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Mid boost for an old green russian muff

b-bottom

b-bottom

Dec 18, 2006
832
312
Knoxville TN
superactionrock.com
#1
I have a 90's russian muff that I absolutely love. Last night was the first time that I used it in a band setting and.....you guessed it....it vanished in the mix.
I've been thinking about how to make the pedal work in the band setting WITHOUT buying yet another pedal. I was thinking that maybe running my old OCD with the muff (I'm guessing after it?) with the HP switch up, would help.

Any thoughts on this?
 
#4
Tube screamer type distortion pedals boost mids, and some people use them wth the mid-scooped muff pedals to compensate for the mid cut.

Of course you can use en EQ pedal, or something like the EWS BMC after the muff.
 
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#6
b-bottom said:
I was reading about the tube screamer thing.

Are all EQ pedals created equal? I know almost nothing about them
Click to expand...
No like all things there are degrees of quality as well as different frequency centers to cut/boost as well as the shape or Q of the curve. But to give a bit of added control to a Green Muff IMHO an inexpensive 5 band EQ could get the job done well, there are many to choose from on Amazon.
AZOR Guitar Pedal 5 Band Graphic EQ Effects Pedal Graphic Guitar Equalizer Distortions Effect Metal Pedal with True Bypass AP-322
 
#10
Use a TS or OCD type pedal going before the Muff. That will give you the mids you are looking for.

You can mod the Muff, add a blend, etc... but the fastest way I've found is just to drive the muff with a more mids oriented pedal... or turn up the mids on your onboard preamp if you have one.

I currently run a Plumes into my Wren and Cuff green russian.
 
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#13
b-bottom said:
I have a 90's russian muff that I absolutely love. Last night was the first time that I used it in a band setting and.....you guessed it....it vanished in the mix.
I've been thinking about how to make the pedal work in the band setting WITHOUT buying yet another pedal. I was thinking that maybe running my old OCD with the muff (I'm guessing after it?) with the HP switch up, would help.

Any thoughts on this?
Click to expand...
Sounds like you need to blend dirt & clean to avoid making a mud puddle. Fan of the Sovtek, BTW. My Russian Pickle is staying in my possession.
 
#14
MultiScaleMale said:
Don't mod your vintage Russian Muff.
Click to expand...

Nah that's not going to happen
deepestend said:
Use a TS or OCD type pedal going before the Muff. That will give you the mids you are looking for.

You can mod the Muff, add a blend, etc... but the fastest way I've found is just to drive the muff with a more mids oriented pedal... or turn up the mids on your onboard preamp if you have one.

I currently run a Plumes into my Wren and Cuff green russian.
Click to expand...

I'm going to give the OCD a shot before spending more money. My Civil Math, Russian clone, has an internal trim pot for mids. I cranked it up. So I'm going to give that a shot at practice. Because until the rest of the band is here...I'm not going to know whether or not if it's working.

Also, I love my W and C TF. I've found that it's the easiest muff to get great sounds out of.
 
#15
There is a secret to using muffs (in particular the EHX Green Russian/Bass Big Muff) that many will probably disagree with. But trust me, it works every time for me and will give you a love for the Muff that will surely be as undying as my own. Here is how I set mine and it's the 3rd point to pay attention to.
1. Sustain ~ Max (there are some who like it otherwise, they should buy a different pedal IMO) we're not going for subtlety here. This is is BIG muff territory.
2. Tone ~ Off. There are many who talk about how the Muff scoops the mids, Turn it into the ultimate bass boost by taking all the top off too. You might notice that with the tone all the way off there is a boost in the lower mids, use this to an advantage by...
3. Volume - Literally until it's loud enough. It may mean that you need to leave a bit more headroom on your amp, and by itself it might seem like a hilarious amount of boost, even if it's 10db of boost to get yourself heard in the mix and sounding like an angry gorilla. This is what that pedal what meant for. It the HOLY :poop:, only turn it on if you mean it vibe. It should be explosive, like the end of the song, last chorus of the end of the show. To be used with caution.

The first is an ode to my love of the Muff. There is a clean blend as well.

The second is a Bass Big Muff, mix context
 
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#17
I tried a W&C TFR for the Green experience and found it disappeared similar to the OP. I sold it years ago and recently grabbed a W&C BoW which might be similar to the Civil Math. I wish I had the BoW back when I was playing in bands.

I recently grabbed a Fuzzlord MF-4 which is a Green design with a mid boost option. I've been happy with it, but haven't played in a band setting.

I've been eyeing Tubescreamer clone recently, so this talk of boosting a fuzz with the TS has my interest.
 
#18
Replacing 1 cap in the tone circuit will remedy the notorious mid-scoop.
But since you'd not want to mod a vintage muff, you'd have to get or make a clone to mod.

Or drive the muff with a mid-forward pedal as was suggested will also help.
 
#19
Aidenn7 said:
run you bass clean in parallel to the muff..
Click to expand...

I already do this and if anything, it made the problem worse.

jw23mind said:
Replacing 1 cap in the tone circuit will remedy the notorious mid-scoop.
But since you'd not want to mod a vintage muff, you'd have to get or make a clone to mod.

Or drive the muff with a mid-forward pedal as was suggested will also help.
Click to expand...

I tried it with the OCD last night and it did make a huge difference. So I'm curious how it'll work in a band setting.
 
#20
b-bottom said:
I already do this and if anything, it made the problem worse.



I tried it with the OCD last night and it did make a huge difference. So I'm curious how it'll work in a band setting.
Click to expand...

I tried all kinds of things and got much closer to where I wanted to be by building my own with the mids I wanted. However, after I ran all of those circles, I realized that I could have just driven what I had with a mid-forward OD and would have gotten basically the same results. Not that the journey wasn't worth it, but if you want quick results... just run a mids-ey signal into it.
 
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