what distortion to use

humphreybear · Post by **humphreybear** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 5:25 pm

hi there I am currently using a gibson sg(might get an ibanez instead) and a little marshall combo jcm-something and im using a bos ds-1 and that sounds pretty cool but something about the distortion it gives me is really bugging me and it doesnt sound quite right what distortion do you guys recommend i like to play mainly metallica and steve vai joe satriani (not well lol) but i don't want a heavy sound any help?

The Scarecrow · Post by **The Scarecrow** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 5:45 pm

humphreybear wrote:hi there I am currently using a gibson sg(might get an ibanez instead) and a little marshall combo jcm-something and im using a bos ds-1 and that sounds pretty cool but something about the distortion it gives me is really bugging me and it doesnt sound quite right what distortion do you guys recommend i like to play mainly metallica and steve vai joe satriani (not well lol) but i don't want a heavy sound any help?

Take out the DS1. The amp's distortion will be much better if it's a JCM series.

What model of SG? Any idea on the pickups? What are your EQ/Gain settings? More info please.

sambrowne · Post by **sambrowne** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 5:45 pm

Stick with your Gibson SG, that's a good metal guitar. You're talking about fairly high gain sounds, so here's my suggestions:

Pedals:

Here's some to try:

G2D Morpheus

G2D Custom Overdrive

G2D Classic (As in Classic Marshall - might be too low gain for you)

Sansamp GT-2

Line6 Gold distortion multi-effects (I forget what it's called)

Personally my favourite of all these is the G2D Custom. You can definitely play metal with it.

slash-ed · Post by **slash-ed** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:35 pm

When I get back, if you're still looking, mate I have a Sansamp Tri-OD and a MXR Dime Distortion that I will be selling, and you are more than welcome to try out.

We stilll haven't had the Chch jam yet... sigh.

humphreybear · Post by **humphreybear** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:39 pm

slash-ed wrote:When I get back, if you're still looking, mate I have a Sansamp Tri-OD and a MXR Dime Distortion that I will be selling, and you are more than welcome to try out.

We stilll haven't had the Chch jam yet... sigh.

yea if anyone who happens 2 noe som1 who owns a big hall or somthing like that is listening we want a chch gearfest!!!!!!!!!!

humphreybear · Post by **humphreybear** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:40 pm

The Scarecrow wrote:
humphreybear wrote:hi there I am currently using a gibson sg(might get an ibanez instead) and a little marshall combo jcm-something and im using a bos ds-1 and that sounds pretty cool but something about the distortion it gives me is really bugging me and it doesnt sound quite right what distortion do you guys recommend i like to play mainly metallica and steve vai joe satriani (not well lol) but i don't want a heavy sound any help?
Take out the DS1. The amp's distortion will be much better if it's a JCM series.

What model of SG? Any idea on the pickups? What are your EQ/Gain settings? More info please.

well ive only just got it so the settings are forever changing as i try to find mi tone but can som1 steer me in the right direction for the setting i should use coz im lost

Optimus_prime · Post by **Optimus_prime** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:46 pm

use your own ears man

they're more correct then anybody else

The Scarecrow · Post by **The Scarecrow** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:52 pm

humphreybear wrote:
The Scarecrow wrote:
humphreybear wrote:hi there I am currently using a gibson sg(might get an ibanez instead) and a little marshall combo jcm-something and im using a bos ds-1 and that sounds pretty cool but something about the distortion it gives me is really bugging me and it doesnt sound quite right what distortion do you guys recommend i like to play mainly metallica and steve vai joe satriani (not well lol) but i don't want a heavy sound any help?
Take out the DS1. The amp's distortion will be much better if it's a JCM series.

What model of SG? Any idea on the pickups? What are your EQ/Gain settings? More info please.
well ive only just got it so the settings are forever changing as i try to find mi tone but can som1 steer me in the right direction for the setting i should use coz im lost

Start with everything on the EQ set to 5 (midway) and adjust from there. A decent distortion/overdrive/crunch setting with most Marshall EQ's is to set the mids between 4-6, treble at 6-8, bass at 7-10 and presence to suit your particular tastes.

Try not to saturate the gain either, unless you just want to hear static mush. What model of amp is it, btw?

Jenesis · Post by **Jenesis** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 7:08 pm

bumphreyhear wrote:i like to play mainly metallica... but i don't want a heavy sound

You must play an interesting take on their material.

humphreybear · Post by **humphreybear** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 7:17 pm

Jenesis wrote:
bumphreyhear wrote:i like to play mainly metallica... but i don't want a heavy sound
You must play an interesting take on their material.

i mean not like slipknot heavy

humphreybear · Post by **humphreybear** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 7:21 pm

its a jcm2000 tsl602 a combo coz a half stack is just to big for me

bc_rich_ · Post by **bc_rich_** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 7:42 pm

Jenesis wrote:
bumphreyhear wrote:i like to play mainly metallica... but i don't want a heavy sound
You must play an interesting take on their material.

+1, u wanna play tallica but wit a fuken pussy settin? quite odd. also, slikpnot are nu-metal so they dont count as heavy

even though i have bin thru a slipknot fase.

humphreybear · Post by **humphreybear** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 8:04 pm

bc_rich_ wrote:
Jenesis wrote:
bumphreyhear wrote:i like to play mainly metallica... but i don't want a heavy sound
You must play an interesting take on their material.
+1, u wanna play tallica but wit a fuken pussy settin? quite odd. also, slikpnot are nu-metal so they dont count as heavy even though i have bin thru a slipknot fase.

wateva id call slipknot heavy even tho they are nu-metal

bc_rich_ · Post by **bc_rich_** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 8:06 pm

meh... u cnat really tell of their tone becuase theyre allways tuned like 10 steps down, but yeah the samples kill it i reckon. if u want a metal tone i got a metal zone for sale that might do tha job for ya have a play wit 1 and see if its for u.

IkeKrull · Post by **IkeKrull** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 8:28 pm

Plug straight into the amp, dirty channel, set the gain to about, say, 7 for starters, and crank the volume to at least 5 or 6 on the dial. Now play a few palm muted power chords. This may startle family pets, induce heart attacks in the elderly and will almost certainly leave your ears ringing. But you bought a beast of a Marshall tube amp. This is the cross you'll have to bear.

For a metallica sound and well into 'nu' territory, look at a pretty decent scoop on the EQ as a starting point - e.g. bass and treble up - probably up full, at 8-10 with the mids cranked back to, say, 2-3.

This is probably the sound you don't want.

Now, roll the gain back a bit - you'll find, as you lose gain, that you'll have to pay more attention to how hard you hit the strings, - less preamp distortion means the guitar has more dynamics, and you can also use your guitar's volume knob and tone settings to adjust things. Going from a cleanish sound to powerful distortion with a flick of the guitars volume knob is something a cranked tube amp does characteristically well.

Typically, as you roll the gain off, you'll want more mids, and a bit less bass and treble giving a fuller 'rock' sound - think AC/DC, or Led Zeppelin.

Try taking bass and treble down to 5, and set the mids to 8-10. Do this incrementally while reducing the gain, maybe down as far as 3-4.

Somewhere between extreme scoop and mids-all-the-way-up is where you'll find your sound.

Thats really the basics - either high gain scooped for metal or lower gain mid-boosted for rock. And those are very rough guidelines.

If you want to use the SD-1, set your amp to the clean channel, leave the EQ fairly flat for starters (5-5-5 bass/mid/treble) and make the same kind of settings on the SD-1 - it might only have a tone knob, in which case you'll also want to mess with the amp EQ to get the metal scoop or rocky mid-boost.

The SD-1 is a pretty no-frills 'classic' distortion. it pretty much diode-clips what you play into it, making it something of a buzz-box. This sound was fresh and interesting in the 1960s, but there are many more options these days.

It sounds to me like a tube screamer (e.g. bad monkey or similar) overdrive with conservative i.e. low settings pushing your amp on the dirty channel at a medium gain with the volume up so youre hitting power amp compression might be more like the sound youre after, but if you cant get a tone that sounds good to you out of a cranked marshall, i'm not sure theres too many distortion pedals that will do it for you either.

If you cant crank your amp because of family, neighbours etc., well, don't be surprised it doesnt have the X-factor youre looking for. Tube amps really only start to sing when pushed hard, so you may be better off with a smaller amp (even a 15W all-tube combo is going to be too loud for bedroom practice when run hard), or even a modeller like the POD, especially if youre trying to find a specific sound and can't get it from your current gear.

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what distortion to use

what distortion to use

Re: what distortion to use

Re: what distortion to use

Re: what distortion to use

For starters, lose the pedal.