Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Just interesting in what overdrive/distortion/fuzz pedals you use.

I use a Fuzz Face. I love it, it gives me no trouble, and I can get a wide variety of tones with it. I wouldn't ask for another distortion pedal (except maybe a Vox Tone Bender from the 90s or a Maestro Fuzz Tone from the 60s). Overdrive, for me, doesn't cut it. I don't get the response from it that I get from fuzz.

Amp on 10 (or 11).

That's true overdrive.

See, I wouldn't consider the Fuzz Face an overdrive or a distortion (okay, technically it is distorting the signal), but the third option, fuzz. In my experience with fuzz pedals, they are terribly muddy for playing chords or any sort of rhythm, but are great for lead - see "Live at Pompeii" for some great lead work done with a Fuzz Face. Jake, open your ears and your mind and try out some good overdrive or distortion pedals. I think you'll see how their usefulness far outweighs the novelty of a fuzz pedal (which is not to say I don't like them). Case in point - you can keep a good o/d pedal on all the time and use your volume to clean up the signal, then crank it back up to emphasize a big chorus or a lead part. A fuzz pedal isn't going to clean up quite the same way and chords turn to mush.

I've been using a modded Ibanez Tubescreamer for the better part of six years (bought during a SRV phase, used for anything and everything since), but I was recently blown away by a friend's Menatone Blue Collar and might be swapping.

Bass: Sansamp VT Bass
Guitar: Digitech Hardwire SC-2 or Princeton Reverb Amp on 12.

plugged direct.

Fulltone OCD if and when I need it.

I have a Rat,XXL and a Germanium O.D.

frantone peachfuzz, & a fulldrive 2

sloop_john_b wrote:See, I wouldn't consider the Fuzz Face an overdrive or a distortion (okay, technically it is distorting the signal), but the third option, fuzz. In my experience with fuzz pedals, they are terribly muddy for playing chords or any sort of rhythm, but are great for lead - see "Live at Pompeii" for some great lead work done with a Fuzz Face. Jake, open your ears and your mind and try out some good overdrive or distortion pedals. I think you'll see how their usefulness far outweighs the novelty of a fuzz pedal (which is not to say I don't like them). Case in point - you can keep a good o/d pedal on all the time and use your volume to clean up the signal, then crank it back up to emphasize a big chorus or a lead part. A fuzz pedal isn't going to clean up quite the same way and chords turn to mush.

So is that why guitarists have more than one overdrive in their pedal board? One for chords and the other for leads?

JakeK wrote:

sloop_john_b wrote:See, I wouldn't consider the Fuzz Face an overdrive or a distortion (okay, technically it is distorting the signal), but the third option, fuzz. In my experience with fuzz pedals, they are terribly muddy for playing chords or any sort of rhythm, but are great for lead - see "Live at Pompeii" for some great lead work done with a Fuzz Face. Jake, open your ears and your mind and try out some good overdrive or distortion pedals. I think you'll see how their usefulness far outweighs the novelty of a fuzz pedal (which is not to say I don't like them). Case in point - you can keep a good o/d pedal on all the time and use your volume to clean up the signal, then crank it back up to emphasize a big chorus or a lead part. A fuzz pedal isn't going to clean up quite the same way and chords turn to mush.

So is that why guitarists have more than one overdrive in their pedal board? One for chords and the other for leads?

I wouldn't always assume that. It's certainly true in some cases, in other cases it's just a matter of having different flavors. They're all different.

I picked up an Analogman modded Maxon OD-9, which is a true bypass version of the original TS-9.

Has a nice crunch for "Mary Jane's Last Dance" and it can still nail the fuzzy opening to "Satisfaction".

I normally like to run my amp just on the edge of breakup, then push it over the top with an overdrive pedal and compressor. I'm currently using a Lovepedal Eternity Fuse for overdrive, and a Keeley compressor. The Eternity is a great OD pedal - very transparent and amp-like distortion.

I still want to revisit that 60's fuzz thing, so I've ordered a Skinpimp MK3 Fuzz. Its a clone of a Sola Sound mkIII Tonebender, and all the clips I've heard sound fantastic - like Led Zeppelin 2. Should be here in a couple of weeks along with my Farndurk Burgs (orange squeezer clone) compressor.

As far as the discussion of what fuzz is good for - solo vs rhythm - I find that a good fuzz pedal will clean up when you roll the volume back on the guitar. Still useful for rhythm (see: "Whole Lotta Love")

Stay fuzzy!

Diamond Fireburst.

I prefer to dime it but if I want to go a little further I use a TS9 modded for "brown sound".

MI Audio Crunchbox for distortion, MI Audio Boost n Buff for pure boost (very clean and transparent), dime the master on my Egnater Rebel 20 and dial back the pre-amp for volume control. Works for me...