DISTORTION vs OVERDRIVE vs BREAKUP * Who knows what's what??

[alvarezh]

Mike, sounds like you are describing the surrounding features of a woman's pleasure amplifier!

Cheers!

[M Fowler]

Mike, sounds like you are describing the surrounding features of a woman's pleasure amplifier! Cheers!

Well it is the latest buzz

[alvarezh]

[Toppscore]

As previously said, there is no single clear definition about those terms. My interpretation when it comes to classifying guitar pedals, isn't really based on the amount of distortion available, but rather the type of clipping and filtering:
Distortion - hard clipping, usually diodes to ground (Rat, MXR Dist+). Some bass cut before clipping.
Overdrive - soft clipping, often diodes in a feedback loop (Tube Screamer). Bass cut before clipping.
Fuzz - hard or soft clipping with no bass cut before the clipping, resulting in a loose (or farty) bass response (Fuzz Face, Big Muff, etc)

Thanks. Good to know it is all in the name and not the electronics.
Fuzz Distortion Overdrive ~ just gotta find what we like.

Questions:
If you played ten "fuzz" pedals, would you expect similar tones from all ten to be within the domain of "fuzz" tones?

Same as if you played ten "distortion" or ten "overdrive" pedals, do they have similar tones within their grouping of pedals?

Could you listen to guitar play and tell if the guitarist is using fuzz or distortion or overdrive? Are the tones distinct?

Kind of like hearing reverb or vibrato or tremolo or echo ~ similar tones yet distinct.



fr

[Toppscore]

Quick, cancel the order on all 5 and buy one GOOD one. Just kidding.

Naw. Just checking things out.
I have a 1980 MXR overdrive, a Dunlop wahwah and a volume pedal.
Thought what the heck as Danelectro has a real cool "RETRO" five pedal box
and thought I'd give it a try for light weight pedal board transport.
Way cool pedal candy. Check the photos below

[d95err]

Questions:
If you played ten "fuzz" pedals, would you expect similar tones from all ten to be within the domain of "fuzz" tones?

Same as if you played ten "distortion" or ten "overdrive" pedals, do they have similar tones within their grouping of pedals?

Could you listen to guitar play and tell if the guitarist is using fuzz or distortion or overdrive? Are the tones distinct?

Manufacturers are not consistent when it comes to naming pedals, so what one calls distortion could be another manufacturers fuzz.

It gets even worse if we bring up the type of pedal with still missing from this thread - the booster. A booster can be anything from something that simply increases the volume without changing tone, to a full-blown fuzz or overdrive. Adding confusion, boosters can be used either to add more distortion (at the beginning of the signal chain) or to increase the volume (at the end of the signal chain). Pretty much any "what's the best booster for me"-thread on any guitar related forum ends up a complete mess because everyone has different definitions and different purposes for using a booster.

In general, I find it difficult to hear what type of pedal was used to create a particular guitar sound. In particular if you don't know if the amp after the pedal is clean or overdriven.

[alvarezh]

Take one of the most used pedal, the Tube Screamer, commonly described as an overdrive. It may do wonders on a certain amp/guitar combination and do poorly with just changing the guitar or with the same guitar and plugging it in another amp. In the later cases maybe a fuzz works better or maybe a distortion will do the trick you're after.

Just my $0.02 to add more confusion!

All the best.

[M Fowler]

For warm tube tone and ability to give me a nice dirty gain I like my Wampler 57 Tweed pedal. For higher gain I like my Zendrive.

[NickC]

For the past couple of years I've used a Wampler Ecstacy for light-gain, and Wampler Pinnacle for heavier gain.

Before that I'd use a Keeley modified Blues Driver with a Keeley modified TubeScreamer ..... often together. I was using those pedals for an in-studio cable-access music show taping when the producer stormed onto the sound-stage (with all those giant studio lights blinding me) complaining my rig sounded "like a jar of angry bees".

After that (and a period of "denial") I gravitated towards the Wampler pair and have been pleased with them individually ...... but they do NOT sound good in tandem with each other (runaway feedback usually ..... too much of a good thing).

[vibratoking]

...I was using those pedals for an in-studio cable-access music show taping when the producer stormed onto the sound-stage (with all those giant studio lights blinding me) complaining my rig sounded "like a jar of angry bees". ...

I have to ask. Did it sound like angry bees coming out of the amp? If so, your fault, if not his. I've had this comment before, but there were no angry bees to be heard. It was resolved with somthing like "how bout you put the effing mic in the right place" BTW, my Keeley modded blues driver sounds OK, but nothing to get real excited about.

[boots]

I have a 1980 MXR overdrive, a Dunlop wahwah and a volume pedal.

Is your Dunlop Wah one of the 80's versions? There are some simple mods that help them sound much better.

[NickC]

...I was using those pedals for an in-studio cable-access music show taping when the producer stormed onto the sound-stage (with all those giant studio lights blinding me) complaining my rig sounded "like a jar of angry bees". ...

I have to ask. Did it sound like angry bees coming out of the amp? If so, your fault, if not his. I've had this comment before, but there were no angry bees to be heard. It was resolved with somthing like "how bout you put the effing mic in the right place" BTW, my Keeley modded blues driver sounds OK, but nothing to get real excited about.

The amp sounded the way I wanted it ..... angry bee buzzes notwithstanding. I wouldn't characterize the lead-tone that way ..... but it did cut through the mix (which is what I wanted).

I had an SM57 and a Hughes & Kettner Red Box (DI w/cab emulation) with me in the gig bag. But the "engineer" refused both when offered and used a Countryman DI from a line out on the back of the amp. I'd done that show twice before and knew it was an exercise in futility to argue with them. The producer and engineer didn't care-a-whit if the performers were comfortable with the sound. The control room overlooked the sound-stage, on the second floor, about 100' feet away with a large glass window collecting glare from those monster lights ..... we couldn't see into the control room. Producer and engineer ran back and forth barking their complaints. Gosh, I don't miss doing television. Miserable experience.

I've been pleased with all of Robert Keeley's mods. The Blues Driver was much improved by him. But he can only take that pedal design so far, and I gravitated away from it in preference to other flavors of distortion.

[Toppscore]

I have a 1980 MXR overdrive, a Dunlop wahwah and a volume pedal.

Is your Dunlop Wah one of the 80's versions? There are some simple mods that help them sound much better.

I've a 1995 (New In The Box, only tested) Cry Baby Dunlop Wah GCB-95 Model

I am going to get a pro pedalboard with hard shell case to mount
important pedals. Also, I've a real cool 1974 DeArmond 1602 Volume Pedal with the Allen Bradley pot. The Crybaby and the DeArmond
will take up half the pedal board

[Toppscore]

Questions:
If you played ten "fuzz" pedals, would you expect similar tones from all ten to be within the domain of "fuzz" tones?

Same as if you played ten "distortion" or ten "overdrive" pedals, do they have similar tones within their grouping of pedals?

Could you listen to guitar play and tell if the guitarist is using fuzz or distortion or overdrive? Are the tones distinct?

Manufacturers are not consistent when it comes to naming pedals, so what one calls distortion could be another manufacturers fuzz.

It gets even worse if we bring up the type of pedal with still missing from this thread - the booster. A booster can be anything from something that simply increases the volume without changing tone, to a full-blown fuzz or overdrive. Adding confusion, boosters can be used either to add more distortion (at the beginning of the signal chain) or to increase the volume (at the end of the signal chain). Pretty much any "what's the best booster for me"-thread on any guitar related forum ends up a complete mess because everyone has different definitions and different purposes for using a booster.

In general, I find it difficult to hear what type of pedal was used to create a particular guitar sound. In particular if you don't know if the amp after the pedal is clean or overdriven.

Totally agree about the booster.
I just sold on EBay a 1981 and a 1982 MXR Micro Amps. Early boosters.

Guessing the booster would be the last pedal from the guitar and closest to the amp?
Or do you set your booster pedal with a different strategy?

Toppscore

[guitarmike2107]

what does it matter, the only solution is to have a whole lot to choose from easily at hand.

My collection of overdrive pedals and fuzz pedals is overtaking my house, they all sound different because they all clip with different harmonic content and have different tone circuits.