It's Early, but I'm Really Diggin' the MXR Distorion III

[1973Marshall]

I got myself an MXR Distortion 3 on the cheap, used. Aside from the samples on YouTube and GuitarPlayer, no one was really talking about these.

I saw the MXR Classic Distortion thread saying these are the same thing and I cannot comment. I can however attest that this pedal is unique and lives up to some of the better HC reviews.

I would say the MXR D3 is unique in that the tone control works through a large range, as does the gain knob. Crank the tone and Gain and you get kinda a smoother DS1, or a Crunchy RAT-ish vibe with lots of sustain. Lower the tone and its creamy and sweet for leads. The pedal ha ssome compression. Lower the gain and it does the TS9 kinda overdrive vibe. You can play chords or country and pop/rock, etc.

I think this pedal sits somewhere between a RAT, a DS1, an OCD, and a TS9.

Interesting!

[ProToneThinline]

I picked up the Classic Distortion a couple of weeks ago at GC. From what I understand, its the same as the D-III with a different paint job. I like mine a lot. To me, it sounds pretty close to a TS-7 in the "Hot" mode, without the mid hump. Not quite as much gain as a Rat or DS-1, but more than a TS. Nice.

[pedalhead]

a highly underrated pedal - probably the most versatile drive pedal i have found.

[Fatso Forgottso]

awesome pedal.

[Somniferous]

The $30 classic distortion replaced my SD twin tube on my main board. MXR tends to get a bad rap ever since the true bypass thing got started, and it's kinda sad since alot of their pedals kick ass.

[kp8]

My band-mate uses a MXR Dist III and gets lots of great sounds out of it. She had her's stolen and went right out and bought another.