Distortion

Emma Electronic’s PisdiYAUwot is a metal pedal built to create super-fast and -tight distortion that cuts through with supreme definition. It comes in a standard EMMA aluminum box with a lightning bolt and badass skull graphic. It carries two red LEDs which light up like eyes when you engage the effect. The PisdiYAUwot consists of five controls that cover Gain, Treble, Level, Bass, and Mid. It is a must hear if you are big on metal or heavy riffing rock.

The Empress Distortion is capable of anything from crunch to mild to lead. This true bypass pedal gives you three distortion flavors while maintaining a very tight low-end and compressing like a high-gain amplifier. You can choose between Lead, Crunch, and Mild. Select the Lead setting for high gain with plenty of sustain, Mild for a gentle break-up which cleans up with your volume control, or Crunch for a tight low end with a strong bite. Two EQ bands plus Output and Gain controls let you dial in your ideal sound.

The Empress Effects Heavy features a dual-channel design—Heavy and Heavier allow you to set your channels differently for a more extensive range of tones or similarly for solo/rhythm. It also carries intuitive Weight controls that alter the character of your low end. Adjustable mid frequency lets you achieve dead-on EQ curves with a cut or boost up to 10dB per band. Empress Effects has incorporated a seamless and highly responsive noise gate that guarantees dead silent operation regardless of the amount of gain added.

While lots of pedals attempt to simulate a tube breakup sound, Fender decided to employ actual volume tubes and bring you the real deal within a portable pedal. The heart of MTG’s design is a new old stock (NOS) US-manufactured 6205 preamp tube. Equipped with a three-band EQ and Tight knob to focus your tone, the MTG Tube Distortion is essentially a tube preamp pedal—you may use it in front of your modeler or run it into the return of your amplifier’s effects loop.

Versatile and fiery sounding, the Fender Pugilist Distortion will deliver some heavyweight gain to your rig. It boasts dual gain engines, with separate controls for each, allowing you to choose several distortion variations, guaranteeing the pedal will play nicely with any rig. It carries a Blend/Series switch, which lets you stack channels for a fat cascading distortion, and a Bass Boost switch that beefs up your tone. The blend knob combines both channels to enjoy the best of both worlds, tailoring a sound for you.

The SonicBone GK-21 guitar effects pedal is GOKKO’s affordable take on high-gain British-flavored crunch. It’s all the aggressive grit and rage of a ‘roided-out Marshall amp crammed into a compact, pedalboard-friendly stompbox. The Dist knob goes from a light amp breakup-like tone to screaming, in-your-face distortion while the Tone dial gives precise and flexible control over your signal’s high frequencies. There’s also a Pre knob that lets you adjust the SonicBone’s tonal characteristics even further.

Greer Amps developed Little Samson at the request of tone guru and outstanding guitar builder Andy Elliott. Andy asked the Greer Amps team to create a pedal better than his favorite distortion pedal. The Little Samson is an ultra-versatile pedal boasting exceptional tonal possibilities. The concept was to achieve a natural, higher gain but remain full tone. The Little Samson is capable of delivering a chunky drive, with crunched out distortion and singing lead tones without getting flabby or buzzy.

Transform virtually any guitar amp into a fire-breathing metal demon with the Super Metal Mini from Ibanez. The pure analog circuitry preserves the girth and intensity of your core guitar tone. The Super Metal Mini pedal gives you an exceptional sound-shaping potential. It includes Punch, Edge, and Attack controls that let you fine-tune your distorted tone to taste. The Super Metal Mini delivers intensity similar to the classic SM9 Super Metal distortion pedal.

The J. Rockett 10 Ton Hammer is an old-school high gain pedal crafted to give you articulate distortion with some brilliant sustain and a tight bottom end. It delivers supreme overdrive while preserving the voicing of your amp and guitar as well as offering harmonically lush distortion for fat crunching chords and searing leads. The 10 Ton Hammer is meant for high gain old school purists. Featuring individual Treble and Bass knobs, this very musical pedal enables highly tweakable tones.

If you are big on high-gain distortion/overdrive with a British flavor, look no further. Throughout the years, the Angry Charlie has become a mainstay in the JHS line and a force to be reckoned with within the high-gain pedal realm. Capable of precisely and convincingly breathing JCM800 tones into just about any rig, the Angry Charlie has proved to be a popular choice for guitarists across different genres. Unlike other British amp-in-a-box pedals, it sports a three-band tone stack for achieving those warm, searing tones and infinite sustain.

Joyo wasn’t kidding around with the JF-39 Deluxe Crunch’s name. This compact and budget-friendly guitar effects pedal serves up a warm, aggressive crunch that somehow remains more subtle and a touch less harsh than other distortion pedals. It has both a pre-amp overdrive knob and a dedicated distortion dial for all your gain needs and a tone knob for scratching your tone shaping itch. Whether you play dirty blues, hard rock, or even metal, there’ll be a place for the JF-39 Deluxe Crunch on your pedalboard.

The Joyo Dr. J D-51 Arsenal distortion guitar effects pedal makes no bones about the wide range of distortion tones it can dish out. Classic British crunch, modern high-gain mayhem, and everything else in between, the D-51 Arsenal has them in spades. Shape your distortion tone using the Tone and Presence control dials along with the dual-mode mids toggle switch then crank up the dirt and grit using the Distortion and Output knobs. All your distortion needs are covered by one compact, budget-friendly stompbox.

Crisp, steady, and massive distortion tones are the stocks in trade of Joyo’s Dr. J D-58 Blademaster guitar effects pedal. With dedicated High, Mid, and Low knobs, the D-58 Blademaster comes packed with a ton of EQ controls. There’s also a two-way WOW switch that supercharges your signal with a fat low-end boost; perfect for cutting through the mix. Whether you play old school or new school metal, the D-58 Blademaster will be a powerful weapon in your arsenal.

The JF-303 Little Blaster is like the Noisy Cricket of Men in Black fame—tiny but packs one heck of a powerful punch. This distortion guitar effects pedal from Joyo serves up a highly musical distortion effect with lots of headroom and very flexible tonal control. It works equally well for chunky rhythm, chugging riffs, and sustain-heavy solos. As an Ironman pedal, the JF-303 is small enough to fit in your pocket and comes with a flip cover for keeping the control knobs safe from stray stomps.

The JF-315 Metal Head’s name speaks volumes. This distortion guitar effects pedal from Joyo may be small but it packs a massive metal punch. With a wide-range Gain control and dedicated High and Low EQ knobs, you can dial in hard chunky riffs, screaming shred tones, and everything metal in between. As part of Joyo’s Ironman line, the JF-315 Metal Head is small enough to fit in your front pocket and features a flip cover for keeping your control dial settings safe from stray stomps.

The Joyo JF-313 Old School distortion guitar effects pedal serves up an amazing range of nuanced and expressive distortion tones. Volume and Gain dials along with High and Low frequency knobs let you sculpt and shape your tone into the classic rock sound of your dreams. As part of Joyo’s Ironman line, the JF-313 Old School is small enough to fit in your front pocket and features a flip cover to keep your control dial settings safe from stray stomps.