The Aguilar Agro is my favorite distortion pedal! It's featured on regular bass and piccolo bass all over my new album. I can't recommend it enough.
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Bass Distortion pedals you'd recommend?
- Thread starter Maxi Funkl
- Start date
For heavier distortion sounds, the Mantic Vitriol is gnarly, and works well on bass.
For some reason, I can't quote the post you're quoting, so I'm quoting you instead.
Both of my basses are strung with LaBella Low Tension Flats and I use distortion as needed. Sometimes, a lot of distortion.
i like my genzler crashbox4...been gas-free for dirt since i got it 
Another vote for the Damnation MBD. I have a few and they are killer.
My honorable mention goes to the Darkglass Alpha Omicron. It’s more clanky and modern than the MBDs. Not my #1 but I really like the ability to modify the distortion character with the AO dial.
My honorable mention goes to the Darkglass Alpha Omicron. It’s more clanky and modern than the MBDs. Not my #1 but I really like the ability to modify the distortion character with the AO dial.
If they were smaller I'd love to try 4 or crash have the preamp and love it. Still rocking my Genz-Benz Contour 500 2x10 comboi like my genzler crashbox4...been gas-free for dirt since i got it
I really like the Tube Driver on bass.
PSA GC online has one used cheap currently.
Id like to check out the Genzler crash box 4 it looks sweet.
PSA GC online has one used cheap currently.
Id like to check out the Genzler crash box 4 it looks sweet.
Hi all,
I just got a 3xfx Fatman V2 ......I think it rocks , I use a bk7 as well , loving the Fatman ...fuzz/distortion
I just got a 3xfx Fatman V2 ......I think it rocks , I use a bk7 as well , loving the Fatman ...fuzz/distortion
rratajski
Commercial User
- Jul 1, 2008
- 6,121
- 2,671
- Disclosures
- Builder for FUZZROCIOUS PEDALS
Love all the Li'l Fella love in here! Thank you!
I haven't tried the new MBD3, but I love the MBD2 which is smaller but lacks the second footswitch for the boost.
Fuzzrocious Lil' Fella is new for me but loving it so far as well. Basically a heavily modified Fulltone OCD circuit. Fuzzrocious make a great RAT circuit as well (Cat Tail).
If you can find a Broughton Sentinel it would be worth trying as well.
You nailed it with that one! I love it and I haven't even started exploring high gain sounds with it yet.
Size is the issue for me, MBD3 & Grizzly Bass might be to big but are my 1st tier... LIL Fella, Dark Driving, MB2, A Sentinel would be great as well.
I'm going to toss out this one because I just did a tentative pre-order on it from Walrus Audio.
There is almost no mention of this pedals original (not MK II being released) except for a comment that "it doesn't get much love around here."
It sounds great in Nashville. It is a drive that gets into the Fuzz end of the pool. Too much, can be too much.
But, the 385 is very interesting.
A pedal done around an old Bell & Howell film projector amplifier converted and pressed into service for guitarists? It made me think about a guitarist I played with who used an old schoolhouse PA amp that sounded amazing with the Tele he had made!
Would like to give it a go with a Lollar PB90 pickup.
There is almost no mention of this pedals original (not MK II being released) except for a comment that "it doesn't get much love around here."
It sounds great in Nashville. It is a drive that gets into the Fuzz end of the pool. Too much, can be too much.
But, the 385 is very interesting.
A pedal done around an old Bell & Howell film projector amplifier converted and pressed into service for guitarists? It made me think about a guitarist I played with who used an old schoolhouse PA amp that sounded amazing with the Tele he had made!
Would like to give it a go with a Lollar PB90 pickup.
First off, my obligatory soapbox dissertation:
========
My pet peeve is the hairsplitters who insist that "fuzz" and "distortion" and "overdrive" pedals are three completely different things.
Hey, I'm all about getting granular in one's evaluations and categorizations, and I understand the value in being able to identify and refer to sounds in a way that narrows down the available options, and maybe even achieves consensus on what sound a room full of musicians are talking about.
But to not be able to recognize that "fuzz" and "distortion" and "overdrive" are three sounds along the same spectrum is to be willfully ignorant of both how those effects are generated, and what the resulting sound actually is relative to the unprocessed signal.
In short:
fuzz is fuzz ...which is distortion.
overdrive is distortion.
distortion is distortion.
========
...having said that: The only distortion pedal for bass that I would unequivocally & whole-heartedly "recommend" is the Damnation Audio MBD-1. It is killer.
I totally understand what O/D, Distortion, & Fuzz do and why there is a line in the sand to separate these types of pedals knowing full well that many of them are more than capable to do all 3 aspects. I've had all 3 Distortion type of effects on a guitar pedalboard forever. I use tube amps so touch sensitive break up is far easier than class D bass amps. With that said I have a Fender De'ville 4x10 that does clean to medium dirt & a VHT/Frayette Deliverance 60 when I want to rip the paint off the walls even though that amp has one hell of clean tone. both amps take pedals extremely well. Not looking for on education on what these effects do I DO NOT NEED IT!!!
Now, being that I'm relativity new to bass pedals 15 months or so with any sort of bass pedalboard. I'm trying to gather information to update and improve my current big pedalboard while I discover what I like, love and hate. An since I'm not trying to just throw money out the window trying every damn thing. I ask a butt load of questions on TB to see what others are using and why. Also as a way to open my mind to using effects in a way I would not consider. As an example a Compressor at the end of my chain.
To me the line between OD & Distortion Bass pedals is more convoluted than it appears. Thus I started this thread. TC spark is an OVERDRIVE distortion pedal but in no way would anyone say its a Bass Distortion pedal simply doesn't have that amount of high gain on hand. Also, knowing full well that there are many Heavy Metal Bassist on TB who's base tone is far dirtier than I'd use. But their insight would give me exactly what I'm looking for as long as I can get a great clean/mild to wall shaking Distortion. Albeit I'd use the wall shaking type the least but having it on hand is key.
MBD 1 gets great reviews here on TB but its to big for the spot on my pedalboard.
I'm going to toss out this one because I just did a tentative pre-order on it from Walrus Audio. ... the 385 is very interesting. ...
I preordered the 385 MkII as well. Primarily for my guitar rig, but as if I won't try it on bass first
.
I like the Boss DS1. Not a bass pedal but it does stuff that works for me.
Funny story and review of the SushiBoxFX Lab Rat....
I ordered it Thursday and had it on Saturday. Finally got around to trying it on Sunday evening - plugged in the lttle 9V Batt/plug that I keep handy, and was kind of bummed - everything seemed to work properly, and I really liked the sound, but the only way I could get unity gain was with all four knobs "dimed"?...
I also ordered a Phaser last week (after reading another Talkbas thread), and that got here yesterday. Plugged the same 9V Batt in and it worked fine (no volume/gain stage on that pedal), and again liked the sound.
Decided to mess around with the Zoom MS-50G, and plugged the 9V Batt into that one - it stated to boot up, then reset, reset, reset (that 9V Batt was dead!)...
With the Lab Rat now "properly powered", it's capable of going WAY over unity gain! Unity was now closer to 9 O'clock on gain and volume (with Bass & Treble at Noon) @ 9V (I didn't even need to try it @ 12V). It goes to "11", and is definitely a "keeper"!
I ordered it Thursday and had it on Saturday. Finally got around to trying it on Sunday evening - plugged in the lttle 9V Batt/plug that I keep handy, and was kind of bummed - everything seemed to work properly, and I really liked the sound, but the only way I could get unity gain was with all four knobs "dimed"?...
I also ordered a Phaser last week (after reading another Talkbas thread), and that got here yesterday. Plugged the same 9V Batt in and it worked fine (no volume/gain stage on that pedal), and again liked the sound.
Decided to mess around with the Zoom MS-50G, and plugged the 9V Batt into that one - it stated to boot up, then reset, reset, reset (that 9V Batt was dead!)...
With the Lab Rat now "properly powered", it's capable of going WAY over unity gain! Unity was now closer to 9 O'clock on gain and volume (with Bass & Treble at Noon) @ 9V (I didn't even need to try it @ 12V). It goes to "11", and is definitely a "keeper"!
