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Looking for Specific Distortion

F

frankthetank727

Guest
Jul 7, 2011
59
3
#1
Hey guys, I know there are alot of general threads about distortion pedals for bass, but I just want someone's opinion for a distortion pedal that has alot of tone shaping qualities, and also alot of sustain, yet is still crisp and clear. I am always concerned about being able to shape the tone of distortion while also retaining low end and sustain, so any recommendations would be appreciated.

I play a fretlles 6 string with active pickups. Thanks in advance!
 
#3
Big Muff...................................................just kiddin. Im not part of that hobbyhorse. The digitech grunge pedal works pretty darn well for me...dont listen to all the guitar parts haters 'o my gosh, low end loss, apocalypse' it keeps your tone pretty full. Also ive tried another digitech (hardwire) pedal the metal distortion and it also stays pretty full. Bass pedals....., the only one i would recommend is the mxr el grande or maybe the blowtorch if you like extra control of your eq
 
#5
JetBlackJazz said:
Big Muff...................................................just kiddin. Im not part of that hobbyhorse. The digitech grunge pedal works pretty darn well for me...dont listen to all the guitar parts haters 'o my gosh, low end loss, apocalypse' it keeps your tone pretty full. Also ive tried another digitech (hardwire) pedal the metal distortion and it also stays pretty full. Bass pedals....., the only one i would recommend is the mxr el grande or maybe the blowtorch if you like extra control of your eq
Click to expand...

Do you have any experience or know anyone who has used the Blowtorch? I have heard about it before but didn't look into it much, but the amount of controls seem like a nice option...
 
#6
You know, those Digitech grunge pedals ain't bad, but the problem is there isn't enough gain range and no blend. I like it for guitar too :)

My vote would be the Boss ODB-3...thats a good place to start for bass distortion.
 
#8
frankthetank727 said:
Not sure what you mean by dirt pedal, but I do run an MXR 10 band EQ pedal as my EQ on pedalboard. I just like being able to shape the distortion as well as the tone of the bass, because my current distortion is just gain and level, and I feel so limited on what I can do with it....
Click to expand...

Dirt = distortion, fuzz, overdrive, etc.

Big muffs and clones have a tone knob, rats have a tone filter...the list goes on. Essentially most dirt pedals have a tone knob (at least 1).

What's your budget? Do you want something from GC/SA or are you open to boutique?
 
#9
Crystalman85 said:
From what you're describing, the MXR m-80 bass d.i+ would be a good choice for that. another good choice if you like high-gained distortion pedals would be a boss odb-3.
Click to expand...

I disagree that the M80 is a good choice for distortion. While its true the M80 allows you to EQ its distortion, the distortion button automatically activates a "color" switch which can't be disabled in the distortion mode. But worse than that, the M80's distortion just.....well...sucks. I find it completely unuseable as its just too weak and artificial. I like the M80 alot but I use the distortion as just a boost with a tiny bit of gain.

If you want to EQ the shape of the distortion only, but still have a quality (or at least what I consider a quality) distortion, give the Blowtorch a try.
 
#10
rratajski said:
Dirt = distortion, fuzz, overdrive, etc.

Big muffs and clones have a tone knob, rats have a tone filter...the list goes on. Essentially most dirt pedals have a tone knob (at least 1).

What's your budget? Do you want something from GC/SA or are you open to boutique?
Click to expand...

I am being pretty open at this point, however, It's hard for me to want to buy something without being able to play it first. Budget I would say is probably no more than 150 bucks, maybe 200 if its absolutely amazing
 
#11
A Strohman said:
I disagree that the M80 is a good choice for distortion. While its true the M80 allows you to EQ its distortion, the distortion button automatically activates a "color" switch which can't be disabled in the distortion mode. But worse than that, the M80's distortion just.....well...sucks. I find it completely unuseable as its just too weak and artificial. I like the M80 alot but I use the distortion as just a boost with a tiny bit of gain.

If you want to EQ the shape of the distortion only, but still have a quality (or at least what I consider a quality) distortion, give the Blowtorch a try.
Click to expand...

I looked up some videos of the Blowtorch and I personally thought it sounded like balls. It has this buzzy sort of unnatural distortion tone that is just more like noise to me than anything. I should probably mention at this point I am really into sludge/doom metal stuff so I need a distortion that can sustain, yet still be punchy, clear, and heavy without dropping low end. And from the videos I could find on the M80, the distortion didn't sound too terrible, but I will find out since I will try one out this week at a GC
 
#14
A Strohman said:
I disagree that the M80 is a good choice for distortion. While its true the M80 allows you to EQ its distortion, the distortion button automatically activates a "color" switch which can't be disabled in the distortion mode. But worse than that, the M80's distortion just.....well...sucks. I find it completely unuseable as its just too weak and artificial. I like the M80 alot but I use the distortion as just a boost with a tiny bit of gain.

If you want to EQ the shape of the distortion only, but still have a quality (or at least what I consider a quality) distortion, give the Blowtorch a try.
Click to expand...

Really?...I would of thought the m80 would of been a great pedal. I have heard how this pedal sounded on a couple of youtube clips and I thought it sounded pretty cool. I would guess that some like it some people don't.
 
#16
Crystalman85 said:
Really?...I would of thought the m80 would of been a great pedal. I have heard how this pedal sounded on a couple of youtube clips and I thought it sounded pretty cool. I would guess that some like it some people don't.
Click to expand...

The M80 is a great pedal....just not a great *distortion* pedal. I use it for its DI and also as a preamp and I love the tone I get from it. The distortion though? Lame in my opinion.
 
#20
Thought I should post here, I ended up finding a Tech 21 Red Ripper at a local boutique store and bought it. It sounds fantastic. If anyone hasn't played one, I definitely recommend it. Lots of gain, good tone shaping options, and maintains bottom end very well. Thanks again for the suggestions, all.
 

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