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TL;DR: I need suggestions for a good value inexpensive Sonic Youth/Pixies/YoLaTengo grungey OD/Dist pedal with single coil guitars into a Fender Twin Reverb custom 15 tube amp.


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Been a while... after buying a new house and doing all the necessary stuff I had free time recently and decided to zip tie my pedals back on boards which was a project I was going to start before the home purchase that got put on the way back burner since I am not currently playing in a band (or at all honestly) and as I liked the old pegboard way more than velco and carpet pedal case I had... and when I realized that I found a long Pelican case on craigslist I then lined with mattress foam.

Well after doing that and then the next day transporting it to the music room, I notice some concerning developments:

My "main" dirt OD/Distortion was a Mooer Black Secret (Rat) but the flip switch broke. Not sure if I smashed into it during the mounting process and didn't realize, or if the memory foam was too much pressure on the flimsy component :/

A mellowtone custom pedal that has a fuzzy mode but was more of a dirty compressor/booster now is all gated OD or gated tin-y fuzz (guessing something went awry with the Walco original guts over the last year in storage)

A Kay fuzz that a friend built which always had jack issues now needs to be opened up and seen why it doesn't pass any signal, but lights up.

My Voodolabs SparkleDrive works fine, but just not enough gain to be my main, but still fine as a booster.


So lots of junk has come out since I got the Mooer. I used to have a Fuck OD which I think was great, but when I stopped playing as much I did not see the appeal of a $200 pedal on an unused board. I also used to run a Green Sovtek Big Muff fro a lot of years with level maxed and gain as the "volume" for a raunchy OD but it could get a little woofy with the neck pickup IIRC. Side note, the older ears come into play so what I used to think sounded good may no longer be the case

SO... I need to bust open those pedals and see what I can repair, but if it fails, I am into gathering some options for something I can keep my eye out for used in local shops that would be cheap enough to sit in a case, but could be gig ready if need be. Thinking back to the last time I was buying dirt pedals, I think I could be happy with a Digitech Bad Monkey, but I assume other options have taken that a step farther and for still a cheap price. I also remember liking the Dunlop Hendrix Fuzz pedal in the red MXR size case back in the day. Or maybe just get a nano Green muff? Or try some of the plentiful EHX small pedals that I have coming out like the Crayon or Hot Tubes?

I like amp pushing stuff more than a woolly coat of distortion-fuzz sitting over the sound. stuff that sounds like the crackling of the input slammed but without ice pick highs.

Or the drive 30 secs into cherry chapstick: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0WRaVVf3E4 is good too, which is why I got that Mooer Rat in the first place, but that didn't seem to really nail it anyway. The turbo side especially was very surprisingly how hair metal and not Thurston from Sonic Youth it sounded.

Single coil guitars, offsets and plenty of alternate tuning with doubled strings, so higher gain stuff can sound bad/muddy with those. Going through to a Fender twin Reverb 15" speaker amp.

Feel free to ask questions or throw out options

I mean, it really sounds like you want a RAT? A SS/BS Mini would be really cool too. Also the Xotic SL Drive would do what you want at lower/medium gain.

BoatRich wrote:I mean, it really sounds like you want a RAT? A SS/BS Mini would be really cool too. Also the Xotic SL Drive would do what you want at lower/medium gain.

you would think, right? but the mooer wasn't really exceptionally great on its own getting me there (god enough for the occasional home jam I guess) and the the late 90s I got a RAT in a trade and was more impressed with the build than the sound. Maybe I just am in a hate my tone exacerbated with freak gear failure?

I suggest you dive into the harmonic percolator thread. A perc with a no diodes setting would give you clarity on both pickups and and enough nasty without going over the top. Frederic Effects percolator isn't trendy or hip necessarily, but it treated me right for a while.

Also consider something like the Grey Channel or a similar DOD 250 style circuit.

neonblack wrote:I suggest you dive into the harmonic percolator thread. A perc with a no diodes setting would give you clarity on both pickups and and enough nasty without going over the top. Frederic Effects percolator isn't trendy or hip necessarily, but it treated me right for a while.

Also consider something like the Grey Channel or a similar DOD 250 style circuit.

Being from Milwaukee I have played a HP, and although fun, it has a sort of wonky feedback metaly texture to it that I'm not looking for out of my main dirt box. The DOD 250 is an intriguing option due to the cost being low enough to not feel bad about a pedal sitting in a case. is there a 250 circuit with 2 or 3 tone controls out there?

Grey Channel has two channels and multiple clipping options. I bet you could get someone around here to make you something relatively cheap too.

Seems sort of relevant... http://www.ilovefuzz.com/viewtopic.php?f=149&t=61604

hangwire wrote:Going through to a Fender twin Reverb 15" speaker amp.

I totally approve!

I don't really know you or your playing well enough to make an informed recommendation.

I like the Sarno Solar Flare a lot.

Jero also builds great pedals. I've got a Haxan he built me that's based on a Dan Armstrong Blue Clipper. Highly recommend that if you're into those kinda distortions.

I do think you can probably score a used fuck or a Mini for a reasonable price that doesn't feel like too much for hobby playing.

I think HM-2 sounds great on several settings, including lower gain settings. I compared it to a rat and I kept the HM-2 (that said I really want another rat though )

There are a lot of great muff clones that might be more interesting than the regular ones. I think a muff with control over mids, either modded ones or clones are brilliant, like Musket/Blunderbuss. I think the LSTR and Pharaoh sounds awesome as well. If you go muff make sure you got something to push it with (another rat maybe?) because thats when they really shine imo

Fuzzhugger Arc Flash. Does everything-OD, distortion, & nasty fuzz.

Without reading anything your wrote except the title, I will automatically default to the Dr. Scientist The Elements as a go to for everything. EVERYTHING.

Don't know about you, but with today's saturated market and all...when it comes to a basic od/distortion I don't want anything that costs $200 and has 9 switches and controls that just distract you from playing

- Hotcake: A classic that was pretty popular with those kinds of bands you're refering to. Gets too muddy at high gain settings, but's it's a GREAT clean booster that also has a crunchy/creamy slightly fuzzy sweet spot with the gain control noon'ish.

- Yellowcake furry burrito: I tried a LOT of rat type pedals, this one manages to NOT suck low end AND give you more gain.

- Harmonic Percolator. Not your everyday classic overdrive, but you just have to try one to understand why everyone likes that gritty biting pissed off in yer face toan

Anyway, if it's manageable volume-wise, see if you can try to push your amp's front end with something like a Mirco Amp or SHO, and just add a pinch of whatever that gets you the right amount of saturation. It's impo a great approach for a thick spungy attack that makes yer guitar resonate and howl in the most musical and menacing way

Something based on the Electra distortion circuit? It's sort of "Harmonic Percolator if it was an overdrive" kind of tone. Failing that, if you want 80's-90's dirt just check out the range of Boss drives that are out there.

Mini or a Boneshaker with external voltage starve to push it fuzzier (or mod’ed in, if you want to work that out) came to mind.

I quote Jwar about the Elements if you're looking for something really customizable to your needs.
Morse specifically for your setup (single coils in fender 15"), if you're looking for something simple and straight I suggest you to tray a DBA interstellar overdriver. It's not particularly popular here, but you can find it used for 100 bucks or so, and it gets dirt enough without excessive compression. I've used it in any kind of situation and it fits everytime - just beware, it's highly interactive with the type of amp you're using. Ss/bs Fuck could be another option.