Inspired by the ‘what’s better than a rat?’ thread and the realisation that I have only ever owned overdrive and fuzz pedals, but not a ‘proper’ distortion pedal, I’ve found a new rabbit hole.
Currently on the board are an Abbott silicon fuzz, a Frederic effects Demon Fuzz, Boss OD3 and Fulltone fulldrive 3. So I don’t NEED anything, but you know it’s Christmas and I’m off work…stuff’s gonna happen (I was off ill the other week and ended up with a Taylor AD27e, I should never be allowed ‘free’ time).
I’ve set the limitations of under £100 and come from guitarguitar (as I’ve a £25 voucher to knock a few quid off). I’ve mainly been looking at the Boss DS1, Rat, or MXR 104. It’ll be going into an AC30 and Orange Tremlord if there are any tonal combinations best avoided. So what are your opinions? What am I missing? Throw them at me fretboard.
Comments
Which of those would you say was your standout?
If you search YT there are some demos of him showing the sound.
(I've not tries any of the others mentioned though, other than a DS-1 I didn't like)
A copy of the Horizon Apex-Preamp/MXR EVH 5150 Overdrive.
Can often be had for around £45 and sounds fantastic. It even has a gate.
Pretty much exactly on budget would be the DOD Gunslinger which they are making again now. Fat yet spikey 70s valve distortion sounds (if that makes any sense), not compressed 80s metal anyway.
I've had the MXR Super Badass 78 on my wanted list for a while, again to my ears and based on demos a bit less metal than the normal Super Badass.
I also like the OS-2 Overdrive/Distortion, which is almost a SD-1 and DS-1 in the same box, with the ability to blend between them, so you can avoid (or mix ) the boxiness of the SD-1 and the harshness of the DS-1.
Did I say I like Boss pedals?
The more sophisticated DS-1X is within your budget second hand too - I really like these, although in the end I decided I still prefer my old DF-2.
I would have mentioned the DF-2 - it's still my favourite distortion pedal ever - but I doubt you could find one in working order for under £100 these days.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
The DS-2 is what Butler used in Suede but, as I understand it, as an overdrive rather than main source of distortion.
The DS-2 is also a classic but i never got on with the second mode so I find it hard to recommend personally.
The OS-2 is good for all the reasons ICBM says.
As a slightly different recommendation, the Way Huge Fat Sandwich is an excellent distortion pedal and very tweakable.