Electro-Harmonix Little Big Muff Pi Original

This is a smaller version of the Big Muff Pi. I have a 1980's version of it. It has a Volume knob and a tone switch. The sustain on it is set at a predetermined amount, but can be adjusted by rolling off of the volume knob. It has an 1/8" style plug, not a BOSS style, so it can't be daisy chained without an adapter for it. It's center negative and 9V DC.

UTILIZATION

It is VERY easy to use. Hook it in, set the tone switch to one of two options, set the volume so it's equal when bypassed and rock out. Super Easy to use, and super-easy to get a good sound out of.

SOUND QUALITY

This sounds a lot like the Big Muff Pi's they make today. Thick, hairy, and aggressive. I can't comment on an older one because I've never played them. The tone switch has to settings. The the top, it seems to add more treble, like the tone knob on a Big Muff is cranked. At the bottom, it seems like the tone knob on a Big Muff is at half or less. It's a very thick and bassy sounding fuzz/distortion. Like a full sized Big Muff Pi, it lies somewhere between a fuzz and a distortion, while simultaneously being not quite either.
The input is connected to the output via a buffer. Being an Electro Harmonix pedal, it's a good one. Not much treble loss while bypassed.

OVERALL OPINION

This is a great pedal. It sounds great and is very easy to use. I would still have it, but I don't like the Muff sound. I prefer a thinner, teblier, fuzzier fuzz. I am unbiased in rating this. It sounds great if you like the sound. This is one rockin' pedal that will keep rocking for a while longer.

This is a fuzz pedal, basically a smaller version of the Big Muff, which is one of Electro-Harmonix's best pedals, and most legendary. There are two 1/4" connections, as well as an output for a power supply. It can also run on a 9V battery. This is an analog pedal, and as such, it cannot be edited through a Mac or a PC. It also is not capable of being MIDI-controlled. It is not rackable.

UTILIZATION

The effects editing of this pedal is exactly the same as the Big Muff. It's got three knobs, one for Volume, Tone, and Sustain (Compression). The setup is really easy to use, and the manual will explain it clearly, even though that there is no need for it really.
I will say that it is much better to get the power adapter for this pedal, as it will save you money in the long run. You'll spend more on batteries in 3 months then you would on the charger.

SOUND QUALITY

I think that this pedal, while pretty solid in it's own right, pales in comparison to the Big Muff. At a high volume with low sustain, this pedal sounds great. This is good for a slightly less abrasive tone, good for lighter leads and even some rhythm. However, the more the sustain is cranked, the more obvious this pedal's weaknesses become. For instance, the pedal loses serious clarity as the sustain is cranked. It gets noisy, which is typical for both pedals, but the clarity of tone is lost significantly more in the Little Big Muff. I think that the potential for it to rock out as a high-gain fuzz (for both rhythm or lead).

OVERALL OPINION

I think that for the price, which is only slightly less than the Big Muff, this pedal really isn't worth it. Ten dollars is not much more for noticeably better tone. Granted, the appeal of this pedal lies in the fact that it is smaller in size than the original Big Muff, which is actually quite large for a pedal, but I don't think that is that much of a priority for me as I tend not to use too many pedals at once anyway. This pedal is better for a lower distortion setting, but honestly, why buy a Muff if you aren't going to rock out with it? It seems like a bad use for this pedal. Go with the Big muff.

There are 3 knobs on this unit. They are volume, tone, and sustain. it's very durable and can easily stand road wear. I keep most my pedal in a cushioned backpack and it has faired well. The footswitch works good and is true bypass so you don't lose any sound, which is an improvement of the big pi.

UTILIZATION

The volume gives a good boost to your sound and works nicely in combination with the other knobs. the tone control adds more highs as you crank it up. You can get a wide variety of sounds through this thing if you tweak it right. It's a very simple self explanitory pedal.

SOUND QUALITY

This pedal has the perfect sound for grunge. I use it to get my sound when we cover "crackerman" by stp. Check that out if you would like a good example of this pedal. You can also get hard rock sounds and things that sound smashing pumpkin-esque. I tend to keep the tone around 2 o' clock and the sustain around 12 o' clock. The sound does cut out a little at the top of the tone knob but nothing like the digitech grunge. Works great in combination with my crybaby wah pedal for killer leads

OVERALL OPINION

It's very versitle and a little under priced in my opinion( I really have never said that about a pedal before). I would buy it again in a heart beat. I prefer this pedal heavily over the digitech grunge pedal. The grunge pedal kept cutting my sound off when i turned the tone know past 9 o' clock. I really have been able to find some of my "own" sounds through this pedal