MXR Distortion+

[Guitar Toad]

What do y'all have to say about this pedal? Apparently it is very similar to the DOD 250, but for some reason the D+ gets higher ratings. The product descriptions claim to go from clean boost to British Crunch. The Distortion+ was integral to Randy Rhodes' tone.

There's even a Hermida mod available for this pedal. Hermida is the designer of the Zendrive which is one of the latest, greatest new pedals.

I can buy the D+ new from MF for $70 or the DOD 250 for $40. Are either one really worthwhile? The 250 might be really good after the Hermida mod if it will easily translate from the D+ to the 250 like I espect it will.

Recommendations.

I'm expecting a response like get a Sparkledrive and forget about it. Sparkledrive=tone happiness.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

Re: MXR Distortion Plus

I have owned several oringinal Distortion pluses and 2 reiussues...the reissues are junk compared to an oringinal...thats just my opinion but Im sticking to it!

The Distoprtion plus had a cool tone (NOT tube like at all but cool) but it never had enough volume for me to get any real use out of it...even with the volume all the way up there was a slight volume drop betyween the pedal off and on...

As for the RR connection, first, Randy had a ****ty tone...no other way to say it but the way he got away with the Distortion plus is that he never turned it off...no joke, it was on all the time...also, don't use Randy's tone as a benchmark for the Distortion plus...he also ran an MXR 10 band graphic EQ with it (also on all the time) with a massive mid boost...Randy's tone is very different from what a Distortion Plus really sounds like.

As for the DOD 250, I had one for a while...didn't care for it...more of a preamp/booster than a distortion pedal but some guys really like them.

 

[Curly]

Re: MXR Distortion+

these are not two of the better ODs. People aren't exactly falling over themselves to get a D+. I have one of the RIs ... 10 years old in pristine condition - that should tell you something.

the D+ was also used by Jerry Garcia, but I personally didn't care a lot for his OD tone (sorry Jerry!)

get a Sparkle Drive

 

[bungalowbill]

Re: MXR Distortion+

I'm expecting a response like get a Sparkledrive and forget about it. Sparkledrive=tone happiness.


You answered your own question. I don't think the two pedals you mentioned are very good tone machines. What tone are you looking for, Todd? Do you still have the Spina modded Boss? I think you should look for a lighter OD. I love my Barber LTD, very smooth and musical sounding.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: MXR Distortion+

these are not two of the better ODs. People aren't exactly falling over themselves to get a D+. I have one of the RIs ... 10 years old in pristine condition - that should tell you something.
the D+ was also used by Jerry Garcia, but I personally didn't care a lot for his OD tone (sorry Jerry!)
get a Sparkle Drive

I will say that the original (NON Dunlop) Distortion +'s sound better than the reissues...FWIW, Mr. Spina does a Distorion + mod.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: MXR Distortion+

The DOD can sound the same, no sweat, the construction is the same, get some germanium diodes, and if I remember correctly use a 1.0pf for filter at the op-amp.
For more output wire the diodes assymetrically.
And grab an old LM741...the grandaddy of op-amp chips

 

[Guitar Toad]

Re: MXR Distortion+

I want 2 things I want a pedal that I can practice some mod's on. And I want pedal with good warm overdriven bluesy tone. Since I got the DS-1 modded it's a bit too hot for me now. I love the sound and I like to use it. But, I really just want to explore and experiment. I haven't had a TS pedal yet.

Maybe the Carl Martin Crush Zone is what I want? I don't think I want a crystal clear booster. I want an overdrive that adds warmth with smooth but minimal clipping, if that makes any sense. I think I want something that is in between the SD SFX01 and the modded DS-1.

The Sparkledrive and any other TS clone with improvements may be exactly what I need. Is it a tweed tone that I'm looking for?

I keep thinking I might be able to find a diamond in the rough or find a hidden gem that is exactly what I want as it is.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: MXR Distortion+

There is a lot and I mean A LOT of sonic ground between an SFX-01 and a Spina DS-1...as for a warm bluesy overdrive...that is not a Distortion Plus...at least not to me. A tubescreamer or TS style OD might be what you're looking for...

 

[Curly]

Re: MXR Distortion+

I will say that the original (NON Dunlop) Distortion +'s sound better than the reissues...FWIW, Mr. Spina does a Distorion + mod.

I've thought of just GIVING mine to John for all the good stuff he's done for me.
let it be a test bed or decent OD for someone else

 

[Curly]

Re: MXR Distortion+

I like John's mods, but I also like a go to pedal that sounds good out of the box, so I usually recommend the Maxon OD 808 ... it sounds terrific, it's lightweight and small, so it's nice for a pedal board, the switch is better than that TS 9 crappy switch, and it's about $120. It's also a bit more transparent than a TS9, which IMO makes it perfect for an OD for a strat or other single coil guitar.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: MXR Distortion+

Maybe the Carl Martin Crush Zone is what I want?

Erm smooth and warm is not what the CZ is
It is crunchy and hot, it is a dual stage distortion, and defently not for the milder end of drivesounds.
Grab some old TS-10 and do stuff to that one
Or get one of those old DOD's, they are simple and fun to mod.

 

[Aceman]

Re: MXR Distortion+

MXR Micro amp = pure Boost
DOD 250 = Boost plus a little hair
Tube Screamer = More Hair (or a boost)
Distortion+ = Hair
DS1 = More hair
Metal Zone = Big Hair

Get the right tool for the job! For an alternate example of D+check out early to mid 80's Iron Maiden. Played in a band with a guy who used a D+. I wasn't into it, but it mixed well with my distortion sound. Nothing I'd be running around trying to collect.

 

[Guitar Toad]

Re: MXR Distortion+

I want mid-rangy tones with warm mild overdrive and a bit of hi end sparkle.
My understanding of the Sparkle Drive is that it mixes clean tone with the overdriven tone and that's where it's sparkle comes from.

According to you guys the 250 and the D+ have no sparkle.

OKay, I'm thinking out loud now, I know this may be dangerous but here it goes...Have you ever used a clean boost and a distorted pedal together in parallel into one amp? I've heard of using two amps one clean and the other dirty. Of course you'd have to split and then recombine the signal...that may not be worth doing but it might be worthy of a Gedankenexperiment.

What'chou guys think about that?

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: MXR Distortion+

it sounds like you really want a Tubescreamer style pedal...be it an Ibanez, Maxon, Sparkle Drive, etc...

As fo the clean boost and an OD at the same time...do it all the time. You can run a true clean boost infront of an overdrive for even more grit or after it for a volume boost...it sounds great with some pedals and not so good with others...

 

[Aceman]

Re: MXR Distortion+

WHOAAAAAAAAA! Let's get our signal chains straight here...

boost+dist = louder distortion
distortion+boost =louder and possibly some amp distortion

If by "parellel" you mean clean signal into one channel and dirty signal into another - yes: But that's a peculiar amp...you would need to split the original signal, put it into two boxes, then put them into each channel and get the levels right. Could be done. Sparkle drive would be WAYYYYY easier...or you might be happy with a TS-9. everybody ought to have one anyway. The better/usual way to get the sound you are talking about is to split the guitar into two amps. Say a Bluesbreaker for the warm fuzzy and a twin for the sparkle.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: MXR Distortion+

Then again do you even like the overdriven sound mixed with all that clean stuff??
It has always sounded odd to me, always hated when drives bleed too much clean signal through, especially with the filterings in od's.
Then I rather have some more natural sounding drives, maybe you should just get an Eternity
Expensive and not mod friendly at all, but very toneful and has three things in one drive, fab piece of gear Sean makes at Lovepedal.
It is like amps, get the good stuff unless you wanna mod forever

 

[STRATDELUXER97]

Re: MXR Distortion+

I've thought of just GIVING mine to John for all the good stuff he's done for me.
let it be a test bed or decent OD for someone else

Nice thought buddy....I have a handwired MXR D+ that I built and used a recent pedal case to house everything..Mine is quite a bit better than any stock one I've heard...Never use it.... One of my least favorite pedals.

 

[taphappy]

Re: MXR Distortion+

I regret buying the MXR distortion +. It only has a slight randy flavor and there are so many better choices for volume boosts. Also if you set the distortion high the low end has this wierd compression thing. The model I bought was a reissue.

 

[Guitar Toad]

Re: MXR Distortion+

Great info guys. I won't give the D+ much more thought. I considered making one as DIY project. But, it doesn't look to be worth it.

The Sparkle Drive is still the front runner. If I see any TS's in local pawn shops I'll pick'em up. D+ and 250's I'll ignore.

I saw a Sparkle Drive go for $40 on ebay last week. :smack: I should have snagged it.

 

[Guitar Toad]

Re: MXR Distortion+

Then again do you even like the overdriven sound mixed with all that clean stuff??

I don't. I haven't done it. Others sure make it sound plausible.

I might be willing to try the Eternity before I can handle two amps. I'll have to line up a few paying gigs before I can have multiple amps.

Aceman, you're right...a thought experiment gone wrong...it was a poorly constructed idea.

I'll have to see if I can find a Sparkle Drive or Eternity to try.