DO NOT MATCH UP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE

Every now and then odd Big Muffs turn up with odd circuits and box graphics, sometimes mismatched with parts from versions that were made several years apart. Strange knobs can be explained because there were many knob types used, most shown on this website, and there are many Muffs around with replacement knobs. Other odd combinations are enclosures with graphics that do not match up with the pcb boards used at the same time, or LED on Big muffs that never had LEDs. There are several possibilities that could explain some of those oddities.

1. The Muff was defective, returned to Electro-Harmonix for repair or replacement under warranty, and EHX replaced the circuit board with a current production version on hand, but the graphics on the original box are from a previous version, or vise versa. That was likely a standard practice because it would have been less expensive to simply replace the whole circuit, pots and all, rather than to spend time trying to trace down which component was bad.
2. A previous owner, repair tech, or someone at a music shop may have combined components from one defective Muff (enclosures, knobs, circuits, switches) with components from from another defective Muff in an effort to make one sellable pedal. I have come across a few of these myself, and have actually done this myself with Muffs in my collection. Sometimes LEDs or power jacks were added to Big Muffs that did not include these features.
3. EHX discovered some older components (enclosures, knobs) in the factory warehouse and used them with a current production components to use them up. I have seen this happen with manufacturers I have worked with in the past, so I know it happens.
4. A tech has worked on the Muff at some point and replaced circuit components, switches or pots with newer ones that do not match the types originally used.
5. You have something unique that I do not know about, and you need to take photos and let me know about it right away :)

ENTER THE SITE FOR A HISTORY OF ALL BIG MUFF VERSIONS

THANKS GO OUT TO ALL THOSE WHO HAVE HELPED OR CONTRIBUTED TO THIS SITE: Mike Matthews, Bob Myer, Howard Davis, Fran Blanche, John Pisani, Daniel Shin, Larry Demarco, Rick Stevenson, Kevin, Mark, Marc Ahlfs of Skreddy Pedals, Ron, Damian, Domenic, Brad, Jay, John, Carlos, Scott, Billy, Matt at SUF, the folks at the Gear Forum and Gilmour Gear Forum, and everyone else who has contributed that I forgot to mention! And extra big thanks to Mike Matthews for starting it all!

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