Big Muff

Original production (1969–1984) Following the success of the Rolling Stones' hit "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" and its fuzz-heavy guitar riff, multiple manufacturers began making transistor-based fuzz pedals. Mosrite rebranded its own Fuzzrite as "the Foxey Lady"—a reference to the song "Foxy Lady" by the Jimi Hendrix Experience—in 1967 for production by Mike Matthews on behalf of the Guild Guitar Company. The four-transistor Big Muff Pi model, co-designed with Bob Myer, Sovtek and EHX's return (1992–present) With the end of the Cold War, Matthews sought business opportunities in Russia, where he founded Sovtek, which became a major supplier of vacuum tubes to amplifier brands like Marshall, Fender, and Mesa/Boogie. Into the mid-1990s, the Big Muff became an integral part of the sound of many alternative rock bands, including the Smashing Pumpkins, Dinosaur Jr., NOFX, and Bush. In 2000, Electro-Harmonix resumed production of the Big Muff in the United States with the Big Muff Pi NYC Reissue, which was a revised take on a late-1970s model. and a signature model for J Mascis. Reissues of older Big Muff versions include the original "triangle" Big Muff, as well as the Ram's Head, Op Amp, and Green Russian Big Muffs. == Design ==

The Big Muff is characterized by a smooth and heavily saturated distortion with long sustain, which the pedal produces through a relatively simple circuit consisting of four transistor gain stages and a tone stack placed before the output. Electro-Harmonix has released many different versions of the pedal, mostly changing various values in an otherwise consistent circuit. The first stage is the input gain stage, which boosts and buffers the incoming signal while removing unnecessary frequencies. The Sustain (or gain) control is placed here, adjusting the amount of signal entering the next part of the circuit. Two clipping stages follow, both using identical configurations consisting of a pair of diodes in each feedback loop for soft clipping. By distorting the signal twice in a row, the Big Muff is capable of harsh levels of distortion more typically associated with hard-clipping circuitry. The Big Muff tone stack uses two filters, one low-pass and one high-pass, which are blended together to an amount set by the tone control. With the tone control in its middle position, the filters are combined, leading to a reduction in midrange frequencies. The Big Muff tone stack design is more powerful than a conventional passive tone stack, which simply rolls off treble content, and can result in overly bright or dark tones. As a result, the tone stack is a common target for modifications. Finally, the output stage boosts the signal to compensate for any volume loss caused by the tone stack filters. Many of the Big Muff's component and value changes have affected how much this stage boosts the outgoing signal. == Versions ==