This is a great take on the muff and at a reasonable price, so as with others, support the builder when you can and if you don't fancy building a 6 knob effect yourself, then buy one.
NOTE: I missed a cut from the row that Focus 3 attaches to. Use the latest version of the layout here.
Blackout Effector's info:
WHAT IS A MUSKET?
The logical progression from then to now, the MUSKET is based
on one of the raunchiest, best selling fuzz circuits of all time
- taken three giant muffy steps further. With the addition of the
PRE, FOCUS & MIDS controls, the MUSKET is able to traverse
the decades, the continents and the many iterations of the
classic 4-stage fuzz circuit - from emulation to beyond. If you
need fuzz and you need it to be massive...
And bass players, look no further. The Musket brings the
thunder to perfectly compliment your lightning. You'll
find the Musket on pro bass player boards
the world over.
The logical progression from then to now, the MUSKET is based
on one of the raunchiest, best selling fuzz circuits of all time
- taken three giant muffy steps further. With the addition of the
PRE, FOCUS & MIDS controls, the MUSKET is able to traverse
the decades, the continents and the many iterations of the
classic 4-stage fuzz circuit - from emulation to beyond. If you
need fuzz and you need it to be massive...
And bass players, look no further. The Musket brings the
thunder to perfectly compliment your lightning. You'll
find the Musket on pro bass player boards
the world over.
Been searching all over the net for a vero for this effect...Can't wait to take a crack at it! Thanks IvIark!
ReplyDeleteNo problem. This hasn't been verified yet, but it's based around a muff template that I did for all the Skreddy pedals which I do know is good, so everything should be good to go.
DeleteIs that supposed to be a "100n" ceramic cap between the "Mids 1" and "Tone 3" wires, and if so, why is it ceramic? Is it just for the convenience of the size? Thanks.
ReplyDeleteYes I just used the ceramic symbol because a 2.5mm pitch is needed so it was physically the right size. To be honest though I'd probably use a film box cap anyway because they're quite good for 2.5mm pitch by just carefully bending back one leg and then bending it out again with a 2.5mm spacing. Make sure you use the latest version of the layout with the additional cut on the Focus 3 line.
ReplyDeleteAlmost finished with this build...but one quick question. What would be the result of substituting 100k linear pots for the 250k tone and focus pots? Would it simply result in a more limited EQ "sweep"? Would I be better off using 500k or 100k for the time being if I dont have any 250k pots? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteFor the Focus pot it probably wouldn't matter so much because it's panning between two input caps and although there will be some difference in the response it probably won't be too dissimilar. The Tone pot has the potential to make more of a difference because it along with the surrounding resistors and caps, it creates the tone filters which can be greatly affected by the individual values. Having said that I just ran a simulation of the tone stack using a 100K, 250K and 500K pot and to be honest the response doesn't change too dramatically. It's very scooped with all 3 pots (without taking the mid pot into consideration) and looking at the entire sweep it is quite similar in all 3. I would say go for the 500K if you want it a bit darker, 100K if you want it a bit brighter. This is always to taste anyway, you may prefer one of those to the stock 250K value anyway.
DeleteThanks for the quick and thorough response! I went with the 100K pot for tone, but will probably switch to the 500k or just wait for the 250k pots to arrive.
DeleteOn another note, I am substituting transistors while I wait for the 5089s to arrive. I have tried several combinations of NPNs including 5088s, mpsa13s, 2n3904s, 2n2222s, etc... but I can't seem to get a good combination that provides minimum noise as well as a smooth output signal/sound. A lot of times it is granulated or has a lot of artifacts when I am not playing or am playing with soft dynamics. With the better combinations I have found, with some work I can "dial in" a very nice fuzz, but in most settings the sound is harsh. That said, do you have any suggestions for specific transistor gains for each stage, or at least viable subs/combos? Do you think the circuit will be more suitable once I retrofit the 2n5089s? If not, would changing a few cap values help smooth out the sound?
2N3904s and 2N2222s will be too low gain for a Muff I suspect. You may get lucky with the 2N5088 but their gain could be as low as 300 and ideally you want to be looking for transistors around 600-650 hfe. MPSA13 is a darlington and so probably has far too much gain.
ReplyDeletePersonally I wouldn't mess with anything yet until you get the 2N5089s. No point in changing something that may not need to be changed.
Do you have a multimeter that measures gain so you can select a good set of 4 transistors for the build when they arrive?
Other transistors to consider are the BC550C and MPSA18
Even with the grab bag of transistors I am using, I am getting great sounds so I can't wait to get the proper components!
ReplyDeleteI do have a multimeter to measure the gain. A set in the range of 600-650 hfe should do the trick then? If the gain varies across each transistor (which it inevitably will) is there any particular order I want to install them in or will it be close enough that order won't matter?
Once again I really appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions... As a tinkerer and hobbyist with no formal training, I can honestly tell you that your feedback is priceless!
-Kellet
Well the first transistor is a buffer and the last is a recovery stage for signal lost by the tone stack. So the main uumph of the pedal is done by the second and third transistors so they're the ones I suggest using the higher gain ones in. But it's all down to what you like, if you're a tinkerer (like me) then you'll socket them and swap them about forever anyway to see what you like best. :o)
ReplyDelete600-650 is mentioned frequently about muffs, I'm sure I've seen the same figures quoted by Marc Ahlfs and we all know what great Muffs he builds.
Got the right transistors socketed and this thing ROCKS! Thanks for the layout!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteTo get rid of transistor fizz do I want to adjust the capacitors upwards or downwards in value? Right now I have the stock 47n. Also, the tone pot cuts the volume as I adjust towards the middle and brings it back as get to the end of rotation...any idea why this is?
ReplyDeleteIt's the two 470pf caps you want to experiment with, try 560p and see what you think. Sockets could be a good idea for those positions.
DeleteSorry, I misread the note in the layout. Will try it out...thanks!
DeleteAny idea why I'm getting a volume drop in the middle of the tone pot sweep?
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure because all that should be doing is panning between a low pass and a high pass filter. Does it happen with the mid pot at both extremes and are you sure the tonepot is ok?
DeleteThe volume drop occurs in the middle "third" of the sweep, but if the tone pot is turned beyond this on either side everything works fine...it may just be a bad pot, I will replace it and see if that fixes the problem before trying anything else. Thanks.
DeleteHi,
DeleteI have the same problem with the tone pot. Did you solve it?
Thanks
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI' ve already finished my built, but the thing seems to have no balls. I have to max fuzz and pre to hear a slightly fuzzy sound and there's a volume drop when i turn the tone pot, like kellet had the same problem.
Any suggestions?
Thanks
Fritz