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Monstrous sounds from a Muff with a buzzy op-amp twist.

Big, big, Big Muff tones with a buzzy, midrange blast. Massive-sounding, full-frequency tone bypass mode. Beautiful construction.

Op-amp sizzle could put off fans of creamier Sovtek and Ram’s Head sounds.

$324

Wren and Cuff Eye See ’78
wrenandcuff.com

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It was only a matter of time before Big Muff wizard/scientist Matt Holl built a big-box version of his Eye See '78 V4/V5-style op-amp Big Muff. It is worth the wait. I’m not sure I even knew how much I loved this circuit. A good friend had one that he blasted through a Twin Reverb (yikes!) and it sounded memorably amazing. But I always stayed within my own Big Muff safe lane—sticking with familiar Sovtek tones and chasing canonical, definitive Ram’s Head sounds. The Eye See ’78 is most certainly different than those circuits. It’s aggressive, with a buzzy mid-forward voice that tops out with an acerbic, searing, almost giant Tone Bender-like character when you crank up the treble. It’s not a subtle pedal, and it is definitely most satisfying when it’s setting an amp on fire and exploding with jet roar and gritty harmonics.

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Learn how to not only ramp up your technique, but how to use it effectively.

Chops: Intermediate
Theory: Intermediate
Lesson Overview:
• Learn how performing slurs can make your guitar playing two to three times faster.
• Integrate fast licks in the context of songs.
• Use fretboard symmetry to create sophisticated and complex melodic phrases. Click\n here to download a printable PDF of this lesson's notation.

More than 30 years ago, classical guitarist Benjamin Verdery wrote the following line in one of the first guitar magazines I ever bought: “Being able to play fast shouldn’t be your only goal, but it should be one of them since it’s part of the classical universe.” I think that is one of the smartest sentences ever written regarding music and speed, and that quote has resonated with me ever since—although I would say “the musical universe” rather than just “the classical universe.” The ability to play fast is akin to any other technique, it’s a tool to be used when needed and set aside when other tools are required. This lesson will demonstrate how to gain access to the speed tool, as well as how and when to use it effectively.

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If you can’t figure out how to play Joe Bonamassa’s solo from “Blues Deluxe,” don’t worry. Neither can Chris Shiflett. But it all changes when Shifty sits down with Bonamassa for this special episode of Shred With Shifty. No surprise that both of them reach for their Les Pauls, and Bonamassa even reveals why he switched from Strats to Gibsons in the early 2000s.

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