Big Muff Types, Russian, Triangle, Rams

[Jwar]

Is the Earthbound Audio Beast no longer in production? I couldn't find one for sale. Supercollider with 2 oscillators sounds like a super happy fun time.

I think I remember homie talking about redoing the Beast? I could be wrong. You could always email him. Or watch Reverb.com. Someone will give one up.

[frigid midget]

I prefer simple ones that just start off with good tone versus the ones that have a hundred options to tweak.

I agree and I feel I must say, I can't stand mids knobs. Possibly the least helpful thing EQD ever did was convincing half the guitar-playing world that muffs need one.

Same here. That old Maxon D&S I was talking about earlier, it's an example of a muff where one single tone control is more than enough to tweak yer muff according to taste/job/gtr/amp. Honestly, I have yet to find a muff where the extra controls don't feel like they were added for the sake of adding more knobs. As if a real boutique muff can't come with just three controls. 'Mids', 'focus', 'scoop'...If they make any audible difference at all, they range from harsh to overly boomy

/end rant. Srry, sliiiightly drunk.

[Blackened Soul]

I haven't tried anything on bass other than the Bass Muff, which is based in the green Russian.

That is like saying velvetta is based on cheese made by hand and milk from the most contented of cows... Civil war and green Sovtek muffs are that cheese made from those oh so happy cows. The lows are (or should be) sofficating. Black ones can be good too but are edgier and Russian ones are a little watered down by still good. Even a nyc muff crushes the bbm

[PanicProne]

Not suuuuuuper knowledgable on muffs, although I've tried a few. Anyways, I just want to say Dwarfcraft ECT. I like it a lot on guitar, love it on baritone and just cant stop laughing/grinning when I run my bass through it.

[popvulture]

I love my Caprid, and he was actually polling on Instagram (iirc) the other day about whether or not people would be interested in a small box version. The answers were pretty overwhelmingly yes, so that's something we could maybe look forward to... would be rad, because that was my only gripe about the orig. A tiny gripe at that, because I dig the whole faithful homage thing.

[Chankgeez]

I think it's a smart move for Wren and Cuff. I like the big box versions better as well, but not everybody does.

[mathias]

Similarly, if I was going to get an Arc Big Green, I'd want the original big sheet metal enclosure and not the later Hammond enclosure. part of the appeal for me.

I'll continue to avoid buying a vintage Muff (but never say never etc) just because modern stuff is more consistent and reliable.

[O Drones]

My Caprid is my forever Muff. I've been through a ton, and this is king, and I agree that mids controls on Muffs can fuck off. We just recorded a new EP and our engineer thought the Caprid was the best Muff he's ever recorded

[benjuro]

The old Russian muffs of any variety can be pretty variable, with the black Sovteks the worst offenders in that respect. Some are downright glorious but you deal with less-than-reliable construction...and at the prices they fetch now you'd be far better off with many of the great contemporary ideas already floated in this thread. I bet the W&C versions are fantastic, if I were in the market for something muffish that's probably where I'd go.

I'm with dudes on the extra knobs, a well-voiced muff really shouldn't need more than the big three. Also a big box fan myself but they can make pedalboard-ing a challenge.

Traditional Supercollider is probably a better bass option than the '71 if you're looking for moar heaviez, never tried a Beast. Musket covers a lot of russian muff ground and the focus control helps dial boominess in quite a bit. I like my V1 better than later Muskets for bass, also sounds a bit more "traditional"/closer to the sovteks. I've loved some Hoofs on bass but others not as much--different eras and transistors can definitely make them hit or miss. The Cloven version sounds like a fizzy joke.

I really dig Pharaoh and LSTR on guitar, not as much for bass, although a Pharaoh can do anything with the right dirt or drive in front of it. Not a muff circuit but the BAT Black Sheep absolutely kills on bass, highly underappreciated and drops jaws anytime I bring it out.

[PeteeBee]

Not suuuuuuper knowledgable on muffs, although I've tried a few. Anyways, I just want to say Dwarfcraft ECT. I like it a lot on guitar, love it on baritone and just cant stop laughing/grinning when I run my bass through it.

Exact same. I stepped down to the baby thunder because it has everything I need. Still want to try some wren and cuff, but only because people praise them so much

[mathias]

Would you use a different Muff into an overdriven amp than into a clean/SS amp? Thinking about that J Mascis sound.

[BitchPudding]

The Musket side of my Twosome fuzz will forever be my muff sound.

[Blackened Soul]

I'm not saying it is worth it to pay overblown vintage pricing on what real sovteks go for but I will argue to point that the inconsistency is a plus not a minus soundwise. See they are all a little different so you find YOUR muff that gets YOUR sound. When you get a perfected clone you are getting someone else idea of the perfect version of that pedal, unless you are going to build your own and tweak it and tweak it to get you your ultimate tonal goal.. Like my green muff

NSFW: show

I bought it new in 96 or 97 at the Berkeley [or El Cerrito... it moved about that time from Berkeley] guitar center. it came in a awesome little wooden box and at the time nothing sounded as massive. I've loved it and I've hated it but I have never found another one that sounds like it, it is just smoother sounding than most and has more lowend then most for whatever reason.. which means it is great for recording but it sucks in a band because it is so scooped in the mids.. I have other muffs, other russian made muffs but they aren't my muff

[GardenoftheDead]

An option: http://www.wrenandcuff.com/site/the-sto ... kle-pie-b/

Sorry i'm firmly of the believe that distorted bass needs a clean blend. Otherwise you lose low end, definition and in a live setting can blend in with the guitars too much.

[CarlGene]

I personally enjoy the tone of a rams head muff. I tend to stack two at the same time for that perfect aggressive mid / low sound. I currently have the Abominable Electronics Hail Satan Muff (tuned to a rams head), a Sanford and Sonny Bluebeard (rams head), and a Dunn Effects Blackbeard (tuned to a rams head, but offers a MASSIVE amount of low end) on my pedalboard. I had a Dunn Effects Civil War Muff clone on my board for about 6 months, and while it was an awesome pedal, it was just not my cup of tea sound-wise. I have also played through a friends GGG DIY Green Russian and it had too much low end and not enough fuzz for my liking.