The Bass Big Muff replaced the Russian version. As of 2012 Electro-Harmonix produced a reissue assembled in New York City until 2009 it produced a version made by Sovtek in Russia which provided a slightly different tone. Several variations of the Big Muff Pi followed throughout the 1970s. Mike Matthews was friends with Jimi Hendrix and claims Jimi bought one from Manny's Music in New York, shortly after they were released and had one in the Electric Lady Studios shortly before Jimi's death in 1970. A production version with an etched PCB board was made in early 1970. The band Mudhoney titled their debut EP Superfuzz Bigmuff.Īlthough the first Big Muff production date was for many years cited as 1971, the first version of the Big Muff was actually sold in 1969 as a hand-made "perf board" version. The pedal sold well and was used by Carlos Santana, Pink Floyd's David Gilmour, Alex Lifeson of Rush and, later, Metallica's bassist Cliff Burton, The Jesus and Mary Chain, and in the 1990s KoRn's rhythm guitarist Munky, Vicente Freitas, Jack White of The White Stripes, J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr., The Edge of U2, and Billy Corgan (on The Smashing Pumpkins landmark album, Siamese Dream). It also made small amps sound much better and allowed distortion at any volume. Originally this was intended to be a pedal that would mimic the fuzz tones of Jimi Hendrix and other guitarists at the time, but the result was a mix of a fuzz and distortion pedal with a very heavy sound. It is described by the company as "the finest harmonic distortion-sustain device developed to date". In 1969 Bob Myer and Mike Matthews designed the Big Muff Pi, a fuzzbox that added a bass-heavy sustain to any guitar sound. ![]() The Mike Matthews Freedom Amp, a portable guitar amp powered by 40 "D" batteries, was popular in many venues that lacked an A/C power source. Several similar devices, which sold well, followed, such as the Treble Booster and Bass Booster. The LPB-1 massively boosted a guitar signal & could be used to overdrive an amplifier, resulting in a raw distorted sound, full of sustain and harmonics. The Axis fuzz pedal, also sold under the name 'Foxey Lady' for the Guild guitar company, and LPB-1 Linear Power Booster were the first products in 1969. A simple line booster used by Myers in testing to preamplify the guitar's signal was also manufactured from 1969 as the Linear Power Booster ( LPB-1), and has continued production in present day. Together they designed a circuit to create a distortion-free sustain. In addition several low priced models of acoustic guitars were sold.įollowing the departure of his partner, Matthews was introduced to inventor and electric engineer Robert Myer through IBM colleagues. The latter connection resulted in the pedals being branded the 'Foxey Lady'. Fuzzboxes were in demand following a trail of hits involving their sound, including " (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" by The Rolling Stones two years before (the pedal's stomp switch can be clearly heard at 0:35 before Richards plays the song's trademark riff), and recent popularization of Jimi Hendrix. He took a job as a salesman for IBM in 1967, but shortly afterwards, in partnership with Bill Berko, an audio repairman who claimed to have his own custom circuit for a fuzz pedal, he jobbed construction of the new pedal to a contracting house and began distributing the pedals under a deal with the Guild Guitar Company. In 1980, Electro-Harmonix also designed and marketed one of the first digital delay/looper pedals (16-Second Digital Delay) and a line of guitars in the 1970s.Ĭompany history Founding years (1967–1968) Įlectro-Harmonix was founded by rhythm and blues keyboard player Mike Matthews in October 1968 in New York City with $1,000. It was the first company to manufacture, and market affordable state-of-the art "stomp-boxes" for guitarist and bassists, such as the first stomp-box flanger (Electric Mistress), the first analog echo/delay unit with no moving parts (Memory Man), the first guitar synthesizer in pedal form (Micro Synthesizer), and the first tube-amp distortion simulator (Hot Tubes). ĭuring the mid-1970s, Electro-Harmonix established itself as a manufacturer of guitar effects pedals. EHX also made a line of guitars in the 1970s. It is best known for a series of guitar effects pedals introduced in the 1970s and 1990s. The company was founded by Mike Matthews in 1968. A guitar pedal board, comprising several EHX pedals, including a Big Muff, POG (polyphonic octave generator), a Stereo Pulsar tremolo and a Tube EQ.Įlectro-Harmonix (also commonly referred to as EHX ) is a New York City-based company that makes electronic audio processors and sells rebranded vacuum tubes.
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