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iamqman « The original fuzz box! »
Published on 06/29/11 at 14:16I went to Guitar Center one day looking for something to buy because I had money burning a whole in my pocket. Decided to pick the Big Muff up since I have seen so many players use or talk about this pedal. Took it home and wow!!!...This is the first time I have played a fuzz box before and very different than natural amp distortion or other OD pedals such as Boss or Ibanez. To my pleasant and utter satisfaction I was getting very cool sustain to which I had never gotten with regular OD pedals before. I was even getting a violin type sound with playing around with the Sustain knob.
The layout is as follows...
Volume,Tone, Sustain,
Volume is at is says. Tone will color your tone to dark or bright depending on how you dial it in. Sustain add the gain and violin like qualities to your tone.
What I like best about this pedal was how the sustain was very long and drawn out. Very useful in certain situations. I probably wouldn't use this as my everyday rig tone but it adds a cool and fun element to your arsenal.
UTILIZATION
Specs:
True bypass
Singing sustain with attitude
Crushing distortion
Adjustable tone
9-volt battery included
Optional 9DC-100 power supply available
Well it does not get much simpler than this. Maybe the easiest pedal to figure out. The manual was a mute point as anyone can figure out how to use this thing. It did help a little to find that violin setting which I did not know it could do until I read the manual. So that was a plus to add in the box.
SOUND QUALITY
When it comes to fuzz boxes I don't think there is anything better than the Big Muff. I have played a tone of fuzz pedals and nothing really comes close to the Big Muff. It is very warm and thick. Other pedals I have played seem to be thinner and more metallic sounding. This pedal is so simple and cheap at $80 it is not something that will necessarily break the bank.
I would use this with a Tele, Strat, and a Les Paul. Each instrument sounded very good and usable. It beefed up my Tele and just made my LP explode into sustaining saturation. I ran it in front of a Vox AC30 and a '74 Marshall JMP. The combo with the Vox was quite good and a tone that I actually miss since I don't have my Vox anymore. I have gone through a ton of pedals throughout my years and this is one that has stayed with me and I will never sell.
One downside is that I have an older one that is not true bypass which is a bummer now that the newer ones have this feature. However, I'm not going to shell out the extra $80 to get one with true bypass when I don't use it that much anymore
OVERALL OPINION
I love this pedal. Easy to use and the most classic fuzz box this world has ever known. I would say the only down side is the size of the box. It is HUGE and takes up a ton of space on your pedal board.
Another thing is the odd plug which is on the male side. It doesn't use a normal Boss or Ibanez plug so beware of that. It feels kind of hollow to which you would think it could break but I have never had a problem with mine.
At new these pedals come in at around $79, which is an excellent price for this item. I would recommend this pedal to any guitar player. It to me is a staple in rock n roll and should be owned by everyone. For the money some spend on gear this is one that will always sound the same and provide that irrefutable classic fuzz tone.
The layout is as follows...
Volume,Tone, Sustain,
Volume is at is says. Tone will color your tone to dark or bright depending on how you dial it in. Sustain add the gain and violin like qualities to your tone.
What I like best about this pedal was how the sustain was very long and drawn out. Very useful in certain situations. I probably wouldn't use this as my everyday rig tone but it adds a cool and fun element to your arsenal.
UTILIZATION
Specs:
True bypass
Singing sustain with attitude
Crushing distortion
Adjustable tone
9-volt battery included
Optional 9DC-100 power supply available
Well it does not get much simpler than this. Maybe the easiest pedal to figure out. The manual was a mute point as anyone can figure out how to use this thing. It did help a little to find that violin setting which I did not know it could do until I read the manual. So that was a plus to add in the box.
SOUND QUALITY
When it comes to fuzz boxes I don't think there is anything better than the Big Muff. I have played a tone of fuzz pedals and nothing really comes close to the Big Muff. It is very warm and thick. Other pedals I have played seem to be thinner and more metallic sounding. This pedal is so simple and cheap at $80 it is not something that will necessarily break the bank.
I would use this with a Tele, Strat, and a Les Paul. Each instrument sounded very good and usable. It beefed up my Tele and just made my LP explode into sustaining saturation. I ran it in front of a Vox AC30 and a '74 Marshall JMP. The combo with the Vox was quite good and a tone that I actually miss since I don't have my Vox anymore. I have gone through a ton of pedals throughout my years and this is one that has stayed with me and I will never sell.
One downside is that I have an older one that is not true bypass which is a bummer now that the newer ones have this feature. However, I'm not going to shell out the extra $80 to get one with true bypass when I don't use it that much anymore
OVERALL OPINION
I love this pedal. Easy to use and the most classic fuzz box this world has ever known. I would say the only down side is the size of the box. It is HUGE and takes up a ton of space on your pedal board.
Another thing is the odd plug which is on the male side. It doesn't use a normal Boss or Ibanez plug so beware of that. It feels kind of hollow to which you would think it could break but I have never had a problem with mine.
At new these pedals come in at around $79, which is an excellent price for this item. I would recommend this pedal to any guitar player. It to me is a staple in rock n roll and should be owned by everyone. For the money some spend on gear this is one that will always sound the same and provide that irrefutable classic fuzz tone.