So.. what's your favourite distortion pedal?

ThePrettyDamned

Littlejonny said:

If you’re going for a RAT get a Proco. I’ve had two clones, one of which was highly rated and neither had the openness and aggressiveness of my 90s one (which I stupidly sold for £50 a few years ago, before they got cool again).

I also enjoyed the Digitech Hardwire Valve Distortion and the Seymour Duncan Power Grid.

Im curious about this Super Badass though now….

The Duncan Power grid is nuts! So much gain. Doesn't clean up brilliantly well, but it's such a great pedal, I'm sad I sold mine... 

dorisandjess

I hope that a brief tangent can be indulged. 

Can the Warthog get more aggressive than the Rat?
Do the premium components mean less background noise?

alalalkasar

For whatever reason my favourite is my big box reissue rat. A rat flavored alternative I have enjoyed in the past is the ibanez fat cat.

UnclePsychosis

Like many people I keep changing my mind but the one I come back to again and again is the Red Llama. 

I actually have three... 

TTBZ

I would really like to try a Warthog, seems like a Rat but enhanced! Rats are just the best dirt pedal, I'm feeling the need for one again now! Thinking of just going for a Magus Pro to have the turbo or vintage option.

tone1

I prefer the Warthog on the cleaner side of proceedings….Cleanish Warthog into a Muffroom cloud is sublime 

PhilKing

Mine was this:


But @juansolo and Cleggy cloned it and made several versions of it, and now my favourite is this:


Though the Questionable Lady that @juansolo made is also an amazing distortion pedal (as are many more I have from him!).

monquixote

I've just got a DS-2 which is really good fun.

Instant Nirvana and John F.

ThePrettyDamned

PhilKing said:

Mine was this:


But @juansolo and Cleggy cloned it and made several versions of it, and now my favourite is this:


Though the Questionable Lady that @juansolo made is also an amazing distortion pedal (as are many more I have from him!).

I've also got a juansolo jumbo tonebender in a triple pedal (also has ultrastoner and super hard on type boost). The jumbo tonebender is an awesome rock box. 

PhilKing

ThePrettyDamned said:

I've also got a juansolo jumbo tonebender in a triple pedal (also has ultrastoner and super hard on type boost). The jumbo tonebender is an awesome rock box. 

Yes, years before that, I had brought my Klon over for them to check their build against (I'd got one from them, but it wasn't that Klonish!).  Turned out that they had never heard a Klon in real life.  We were able to dial their clone in to match, though I liked it with a slight difference and a bit more top.  I have way too many of their pedals, but they make such fantastic ones.  My last one is my Motown bass DI box for use in my studio.  It's a real shame that they aren't making more, but I understand why.

When they asked about the Jumbo Tone Bender and why I liked it so much, I figured it was easier to let them hear it.  That's when they realized that it was more of a muff than a tone bender (from the circuit point of view), and that's also why it sounds so good.

shady

monquixote said:

I've just got a DS-2 which is really good fun.

Instant Nirvana and John F.

Being a 90's kid I've almost pulled the trigger on a DS-2 a couple of times, but some of the demos sound either too honky or actually too close to a rat (which I also have) to warrant getting one. What's yer experiences so far maaan?

monquixote

shady said:

monquixote said:

I've just got a DS-2 which is really good fun.

Instant Nirvana and John F.

Being a 90's kid I've almost pulled the trigger on a DS-2 a couple of times, but some of the demos sound either too honky or actually too close to a rat (which I also have) to warrant getting one. What's yer experiences so far maaan?

So that very much depends on which mode you are in.

Normal mode is like a more sophisticated take on a DS-1, not a hundred miles away from a RAT, but not really as wild. I think I prefer it, but then I struggle with RATS so YMMV. It's basically the Kurt Cobain sound:



With the Turbo on it is honk city, but that's the point. It's like a super nasal semi fuzz thing which gives you the Bernard Butler, John F, Prince whacked out sound which a lot of people think is a fuzz. 

About half way through this he explains how the Turbo Distortion is the Animal Nitrate sound:

tone1

The Turbo distortion is on this video 
https://youtu.be/hexMs1VuwMY

ThePrettyDamned

monquixote said:

shady said:

monquixote said:

I've just got a DS-2 which is really good fun.

Instant Nirvana and John F.

Being a 90's kid I've almost pulled the trigger on a DS-2 a couple of times, but some of the demos sound either too honky or actually too close to a rat (which I also have) to warrant getting one. What's yer experiences so far maaan?

So that very much depends on which mode you are in.

Normal mode is like a more sophisticated take on a DS-1, not a hundred miles away from a RAT, but not really as wild. I think I prefer it, but then I struggle with RATS so YMMV. It's basically the Kurt Cobain sound:



With the Turbo on it is honk city, but that's the point. It's like a super nasal semi fuzz thing which gives you the Bernard Butler, John F, Prince whacked out sound which a lot of people think is a fuzz. 

About half way through this he explains how the Turbo Distortion is the Animal Nitrate sound:

Yes, mode 2 is John F live at slane castle solo tones. I remember a thread on TGP where people were buying fuzz factories, vintage muffs and boutique fuzz faces to get the tone but the ds-2 just does it. I'm pretty sure it's what he used. 

fatherchewielewie

Weehbo Bastard

AntonHunter

fatherchewielewie said:

Weehbo Bastard

What did you call me?! ;-)

joetele

RAT. 

matt1973

Blackstar HT Dual has some great distortion sounds in it. Would recommend.

Stevepage

I've just bought one and hands down, best pedal ever made. Currently using it as a preamp going into the FX loop return of my 6505+. It's more versatile than I imagined and a big plus is it does that real tight Mesa Mark series metal rhythm tone.