Russian Black Muff vs Sovtek Green Muff....Should I "Go Green"?

JTreehorn · #1 12-01-2009, 08:01 PM

Ok.....I'm sure y'all are stoked for another "muff vs muff" thread...but I couldn't resist..

I've have currently on my board a Black Russian muff and I'm pretty satisfied with it's sound - and I'm a big fan of the muff sound in general. However, I've read a ton of threads about the older Sovtek Green Muffs and it appears that people feel they are the cat's pajamas - dirty, nasty muff fuzziness at it's best. Plus, not that it matters, they just LOOK like pure rock and roll.

So....I wanted to know if anyone has directly had experience with both of them...maybe even compared them head to head. Also, has anyone compared the GGG Green muff kit to an actual Green Muff? I haven't tried the BBM, I do have a Barge VB-Jr that I use with my Black Russian.

Lastly, to prove that I have used the search and tried to exhaust all of my sources....for your viewing pleasure:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0ydPW7vgTw

Thanks!

moose23 · #2 12-01-2009, 08:59 PM

Pretty sure there's only a few resistors difference between the black and green. I'll check the schematics later.

selfblessed · #3 12-01-2009, 09:37 PM

Yeah you can mod a Black one to darn close to a Green. I had the link but its lost now. I am more of a fuzz face guy and or a tube overdrive guy. The latter has been more appealing because its one less effect so I can have another.

Other than that. I had great luck with my Black Version RBMP!

lowregister · #4 12-01-2009, 10:41 PM

I came across some green muffs in my local guitar store and I was curious, I tried both and they were fairly close, benefit to the green. The owner of the store though convinced me to not buy it because he said the switches always eventually go out on them and that he can't find new ones to replace.

I don't know the validity of what he said, but he must of meant it if he convinced me to not buy something in his store...

Valerus · #5 12-01-2009, 10:42 PM

balloon bass = win

Mudfuzz · #6 12-01-2009, 11:01 PM

I own both.

They are close but not the same, the green is a little smoother in clipping overall and has boomier lows.

I would build the kit these days my self it I wanted a green, the whole $200 for a $70 pedal puts me off abit. That saying I will not be selling my green sovtek any time soon.

TheWoodShed · #7 12-01-2009, 11:19 PM

I've owned tons of the Green Muffs and a couple of the blacks.

Of the greens due to variations in builds and inconsistent quality control there is a wide variety of tones to be found within them. Some of them just suck and others are golden.

If you get a green, try it out. You may not like it or it could be "that tone"...the magic that give angels their glow and allows fairies to have fairy dust.

Most of the greens I have owned have been far superior to the black reissues though. The fuzz seems to be a bit less tame and the tone knob seems to give a bit more rear end.

JTreehorn · #8 12-02-2009, 12:54 PM

Cool everyone....thanks for the input. I think that unless I can find a deal on one, I'll stick with my Black reissue.....or maybe spray paint it olive green!

Any word on any comparisons between the GGG kit and the real deal? That's probably a more viable option....

Bish42 · #9 12-02-2009, 01:54 PM

I own both and all though I keep trying the green on my board, I always go back to the black. It has a bit more crunch and bite, whereas the green is smoother and seems to get lost in the mix (at least for me - but I play with two guitarists who use a lot of effects).

One other thing I dislike about the green is the plastic switch.. mine gets stuck sometimes so I end up having to do a bit of tap-dancing on it before it disengages!

Whichever I use I always blend with my clean signal. Loses too much bass otherwise.

**DosiYanarchy** · #10 12-02-2009, 02:01 PM

i did a triple threat between 2 green sovteks (one modded to take a power supply) and a black muff.

I felt that the black muff sounded a little clearer and tighter,

the modded green sounded a bit fizzer on the very top than the black and green,

and the regular green had a very strong lowend and is what i consider the grail of big muffs (for bass),

I'd say that the noticable difference is not THAT big. Sure I think the Green is better, but if you played me a recording of both a green and a black i'd probably only just be able to pick out the green.

I've also owned a GGG-tuned Big muff (That Ryan @ Fuzzrocious) built for me, that was super sweet, and smaller than the bass big muff.

the blast · #11 12-02-2009, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lowregister

I came across some green muffs in my local guitar store and I was curious, I tried both and they were fairly close, benefit to the green. The owner of the store though convinced me to not buy it because he said the switches always eventually go out on them and that he can't find new ones to replace.

I don't know the validity of what he said, but he must of meant it if he convinced me to not buy something in his store...

This in incorrect. You can get the switch here:
http://www.smallbearelec.com/Detail.bok?no=454
I replaced mine. They are the exact switch.

If he has some Green ones for a decent price, I'd say go for it as it will prob hold it's value in case you ever wanted to sell it.

Best, -john

JTreehorn · #12 12-02-2009, 10:56 PM

Lovin' the feedback everyone. I'll have to keep my eye out for a deal on one if I can find it, but I doubt anyone but myself or anyone else who is tone-crazy (ie anyone on this board) would be able to tell the difference live.

JTreehorn · #13 12-22-2009, 10:27 AM

So......GAS has struck again...

As I said, I didn't think unless I found a deal on a Sovtek Muff that I would get one....well as luck would have it, I was able to snag one for $75 - the catch was the person selling it said it didn't work. I bought it anyway, and to my surprise it DID work - the only thing that doesn't work is the LED!!

So...most of the advice I got here was pretty right on - the green, to my ears, sounds like it has a little more bass, and is a touch smoother than my black reissue - but not as smooth and "creamy" as the LBM I had. It still gets nice and nasty as well. All in all, I love it.

So...obligatory pic. Thanks everyone!

jetofuj · #14 12-22-2009, 10:40 AM

^ I love your setup. Flea in good days used to use the same.

JTreehorn · #15 12-22-2009, 11:05 AM

Thanks - I really dig it too. No frills, dependable, rockin', and recession proof - all found used for cheap!

RCCollins · #16 12-22-2009, 11:10 AM

who needs frills with that cab?

Pitbull Growl · #17 12-22-2009, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RCCollins

who needs frills with that cab?

Agreed. Lotta mids in those EVM Loaded Mesa 215's. Yeah they're ridiculously heavy... but worth every ounce imho.

Oric · #18 12-22-2009, 12:28 PM

you could also go for the Bass Big Muff - it's green, and sounds amazing. Makes the Russian sound thin.

RCCollins · #19 12-22-2009, 12:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oric

you could also go for the Bass Big Muff - it's green, and sounds amazing. Makes the Russian sound thin.

glad someone pointed this out cuz you know i was itchin to say the same thing

rratajski · #20 12-22-2009, 12:37 PM

http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/...mp_grus_sc.pdf

Only 2 resistors differ b/w the two.