versatile overdrive/distortion?

[ibanezjunkie]

im not getting the best AC/DC or classic rock tones with the MD-2, and the POD models are too noisy for me, so ive been thinking about getting some new distortion and overdrive gizmos. I need 1 or 2 pedals that have a range from Blues/classic overdrive right up to Metallica/Black Label Society/Rammstein distortion.

so far i think the best low-price overdrive is...

and for distortion maybe...

im not sure about the last one (carl martin), maybe it could do both jobs in one pedal? super heavy distortion isnt neccesary, just metallica height at most since i dont do much heavy stuff live.

opinions/thoughts/other recommendations?

IJ.

 

[M29]

Ya know the Bad Monkey is like an old good friend. I have on a number of occasions thought of selling it but when I give it some thought I always decide to keep it. There is something about that pedal that keeps me giving it another chance. It is a good pedal and the price is great.

 

[sunvalleylaw]

Well, I just have to say that the Rabid Rodent has both six overdrive settings and six distortion settings when you consider the Ruetz mod that DVM put on mine. I have also the Bad Monkey, which I am not getting rid of. It's overdrives seem more mid-rangey, warm, colors the tone and all that as compared to the cleaner overdrives (at least as I have set it up, I have not tried the Ruetz mod with the overdrive settings much) in the Rodent. The Rodent may have what you are looking for, and I am sure has more sounds than I have really used. http://www.thefret.net/showthread.php?t=9271 I love the distortion and the overdrive sounds available. I am still going to keep my Bad Monkey too though. It is just a different animal. The two together are fun too.

 

[M29]

I have found the Bad Monkey to work well with other pedals too. It can add a nice boost to another pedal or be used for tone shaping with the bass and treble controls. Cool little pedal indeed.

 

[ibanezjunkie]

hmm, sounds like the Baaaad Monkey comes well recommended, ive never had the chance to use one myself. Can it get a classic rock tone?

 

[Robert]

Do check out the Cool Cat pedals too. Well worth a look and inexpensive. They are also true bypass. The Monkey is not.

 

[sunvalleylaw]

I agree that the Bad Monkey is very versatile and plays well with others. I love it as a boost in combination with my distortions. But I think the Rodent does more classic rock sounds and is more versatile as a distortion. I did not make it very clear with my link above, but clips here: http://www.thefret.net/showthread.php?t=9271 of the Rodent (not great playing but a lot of comparative sounds) located at post numbers 44 and 58. I always have treated my Bad Monkey more as a warm boost/bluesy overdrive unit, but I don't move the knobs that much on it, and leave it basically in that mode. The digitech site has some clips that show other settings and may give you an idea what it does.

Do check out the Cool Cat pedals too. Well worth a look and inexpensive. They are also true bypass. The Monkey is not.

I think on youtube or somewhere, Blazes did a clip combining his DVM Rabid Rodent with a Cool Cat pedal.

 

[ibanezjunkie]

hmm, the rabid rodent does sound good, but DVM doesnt ship across the pond (well, he doesnt ship here insured) and i dont fancy the risk of airmail with no insurance. I just got wind of a new for 2009 distortion pedal that does teh br00talz on the PGS youtube channel. could be good for the more metal aspect of what i want, it has an integrated noise gate too.

i give you, the MXR Fullbore Metal Distortion

not too sure, im edgy about anything with 'metal' in its name.

 

[Plank_Spanker]

Check out the Radial Tone Bones. There are several models. I use a Trimode that sounds great - rich and organic......no harsh fizz or "bees in a can". You can set it from a clean boost to "split your own atoms" gain. The Trimode has two channels with discrete level and drive controls - you can set one up for rhythm, the other for lead / one clean boost, one distorted................any way you want it.

http://www.tonebone.com/

 

[birv2]

You might want to check out the Visual Sound Jekyll and Hyde. It has both OD (TS808 style) and distortion (marshall bluesbreaker style) in one pedal. Plus you can turn them both on for the full treatment!

I just got one and I'm enjoying the versatility.

Bob

 

[rylanmartin]

You might want to check out the Visual Sound Jekyll and Hyde. It has both OD (TS808 style) and distortion (marshall bluesbreaker style) in one pedal. Plus you can turn them both on for the full treatment!

I just got one and I'm enjoying the versatility.

Bob

I second this motion. here here!!

The Jekyll and Hyde sounds absolutely killer through a Vox AC30

 

[ibanezjunkie]

as a complete fluke, a bunch of VisualSound stuff just came in stock at MAchinehead, and for once theyre the cheapest i can find. Sub £100 for the Jekyll & Hyde, and the Hyde section comes as an independant pedal too, but it isnt that much cheaper, its a difdference of £10 or so. So its probably worth getting the JEkyll and Hyde and having the Jekyll side too.

i mean, what is Hyde without JEkyll anyway?

 

[birv2]

Can you take your guitar in and try it out in the store?

Might be the best way to find out if you'd like it. And I agree that it's a better deal to get Jekyll AND Hyde. You can get some interesting sounds by mixing the 2 sides in different ways.

 

[ibanezjunkie]

my ibanez is stock, and they sell it in the shop anyway, so i dont need to take mine with me.

not exactly loaded with cash at the moment, gonna hide them away for a while, then go look around.

 

[ibanezjunkie]

http://machinehead.co.uk/product_info.php/cPath/25_137/products_id/1142

this is something else i might try out

any knowledge or opinions on this one?

 

[Jimi75]

I think this is what you are looking for. It's not that expensive, handbuilt, true bypass, kicks some a**, etc.

 

[duhvoodooman]

A couple of comments about my Rabid Rodent modified Rat distortion pedal, since it's been mentioned here. If you're looking for versatility in an overdrive/distortion pedal, the Rodent is very tough to beat. Start with the BYOC Mouse v.2.0 kit, which offers 6 switchable clipping choices. Not only that, but three of them use the stock clip-opamp-output-to-ground method (typical in distortion pedals), while the other three have the clipping in the feedback loop of the opamp, the way Tube Screamers and many other overdrives work. So it's got a much broader range of distorted tones than your typical ProCo Rat clone to start with.

But the ol' Voodoo Man wasn't content to just accept that. First, I made some changes to the clipping diode arrays themselves to give a broader range of clipping character. With my clipping mods, there's a silicon diode array, a pair of LED's and a pair of JFET clippers in each of the two clipping stages. Then, I added a popular mod that savvy Rat owners know about called the "Ruetz mod", named after the originator. This added switch creates a second set of tones by dropping the gain a bit while also bringing up the bass & lower mids relative to the higher frequencies. Voila--six more distortion tones with the flick of a toggle switch. So this is a Rat that sings with 12 voices!

One comment on international shipping--it's true that I typically use USPS First Class International Package as my shipping method, which is very reasonably priced but offers no insurance option. If you have another option you want me to use and it's (1) readily available to me, and (2) you're willing to pay the higher price, I'll certainly consider it! But be advised that for international purchases, I REQUIRE payment by PayPal and shipment to a confirmed address. And you'll need to have been a member here for more than 10 minutes!

 

[markb]

Dare I say RAT again in this forum? The Jekyll & Hyde is a good bet too as it's basically a TS808 and a Turbo RAT in one box.

 

[SuperSwede]

Perhaps a bit more expensive than the others, but I have to recommend the Blackstar HT line of pedals... I´m really satisfied with my HT-Drive, it does the AC/DC style drive very well if thats what you are looking for.

http://www.blackstaramps.co.uk/products/ht/index.html