Greer Amps pedals are designed by Nick Greer and hand-built in Athens, Georgia (hometown of REM).
A Big Muff-style fuzz, the Tarpit is based not on the common four-transistor versions, but on the version from the late 1970s, which featured two op-amps (ICs), was favoured by Billy Corgan, and is generally regarded to have a little more edge than the tranny versions.
To our ears, the Tarpit has a classic Big Muff sound and, in an A/B test with various vintage and modern transistor Big Muffs, the differences are subtle, with small variances in the midrange. It has a singing quality in the upper mids and a slightly crispier, grainier edge to the distortion.
This is an excellent variation on a theme and it’s out there for Big Muff aficionados who appreciate the nuances of different models. Others may question the price when there are less expensive alternatives around...