The Steel Guitar Forum

I'm shure this topic has been covered already.
Is there a distortion device especially concepted for Steel on the market? If not,
what standard guitar device do you recommend?
Thnx for info's
Sigi

There is a lot of good info here, Take Care Pete

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... distortion

"distortion" is a very loosely used term, meaning anything from amp overdrive at the mildest end to fuzz (including fuzz with octave devices) on the other.

There is no "typical" distortion device. What there SHOULD be is a specific distortion tone you are looking for. Then suggestions can be made that will depend on your guitar, other effects, playing volume, types of venues you play, amp used, and type of music you play.

All those variables are important to making a decent "distortion" device recommendation. Otherwise, it's 99.9% guesswork; what one person suggests will sound like total chaos to another; some other suggestion might sound completely clean to someone else.

What I'm trying to say is there's not a specific device for "steel" - because it depends on YOUR steel, YOUR music, volume, amp, etc.

SO 1) what's your "target" distortion sound, 2) what equipment do you have, 2) where do you play, with how big a band and how loud, 3) what kind of music do you want it for, and 4) what's your budget?

It can be figured out, but it's not that easy...and there is tons of distortion misuse and resulting poor tone because of a simple lack of research.

Here are three to check out.

1. Fulltone Full Drive 2 -- Has a regular overdrive as well as a boost with multiple toggles to dial in your sound. Power chords on the E9 have a nice tight bass. This is currently my favorite pedal.

2. Xotic Effects AC Booster -- Pretty simple pedal. I had to roll off the bass considerably to get a clear sound, but it responds very nicely to single notes.

3. Voodoo Labs Sparkle Drive -- Basically the same as an Ibanez TS-808, but it has a clean knob that lets you remove some of the distortion or just use it as a clean boost for leads.


Those should get you started. There are so many options out there to experiment with.