MXR Distortion Plus

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

Don't bother with anything else really to do the RR tone...

I mean getting something else is like saying I know I want chicken but beef is easier to cook so I'll cook beef and hope it tastes like chicken...IT WON'T!!!

A D+ into a cranked Marshall is a hissy, noisey mess...unity gain will likely be at full volume on the D+ and on their own they sound pretty crappy at times but into a cranked Marshall (and adding the EQ if you want to go all the way) will get you that tone...

No, it's not versitile, it's not a great all around tone, it's not a pretty sound and it's not going to be easy to control but if you want that sound go for it!

 

[ratherdashing]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

Whats the major different does the D+ use something for clipping the Micro Amp doesnt (making it not clean obviously)

Yep, clipping diodes in the D+, and a few cap value changes.

 

[pinto79]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

Which one was the one that I repaired for you? Was that the '82? I remember it not having an LED or DC jack.

That's the one. It never really sounded great. Definitely better after you restored it, but it was always too hollow sounding.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

Throw in a tonecontrol, use three FET's diodebridges...and you have something like an OCD
Disto+.....the guy from Accept used one as well....he crancked his Marshall, and turned down the volume on the pedal if I remember correctly....
It is ugly and hissy...but suits that kind of music they made back then!

 

[Rich_S]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

So, our friend 9finger sent me his Distortion+ to borrow for a little bit.

I was surpised it's so reliced. I'm an old fart; to me, script-logo, no-LED MXR boxes are "old" and should look approriately battered. In my world, anything with a block logo and an LED is a "new" pedal and should be all shiny. My perceptions are (obviously) about 30 years out of date. 9finger's D+ is early block logo, with an LED and a 1/8" phone jack for 9 volt powr. Inside, it's a '70s-style, flying-wire mess. Pedal construction has come way in the last 25 years, whether you prefer hand-wired boutique works of art, or bulllet-proof, mass-produced SMD pedals.

First thing I did was play a halfa$$ed Telecaster version of Crazy Train, much to the amazement of my 14-year-old and his friends, the embrionic metalcore band (First rehearsal was yesterday.)

Next, I A/B'd it against a couple other distortion pedals I have around. It's NOTHING like my Rat; the Rat has very complex harmonics, but it's a very dark pedal. My recto-modded DS-1 is a lot closer to the D+, but has a wider range on control.

Face it, the D+ really likes to have both controls full up. Using that as a baseline, I was able to dial in the DS-1 to get really close, with its distortion at 3 0'clock, the level at half, and the EQ about 1 o'clock. However, the D+ is somehow nastier. It has some low-end oomph even though it's bright and nasty. If I turn up the DS-1's EQ to emphasize the nasty, then it loses its lo end. So, close but not the same.

Last night, I tired it through my Amp Plug (set clean) with the level down around unity (the Amp Plug does not respond well to large amounts of level boost). The thing I found with the D+ is the nastiness is not all dirt - there's still some dynamics and clarity in it - you can hear the guitar throguh the pedal. To make my Recto DS-1 that nastiy, it takes more gain, which smooths out the pedal and makes it less transparent.

So, the D+ has its own cool thing going on. I'll probably grab one some time, when I find on cheap.

Here's a question for those of you who've played several ones: consistent are the D+'s over time. Do the current production jacks-on-the-board ones compare to the old script-logo versions? What about to old block-logo ones like 9finger's?

 

[SteveAlysis]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

I just came up on one of these... I really couldn't find anything I liked about it. Harsh and noisy. Sounds kinda cool with a bass though.

If anyones interested in tradin for something hit me up

 

[Rich_S]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

One man's harsh is another man's nasty.

I might be interested, depending on its age and the answers I get to my question above.

 

[Rich_S]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

Nobody has any experience with old vs. new D+'s?

 

[PVFan]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

does it compare favorably to a ganked Himmelstutz Fetto Nord? or a Kalamazoo? prolly not huh

 

[Rich_S]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

Nobody has any experience with old vs. new D+'s?

Zombie Update: Well, now I have such experience. Brent (9finger) kindly sent me his old D+ for a try-out. It's a very early block logo from about 1980, with an LED and a 1/8' phone jack for power. Internally, I believe it's pretty much the same as a script logo.

Then, SteveAlysis and I did a swap; his modern Dunlop D+ for an SD-1 I wasn't using. So, now I had two D+s in house.

The modern unit is a bit more brash than the old one. Not DS-1 thin, just a bit more in-your-face than the old box. 9finger's seemed smoother and more mellow (I never thought I'd apply the word "mellow" to a Distortion + of any vintage).

In my case, I want the distortion box to be brash and in-your-face, so the Dunlop D+ is going on my board, bumping the DIY Rat and the DS-1 Recto mod. Since it's not a valuable antique, I might try modding it with original-spec 1N270 clipping diodes. Maybe I'll put in a toggle to compare stock 1N34A diodes to the 1N270s.

Anyway, thanks to 9finger and SteveAlysis for getting me back in touch with the D+. I hadn't played one since the original script-logo I owned back in 1977.

 

[Mr 9finger]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

Rich, I think you're probably the first person in history to describe any D+ as smooth and mellow lol!