Originally called Precision Fuzz the P2 was introduced around 1988 as an upgrade of the P1. The P2 is first seen in David’s 1989 Momentary Lapse of Reason stage rig after it replaced the #2 ram’s head Big Muff. It was also featured in the 1994 PULSE stage rig labeled Big Muff. Considering the small size of this early version it’s likely that it didn’t feature Cornish’s buffers. Pete Cornish G2

V1 Triangle Big Muff - The low pass resistor values started with 27k. 33k was the most used. Other variants used 22k and 39k.Triangle was the punchiest and most powerful on clean channel. Big box muff was almost exactly the same. Ram's head and Russian too but they were much better on dirt channel for my FAT MASSIVE tone needs. I think the majority of the tone signature is really determined by the key cap and resistor values, NOT by the transitor type. To a lesser extent, the diode types can also make a difference in the tone because they affect the frequncies clipped in the clipping stages. Poor quality transistors can also affect how noisy the pedal will be. VERSION 3 BIG MUFF PI - Approximately 10 circuit variants exist, each made in extended manufacturing runs.

Replicating sounds: Because Ram's Head Big Muff was used by so many iconic artists this reissue will give you the possibility to match their tones. Even with the aforementioned tweaking possibilities, in the end, it's all different sides of the same exact thing. You need to make sure this is the sound you actually want - I would definitely recommend to test it and compare it to other EHX muffs to make sure this one will get you there. If it is what you're looking for, go for it, it's great. But don't believe all those forums that will tell you about how "versatile" it is, because it's not really, it can only be tweaked within its own very niche boundaries.Note that I have not shown the switching for the volume pedal feature of this circuit, primarily because I thought it was a stupid and clumsily executed idea. The low level signal does not get loud enough to even meet an average unity level of most other pedals from the time, nor is the switching setup practical. It would have better to simply wire in a standard 100k volume pot like a typical BMP. Taylor explains: 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. Phil Taylor, Guitar Player January 2009. Not long after this demo, I replaced the 5088 transistors in the SUF clone with a set of high hFE Fairchild SE4010 transistors. These seemed to get the clarity slightly closer to matching the original FS36999 transistors in the 1973 Big Muff (though most 4010 tranys are actually very low hFE), but in a blind test I could not tell which was which. I was also able to test a set of supposedly vintage 2N5133 (thanks to Darrin) transistors with hFEs in the 800s against the modern SE4010s and 2N5088 transistors. Based on my experience with these in vintage Big Muffs, I thought for sure that the 2N5133 tranys would make a much more noticable difference. Surprisingly, there was not much difference, if any. Later, I pulled all four FS36999 transistors from a 1973 Big Muff that I had apart for repair and measured the hFE. Two measured in mid 160s, one 184, and one 204. Hardly what I would call a hight current gain. On clean channel they all sound very similar. Op amp has its own character which is super cool and I already miss it (both on dirt and clean channel)... Small Bear Electronics carried Big Muff replacement pots at the time this article was written, but many other electronics suppliers carry them as well.

Since some wall warts (AC to DC power adaptors) do not regulate and filter properly it was necessary for E-H to add some filtering to the circuit. Wall warts convert AC to DC using a bridge rectifier, but some of that rippling alternating current can still leak through the power supply rail into the direct current, creating 60 cycle hum noise in the audio signal. The 100Ω resistor at R27 is there to reduce that noisy AC. AC current sees a capacitor as a short circuit, so the big electrolytic cap on the +9v power supply at C14 was added to smoothly filter more of the AC ripple by draining the ripple peaks to ground, leaving (mostly) straight DC going through the circuit. But one of the most striking things about the Ram's Head is how often it seems to borrow the best attributes of each Big Muff version. A peek at the circuit reveals few overt clues about how the new Ram's Head differs from other mass-produced, four-transistor Big Muffs, or how it might achieve any special Ram's Headiness. There's four prominent but generic BC547 transistors arrayed on a through-hole printed circuit board. And if it weren't for the handsome reproduction of original Ram's Head graphics on the circuit board and enclosure, you'd have little reason to suspect it was special. V2 "BOX CAP" RAMS HEAD BIG MUFF PI - This is the most common V2 from the 1975-77 period, probably the 15th variant. This "Box Cap" Ram's Head version is easily identified by the large white box caps used. Quanitites made seem to be almost as many as the "White Can" Ram's Head version shown above (74#3). Identical to 76#1 below, but with 33k input resistor and low pass tone resistors at R2 and R8, instead of 39k, and 470pF filter caps instead of 560pF at C10, 11 and 12. The C1 input cap was almost always a 10µF polarized electro. Some production of this version changed between 1µF and 10µF at C2, C6, and C7, and a few used 10µF for all C1, C2, C6, and C7 caps. I was seriously debating leaving all 5 muffs with me... They are all different, altought 4 & 5 very very similar with triangle having slightly more note definitions and more punch. Though 4 with super creamy solo/single string was super hard to forget about.

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Berlin-based KMA’s Dead Stag lets you tailor your fuzz sound to any situation. An active bass and treble eq with 15db of cut and boost is paired with a parametric mid eq for scooping or pushing through a mix. A high/low gain switch cranks up the distortion to extreme levels and a smooth/sharp switch gives you a high mids boost for added clarity.

The Big Muff was designed by Mike Matthews and Electro Harmonix in the late 60s. It was a unique take on the still new fuzz circuit and during a time when guitarists had only a few pedals to choose from. The #2 is first seen lying on top of David’s Pete Cornish Animals touring board during the 1976 rehearsals and the following tour in 1977. It was again featured in the 1984 About Face stage rig and the 1989-90 leg of the Momentary Lapse of Reason tour. The pedal was also used during the rehearsals at Bray Studios, London UK, in May 2006 but replaced by a triangle model, which was used for the remainder of the On an Island tour. David is seen using this early Sovtek model during the 1993 Division Bell recording sessions. It’s not documented whether it was actually used for the album or not or if he perhaps employed one of the ram’s head models or both. The pedal was again featured in the 1994 stage rig as David’s main distortion pedal for the tour. For the South American shows in December 2015, David once again used the early 90s Sovtek Civil War Big Muff. The pedal was possibly used for Sorrow.The G2 isn’t really a Big Muff but one of Cornish’s more unique circuits, although it has obvious similarities to both the germanium Fuzz Face and early RAT models. The pedal was originally introduced around 1992 but wasn’t featured in David’s rig until the 1999 Pete Cornish All Tubes MkI pedal board. Sovtek Big Muff Pi – Civil War COLORSOUND JUMBO TONEBENDER Modified V3 Big Muff - Around 1976 Sola Sound of London modified their Big Muff clone, the Supa Tonebender, changing some component values, and entirely removing the gain recovery stage. The values in the Jumbo Tonebender were basically from a V3 era Big Muff. The purpose of the last stage in the original design was to recover some of the audio gain lost (approximately 8db) in the tone section, so removing it made for a very weak, low gain Muff. It almost sounds like some of the clean signal is mixed in with the distortion. This made for a muff that was rather lifeless for electric guitar leads and chords, but worked very well for bass guitar. I don't think there's a wrong choice here. They behave/sound so different with different amps, guitars, etc. that it's just impossible to decide which to get...