Looking for the right Distortion Pedal for the Job.

[Mllerrin]

Alright so the story is I have an Orange Rocker 30 Combo (which has no effects loop). So I hear if you have a distortion pedal in front then the delay/reverb pedals afterwards and you aren't getting any distortion from the amp, then technically if the distortion pedal is on, it's the same thing as having an effects loop.

Now if this theory is true (and I really hope it is), I'm going to be needing a good distortion pedal. I'm hoping by just having it on with a very low or no distortion added it will sound good on my clean channel, then if I really need a delayed distorted sound I want the distortion pedal to have a second setting I can switch to for full on distortion. The main thing is I want this effect loop theory, but while still using my amp's natural tones.

Can anyone tell me if this theory is true, and/or what would be a good overdrive/distortion pedal to use for this purpose?

 

[Stratfan]

Re: Looking for the right Distortion Pedal for the Job.

Your "theory" is making things more complicated than they really are. The idea is to have delay in the effects loop, after the amp's distortion. If you're using your amp set to clean with no effects loop, then all you have to do is place the delay after the distortion pedal. The distortion pedal doesn't need to be on unless you want distortion tones. The dirt pedal won't "create" an effects loop. What it does is takes the place of an amp's dirty channel in the signal path. But, if you want to use more than one distortion tone, then you'll need to get 2 separate pedals or get one of those 2-in-1 pedals (OD on one half, distortion on the other).

This is done all the time on single channel amps with no loop. It's just an external "simulation" of using an amp with a dirty channel and delay in the effects loop. I have a Blues Junior which is set fairly clean and use pedals for distortion and delay.

Guitar to OD pedal to Distortion pedal to Delay pedal to amp's input. It's done like this because USUALLY you want to add delay to a distorted tone, and not distort a delayed tone. (Putting the delay before the distortion pedal can be done, but it makes the delay pedal react differently than the "normal" way.)

What a bunch of yapping just to say that in front of a clean amp the distortion should come first before the delay! Dirt pedal on or off; doesn't matter... it's not turned into an effects loop, it's just a signal path.

 

[baritone]

Re: Looking for the right Distortion Pedal for the Job.

It's a similar idea, but that is actually the reason a delay pedal is preferred after a drive pedal. The varying volume of the repeated notes causes the distortion pedal to produce varying levels of fuzziness, which a lot of people don' like. I think it's a fun sound to play with sometimes. I have about 25 overdrives and distortions, and lately, I've been enjoying my Boss Blues Driver a lot.