High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

[Little Pigbacon]

Is it my imagination, or are the majority of high-gain distortion pedals terrible? Why or why not?

I went through a number of them that sounded great in the store only to be sold off after I heard them at band volume with my amp. Is it me? Am I being haunted by one of those ghosts with the giant eyes?

 

[jeremy]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

many of them do suck. try a duncan paladium if you get the chance. im not a high gain guy but when i heard robben ford talk about how amp like it was, i had to check it out. it has a long ****ton more gain than i would ever use but damn if it doesnt sound and feel awesome. ive never enjoyed a high gain pedal as much or heard one that sounded so musical.

 

[baritone]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

The Mega Distortion & the Metal Zone & the Hyper Metal, all from Boss, are my favorites among heavy distortions. They really shine with tube amps.

 

[XSSIVE]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

What amp are you using them into? It's usually the amp that imparts a major character (suck in some cases lol) on higher gain pedals which people seem to forget. Watch some of the youtube videos like the latest one from that pedal show where they use different drive pedals into different amps and how horrid some combos sound, yet how great that same pedal sounds into a different amp. This is why when people claim XYZ is the best drive pedal it's always a pointless comment because that same amazing pedal will suck when used into a bunch of other amps just as it's amazing into a handful of others.

 

[ThisDyingSoul76]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

What Xssive said.

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

TSL-100 and 1960A loaded with G12-T75's.

Lots of pedals came and went and blew wide-open ass.

But the V-Twin, the YJM-308, and the Sparkle Drive were magic with it.

 

[Archer250]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

I use a crunchbox clone loud and it sounds quite good. Had a RAT and that sounded great, too. Depends on the pedal.

 

[Demanic]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

Most of them probably sound bad because they are not adjusted properly and in addition being put into an already distorted amp. Most sound better going into a clean amp or channel.

Sent from my MotoE2(4G-LTE) using Tapatalk

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

Most of them probably sound bad because they are not adjusted properly and in addition being put into an already distorted amp. Most sound better going into a clean amp or channel.

Sent from my MotoE2(4G-LTE) using Tapatalk

What makes you think I was running them into a distorted amp? Or that I didn't jump through hoops trying to adjust them -- and the amp -- to get the best out of them?

 

[Demanic]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

Sorry, just re read the op and I made a false assumption. I forgot you were speaking of your own experiences specifically. In my experience, I made plenty of mistakes when I first started trying to get a good sound from my pedals, including running them into an already distorted amp. However, once I realized that gain and eq were cumulative, I started being able to get a usable sound from just about any pedal I've used. Occasionally I have had my sound turn to crap, but then realized that something stupid happened, like a cord caught the gain or volume or tone knob of something and dined it, or the opposite.

Sent from my MotoE2(4G-LTE) using Tapatalk

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

I blame the ghosts.

View attachment 75944

 

[Demanic]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

The undead flee from my presence for some reason.

Sent from my MotoE2(4G-LTE) using Tapatalk

 

[JeffB]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

Its not just high gain.

For every overdrive, echoplexy type, and distortion Ive had in recent years, some have sounded brilliant with one amp, and horrible with the next.

Right now I am having a love/hate affair with my dunlop echoplex pre..It sounds awesome with my Orange, and pretty bland and uninspiring with my Marshall. Heck, it sounds better into my little 10w blackstar ID than the DSL.

 

[saladin]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

 

[Hank-]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

I've found most of them to sound better at louder amp settings. At low volume they often sound thin for me. Also most of them don't match well with every amp out there. :friday:

 

[El Dunco]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

They probably suck for the same reason it would suck if you took the effects send from a distorted amp and ran it on front of the clean channel of another amp. Making a pedal that compensates for whatever is happening there is probably really difficult. I think the best ones are basically designed to be used as a preamp like the Palladium, AMT Legend series, certain Blackstar distortions and those are the only ones I think sound good.

 

[risingforce]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

I always prefer to get my drive sound from the amp, but boosted with an OD pedal. Apart from that, if you still want to have your high gain drive sound from a pedal, I highly suggest ISP Theta Preamp.

 

[Diego]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

Only high-ish gain pedal I've liked is the Marshall Jackhammer, in Overdrive mode of all things. And it's not really a high-gain pedal, but almost.
The Metal Muff Top Boost tonewise is a joke compared to it, or the Metal Zone. Sounds way more "amp-like" and natural.

 

[Mincer]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

The Palladium seems to get it right. Most don't, unless it is just a fuzz or something. Most pedals that go for smooth creamy hear-it-in-the-decay sound spitty and rough.

 

[DankStar]

Re: High-gain distortion pedals: Why so sucky?

you need a quadruple super lead amp, maybe even a quintuple