MXR Distortion + came out 47 yrs ago. Was a different planet.
When Hendrix played there were only about 5 guitar pedals on the planet.
Some folks have no idea what was NOT available then.
When I first began buying gear for real in ‘74, there were two clear pedal-paths for aspiring tone-hungry rock guitarists.
Either a Rangemaster TB into an AC30 normal input. (Echo impossible when distorted)
Or either Dallas Arbiter silicone Fuzz Face or silicone Tone Bender into a Marshall JTM or JMP.
The more intelligent amongst us bought an Echoplex EP3 for it’s smooth preamp.
Then perhaps a Vox Wah or Cry Baby.
That was it. There was nothing else of any use, unless you wanted a Univibe.
The Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face, with the proper BC107 and BC108C transistors, had probably 7 components in total.
With gain on full, you could ride the guitar volume onstage, and if you put big knobs on it, you could control level with your foot too.
With a proper full-blooded amp, and the guitar on 6 or so at high volume - there wasn’t any ‘fuzz’. It was a great distorted sound, and the Echoplex could make it soar into the stratosphere - or whatever. You learned very quickly not to turn the guitar to 10. (The bedroom boys were stuck on 10 btw - and most still are, and that disparity with stage musicians is what clouds discussions to this day)
Amp distortion was rare in cutting-edge rock for the player that cut solos - it really was.
In ‘75 the floodgates opened.
MXR and Electro Harmonix mainly.
Those used to fuzz-faces dismissed the Big Muff Pi as utter shit, and it was.
The MXR Distortion Plus was also dismissed. It just couldn’t quite get there, and had an ugly grating side to it - whereas the Muff was just a muffled op-amp mess.
The perpetuation of mediocre pedals is the fault of the amateur and semi-pro crowd. Advertising rammed this shit down people’s throats, they bought utter shite in droves, touted it round a billion holiday camps, bars, and social clubs, and hey - you couldn’t buy a decent 60’s Fuzz Face for £6 in Macari’s anymore.
I simply learned to distrust anything that came after that, and still do.
The only pedal that has been interesting for me was the J.Rockett Allan Holdsworth boost. But I’m not sure if it is suitable for hammering out Ozzy Classics!
My board in ‘77 was Vox Wah - Phase 100 - Fuzz Face - Blue Box - Clone Theory - Electric Mistress Deluxe - into an Echoplex EP3 - into a Marshall Plexi Superbass 100 stack. With a ‘62 Strat.
A legendary setup, with ATC speakers. Sure discouraged a lot of up-and-coming boys with that stuff!
What really changed everything was MASTER VOLUME!
But how cruel not to put a loop on the amps, so you could use a good echo unit.
So the world basically split in half at this point.
If my first Master Volume Marshall 100 had been fitted with a loop, then I might well have found a Distortion plus quite adequate in gently driving the input stage further. A Fuzz Face with it’s gain on 4 is ok, but a million pedals will do that.
Seriously, were any of these 80’s rockers like Randy using their distortion boxes on full gain into a JCM800? I think not.
So we have to admit that mostly anything that has a bit of grit, and a level boost - would be just as good.
Randy could have used absolutely anything, and got the same results.
You might as well put polka dots on a Marshall Guvnor!
I’m only saying all this because what we are hearing from Randy is surely NOT the sound of a Distortion Plus?
(In ‘87 I flew from Sweden to New York to audition for Zinc, and my trusty audition-friendly Fuzz Face was in bits somewhere. So Soundside recommended and lent me several pedals, one of which was an original RAT. I would be relying on this for all my distortion for solos. Fucking nightmare. Aside from the jet-lag, the Rat howled and squealed all the time, and the whole session was utterly embarrassing. I thankfully discovered a master hidden on the rear of the studio Marshall, and retrieved a little dignity. But that destroyed me. Fucking Rat. Don’t ever mention the cunt to me.)
