What's your muff like?

[the unrepentant]

I want a new Overdrive pedal for my sub and i'm thinking an elecro harmonic big muff. I don't want to spend much over £60 ($120) and i hear the mig muff is any good. I'm going for the cliff burton sound and i already have a morley wah, so the muff is the next thing i think. Do you guys have any experience with them or any of the variants? i'm not limited to just the big muff. What were they like?

 

[RitchieDarling]

Oh, I thought you were talking about something else.

R

 

[the unrepentant]

where would you have got that idea?

 

[Duarte]

I use my guitarists big muff on a regular basis - love it! It does cut some of your bottom end, but you end up with an awsome very fuzzy fuzz. The only other effect I use is the electro harmonix Qtron which is also very good.

 

[Kristopher]

I own a big muff, and I was really into it for awhile, but now I use a Fulltone Mosfet Bass Drive. I really like how responsive it is to my playing. Head over to Bass Player Magazine's web site if you want to hear how it sounds, I think they have sound clips there.

And if you haven't been there, you might want to head on over to the Talkbass forum as well, they have an endless amount of threads there about distortions, overdrives, and everything else having do to with bass.

 

[JimB52]

The Russian Big Muff Pi is a snarlin' distortion beast, can dial in some pretty nice tones, but eats up batteries.
Jim B

 

[mynan]

Never actually tried the Muff, but I had a Bass POD with a modeled Muff effect and thought it was just too fuzzy...more fuzz than overdrive and lost a lot of low-end. I have tried the Boss ODB-3, MXR Blowtorch, and Marshall Guv'nor and found the same thing...too much fuzz and loss of low-end and tone.

I ended up getting a GK Diesel Dawg. I can get the fuzzy stuff that the other pedals make, but it also gives me a nice, chunky, gritty overdrive without losing any low-end.

 

[roballanson]

Never tried one- Boss ODB-3 for me and no loss of bottom end

 

[Jim_F]

I am after another Electro-Harmonix Little Big Muff at the moment,
personal preference is the Little Big Muff over the ODB-3, however both are great pedals for the price.
I find the ODB-3 a bit more extreme than the Little Big Muff, more distortion than overdrive, I prefer the smoother / creamier overdrive of the Muff.
Can you try them out in a shop using the bass of your choice? For that Cliff Burton sound, if you want to be truly 'authentic' get a Big Muff pedal, but I am sure you'll find other pedals like the ODB-3 perfectly good for a decent distortion sound.

 

[Cory T]

Fulltone

Fulltone Bass Drive is amazing. Regular and boost setting, pretty tubey sounding. No low end loss, two settings (reg, and boost) it is the best i have come across.

 

[Caca de Kick]

I use a Boss ODB-3 too. I can dial it in easier.
I used to have a Big Muff, but it crapped out on me during a couple gigs with only about a year of owning it. Threw it out into the crowd, never seen it since...

 

[kasimka]

haven't tried a Fulltone, but my EBS multidrive SINGS. Not so much Burton sound, but can get close to Levin's smooth drive.

 

[Cory T]

I think the burton buzzsaw sound is more about putting your drive before your wah. as opposed to the traditional way.

 

[the unrepentant]

Well i tried the ODB3 today, sounded alright, nice bottom end on that, was a bit fuzzy but not sure it's quite what i wanted. I tried it on a schecter though, that's nothing on my MM. Couldn't find a muff anywhere though. I may have to keep looking.

 

[silverburst]

I cringe when I see thread titles like this.

 

[RMS]

+3 on the Fulltone, if you must have OD