Favourite Big Muffs and other fuzzes for Jazzmasters?

[Alex!]

I don’t exactly own a jazzmaster but I turned my mustang into a Jazz-Stang I basically routed the HH pickguard for JM pickups. I love to use the OpAmp Big Muff, hands down my favorite fuzz of all time second to the JHS 3 series fuzz. Soon I plan to add a Rhythm circuit plate to my jazz-stang and have a the circuit in it, will I ever use it? Who knows.

[hulakatt]

I dont remember if i've posted this here BUT.....A key to Big Muff enjoyment for some is getting rid of the standard tone control. Its a signature sound of the Big Muff circuit, but it can also be not the sound for everyone or can contribute to the guitar tone getting lost in the mix of other instruments. Its why EHX added the Tone Bypass to some Muffs in the 70s, later calling it "Tone Wicker" on 2000s models. Pete Cornish does this on his G2 Muffs replacing the typical BM tone control with a more basic treble roll off. I do a similar thin on the "Little Big" fuzzes I make, as well as the "PRF Sustainers" that were made for charity in 2020. It turns the muff into a more mid-focused high gain overdriver and is a nice alternative, imo.

This is interesting information, this somehow all slipped by me before.

[sal paradise]

The caprid arrived. It sounded… fine, like a …big muff. Thankfully @greenknee reminded me about rat into muff, and that sounds glorious.

In case anyone is wondering, Tony’s Big Balls sounds equally as glorious. The w&c is going back. Got to stop watching gear & expecting miracles

I can at least confirm that anyone looking for a muff should take a good look at some Balls.

[JSett]

Is that whiteface a reissue or original? It's clean as hell.

[ThePearDream]

I've been loving my clone of the MojoHand Colossus Fuzz. It's a Russian/Civil War style Muff, with the addition of a mids knob and a 3-way bass switch. It's super versatile, with a ton of range on tap. It's also well under $200 for a brand new one.

[sal paradise]

Is that whiteface a reissue or original? It's clean as hell.

Reissue. Forgot to add that bit in the rat chat. No way I could afford an original that clean $$$

[GreenKnee]

Hell yeah
You've actually got me on the hunt for a Big Muff now, haven't had one for ages but need to scratch the itch. My favourite I've ever had was an IC Big Muff (V5?) so I'm starting the search there

[JackFawkes]

You've actually got me on the hunt for a Big Muff now, haven't had one for ages but need to scratch the itch. My favourite I've ever had was an IC Big Muff (V5?) so I'm starting the search there

Unless the maker intentionally does something in the design to change the tone stack, all OpAmp Big Muffs really do sound the same, so you might as well get the Electro-Harmonix reissue, or whatever's cheapest, or whatever you like the aesthetic of best...
As for hunting other muffs, that's where you can get caught in the weeds in all sorts of subtle beautiful differences; and your only hope of trying to find direction is by articulating what you're looking for by comparison (i.e. "like an OpAmp muff but with more X, or less Y")

Jack

P.S.: I still like The Pedal Bored's approach to pedal reviews/comparisons better than any of the hundreds of others out there, and wish he kept doing them...

[fuzzjunkie]

I sold my vintage Op Amp Big Muff last fall. I prefer an “almost Muff” sound. More than a Fuzz Face, but less than a Big Muff. I also like a fuzz that cuts through a mix.

That generally means a Tonebender of some sort. Since the Colorsound Jumbo Tonebender is basically a Big Muff minus a diode clipper and make-up gain stage, it’s the closest. Slightly less gain, just a touch more open sounding and the same tone stack, more or less. The B&M Fuzz used by Edwyn Collins on “Girl Like You,” is a rebranded Jumbo.

Better than that is a Burns Buzzaround or a Tonebender MK-3 or 4. They have similar circuits, but the controls are different. The Tonebenders are more controlled while the Buzzaround has more extreme sounds. Plenty of gain and they can cut like a knife. The Park Sound fuzz is in the same family of fuzz.

I was pleasantly surprised that the Fairfield Circuitry Four Eyes could sound like the Big Muff that I always wanted. It can sound like a lot of things, but it’s inthe Big Muff position on my board. Big, deep fuzz with some distortion like sustain that still cuts through a band.

[hulakatt]

I do really like the Analogman SunBender MKIII

[OffYourFace]

What is the actual difference between and mk3 and mk4 tone bender? I recently bought a PCB that said it was for either circuit. Is it the transistors? I know the Vox tone bender mk3 had germanium ones. Did the mk4 have silicon ones?

[fuzzjunkie]

What is the actual difference between and mk3 and mk4 tone bender? I recently bought a PCB that said it was for either circuit. Is it the transistors? I know the Vox tone bender mk3 had germanium ones. Did the mk4 have silicon ones?

There’s a lot of crossover between the two. The Mk3 was introduced in late ‘68 and the Mk4 in late ‘69-early ‘70, I believe.

The Solasound/Colorsound circuit layout doesn’t change, just the parts and the paint job on the box, but the transition was gradual. The Park, Carlsboro and Vox Mk3s all kept the original design as far as I know.

They all use a Darlington pair for the first gain stage and most were germanium transistors, although later Vox Mk3 and a few Colorsound MK4 pedals used silicon. So basically a boosted Fuzz Face as far as the distortion section. I’ve seen gut shots of vintage pedals where the Darlington pair used the same transistors and the 3rd was different, but all were germanium.

Then there is the tone stack, which gradually changes to more of a Big Muff style before the Supa/Jumbo versions were introduced.

The Buzzaround and Dizzytone pedals differ by having an external bias control instead of a tone control. This allows them to be more gated at one end of the spectrum and more of an overdrive at the other end, compared to the others.

The main difference between the Sola/Colorsound Mk3-4 is in the bias section of the circuit. The values used in the Mk4 give a more dynamic, articulate tone that has the ability to clean up somewhat. The Mk3 has less gain range and is more ragged sounding without much cleanup.

David Main from D*A*M describes the Mk3 as a hammer that you pound away on, while the Mk4 is a precise boxing glove that you can aim. His clones vary. Some use the same transistors for the Darlington pair and the 3rd is different, while others use the same ones for all three. Mine uses 3 OC81 transistors. Others use OC75 or AC125. The Vox ones used a mixed set of germaniums, but a matching set after the switch to silicon. It all depends upon matching the leakage and gain of the transistor to the bias setting, rather than which type was used.

I have two Mk4 style pedals and one is made by D*A*M. They both sit in between a fuzz and distortion to me. They are more amp like with a tighter bottom than a typical fuzz. They both can be dialed in to sounding like a MK2, which is a higher gain fuzz than a Fuzz Face, or getting closer to Big Muff territory. They can also be dialed back to overdrive, either with the gain knob or guitar volume. A Buzzaround can cover those tones while also getting some of that Mk1 gated sound.

I’ve only played the ‘90s reissue Mk3 and it was looser and had more of a Fuzz Face type grain to the fuzz.

[OffYourFace]

Ahh ok. Just in the biasing. That’s interesting. I totally forgot I once had a Mk4 that Stu Castledine made me and it sounded amazing. I should’ve kept it. Here’s the old listing… you can see the PCB. Those are def germanium transistors with a germanium diode.

On reverb

[fuzzjunkie]

Ahh ok. Just in the biasing. That’s interesting. I totally forgot I once had a Mk4 that Stu Castledine made me and it sounded amazing. I should’ve kept it. Here’s the old listing… you can see the PCB. Those are def germanium transistors with a germanium diode.

On reverb

There were some small changes to the tone stack and the input impedance, but the sound difference is mainly due to the bias as it changes the character of the fuzz tone.

The impedance was probably due to matching the transistors to the circuit when different types were used (the Vox has a higher value here), but overall they stayed in the same lower gain and leakage range for the Darlington pair, with the 3rd being higher gain and leakage.

The tone stack gradually changed to more closely match the Big Muff with slightly less mid-scoop.

The bias capacitor on the 2nd transistor changed from 10µ to 6.4µ to 4.7µ over the years while most of the other components stayed the same and the layout didn’t change at all from what I can tell.

[Jonesie]

I think I actually found the best way to enjoy the muff I have. I'm running a compressor before it, really subtle with the blend at about 75% dry / 25% effect. Really lets the high strings actually break through as opposed to just being mud all the way through.