Quest for the elusive Muff

[GaryCorby]

I'm very fond of the EQD Hoof. It's a clone of the Sovtek Green Muff.

 

[raventepes]

Best fuzz I've ever heard is my green Russian big Muff. From the 90s (I think?).

Get your hands on one of these pups and see what happens!
Electro Harmonix Big Muff 90's Green Russian | Reverb

No affiliation with the ads.

That's the Muff I use. I refuse to sell it, and it's been with me since I started playing when I was 16. I've tried other muffs out there...some are pretty good...but this one just has the tone I like.

 

[Guinness20]

Can the tfr stand out more depending on the bass? Like if you use a bright bass will it be more prominent in the mix?

 

[jasonrp]

I prefer shaved

 

[Mosfed]

@mmbongo - you are the first person I know who has had various super-high quality muffs like the SUF or Wren & Cuff stuff and has tried the JHS Muffaleta or however its spelled.

Very interesting. I don't like supporting JHS but if this pedal does what it does, that is pretty amazing. I do wish they had put a mids knob on it.

To the OP -

You are already going down the road I would have recommended - Wren and Cuff and SUF muffs - the Civil Unrest is the one that is most interesting to me because it has that mids dial.

I own a Grand Tarkin and it's my favorite muff. I also own a Johnk Civil War, a sfx Micro-fuzz (in its lineage is muff) and a whole series of originals (a Civil War, a Bubble font, a Tall Font and a Black Russian).

The Tarkin is my goto.

 

[Pelham Bleu]

I love the Muff. It's the only kind of overdrive/fuzz that will always be on my board.

My first and only Muff so far is a Wren & Cuff Tall Font Russian. It was chosen based on the positive reviews here and elsewhere. I can say that it sounds perfect as an overdrive but gets a little lost in the mix at higher distortion levels, a known trait common to the circuit.

The TFR is a great muff. Have you tried cranking up the volume when you up the distortion? That usually works for me, though I'm only competing with one guitar. Another avenue could be getting a muff with a mids control and then dialing those up.

 

[mmbongo]

@mmbongo - you are the first person I know who has had various super-high quality muffs like the SUF or Wren & Cuff stuff and has tried the JHS Muffaleta or however its spelled.

Very interesting. I don't like supporting JHS but if this pedal does what it does, that is pretty amazing. I do wish they had put a mids knob on it.

I'll be honest, I didn't want to support JHS at first either but then I thought about it. Most people rip on JHS because of the supposed Devi Ever thing, but then Devi Ever stole $40,000 from her customers via a Kickstarter so I don't see how anybody can rip on JHS. He didn't do anything close to what Devi did.

But anyway, I'm not sure a mids knob would be useful. In fact I've never found one useful on a Muff. If you need more mids with the JHS, just dial to one of the Muffs that has more mids. The JHS mode has HUGE midrange.

 

[DjangoKid]

Well good morning to me! It warms my heart to see that I'm not alone in my search for the Muff.

I appreciate all the recommendations and kinda want to start a poll of 'which one did it for you'.
In regards to the suggestions: I use my Muff for overdrive/distortion and not heavy fuzz. I'm absolutely not looking for something that induces knob turning, I'm kinda a set-it once type of person. I only want three things: no low end loss (boost would be welcome), good recording tone (the TFR can do this), and cuts in a band mix. The last one is why I'm starting this journey.

More to follow once I have a chance to read your posts in depth.

 

[DjangoKid]

The TFR is a great muff. Have you tried cranking up the volume when you up the distortion? That usually works for me, though I'm only competing with one guitar. Another avenue could be getting a muff with a mids control and then dialing those up.

Yes, that's what I do when I transition from personal practice to a band setting. It works but screws me whenever I stack other dirt or some modulation. I want to set the Muff to slightly above unity and be able to have the tone cut through, not just turn it up until it's loud enough to hear.

 

[Mosfed]

I'll be honest, I didn't want to support JHS at first either but then I thought about it. Most people rip on JHS because of the supposed Devi Ever thing, but then Devi Ever stole $40,000 from her customers via a Kickstarter so I don't see how anybody can rip on JHS. He didn't do anything close to what Devi did.

But anyway, I'm not sure a mids knob would be useful. In fact I've never found one useful on a Muff. If you need more mids with the JHS, just dial to one of the Muffs that has more mids. The JHS mode has HUGE midrange.

The JHS story is not limited to Devi. Just saying.

Anyway - your point about the mids is well taken. In general (from my originals) I think that the biggest difference amongst Russian muffs is how the deal with the midrange - some that are more scooped (like say the Bubble Font) sound just CRUSHING on their own, and then fall apart in the mix. Others like the Civil War, sound a little less crushing because they are more balanced, but cut through the mix better.

What I like about a mids dial versus a model with more mids, is that you can choose one of those more crushing muffs and add some mids. It's a nice flexibility to have.

But - anyway - very cool pedal and idea.

 

[DjangoKid]

Can the tfr stand out more depending on the bass? Like if you use a bright bass will it be more prominent in the mix?

I'm not sure. For my use it doesn't matter either. I use a short scale passive with Chrome flats. That's my thing. I do tend to use the bridge humbucker and roll the tone knob up and it makes a noticeable difference.

 

[DjangoKid]

SUF Civil Unrest here tomorrow. On the list:

Cog Grand Tarkin
Big Game EAND
SGFX Imperial

I'm on the lookout for a Zoom type digital dictaphone for recording/sharing my quest. Any thoughts on that?

Oh, this is important too, last night at band practice I increased the tone to about 3 o'clock on the Tall Font Muff and engaged my Meatbox. That helped a ton.

 

[Deadsound]

I have used a Zoom H4N for the last 3 years or so to record all kinds of stuff and it does well sitting in front of a cab as well as for easy recordings of rehearsals, gigs, etc. You can also plug directly into it or blend a direct/mic recording.

 

[KevInDaBassment]

Saw the thread title and thought to myself "story of my life"

Carry on...

 

[DjangoKid]

I have used a Zoom H4N for the last 3 years or so to record all kinds of stuff and it does well sitting in front of a cab as well as for easy recordings of rehearsals, gigs, etc. You can also plug directly into it or blend a direct/mic recording.

Thanks! I'll be on the lookout for this one, seems to be pretty respected.

 

[bassmusic17]

I ended my muff quest with the Dwarfcraft Devices. Baby Thundaa. It just absolutely rips!

 

[socialleper]

Something to think about:


The Hail Satan Deluxe does both classic and Russian variants of the Muff, has a comprehensive EQ, and a clean blend, all for a pretty good price. Its on my short list of noise makers to get. I'm waiting for either a sale, a snazzy paint job, or Christmas. (Wife never knows what to get me.)

 

[XXL]

The earthbound supercollider ended my muff quest a year ago. Its the only muff that didnt dissapear in a band mix.

I really want to try/get a 71' Supercollider. I agree about Earthbound Audio pedals, I got a Centurion and Pale Mare and they kick ass.

 

[Up the dose]

The quest for the elusive muff keeps me busy as a beaver. I'd be happy as a clam if I could find the perfect muff.

 

[XXL]

I award this thread a participation trophy for most puns ever.