Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

By the name, I would think a line driver boosts the signal to it's original level, whereas an overdrive boosts it beyond original.

[Eamonn]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

What is the difference between a line driver and an overdrive.

A Line Driver will boost your existing signal up to 20db without coloring it. An OD usually adds a sonic signature of some sort.

[Eamonn]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

You know, it's all very well to say that power amp OD is the way to go, but in a real life situation that isn't always possible. I play in a band that is very oriented toward good vocals, and good vocal harmony. Keeping my stage volume down is critical to having a good overall band sound, but it kills any chance of power tube od...even with a 20 watt Fender Deluxe Reverb. So I mic my amp and use good quality OD pedals.

It's important to remember that the guitar is only there to accompany the lead vocal. For that reason I keep two OD boxes on my board: an OD-1 Variant, and a TS Variant. I run my amp volume on 3, and leave the OD-1 type on all the time. I use the TS as a lead boost and also for gritty riffs.

[drpietrzak]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

Well, it is not really much of a question for me most of the time. I rarely play anyplace that would let me drive a 50w amp hard enough for power tube distortion to really hit. The volume would just be too high. I like to have the ability return to play someplace again so I tend to like to keep the customer somewhat happy. For me finding od's and distortion tones at reasonable levels is what I find works. And, honestly while occasionally having my pant egs blow in the breeze created by the amp is cool, the ringing ears for a day and half are not cool. Perhaps if I had an ISO room or a good iso box it might be different.

[sonnyblu]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

I run my JTM45 on Vol 7 and my Plexi on Vol 2... It's not that loud, compared to some acts I've seen.
We are a Trio with a Front Person, Yes, It's a guitar driven band...
I like to create a large canvas of sound... not loud though... big, open and full...
I'm filling in the kbrd kind of, and our Bassist plays a 7 String Fretless Bass.
We use a lot of Compression, Echo, Tap Delay, Chorus and Verb of course.
But the Vocals are still our main priority also, and we all sing harmony.
But when I step on my OCD and or Keleey BD-2 my leads are singing FAT through those Marshalls! ;-)

[WhoFan]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

i've gone back to using pedals for my higher gain sounds myself... i found it's easier and cheaper.... i leave my 5150 in my closet for many years now...

but in my case with my club rig i use both my C30's OD sounds and various OD and Distortion pedals... with that rig i can cover a lot of sounds... my 5150/Classic 50 rig is pretty amazing too but the smaller lighter quieter C30 and pedal rig is more useful to me..... Once i get my 2204 fixed up i want to try my pedals in front of that set up kind of clean-ish.. as odd as that sounds

[korovamilkdud]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

Eh. I've been up and down Boss od/dist...I've modded them Keeley style I've modded them Indyguitarist style, I've tried the tube overdrive units (mainly Maxon's Real Tube series...quite good) but in the end the tube amp distortion is thicker and just FEELS better to me. That's the rub. People keep trying to compare ss to tube, pedal to amp, etc...but until the guitar is in YOUR hands and YOU are playing....you simply don't know. Not really.

[Jackson Distortion]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

Personally, I like the amp's overdrive/distortion minus pedals. It's why I bought the amp--so I could use the provided amp's distortion, because I feel that would sound the best and elimanates the need for a distortion pedal. Besides, it gives me a signature tone from the amp and let's me know if I like an amp right off the bat. If I need a boost--just switch to another channel or use my EMG Turbocharger in my axe to boost the signal 20db's.

[NecroPolo]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

Either way you can get great results.


On my part I love certain characters that come with certain amps and I like it pretty pure and raw. Guitar, cable, amp. That's my way to go.

[Hot _Grits]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

I prefer amp overdrive unless I'm specifically going for a certain tone a pedal gives, like a fuzz. But that's only really ideal for studio work and a small percentage of my gigs. Often at gigs I use pedals to push my amp at a lower level than cranking it. So they're a practical compromise for me.

Though nowadays pedals are getting better and better, and the sheer number of them available means you can usually get something that works well with your amp. lots of dudes think 'pedal friendly amp', but i think 'amp friendly pedal'.

[uOpt]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

All I can say is that my Tonelab sounds better than I would have given anything with MIDI and blinkiblinki credit for some time ago.

[Stratfan]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

Personally, I like the amp's overdrive/distortion minus pedals. It's why I bought the amp--so I could use the provided amp's distortion, because I feel that would sound the best and elimanates the need for a distortion pedal.

This is why I bought a Peavey Classic 30. I wanted to use less pedals, so I figured that I could use the amp's distortion for classic rock type mid-high gain. My pups aren't high output (Area 58s and a PG+), so I needed to crank up the pre-amp to get the level of dirt that I wanted. Sounded great in the store and at home, but with the band my sound just disappeared in the mix (and I was using plenty of mids). I ended up using pedals through the clean channel and that cut through just fine.

So, no more channel switching amps for me! From now on I'm going to use single channel clean amps with pedals.

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

Your favorite guitarist used the junkiest OD pedal known to man his entire career.
Somehow it worked, and all your OD's are better, so I don't see a reason to buy more.

[drew_half_empty]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

man it's whatever to me

i mean look at who used pedals - hendrix, trower, clapton had one built into his guitar, gibbons to some degree, srv, newer guys like frusciante & corgan, and i'm sure most everyone else has at least gone that route in the studio

i mean there's something to be said for cranking an old nmv tube amp, but in my experience amps with effects loops & cascading gain cranked a decent amount end up being only a little more responsive than a good pedal, if at all.

[Yngwiestein]

Re: Pedals vs Amp Distortion Put To The Test

Your favorite guitarist used the junkiest OD pedal known to man his entire career.
Somehow it worked, and all your OD's are better, so I don't see a reason to buy more.

I have an OD9 & Fulldrive II as of now. I'm only going to buy a distortion pedal and replace my OD9 w a OD820 for a little more overdrive and less midrange spike. That's it after that. BTW Yngwie's DOD reissue pedal has mods available. It sounds actually pretty great modded.