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  #1  
Old 11-03-2011, 04:08 AM
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Comparison of Pickle Pie B and BIg Muff Pi

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I am looking for a distortion pedal and want to know if the Wren and Cuff Picke Pie B pedal is worth the money compared to a popular Cheaper pedal such as the Electro-Harmonix XO Big Muff Pi pedal. I know the Pickle Pie is higher quality but is the sound it gets that much better compared to the Muff Pi?
  #2  
Old 11-03-2011, 07:05 AM
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compare: they both have the word "pi" in their names
contrast: one has the letter "e' at the end of the word "pi"
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Old 11-03-2011, 07:06 AM
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That there's one complex question and it's been asked since before the year zero. How much money do you have to spend times how much a certain effect means to you (unknown at time of purchase) divided by the time it takes to earn back the value (and what constitutes value) plus value as a tool over time or possible resale value if it doesn't work out (I keep maybe 1/4 of the pedals I buy so resale value is important) I used to take care of the plantings at Harvard Business School and MIT, so I overheard some of this stuff.
I know I can get a sound system (what we used to call a stereo) for $300 and the next jump in quality is to $3000, I'll stay with the $300 one because it's pretty good and I like making music more than listening to it. I like all kinds of sound reproduction, even small radios when there is a power blackout...
Personally, I'm not one of the people who could make do with a bass BigMuff or any muff for that matter, even a perfected one. Which the PP is. I like superfuzz or synthy sounding fuzz.

Last edited by BassBrass : 11-03-2011 at 07:11 AM.
  #4  
Old 11-03-2011, 09:28 AM
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As somebody who owns both of these pedals let me say that there is a tremendous difference between them!

The Bass Big Muff Pi (the one I'm assuming you're talking about) has its three modes, one which provides a big boost to the bass frequencies, one with the typical muff frequency curve (BIG mid scoop) and one which blends the fuzz with your clean signal —all accessed by the toggle switch on the front of the pedal.

The Pickle Pie B doesn't have a toggle switch but it still has tremendous versatility! The Saturation know on the pedal does exactly what you'd expect it to, which is to gradually thicken and exaggerate the actual fuzz effect. The Shape knob changes the character of the knob quite drastically through its range from a dark, fizzy somewhat mid-scooped tone when turned completely anti-clockwise to a bright, brash and buzzy mid-BOOSTED tone when turned all the way to clockwise. The blend knob is the killer feature on this pedal as it is designed in such a way to gradually add your clean tone back into the overall tone whilst maintaining a very natural fuzz sound.

What do these differences mean to people who aren't familiar with the effect? Well, while pedals like the Bass Big Muff tend to lose presence (in my experience the attack of your bass is lost completely) in the mix when they're turned, the Pickle Pie B allows you to retain your presence and punch by blending in your clean tone in a very, VERY natural way.

At this point you may be asking yourself, "But what about the clean mode on the Bass Big Muff?"

Yes, it exists, and A LOT of people use this mode almost exclusively because it can retain your ability to be heard in a mix. My main problem (which many people seem to agree with and resort to modding the actual pedal in order to fix) with the "Dry" mode is that it can be very difficult to find a unity gain setting whereby your clean tone and the fuzz tone are added in equal parts (without an overall giant boost to your volume level).

This was such a big problem for me that I felt as if it ruined what could have been a perfectly good pedal!

Instead I would tend to use the Bass Boost mode —not in the hopes of it helping me cut through— but rather to use the fuzz effect as a sort of "Bass Enhancer." Essentially, I would use it to add girth to my bass' tone and help fill out the band's sound a lot.

To this day this is my preferred way of using this pedal!

The Pickle Pie B, however, with its ability to go into mid-boosted tone areas as well as it's incredible (it is truly a thing to behold!) clean blend, will give you all the presence you need and make your fuzz tone very prominent. This is without taking into account all of the other tweaks Matt has made in this pedal in order to assure that the bass maintains its tonal integrity and its presence! My one criticism about this pedal is that despite its versatility, it is not going to take you very covincingly into vintage fuzz territory. I would characterize this pedal as distinctly modern-sounding as it is a gain monster! That said, I still manage to use this pedal quite successfully (in my opinion) in my 60s-influenced three-piece band, so YMMV!

I hope this helps! You really should do a search on YouTube and find some demos of both of these pedals to get a good feel for how they sound without necessarily taking my word for it. It is my opinion, however, that there are not really any fantastic demos of the Pickle Pie B...so bear that in mind when looking it up!
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  #5  
Old 11-03-2011, 09:44 AM
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+1 on the Clean Blend of the W&C. I have one on my Tall Font Russian, and while I don't really NEED it (the TFR has TONS of low end retention), it is a fantastic blend, very natural and organic sounding.
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  #6  
Old 11-03-2011, 10:37 AM
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yeah, the difference is that the Big Muff Pi is garbage and gets lost in a band setting, the Pickle Pie B has a lot of range and cuts through almost any sonic pile up.

also, build quality from Matt at Wren & Cuff is AMAZING, EHX is always a crap shoot.
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