E. Distortion Effects

My favorites here are the Line 6 Drive, Tube Drive, and Screamer. The Line 6 Drive seems the most versatile due to how it uses the mids parameter. It also has a natural distortion tone. I liken it most to a Boss DS-1. The Tube Drive also has a natural tone, and it is great for warming up an amp - I think of it as adding an extra tube gain stage to the amp. Its distortion tone is a bit vintage-sounding, yet I usually use it to make a vintage-sounding amp model more modern sounding. The Screamer has its classic tone, which seems to be a be a bit colder and tighter than the other options.

I. Tube Drive

This is probably my most commonly-used distortion Effect. It works well as a filter. It tends to make the tone a bit warmer and smoother. It also works well as a primary distortion, getting the kind of tone I'd expect from a Boss DS-1 or a general-purpose distortion pedal that uses a tube for distortion tone.

I use this frequently with the Marshall amps. It helps give them a bit more lower midsy warmth without losing bite. I find it can add a touch of compression, so you can preserve the distorted-yet-clean Marshall crunch while still having a thick lead tone and nice sustain. I use it in front of the Fireball to get a less djenty sound, while still still keeping the crisp high-gain tone from the amp.

I use this in my early Van Halen, Slash, Rhoads, Vai, Satriani tones. I even use it for a Meshuggah tone. I use it in various other patches when I need a solid distortion effect.

I avoid turning the Treble knob too high here. Bass I often turn up fairly high, and I'll set mids even higher sometimes. But Treble can make the tone a bit harsh when cranked up.

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II. Screamer

The Tube Screamer is one of the most infamous pedals of all time. Used by Stevie Ray Vaughn to God Forbid, it's a classic choice for enhancing an amp's distortion. I don't find myself ever using it as a standalone distortion, as it comes off a bit thin and harsh. But using mild Drive levels and pre-EQ'ing amps has a unique effect that is difficult to describe.

The first thing you need to realize is that the "auto" impedance setting when this effect is first in the chain is 230 K. This may leave the sound a little less crisp than desirable - the actual pedal's impedance is 500 K. Try setting the input impedance manually to 1 M to get more bite in the tone. Conversely, if it's not the first effect in the chain, or you aren't using "auto" impedance, it might have too much bite for your tastes, and you might want to consider reducing your input impedance to 230 K. My suggestion is to use 1 M then use an EQ effect to roll off a little high-end before the pedal for the most authentic tone.

This pedal tends to reduce bass and focus in on mids and presence, pushing your amp into djent-mode, without necessary making it gritty. It can make the tone pretty cold as well, which works nicely for metal.

The Pod HD version includes bass and treble controls not on the original. Use them where tone isn't getting your tone where you want. I find I'll often turn up bass a little bit, as this pedal really sucks out a lot of bass.

This pedal dials in a good bit of upper mids, but it also seems to roll off some top-end (in addition to the "auto" 230 K impedance) and can flatten out your attack some. Take this into account when setting Amp DEP's and compression.

When dialing in this pedal for metal, the pitfall is to set Tone very high. This definitely gets the cold, presence-focused, brutal tone the pedal is known for, but it can be a bit too much and make the tone too "scratchy". If you get to that point, try backing off the Tone.

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