Whats your Favorite High Gain OD?

[masonwilson13]

Looking to hear what your favorite high gain overdrives are. I'm sure you all have tons of great pedals to share with me

 

[stopreferencing]

Emma PisdiYAUwot or OKKO Dominator.

 

[Agreed]

What kind? I've collected a number of high gainers, and sold off the ones that don't offer anything unique. That's still left me with quite a few high-gain dirt boxes, each of which does something the others don't. Only one or two are "this pedal sounds like that amp" high gain pedals, mostly it's neato flavors. E.g. the Ibanez Tube King reissue, the one that runs on AC power and makes me scared to plug it in since I'm afraid it'll fry my pedals. It doesn't sound like a 5150 or a Mesa or a cranked up Marshall; it definitely has its own kind of distortion going on. But, man, it rocks! Very tight sound, I like the clipping tone of it. Affordable used, which is always a plus.

I would recommend the Damage Control Solid Metal as another "generalist" high gainer; it's more open than the Tube King TK999HT, uses two tubes (plus some solid state stuff, as I understand it) instead of one tube plus some solid state stuff like the Tube King RI. It has very effective tone shaping and is really one of the best high gain dirts I've used. It satisfied me for a long time back when the idea wasn't to sample so many different flavors but rather to just get something I loved and stick with it alone - it was my main high gain distortion pedal for almost two years. I think the prices have gone down now that they're discontinued, because the DC pedals are friggin' ginormous. The Tube King reissue is a pain because it's kind of big and intended to sit diagonally like a diamond rather than as a square, but the DC pedals have its surface area totally covered and then some.

I think the EHX Metal Muff doesn't get as much love as it deserves, maybe because it's a little picky with amps, but it does have a very good sound. One of the guitarists in The Sword uses one as his main distortion tone and they have a really nice, thick sound. I like the one with Top Boost. Some people think Top Boost sucks. I think it's really finicky to use but when dialed in subtly it still gives you a screaming solo tone. Based around a fundamental Metalzone topology but with a lot of distinctions to set it apart from that clipping "engine."

And that's not even getting into small-builder pedals. Tons of good stuff there. But first-

I could go on, but I'd rather you give a bit to go on - what kind of high gain sound are you after? Type of amp, name of a band, link to youtube clip of a song? Wide experience tends to inspire me to write small essays on this stuff, but if you give me something to focus on, I can be much more to the point to help you address your needs.

 

[xntrick]

i also recommend the DCSM pedal, very organic and very versatile...

 

[peridot1]

Wampler Triple Wreck is the best I've played so far. Still got my eyes open though..

 

[jdel77]

L'Do modded BYOC Tubescreamer into an M'oD modded BYOC Rat. Grindy brutal chunk that palm mutes like a mofo, mids that make it stand out in a band mix. Beats the Mad Prof MRD, The Wampler Pinnacle, etc, etc...

 

[FXMonkey]

crunch box and suhr riot currently...

 

[mspizziri]

I don't know how heavy you want to go but I'm still liking the Suhr Riot

I can get a Metallica type tone out of it and when you roll back the volume knob on your guitar you can get a nice AC/DC type distortion
I find it to be a bit more of a modern type gain compared to something like Crunch Box

 

[sick1982]

DCSM!!!

 

[Richard]

My favorite high gainers are the Emma Pisdiyauwot and reezafratzitz.

 

[skunx]

I use my amp for most of my dirt then push it with an overdrive but the best high gain pedal I have ever heard is the SEVERE by Tone Freak.

 

[Hoth]

These days it's a Toneczar Openhaus followed by the Suhr Riot. The Greenhouse No Brainer is creeping up though.

 

[JeffOlson]

Today:

Mesa/Boogie V-Twin, Fulltone GT-500, and Rockbox Boiling Point (in decreasing order of available gain)

 

[Mac-P]

Skreddy Top Fuel. The overlooked gem, and my favorite pedal by Marc. Yea, I said it.

 

[huskerjohn]

My current favorite is the Lovepedal Darling Devil Distortion.

 

[afterburner]

Right now it's the Wampler Pinnacle II. It's a pretty versatile distortion, not just for EVH tones. Nice crunch and smooth enough for leads.

 

[whiteop]

Wampler makes good pedals and is a good guy to deal with. A lot of artists are starting to use his stuff. I like the Hot Wired too.

 

[Steven]

Suhr Riot for me. Still like it a lot. Before the Riot I used the Crunchbox for many years and thats a great distortion box.

 

[j_m_s]

Goosoniqueworx (or Gsoniqueworx) seventheaven.

 

[Hanbali13]

What kind? I've collected a number of high gainers, and sold off the ones that don't offer anything unique. That's still left me with quite a few high-gain dirt boxes, each of which does something the others don't. Only one or two are "this pedal sounds like that amp" high gain pedals, mostly it's neato flavors. E.g. the Ibanez Tube King reissue, the one that runs on AC power and makes me scared to plug it in since I'm afraid it'll fry my pedals. It doesn't sound like a 5150 or a Mesa or a cranked up Marshall; it definitely has its own kind of distortion going on. But, man, it rocks! Very tight sound, I like the clipping tone of it. Affordable used, which is always a plus.

I would recommend the Damage Control Solid Metal as another "generalist" high gainer; it's more open than the Tube King TK999HT, uses two tubes (plus some solid state stuff, as I understand it) instead of one tube plus some solid state stuff like the Tube King RI. It has very effective tone shaping and is really one of the best high gain dirts I've used. It satisfied me for a long time back when the idea wasn't to sample so many different flavors but rather to just get something I loved and stick with it alone - it was my main high gain distortion pedal for almost two years. I think the prices have gone down now that they're discontinued, because the DC pedals are friggin' ginormous. The Tube King reissue is a pain because it's kind of big and intended to sit diagonally like a diamond rather than as a square, but the DC pedals have its surface area totally covered and then some.

I think the EHX Metal Muff doesn't get as much love as it deserves, maybe because it's a little picky with amps, but it does have a very good sound. One of the guitarists in The Sword uses one as his main distortion tone and they have a really nice, thick sound. I like the one with Top Boost. Some people think Top Boost sucks. I think it's really finicky to use but when dialed in subtly it still gives you a screaming solo tone. Based around a fundamental Metalzone topology but with a lot of distinctions to set it apart from that clipping "engine."

And that's not even getting into small-builder pedals. Tons of good stuff there. But first-

I could go on, but I'd rather you give a bit to go on - what kind of high gain sound are you after? Type of amp, name of a band, link to youtube clip of a song? Wide experience tends to inspire me to write small essays on this stuff, but if you give me something to focus on, I can be much more to the point to help you address your needs.

Dude, nice choice in music. I love the sword, some of the riffs on gods of the earth rock.