guitar overdrive pedal image
Eddy
I have a Line 6 Spider 3 150-watt amplifier, my first and only amplifier. Anyway, I've had it for a few years now and I just can't get that sharp metal sound that I want. I want to buy my first guitar pedal but I'm not sure whether to buy a distortion or overdrive pedal. I really am confused between the two lol. I'm leaning towards a Digitech DDM Death Metal Pedal because the reviews are really good, but again, I'm not sure.
Which would be a better pedal to buy? And, moreover, if someone could explain to me the difference between the two in simple definitions lol b/c I would like to know.
Answer
An overdrive pedal can be thought of as a booster. It doesn't really add a lot of distortion on it's own...it's more for hitting the front end of an amp harder and causing it to overload.
A distortion pedal will have a circuit that adds distortion to the signal (as well as gaining it up). This is usually a couple of diodes, and it's supposed to mimic the sound of a tube being pushed into clipping. Some do it well, others...not so much.
So...which one for you? An overdrive pedal works best with an amp that has a tube preamp (at least). Your amp does not. In fact, I will tell you that those Spiders sound awful when the front end is overloaded on them.
You likely want some kind of distortion pedal. I don't particularly like the Death Metal pedal, but that's just personal taste.
I'm kind of surprised that you're not able to get what you want out of the Spider. The Insane model has more gain than is possible in the real world (if you really built an amp like that, it would be completely unstable and would just squeal all the time).
Good luck.
Greetings from Austin, TX
Ken
An overdrive pedal can be thought of as a booster. It doesn't really add a lot of distortion on it's own...it's more for hitting the front end of an amp harder and causing it to overload.
A distortion pedal will have a circuit that adds distortion to the signal (as well as gaining it up). This is usually a couple of diodes, and it's supposed to mimic the sound of a tube being pushed into clipping. Some do it well, others...not so much.
So...which one for you? An overdrive pedal works best with an amp that has a tube preamp (at least). Your amp does not. In fact, I will tell you that those Spiders sound awful when the front end is overloaded on them.
You likely want some kind of distortion pedal. I don't particularly like the Death Metal pedal, but that's just personal taste.
I'm kind of surprised that you're not able to get what you want out of the Spider. The Insane model has more gain than is possible in the real world (if you really built an amp like that, it would be completely unstable and would just squeal all the time).
Good luck.
Greetings from Austin, TX
Ken
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