The Blackout Effectors Musket Fuzz v2 is an analog fuzz booster pedal that takes the vintage muff-type circuit and adds a fifth gain stage plus three extra controls. RockBoard's PedalPedia describes it as "a best selling, highly tweakable, highly fuzzed-up iteration of the vintage muff-type circuit," and the added Mids, Preamp and Focus controls are the headline changes over a standard Big Muff layout1.
Circuit: a muff with five gain stages
The Musket's lineage is the Big Muff family. Kit Rae's review of the Musket V2 identifies the circuit as "essentially a Sovtek Bubble Font Green/Black Russian Big Muff circuit with an Electro-Harmonix LPB-1 booster cir[cuit]" in front of it2. Coda Effects, in a piece on Big Muff mods, notes that the Musket uses the trick of an LPB1 placed before the muff circuit3. Aion FX describes the Musket as "a Big Muff-based circuit with a few modifications"4.
The fifth gain stage is the maker's own selling point. Where a muff-type circuit runs four, Blackout Effectors asks "But why stop at 4 gain stages? 5 is clearly 1 better."1
On the sound, the maker's description ranges "From Floyd-ian singing violin sustain to dreamy, grungy growl," with the flexibility to cover "the many versions of muffs, from emulation to beyond"1. Aion FX calls the Musket "a unique and modern take on the Big Muff while retaining the character of the vintage circuit"4.
Controls
The Musket v2 keeps the standard Big Muff control set and adds three knobs of its own2:
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Volume | Standard Big Muff output level2 |
| Tone | Standard Big Muff tone shaping2 |
| Sustain | Standard Big Muff sustain/fuzz amount2 |
| Mids | Tailors the mid range, for players who dislike the Big Muff mids scoop2 |
| Pre | A modded LPB-1 circuit that adds a boost of gain, like a booster or overdrive2 |
| Focus | A saturation control for the LPB-1, setting how it blends with the input stage of the Big Muff circuit2 |
The maker frames the three added controls as addressing the usual complaints about the muff formula: "MIDS-shaping, PREamp control, and FOCUSing the sub-low end frequencies"1.
Power is external only. Kit Rae's review states "Power is external only, NO BATTERY... there is not room in the enclosure for one," so plan your pedalboard power around a 9V DC center negative supply2.
Power
The Musket Fuzz v2 runs on 9V DC, center negative, and draws 15mA, figures from the maker's product listing1. That current draw is small enough for any standard isolated output, but the lack of a battery compartment means a power supply is required, not optional.
Manual
A Quick Start Guide in English is published by Blackout Effectors as a PDF at blackouteffectors.com (musket-v2.pdf)1.
Questions
Is the Musket Fuzz v2 based on the Big Muff?
Yes. The maker describes it as a highly fuzzed-up iteration of the vintage muff-type circuit, and Kit Rae's review identifies the original Musket as essentially a Sovtek Bubble Font Green/Black Russian Big Muff circuit with an Electro-Harmonix LPB-1 booster circuit in front of it. Aion FX calls it a Big Muff-based circuit with a few modifications and a unique, modern take on the Big Muff that keeps the character of the vintage circuit.
What polarity does the Musket Fuzz v2 power supply need?
The Musket Fuzz v2 needs a 9V DC supply with center negative polarity, the standard polarity used by most pedal power supplies. Power is external only: there is no battery option and, according to Kit Rae's review, no room in the enclosure for one.
How much current does the Musket Fuzz v2 draw?
The maker lists the current draw at 15mA at 9V DC, which is modest enough for almost any pedalboard power supply output.
Is the Musket Fuzz v2 analog?
Yes. The maker lists the circuit type as analog.
What does the Focus control do?
According to Kit Rae's review, the Focus control works as a sort of saturation control for the LPB-1 booster section, letting you set how it blends with the input stage of the Big Muff circuit. It shapes how hard the boost pushes the fuzz.
Does the Musket Fuzz v2 have a manual?
Yes. A Quick Start Guide in English is available as a PDF from the Blackout Effectors website.
Sources (4)
- Musket Fuzz v2 by Blackout Effectors, RockBoard PedalPedia, 2026
- Big Muff Inspired Pedals and Clones, Kit Rae's Secret Guitar, Gear, and Music Page (kitrae.net), 2020
- Coda Effects, Coda Effects, 2015-11
- Zelus Distortion & Sustainer / Blackout Musket Fuzz, Aion FX, 2019-03-13
