Best high-gain Distortion Pedals for Guitar: Here we take a look at the best distortion pedals that you may use for playing hard-rock, metal or any other genre.
Introduction
Distortion is an important element of hard rock and metal. So, unsurprisingly, there are lots of options for getting the best distortion sound from your rig.
Distortion is used by almost all electric guitar players for:
- Boosting the overall sound
- The rhythms and solos sound wicked
- The overall tone sounds crushing
- Used in most contemporary styles such as rock and heavy metal, guitarists find this effect quite exciting.
Distortion usually is more aggressive than an overdrive, it adds color to a tone and also adds more sustain to a clean channel. You need a distortion pedal for high gain rock and sustains filled leads. Popular distortion pedals are the Wampler Pinnacle Deluxe and the legendary Boss DS-1.
Distortion Pedals (Just Distortion)
Here are some good options:
Boss DS1 Distortion Guitar Pedal
The DS-1 distortion pedal is a time-proven mainstay of rock and metal tone, it’s a true icon in the world of guitar effects. You can get everything from ’60s fuzz to heavy metal distortion.
- [easyazon_link identifier=”B0002KYY14″ locale=”US” tag=”keytarhq04-20″ cart=”n”]Buy on Amazon[/easyazon_link] | Buy on zZounds
Pro Co RAT2 Distortion Pedal
The Pro Co RAT2 is a versatile distortion pedal. Excels at arena rock rhythm tones and soaring leads. Use the RAT 2 as a boost for solos and get the extra kick you need. It covers a wide range of overdrive to distortion tones and produces a sound that is unique to the RAT2.
- [easyazon_link identifier=”B0002MSQVQ” locale=”US” tag=”keytarhq04-20″ cart=”n”]Buy on Amazon[/easyazon_link] | Buy on zZounds
Danelectro D-1 Fab Distortion Effects Pedal
Danelectro offers you the D-1 Fab Distortion as a sonic equivalent to the prized original. It’s equipped with Level, Tone, and Distortion controls. It offers a warm full tone and it really can rip.
- [easyazon_link identifier=”B0009DXEEM” locale=”US” tag=”keytarhq04-20″ cart=”n”]Buy on Amazon[/easyazon_link]
Overdrive Distortion Pedals
Here’s a video demonstrating a Overdrive Distortion Pedal
Distortion vs Overdrive
Though most guitar players may use the name interchangeably, distortion provides more gain than overdrive.
Distortion is more of a extreme effect, and is used mostly for metal and hard rock.
Here are some cool Overdrive Distortion Pedals.
Behringer TO800 Vintage Tube-Sound Overdrive Pedal
The Behringer TO800 Vintage Tube-Sound Overdrive Pedal gives a vintage overdrive, smooth sustain and screaming fat tone. You can recreate the sounds of real tube amp overdrive using this overdrive pedal. Dedicated Drive, Tone, and Level controls for great tone shaping.
Boss SD-1 Overdrive Pedal
The Boss SD-1 Overdrive Pedal provides everything from subtle grit to smooth, sustaining lead tones. Please do not confuse this with the DS-1, the Boss SD-1 is an overdrive pedal, not a distortion pedal. One of the best thing about the SD-1 is its price, its much lower than its competitors with similar specs.
Boss OD-3 OverDrive Pedal
The Boss OD-3 OverDrive Pedal provides a level of sustain and compression unmatched by most overdrive pedals. Bigger sound, non-muffled tones. Straightforward Drive, Tone and Level controls. The OD-3 OverDrive gives guitarists a greatly expanded range of smooth overdriven tones.
Danelectro D-2 Fab Overdrive Effects Pedal
The Danelectro D-2 Fab Overdrive Effects Pedal provides a strong overdrive at a good price, perfect for beginners. Realistic tube overdrive. Level, Tone, and O.D. (Overdrive) knobs.
Fuzz Distortion Pedals
Here’s a video showing how to get a great sound using a Fuzz Distortion Pedal
Checkout these cool Fuzz Distortion Pedals:
Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi (USA)
The Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi (USA) Pedal replicates sweet, singing tone by artists from Jimi Hendrix to Santana to Korn.
Boss FZ-5 Fuzz Pedal
The Boss FZ-5 Fuzz Pedal gives vintage sounds inspired by famous fuzz pedals of the ’60s and ’70s.
Dunlop JH-F1 Jimi Hendrix Fuzz Face
The Dunlop JH-F1 Jimi Hendrix Fuzz pedal faithfully reproduces the 1969-70 Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face that Hendrix used.
Biyang Fz-10 Fuzz Star Pedal
The Biyang Fz-10 Fuzz Star pedal offers three variables of fuzzy tones using the 3 position switch.
Metal Distortion Pedals
Here’s a video showing a Metal Distortion Pedal
Here are some of the best Metal Distortion Pedals:
Boss MT-2 Metal Zone Distortion Guitar Pedal
The Boss MT-2 Metal Zone Distortion Guitar pedal provides you with a flexible EQ, letting you come up with just about any sound you want.
DigiTech TL-2 HardWire Metal Distortion Extreme-Performance Pedal
The DigiTech TL-2 HardWire Metal Distortion Extreme-Performance pedal provides you with a very customizable EQ which lets you cycle between numerous distortion pedal operations.
Electro-Harmonix Metal Muff Distortion Pedal
The Electro-Harmonix Metal Muff Distortion pedal provides a natural-sounding distortion that isn’t over-the-top, or artificial sounding.
Digitech DDM Death Metal Analog Distortion Pedal
The Digitech DDM Death Metal Analog Distortion pedal provides, by far the most extreme distortion you will ever hear.
Behringer UM300 Heavy Metal Distortion Pedal
The Behringer UM300 Heavy Metal Distortion pedal is sturdy, looks good and sounds good.
Distortion Pedals: Buying Guide
Most guitar amps are capable of delivering a wonderful, clean sound, but for certain genres of music such as grunge, hard rock, or heavy metal, your sound need the crunch that is so typical of these genres.
That is where you need a distortion pedal.
And though its basic purpose is to distort the guitar sound, you can have different distortion qualities which is offered by pedals such as metal, fuzz, overdrive.
That is why it’s also important that you know how much distortion (tone variation) you need, for your style of music.
So, if you’re a country music player then you probably are going to use only a slight distortion, compared to a heavy metal guitar player. So its important you choose the one that best fits your music.
Can Amps Do That?
Most amplifiers do come with these effects, but if you already own an amp and probably need a better distortion effect, pedal is the best option.
Besides, it’s much easier to get his sort of sound using a pedal.
Various Options
You need to spend some time hearing the various effects to choose the one that suits your playing style.
Whether you want to blow apart your amp, or obliterate your signal with crushing square wave fuzz, there’s something available for everyone.
To Conclude
Distortion is a must-have effect if you are a guitarist, especially for your electric, and the easiest way to get that sound is using a pedal. Guitarists and other musicians usually do not have a big budget all the time, but the good thing is that you have some good options, when it comes to Guitar Distortion Pedal, at the lower price spectrum as well.
KeytarHQ editorial team includes musicians who write and review products for pianists, keyboardists, guitarists & other musicians. KeytarHQ is the best online resource for information on keyboards, pianos, synths, keytars, guitars and music gear for musicians of all abilities, ages and interests.
Leave a Reply