Electro-Harmonix Op-amp Big Muff Pi Fuzz Pedal Reviews

I was after the Smashing Pumpkins sound, that lush, rich fuzz/distortion, and this pedal absolutely nails it. New favorite pedal on my board.

I've had most versions of the Big Muff, always liked the sound but never loved it til the op amp version. Much more musical and usable across the board for me. And if you want, you can nail some Smashing Pumpkins tones. Definitely staying on my board.

If you're looking for that big deep Smashing Pumpkins tone, look no further. Now... keep in mind Billy Corgan famously layered multiple guitar tracks together to get his sound, so no one pedal is going to replicate that 100%. But as long as you manage your expectations you'll find that this pedal gets you very close to that big Siamese Dream tone. Honestly it took very little tweaking for this thing to put a smile on my face. There's a sweet spot in the tone sweep right around 1:00. For me that's a good mix of top end bite without losing the big bottom end. Corgan ran his Op-Amp Muff into a JCM 800, so I thought I'd get something good out of my Marshall Bluesbreaker. But that's a bit of different beast than a JCM. I actually get a much better tone running it into my Mesa F50. Even though that's a more Fendery kind of amp, it has a big clean tone that the Op-Amp seems to like. Instant Cherub Rock!

I never really got into fuzz as a younger player, but once I did I realized it became an instrument unto itself. I wanted to try it out, as many have said before, due to the seminal sounds of the Smashing Pumpkins in the very early 90s (but also a healthy respect for Hendrix and the Doors). As a first fuzz, I couldn't have been more happy - achieves all the sounds I was after, but the best part was how inspiring it was and still is after 2-3 years of use. It's a bit different in sound due to the Op Amp in the stead of discrete transistors, but it does everything you'd expect a Muff to do, and well. It inspired me to play with more fuzz flavors (I think I found a new addiction), but it's not going anywhere but on my board. I even played around with using it like an amp-in-a-box, straight into power and blended with my other amps - it did surprisingly well, and added another texture to my gainier sounds. TL;DR version: you gotta try this fuzz if your dreams are Siamese or in any way tinged with psychedelia.

Smashing Pumpkins Siamese Dream in a box. Many years ago I think I originally bought like 3 pedals to get that cherub rock tone because guitar world magazine told me I needed 3 boss pedals. Never occurred to me that maybe there's a sponsorship going on

I love this pedal, and Sweetwater is such a reliable seller. It showed up on time and its sounds amazing! Its perfect for practicing with the band, letting you adjust the tone and fuzziness just right and with the tone bypass you can get some really compressed fuzz for recordings. Besides great chunky riffs is screams when you play leads. Cant say enough about this fuzz pedal.

This pedal delivers a great fuzz sound. As with any addition, you'll need to find the right levels for everything when using this pedal, as the bass end can easily overblow anything else and you'll just get mud and speaker crackling. Dialed way down this pedal actually delivers a great warm sound and sustain for some surprisingly delicate solo work that meshes nicely over a clean rhythm guitar. Very happy with this pedal. By experimenting with settings between the pedal and amp, I find this to be a more versatile pedal than I think is generally realized.

No other Big Muff sounds like this pedal. Has this fizzy/fuzzy thing going on with just the right amount of bass. I play Doom/Stoner Metal in C# and this pedal does it beautifully. Putting a Plumes or similar TS pedal in front makes it much more focused and cutting, also responds well to the guitar's volume knob. Dialed in a great tone in about 5 seconds. Great for Grunge or shoegaze is you play in higher tunings. Reviews of this pedal often make it sound harsh and tinny, but I find it huge and smooth(at least on an Orange amp). A total slam-dunk for EHX.

Rad pedal, highly recommend over the other big muff options

I can't get over how fantastic this pedal is, Holy Cow Batman.
I could not wait to try it out last night when I arrived home from work. I used my G&L Telecaster through my Fender Twin and WOW I was shocked at how wonderful this pedal works. It seemed to add more bass than I expected but also enhanced the midrange and highs too. I loved feeling the power playing some of the old heavy rock tunes.. Mississippi Queen, Sunshine of your love, Ziggy Stardust.. I just loved the new quality of sound this pedal adds to my playing.. I will experiment further this week and play with my SG and my JP60 and a few of my other Guitars.. Based on my initial playing I can say I am stunned at how good the quality of this pedal adds to my overall sound. I sorry I didn't buy this pedal years ago. on a scale from 1- to 10 this Pedal is a 12..

I bought this seeking that perfect Smashing Pumpkins guitar sound, and it delivered. If you're playing Gish or Siamese Dream, and wanting those warm and fuzzy rhythm guitar chords, grab this.

I don't have a ton of experience with fuzzes, but other fuzzes have a quacky kind of sound that isn't for me. This fuzz, on strat bridge pick up, tone at 4, volume at 5.5, is what I think fuzz should sound like. At the price, I'd recommend even if you care nothing about Smashing Pumpkins.

I'm not a huge Smashing Pumpkins fan although I do like their music. I was trying to decide between this one and the Nano Big Muff Pi. What pushed me over the edge on this pedal was a demo I saw Billy Corgan do on YouTube. I knew I wanted a fuzz pedal that had plenty of attack and clarity with each note and this has both. It takes my Tele style guitar with single coil pickups and really gives it some growl and it has sustain for days. I find myself playing this pedal with each of my electric guitars more than any other (although I don't have many pedals). Although I've been playing for more than 20 years, this pedal really has been inspiring me in new ways as I've been creating new riffs which are slowing turning into the first songs I've written in years. I am a home bedroom type player so maybe I don't know enough about the music world, but I do know I love this thing.

This pedal is amazing! Comparable to a standard big muff but in my opinion, the op amp allows for so much more control and clarity. I highly recommend!

This is my first guitar pedal. I bought a Boss Katana for my first amp, and it's been able to produce just about every sound that I could want -- except for that Smashing Pumpkins, Siamese Dream wall of sound. Everything I tried on the Katana was missing something.

As soon as I plugged this in, I knew it was money well spent. What the Katana was missing, this has.

This pedal is a must for any Smashing Pumpkins fan. Not to mention, it's just a really good fuzz pedal in general. Upon receiving my pedal, I played Quiet by the Pumpkins and had the track going in the background, and I had to stop playing cause I couldn't tell what was me playing, and what was the track. It nails the tone that good.
This pedal is also really fun to record with. I've been stacking around 8 guitars, all with different tones. And because of that, I've been getting that huge fat Smashing Pumpkins sound in my own songs, and it's glorious. This pedal should be worth more than it is.

Have been using the Op-Amp Big Muff for years - has that certain sound that is all its own. One of my sons started getting deeper into playing and digging the Smashing Pumpkins, so I got him one - he is delighted with it. Thanks to my Sales Engineer Jordon Clohessy for always taking such good care of me.

Exactly what I was looking for to change my tone.

Pumpkins in a box. This thing has been awesome since I strummed my first chord on it right out the gate. So far I've only played it through a Yamaha THR 10ii and even through a little 20 watt non-tube amp this pedal roars. Full, thick, gritty, and versatile. Could not be happier with this purchase. Also, Alex at Sweetwater is the man. Go for this pedal, it will not disappoint.

Great customer service! I can't brag enough on the customer service, it was excellent and the shipping was super fast! I bought this for a Christmas gift and I can't wait to give it to him! Will definitely recommend everyone I know to buy from Sweetwater from now on!

I would be lying if I said I wasn't a huge Smashing Pumpkins fan. Like many others, I have been chasing that Siamese Dream tone. However, I've also been looking for a Fuzz that will work for my original music/recordings or even live.

Aside from being able to get close to the Siamese Dream tone, the main thing I have been looking for in a fuzz is a great dirty, fuzzy attack that doesn't sacrifice all of the bottom end in my tone.

Like many others, I like owning multiple pedals and don't expect that there's one fuzz that will do exactly what I want, but the main reason I felt that most other fuzz pedals I've owned couldn't really get the sound I wanted was because of the lack of bottom end. The one that does have a nice thick low end is the swollen pickle. It's a great fuzz but I wasn't getting the 'Siamese' sustain out of it. I've tried many different Fuzz pedals from various Muffs to Fuzzrocious customs and even Helix patches. The op amp big muff is the one that is closest to the tone I'm looking for.

This pedal really does want I wanted it to do. I'm not suggesting that this $80 stomp box is going to replicate the layers and layers of tracks, the pickups, the amps and the mix you hear on a record. But it does indeed have the characteristics I've been looking for as far as a blend of attack, sustain and tone without sacrificing mid and low end frequencies.

This pedal is made well. The sound quality is fanatic. It's even encased in a small box that won't take up much space on your pedalboard at all. The volume, tone and sustain knobs will give you a pretty wide range of frequencies. The tone switch is cool and provides even more tonal options. And while In most cases I'm not a fan of using fuzz live, it records well and that's exactly what I wanted.

If you're looking to get closer to the Siamese Dream sound, or just the sound of a '78 op amp muff in general, or if you're in the market for a quality fuzz to add to your rig, I highly recommend this pedal. I'm surprised this pedal doesn't cost more than it does. It's a no brainer at this price point.

Thanks to sweet water and Ian for shipping my orders quickly and getting them to me safe and sound as always!

This thing gives some WICKED tones. Sounds best going into a slightly crunchy amp setting. "Sustain" at half is in the King Crimson/Fripp territory... turn it up and we're going to Doomtown, or Pumpkinland. With the "Tone" switch off, the mids are slightly boosted... VERY nice option for a fuzz. Props to Matt Masek for the expeditious service! This pedal will provide total destruction to your mind, and beyond.

Great pedal! Great sound! It's just what i was looking for! I've been using this one for make guitars bigger and dirty in some parts, it works great!

This pedal is the bees freakin knees it made my guitar sound so heavy I have a tele by the way so sound is awesome not to mention it's nice compact size but the sound is where it really stands out it is crazy as hell and makes you wanna keep playing till you drop dead overall life is like a box of chocolates you never know what your gonna get but in this case you do know

I love this pedal so much. Obviously it has that classic Siamese Dream sound. Compared to the standard Big Muff Pi, this version just has some extra oomph that makes it sound like a jet engine made of laserbeams.

Gave me the sound and everything that I was looking for. Great amazing pedal!

This pedal gives so much for the price tag on it. Love the sting and harmonic rasp. Tone switch off gives a nice standard Big Muff punch. Really, a nice buy that offers iconic tones to tweak and bend and play with. Solid all around purchase.

It's my first time using a fuzz pedal. I'm not disappointed at all, i really like the heavy grunge sound (if you want it to be). So many tonal options. No regrets here. Thanks Sweetwater.

I use it Mostly with a USA Fender Strat with single coil pickups going into a Bugera V5 Tube head and a VHT 12 inch cabinet. BTW it also sounds Great with my Strat with Seymour Duncan humbucker pickups going into my combo with a Greenback speaker. YES, the OP Amp Nano Big Muff works as advertised, and it is solidly built. So, that is Perfect. It's Op Amp circuit makes it different from the traditional Big Muff, of course. I Can't believe how it sounds, and I Dig it So much! I describe it simply as more harsh than a traditional Big Muff... But, in a Great way! It is Ideal for a lot of Rock and Roll music and Not just Smashing Pumpkins.
P.S. I use the USA giant sized Traditional Big Muff as well, and it is awesome as well! So Buy that one Also, for versatility. Enjoy your Big Muff fuzz journey, and Best Wishes and Rock On Friends! Peace to You From California!

My usual tone is cranking my tube amp until I get that classic saturation. But I wanted to try out Fuzzes. I Looked into different pedals and tried out a couple I wasn't too jazzed about. Then I got turned to this pedal and wanted to try it out since it was pretty affordable. Plugged it in and it sounded great. I Usually run it through the low sensitivity plug of my JCM 800, and play with a noiseless single coil pickup Thinline or a Les Paul Jr. In the Op Amp mode, the fuzz is thick and mean, everything I wanted in a fuzz pedal.

The Op Amp Re-Issue is a great addition to the big muff family. It has a unique character when compared to some of the other muffs on the market. To my ear it sounds a little more open with more note clarity. I really like the switch to remove the tone circuit, switched off it has a great wide open gnarly tone. You can never have too many big muffs!

Full disclosure: I am a massive Smashing Pumpkins fan. I've been trying to replicate the distortion sound from "Plume," but couldn't quite match it. Then I heard Billy Corgan collaborated with EH on a "Pumpkin" pedal and bought it immediately. No joke, the first power chord I strummed was EXACTLY the tone from "Plume" I'd been looking for. This pedal is fantastic for folks like me stuck in the 90s, and a must-have for grunge guitarists.

Nasty! Fun! Take a nostalgic trip back to your college days.

If you want to play Pumpkins, then get this pedal. Does exactly what it claims

The fuzztone delivered by this pedal does not overpower the note and is not harsh or too trebly like some other pedals. It sounds as good as my 70s Big Muff, and is actually a little less bright with the same terrific sustain as the original. It is very well-made and the size is perfect for a pedalboard. It can be adjusted to produce a nice range of sounds so it can be used in a lot of different genres. An excellent pedal and reasonably priced.

It’s absolutely awesome and everything I want. The sound quality is GREAT! There is a small learning curve but it’s well worth it. I highly recommend it!

In the interest of full disclosure, I don't have a ton of experience with fuzz pedals. I just happen to be a huge Smashing Pumpkins fan and saw a video of Billy Corgan demoing this version of the Op-amp fuzz pedal and thought it sounded great. And since fuzz was really the only style pedal that I didn't have, I thought I would give it a shot. I'm glad I did! At first all I wanted to do was get that classic Pumpkins sound (as much as I could anyway). But, it wasn't long before I was creating a ton of my own sounds. The tone options from this pedal are amazing. The tone knob colors the sounds so much with even a little tweaking really giving you a lot of control over the sound. So far I have only played it through my DAW but even that sounds killer so I'm confident that it will work even better cranked on my tube head.
As far as construction goes, I mean, it's made out of metal so, it's pretty sturdy. Plus, I'll have it on a well-protected pedal board so the chances of it the chassis getting really tested is slim-to-none.
Overall I think this pedal is fantastic. I would recommend it for anyone who wants not only to play the exact pedal (just in a, thankfully, way smaller body) as the Pumpkins but also wants to have a fuzz pedal with great tonal opportunities with plenty of big fuzz. Great recreation of the original.

I absolutely love this pedal!!! I was looking for another overdrive option and this thing delivers! I watched the Billy Corgan demo and it interested me thirteen I went and saw smashing pumpkins and bought this the next day. This pedal has such great heavy low end to it. I can't stop playing with it! This was my first Sweetwater purchase and they are great to woul with! Get one!

Picked this one up after watching a Billy Corgan DEMO using this pedal and man it sounded great. I am a big fan of the Electro-Harmonix pedals, currently have 7 total on my floor board, but this one is not really surprisingly great! I have been blown away by other EH pedals, namely the Pitch Fork, and this one is no different. Big, fat usable tone either by default or you can shape it very usably with the tone knob to find that perfect spot in the mix. If I had to keep only one distortion pedal, this would be it. Love it!

I"ve been looking for the "original" Big Muff sound in a smaller pedal to fit on my pedal board for a while. This is it! Sounds awesome and looks good too while fitting on my compact pedal board set up.

This pedal exceeded my expectations, since I really just wanted another distortion option. The sales dept (Mark Thompson) was friggen awesome as usual. You guys are great. Keep it up!

Well i just cant say enough about this pedal so if you are looking for a Fuzz this is the one. Brillinat for bass, guitar and synth.

Excellent fuzz!! The price is crazy good n the Op Amp more than delivers!!

I've been chasing that Siamese Dream wall of sound since the 90's. Have had the Russian and NY big muffs, but this one takes the cake! Brings a single coil setup to life! Has that breakup sound I only get from cranking my Marshall with EL34s in it way up. Write a new riff every time I plug it in. I liked it so much I actually just purchased a second one to keep in my studio and one in my gig bag in case it goes missing. Big thanks to Derek Senestraro for the excellent assistance!

I"ve been looking for a very specific Fuzz tone for years. I"ve tried other muffs, the swollen pickle, the wampler velvet fuzz, and a couple others. The secret sauce is in the op amps they used in the late 70"s, and this one was built specifically with that in mind. Plays with other pedals nicely, and sounds great through my Vox AC30c2. Also, you can"t really beat the price! Jeff Barnett was helpful as usual, and I always try to shop at sweetwater first because of the excellent customer service.

I was actually surprised when I got this pedal. I was hoping that I'd like it more than my nano big muff, but I ended up liking it a LOT more!
The main reason I got a big muff nano in the first place was because of the guitar sound on Siamese Dream... I wanted to get a sound like that.
I was happy with my nyc nano for a few years, but happened to stumble onto this op amp reissue online & had to try it.
Well, I was not disappointed, & luckily I got it right before I was recording an album, so that's awesome.
Anyways, this thing just sounds clearer to me than the nyc version... it has some awesome compression, too... I recommend if you like that Siamese Dream tone!

I got this pedal to try and cop the Siamese Dream tone. I have a Muffuletta, and while being a great sounding, very versatile fuzz, it doesn"t have a V4/5 setting. To my ears, the V4/5 Muffs have a great crunch and grind to their tone that the transistor based Muffs don"t have. I was thinking about getting a clone, or an original, but both are quite pricey. Plus the vintage V4/5s are notoriously inconsistent. When I saw EHX was reissuing this pedal I was stoked. It sounds great!
My only real concern with the pedal was if it was able to cut thru the mix. I"m running mine through a Keeley Oxblood (drive all the way down), and it cuts right thru.
My dad preordered this for me as a Xmas gift, and he told me how great it was dealing with Nick LaMendola. Nick"s service is always awesome, and for my dad to mention that to me is a high compliment. He"s not someone who"s easily impressed with customer service. Great job Nick!
...this pedal"s a steal.

When I got this pedal, I wasn't expecting to be happy with it, but when I plugged it in, I was surprised with the tones I was getting. This is the fuzz pedal I've been looking for personally! The pedal sounds the best with a boost in front of it for solos and rhythm. Great for Hum, Smashing Pumpkins, and Dinosaur Jr. style tones. Get one while you can, they're pretty awesome! Sweetwater service and shipping is always top notch, and you can always return the product if you don't like it, so you can't go wrong!

Really nice fuzz pedal, with lots of tone options. Spend some time tweaking it and you can get some subtle changes. Sounds great on a Fender Jazz bass, or a Moog SubPhatty. Waiting on my DrumBrute to slap some fuzz on that baby.

Does exactly what I wanted.

I love Smashing Pumpkins and for some songs wanted to emulate their sound. This definitely gets you there. I was never used to using Big Muff pedals so it's a bit of a monster. There's a lot to do to add this to the system as it sounds so huge. Really, for me, I use it in special situations as it's just too big to use all the time. It's also very bass-y for me. Hard to get the midrange out of it. I also finally noticed the "volume drop" people have mentioned when playing live. It's just something I have to work on with the nobs and my setup. Bottom line for me is, this is a lot of fun to play with. I am currently using it straight into a VOX AC15 amp and it sounds warm.

This fuzz pedal is wonderful. It's just big and wooly and fuzzy sounding. Really gets a zzzzzz going. Nails that Siamese Dream fuzz tone, but that hardly pigeonholes this pedal. The fuzz this thing makes gives me chills and is absolutely inspiring. Touch responsive, volume and tone knob responsive. Neck pickup single coils sound nothing short of enormous. If you've been chasing that "Giant wall of spongy glorious noise" fuzz for half your life, this just might cure you. For best results, run in the front of your dirty channel, but set your sound to be almost clean, just on the edge of touch sensitive break-up, then hit this pedal at full sustain and feel your hair blow back.

Setup:

guitar > op amp big muff > orange rocker 32 > polara stereo reverb = eargasm

Excellent for achieving velcro guitar tones. Stacks with other pedals well. Tough durable construction.

Nails the smashing pumpkin tone, they should have called it "pumpkin pi" I would have given it 5 stars but I let a friend borrow it and now I can"t get it back!

If you already have a Swollen Pickle by Way Huge, don't bother with this pedal. You can get the same sound from the Swollen Pickle. Swollen Pickle sounds a litter better. Pedal seems to work better with single coils as compared to humbuckers.

Having played guitar through the 1970"s I wanted an a fuzz that sounded like that. No disapoint there.

Sounded like crap. I sent it back. Notes were indiscernible to me. Had this wired double octave type sound that was like the hinges of hell. Not a musical type of pedal at all..I wouldn't even describe as a grunge type sound. Yes I ran through a clean amp and slightly broken up amp. Same sound.

This review is a follow up to my review titled, "Awesome Fuzz Pedal!" The fuzz pedal definately sounds awesome, but not even a year into owning this pedal it just stopped working on a whim. I take very good care of my equipment and it's always in a controlled studio environment. It's disappointing that this pedal would just stop working out of the blue. It was covered under warranty, but it was going to cost over 20 dollars to ship it in for repair, and to get it back to me. Electro Harmonix seems to make cheap quality pedals. I understand why players prefer the vintage stuff instead of the reissues. I will pass on any future purchases of newer Electro Harmonix products.