gear giveaway

Distortion Pedals

2024 UPDATE! The Best Distortion Pedals | A Buyer’s Guide

This regularly updated page gathers a list of what can be considered the best distortion pedals on the market according to a list of reputable online sources and reviews. Together with fuzz and overdrive, distortion stompboxes fall under what electric guitarists commonly refer to as the "dirt box" umbrella. If…Click on the title for more

2024 UPDATE! The Best Distortion Pedals | A Buyer’s Guide

4D Pedals Red Star Distortion

The brainchild of Berlin-based guitarist/producer Ed East, 4D Pedals is a new manufacturer building devices that are undoubtedly stellar: a series of affordable, star-shaped mini-pedals with only one knob and one footswitch. The 4D Pedals Red Star Distortion is their take on the classic dirt box, with the single control…Click on the title for more

4D Pedals Red Star Distortion

Updated Pedals: Dawner Prince Diktator MKII

Coming to us from the Croatian sensation Dawner Prince Effects is the Diktator MkII, a complete redesign of the original unit released over ten years prior in 2013. Presented as a Preamp/Overdrive/Distortion, this is a pedal that can put your guitar through an evolution of drive stages all the way…Click on the title for more

Updated Pedals: Dawner Prince Diktator MKII

Trap Door Electronics Dot Dot Damage Distortion

Recently featured in the JHS Show, the Trap Door Electronics Dot Dot Damage is a fuzzstortion pedal built to sound - to quote the Brooklyn-based manufacturer - "grotesquely ugly and oddly beautiful." The tone reference is the massive but broken sound a fuzz pedal can produce for a few seconds…Click on the title for more

Trap Door Electronics Dot Dot Damage Distortion

Keeley Super Rodent Ovedrive/Distortion

Dropped within a release including three pedals adopting the same form factor as the Noble Screamer (a hybrid overdrive mixing the character of a TS and a Nobles ODR-1), the Keeley Super Rodent embeds in the same pedal two circuits inspired by two other classic stompboxes: the Rat and the…Click on the title for more

Keeley Super Rodent Ovedrive/Distortion

New Pedal: Keeley Angry Orange Distortion/Fuzz

Dropped within a release including three pedals adopting the same form factor as the Noble Screamer (a hybrid overdrive mixing the character of a TS and a Nobles ODR-1), the Keeley Angry Orange embeds in the same pedal two circuits inspired by two other classic dirt boxes: the Russian Civil…Click on the title for more

New Pedal: Keeley Angry Orange Distortion/Fuzz

Non-Human Audio Unclean Distortion

An original, hand-built take on the cascading distortion circuit by an Albuquerque, NM-based boutique builder, the Non-Human Audio Unclean features two distortion circuits stacked upon each other. They are both designed to deliver a wide range of gain tones (anything from clean boost to full-on distortion) while interacting by blending…Click on the title for more

Non-Human Audio Unclean Distortion

New Pedal: CGI Brutalist Distortion

God City Instruments is the brainchild of Kurt Ballou, guitarist of yesteryear's metalcore band Converge and producer and owner of a studio in Massachusetts under the same GCI namesake. While the GCI Brutalist is not his debut pedal, it proudly stands as the first creation that has undergone over a decade…Click on the title for more

New Pedal: CGI Brutalist Distortion

New at NAMM: Third Man Hardware Donner Triple Threat

Third Man Hardware and Donner have collaborated to make The Triple Threat, an analog multi-effects pedal that features three different effects: distortion, phaser, and echo. It is designed for beginner guitar players who want to experiment with various sounds and styles. The pedal was inspired by Donner’s Alpha series pedals,…Click on the title for more

New at NAMM: Third Man Hardware Donner Triple Threat

New at NAMM: EarthQuaker Devices Blumes

The EarthQuaker Devices Blumes is an overdrive pedal that can deliver a wide range of tones, from crunchy to clean. This pedal is based on the classic screamer circuit, but with some modifications that make it more suitable for bass players. The Blumes is an all-analog pedal that uses internal…Click on the title for more

New at NAMM: EarthQuaker Devices Blumes

Electronic Audio Epxeriments The Bard Preamp

The Electronic Audio Epxeriments The Bard Preamp pays homage to the Music Man HD130, a classic guitar amp known for its unique blend of a solid-state preamp and a tube power amp, delivering a rather unique tone. Capturing the soul of these iconic amps, The Bard takes you on a…Click on the title for more

Electronic Audio Epxeriments The Bard Preamp

DOD Chthonic Fuzz

A dark and sludgy take on the early fuzz circuitry, the DOD Chthonic Fuzz is the first release by the pioneering US pedal company since it was acquired by Cortek Guitars from Samson within the sale of DigiTech. In perfect DOD style, it's a pedal that caters to alternative guitarists,…Click on the title for more

DOD Chthonic Fuzz