Electro Harmonix Deluxe Big Muff PI

I have had so many Big Muff's through the years and always wanted a bit more out of every one just because of my need to tweak to taste. This does just that! I really do love it! I am able to get pretty much every kind of Muff sound out of it except for a bit of the Op amp's unique sound. But all the other ones (NYC, Triangle, Ram's Head, Russian) were no problem. You can use the Mids control to customize the Muff to clone other Muff's. Plug your favorite Muff in side by side and custom make it by sweeping the Mids and Q controls. The Attack function also is a HUGE part of the uniqueness to the Deluxe Big Muff's sound. You can get more RAT like in it's note attack and sharpness unlike ever before in a Big Muff, while still sounding every bit Big Muff Pi as you can imagine. The Gate alone is worth it to any Big Muff fan IMO, as we all know about the Muff's heavy gain background noise when not playing. You can also use the gate for a staccato cut off like effect when you crank it! The Bass Boost is a subtle effect, slightly changes the mid character but it enhances it as well. Definitely a good idea to have there when you start playing with the e/q and mids, I am currently using it set to ON. If I could have one thing, it'd be that I wish I could get it to be able to switch to an Op Amp from the Silicon base overall sound. The Op Amp Muff sound IS the Op Amp Muff, and it must come from the use of the Op Amp inside pushing the sound through everything in the magical way it does. I don't think you can get any Silicon based Big Muff to sound like one, no matter what e/q or Mid control you add. You can get close, but not exactly clone the sound. This isn't a bad thing, they're just 2 different tones, 2 different sounds, like a Rat and a Muff, a Tubescreamer and a DS-1, they're both great, just, well, different, and i'm ok with that difference, I'm happy to own a few Big Muff's any day and have 2 on my board as well if need be. If you like the NYC Big Muff you will love this one, it's based off of that and if you have ever had one you will be able to tell right away once you plug it in and turn all the extras of the Deluxe features off, (and you will be ok with it's size being just as large width wise too). The Deluxe Big Muff is exactly that, it's a Deluxe version of everyone's favorite EHX distortion/fuzz pedal, it does everything a "Deluxe" version of something does of the original it's upgrading, while keeping true to what that original is, and just giving you more of it and more options. personally i'm not usually into Deluxe versions of things in life, I like basic original versions of everything, but this Deluxe Big Muff I am happy to say I actually do like a lot more than the NYC Big Muff, a lot more! You just might too!

This pedal is an amazing deal! I have always been into big muffs but the original design and variants are not always very responsive when you're dialing in your tone.

What I love about this pedal is that you get the classic NYC Muff sound if you only use the 3 classic knobs in the normal mode.
For added versitility, the bass boost function really gives my single coils depth.
The attack really helps bringing clarity into chordal work. I also use fuzz pedals while playing some chords or filling certain passages and with a regular Big Muff, there would be no note clarity for more complex chords. Not with this unit, chords are much clearer with the attack knob maxed.
Due to the nature ofbig muffs, they are really noisey. With the added gate knob, this is no longer a problem. It is extremely sensitive and I usually use it before 3 o'clock. If I want really prominent staccatofuzz sound, I just pump up the gate knob and get really gated fuzz sounds.

Another inovative feature I really like to use is the Mids part of this pedal. I have at least three ways I like to use it: As a normal mid boost, as a clarity enhancer or as a dramatic effect. You can really sweep through those mid frequencies and dial just the right amount.

If used with an expression pedal, it yelds some some frequency sweeping sounds just like a wah would. I usually set it and leave it but you can change it on the fly should you wish.

I woudn't change anything to this pedal. It's clear, noise free, fairly priced , has a low current draw and is realiable and durable.Amazing sound and quality we have come to expect from Electro Harmonix.