Electro-Harmonix founder Mike Matthews and Bell Labs engineer Bob Myer designed the Big Muff Pi at the end of the 1960s, and it went on sale in 1970, possibly late 1969. Matthews named it a muff for its "funky, soft, muffled sound". Since then it has been built in New York, in Russia and in New York again, in more versions than most buyers realize. The best map of them is Kit Rae's Big Muff Page, and the version numbers below are his. Electro-Harmonix never used them, so you'll see sellers mix them up. Here's how to tell the main versions apart and what each is good for.
The Triangle (Version 1, about 1970 to 1973)
The first Big Muff is called the Triangle for its knob layout. The three knobs sit in a triangle rather than a row. Inside, most use NPN silicon transistors marked 2N5133 or FS36999, which Kit Rae explains are the same Fairchild part with a house number. Very early ones were built on perf board. It runs on a 9V battery only, so a power jack on one was added later.
Carlos Santana bought one in February 1971, and Matthews still has a copy of the order. Kit Rae points out that nobody knows whether Santana recorded with it. John Lennon got his that August.
The Ram's Head (Version 2, about 1973 to 1977)
The Ram's Head moved the knobs into a row and added a face graphic on the top that people decided looked like a ram. It's also been called the sheep's face and the medusa head, but Ram's Head stuck. Another quick tell is that the three knobs each start at zero in a different position, which is common to all of them.
There's no single Ram's Head sound. Kit Rae documents several circuit variants, nicknamed the "47", the "73" and the Violet, along with others. Violet names a circuit, not the ink color, and it turns up under blue, purple, red and black graphics. The transistors changed too, and by around 1975 you'll find 2N5088s inside. Some Triangles sound like some Ram's Heads, and many don't.
This is the Muff with the famous users. David Gilmour played a Ram's Head on the Comfortably Numb solos. Ernie Isley used one through much of the 1970s, and J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr moved to vintage Version 1 and Version 2 Muffs after starting on a Deluxe Big Muff.
The red and black Muffs (Versions 3 and 6, about 1977 to 1984)
Around 1977 the graphics changed to the bold red and black design that every later American Big Muff has used. Version 3 also added the first power jack on a Big Muff, a 1/8-inch jack with "AC" printed above it, though the very first ones have no jack. Around 1978 a tone bypass switch replaced the power switch. Version 6, made from about 1979 to 1984, kept the transistor circuit and the tone bypass switch on a smaller board, with several graphic color schemes including the collectible reverse logo.
The Op-Amp Muff (Versions 4 and 5, about 1978 to 1980)
In 1978 Electro-Harmonix tried a cheaper circuit built on two op-amp chips, usually an RC4558 and a 741, in place of four transistors. Kit Rae credits Howard Davis and Michael Abrams with the design. The Op-Amp Big Muff sounds grungier than the transistor version, and Version 4 sits in exactly the same box as a Version 3. The only sure way to tell is to look inside for two eight-legged chips. Version 5 is the same circuit with a tone bypass switch.
For years these were the unloved Muffs. Then in 2009 Billy Corgan confirmed that he'd used a vintage op-amp Muff through a Marshall JCM800 for almost all the heavy tracks on the Smashing Pumpkins' Siamese Dream. Once that got around, Kit Rae says, the op-amp versions turned into rare collectibles. Like the other vintage Muffs they aren't true bypass, so some add a little boost even when switched off.
The Russian Muffs (about 1992 to 2009)
After Electro-Harmonix went bankrupt in the 1980s, Matthews set up the Sovtek brand and had Big Muffs made in Russia. They came in a heavy box, at first in a wooden crate with Russian lettering, and many have lost their plastic battery door.
- Civil War (about 1992 to 1994). The Civil War nickname comes from the blue and gray color schemes, after the Union and Confederate armies. Green and gray ones came first. They run on battery only, and Kit Rae calls the Civil War tone special among the Russian Muffs.
- Green Russian (about 1994 to 2000). The Tall Font and Bubble Font nicknames belong here. The Tall Font is the first edition, and the rounded Bubble Font came later. Tall Fonts sound like the Civil War and are a favorite with bass players.
- Black Russian (about 1998 to 2009). The Black Russian came first in a large box around 1998 to 2000, then in a smaller box from about 1999 to 2009, which was the last Russian Muff.
The NYC Big Muff and the reissues
In 2000 the Big Muff came home to New York. The NYC Big Muff isn't a copy of any one older version, even though it was first called a reissue. It has an LED and a power jack, and apart from the very first production it's true bypass. Sellers sometimes list one as a late-1970s Muff because the red and black graphics match. The vintage ones have no LED and have a slider switch on the back.
Electro-Harmonix has since reissued the old versions too. Starting in 2017 it brought back the Green Russian, the Op-Amp and the Triangle, and the Ram's Head followed in October 2019. All four come in a small nano-size box with true bypass and a power jack, so they're easy to tell from the big originals once you see them next to something for scale. The Triangle reissue even has "Triangle" printed on it, and its knob triangle points the other way from the original's.
Dating by the pots
Vintage American Muffs carry date codes on the backs of the potentiometers. In a code like 1377833, 137 is the maker (CTS), 78 is the year and 33 is the week. Kit Rae warns that Electro-Harmonix bought pots in bulk, so a pot date only tells you the pedal wasn't made before then. Some Triangles have pots dated 1966, two years before the company existed.
Which one to buy
For Gilmour's lead tone, look for a Ram's Head, or the 2019 reissue if you'd rather not hunt. For the Siamese Dream wall, find an op-amp Muff or its reissue. Bass players should start with a Tall Font Green Russian. If you just want a Big Muff on your board, the NYC version is the easy, everyday pick. For the hard-to-spot fakes and swaps across all brands, read our vintage pedal red flags guide.
What to check in a listing
- Knobs and graphics. Compare the photos with the versions above. The knob layout and face graphic separate a Triangle from a Ram's Head at a glance.
- Power and LED. Check for a power jack and LED. A Triangle, Ram's Head or Civil War with a modern jack has been modified, and a red and black Muff with an LED is a 2000s pedal.
- Inside. Ask for a photo of the board. Two chips mean an op-amp Muff, and four transistors mean a transistor version.
- Pot codes. Ask for the pot date codes on a vintage claim. They should be no later than the era the seller gives.
- Reissue markings. Look for a small nano-size box, "Triangle" in the graphics, or an LED with a standard jack. Any of those means a modern reissue.
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