Any distortion pedals to recommend?

[mus]

Hey there,

I've got a few line-ups of pedals that I'm planning to buy. Can I get some opinions on users about the pedals that I'm going to mention?

Here are the pedals:
Ibanez SM-7
Boss MD-2/ MT-2
MXR Dime/Distortion +
Fab Distortion/ Metal

Are these pedals any good?. I'm actually looking for pedals with a lot of sustain to play both rhythms and lead?.

 

[meeesua]

about the fabs.
the price tag may look attractive at 30 bucks each, but mine died after 3 gigs. so if you're looking for a good distortion, use the others. fabs are more of a gain booster for you. thats what i did with my blown up fab o/d and dist

 

[zax]

try the metal muff , dont buy something cheap , its wasting money , save and get a good one , i mught recommend the crunch box too

 

[MadWerewolfBoy]

The metal muff sounds very different from normal distortion pedals cause its an ultra distorted fuzz. Try it out first and compare it with other pedals before deciding.

Getting a boss MT-2 and modding it wouldn't be a bad choice either, but make sure you know what type of mods you want. Either ways, be prepared to fork out about $180 to $200.

 

[stranger12]

The metal muff sounds very different from normal distortion pedals cause its an ultra distorted fuzz. Try it out first and compare it with other pedals before deciding.

Getting a boss MT-2 and modding it wouldn't be a bad choice either, but make sure you know what type of mods you want. Either ways, be prepared to fork out about $180 to $200.

Metal Muff sounds really really good.. As metal as you can get... heh heh.. I tried it at Ebenex the other day.. too bad I don't play metal.. but boy did it turn that tele that I used to test it into a monster.. I can only imagine how it'll work so well with a real 'metal' sort of axe.. heh..

 

[THOA]

Getting a boss MT-2 and modding it wouldn't be a bad choice either, but make sure you know what type of mods you want.

Care to explain further about the "type of mods"?

 

[MadWerewolfBoy]

Well, i've compared that pedal to various metal pedals and personally i don't fancy it that much. The distortion is insane when the volume and dist levels are maxed, but there is no parametric EQ and no matter how i dial a tone in that pedal, it only gives me a certain sound. Its hard to get a fat un-muddy sound or a high presence non-piercing sound.

Maybe its the guitars i tried on them, but its hard to find the sweet spot on most of them. Either too muddy or too piercing. Note that this is a comparison between the tone of the metal muff vs other heavy distortion pedals with para EQ. And because this pedal is not as versatile, take note that it'll tend to a love/hate affair. You'll either like it, or don't like it. That's why i think it should be tried and tested first by any potential buyer.

 

[MadWerewolfBoy]

Care to explain further about the "type of mods"?

There are too many mods to name all of them because multiple components in a pedal can be changed and different types per component. I'm not a modder myself so i cannot give any details as to what affects what.

Maybe you can approach Randolf, Beez or other modders here on soft to enquire more.

All i can say is that well-known mods can be made as reference when describing a certain specification such as robert keeley mods and monte allum mods. Sound clips are available on their website.

More sustain, smoother distortion, crunchier distortion, higher distortion, scooped distortion, more harmonics, less nasal, fat, creamy, overdrive etc stuff like that can be tweaked. Defiantely tougher than playing a game of DotA =)

 

[THOA]

Note that this is a comparison between the tone of the metal muff vs other heavy distortion pedals with para EQ.

What are some examples of distortion pedals with para EQ? Lol, sorry for asking these questions, but I am just about as newb as anyone can be

 

[subversion]

I'm actually looking for pedals with a lot of sustain to play both rhythms and lead?.

sustain isn't about pedals per se. yes, pedals accentuate susutain but they aren't the primary source. if you are happy with a certain distortion/ drive unit, adding a compressor helps.

 

[fareezo]

Try getting Plextortion quite good soundings

 

[MadWerewolfBoy]

Pedals with parametric equalizers here would be refering to those which allow you to tweak your tone more than treble cuts/boost and treble/mids/bass knobs.

Some examples are the Boss MT-2, Line 6 Uber Metal, Digitech Distortion Factory and MI Audio Tube Zone.

These pedals allows user to adjust not only the usual bass/mids/trebles but also the range of frequency the mids control. Although not as extensive as a real parametic equalizer found on mixers, it definately gives us more options on shaping tone than say, a DS-1/Crunchbox or a Metal Muff.

 

[mus]

How about getting equalization pedal like BOSS GE-7, will it help? What does an equalization actually pedal do? Does it model the distortion into a cab sounding type?.

I like using my KORG AX1500G distortion with the cabinet. Distortion would be SEATTLE and cabinet would be 4x12 Modern. Are there pedals sounding close or better than that?.

Maybe I'm wrong about equalization pedals. I don't know much =)

 

[keithC]

Pedals with parametric equalizers here would be refering to those which allow you to tweak your tone more than treble cuts/boost and treble/mids/bass knobs.

Some examples are the Boss MT-2, Line 6 Uber Metal, Digitech Distortion Factory and MI Audio Tube Zone.

These pedals allows user to adjust not only the usual bass/mids/trebles but also the range of frequency the mids control. Although not as extensive as a real parametic equalizer found on mixers, it definately gives us more options on shaping tone than say, a DS-1/Crunchbox or a Metal Muff.

tweakable pedals i use the tubezone.
if ur into metal, high gain, sustain etcetcetc, i think the beez mod mt2 is a very good option. dont buy one normal mt2 then go fussing about the 100001 mods available for ur pedals... just get something good. crunchbox is good too...

equalizer... get it after your distortion. say u feel ur crunchbox is too treblish on the high end, then get one to smoothen down the high ends... yep.
(but of course u get the crunchbox before the equalizer right? so dun worry about tone shaping yet, get a nice distortion u love

 

[Jazzit_man]

try beta aivin ds-100
http://standardvalue.com.sg/forum/viewtopic.php?t=86

real good. I also own it.

 

[loldude333]

Or try the Mike Mod DS-1 frm the same site as mentioned by jazzit_man.

 

[MadWerewolfBoy]

How about getting equalization pedal like BOSS GE-7, will it help? What does an equalization actually pedal do? Does it model the distortion into a cab sounding type?.

I like using my KORG AX1500G distortion with the cabinet. Distortion would be SEATTLE and cabinet would be 4x12 Modern. Are there pedals sounding close or better than that?.

An EQ pedal such as the Boss GE-7 allows you to tweak your EQ graphically. In other words, It cannot model your tone to various cabinet tones. That requires more processing and that's there multi effects or amp modellers come in. What the EQ pedal does allow you to do is, you can pump/cut bass,mids and trebles, more precisesly than a three-knobed pedal because now you have seven to eight frequency bands to play with.

Some people say an EQ pedal is a must in an efects chain while others (like me) can live without it. My rationale would be, I've got my amp's EQ, my 1st pedal's EQ, 2nd pedal's EQ and and aother pedal's EQ which allows me to tweak a wide range of tone (except for my clean sound which i only have my compressor and amp's eq to tweak). A graphic EQ pedal would be good but not necessary for me.

 

[Godspeed64]

get a metal muff for something intense..
HUGE sweep in the mid range in this monster..
hints of fuzz can be heard at higher gain and volume levels, but to the uninitiated it will seem like a distortion..
to me, the sound seems very 'thick' and 'full', different from other pedals..
and the top boost function works really well..
sometimes i wish i can have two of these babies, cause i have two preferred settings..
and changing between them in the middle of a song is not a breeze.. :sad:

 

[lifele55]

get a metal muff for something intense..
HUGE sweep in the mid range in this monster..
hints of fuzz can be heard at higher gain and volume levels, but to the uninitiated it will seem like a distortion..
to me, the sound seems very 'thick' and 'full', different from other pedals..
and the top boost function works really well..
sometimes i wish i can have two of these babies, cause i have two preferred settings..
and changing between them in the middle of a song is not a breeze.. :sad:

Why not just get another MM w/o Boost, put it in a A/B or some loop and woooah, 2 sounds you'd love with 1 stomp....

 

[Godspeed64]

lol.. i like tweaking the EQ..
a bit kiasu lah.. too bad the micro and nano dont have a 3 band EQ..