The “Civil War” Russian Muff is one of the most sought-after pedals by fuzz enthusiasts, if the princely (or would that be tsarist?) sums paid for the originals are any indication.
The first Mike Matthews-created Electro-Harmonix Big Muffs of the late '60s and '70s were used by the likes of Jimi Hendrix and David Gilmour, who employed the pedal on his famous "Comfortably Numb" solo and many others.
According to Muff historian Kit Rae, financial troubles necessitated a new business plan for Matthews, who partnered with Cold War-era Soviet factories to begin producing new Muffs in the early 1990s. These came to be known as Civil War Muffs. Though similar in sound to the earlier- and later-era versions, they are prized for their exceptionally fat low-end, smoothness, and slightly less grit than other models.
Wren and Cuff — a boutique pedal maker loved by Reverb favorite J Mascis and other notable guitarists — first replicated the classic Civil War fuzz in its Box of War pedal. Now, it has released a small footprint version that packs the same components and sustain of the original into a smaller, pedalboard-friendly size.
Watch as Joe takes the Small Foot Box of War for a spin, churning through the mild crunch of a low distortion setting to the raucous, yet smooth high-gain settings