Which american distortion ?

[alltrax74]

Hi guys

I'm looking for a american sounding distortion
Not high gain, think Nickelback for example
I'm sure there is something that should fit among all the great layouts we have here. Preferably something simple like gain tone vol, I don't need 6 controls with 4 switches :D
Thanks and have a nice week-end !

[Frank_NH]

There are so many!  I'm sure you'll get a lot of suggestions, but the one that I've built that I really like is the MI Audio Crunch Box.  I modded mine to add  Jack Orman's SWTC2 at the output and reduced the second stage gain a little, but all in all a great sounding, simple distortion box.

[alltrax74]

Yes, the crunch box is a very nice distortion, but voiced british, not really the sound i'm looking for here

[Frank_NH]

Well, they say "British" but I find those distinctions somewhat difficult to establish - if it sounds good, it sounds good!

Having said that, you could try an American amp-like pedal like the ROG Umble.  I just finished that one, and it's great.  The max gain definitely gets you into distortion territory.   I'm sure others will chime in with their favorites.

[alltrax74]

The crunch box definitely sounds good (I built it a few years ago), but too close to my plexi amp
I'll take a look at the ROG pedals thanks

[Silver Blues]

Fenderish? What about the Azabache, while you're over there browsing ROG?

[alltrax74]

The Azabache is for a long time on my to do list, but being a tweed sounding overdrive, it's not what I'm looking for here.

The kind of sound I'm looking for is the california mode on the sansamp gt2 for those who know

[Frank_NH]

As for American (read Fender, Gibson, etc.) amp pedals, here are some additional choices:

* Bearfoot/BJFE Model G (Gibson amp-like pedal.  Plan to build this soon.  Model H is awesome).
* Wampler Black 65 (60s Fender Blackface)
* Wampler Tweed 57 (50s cranked Fender)
* ROG Azabache, Umble, UNO (Fender-style.  UNO is the the highest gain of the three.)
* Catalinbread Formula #5 (Fender-style.  I built this and didn't like it - too woofy.  It's possible there's a bug in my build)
* Hermidia Zendrive (Supposed to be Dumble-ish.  Great distortion at any rate).
* Mad Professor Sky Blue Overdrive (Another Dumble-ish pedal.  May not be great for distortion, but it's on my build list)
* Mad Bean Rump Roast ( An awesome little amp-like circuit - Dr. Z Karman Ghia.  Build this!)

[alltrax74]

Actually what I'm looking for is a californian sound, so I think it's more a Mesa Boogie sounding pedal (not a rectifier sim though)
All the pedal you listed (I built almost all of them, some are great) are more overdrive than distortion

[IvIark]

MI Audio Tube Zone?

[rocket88]

Dr. Boogie? Or what a about a Mark V pedal? I saw the Mark V layout from Harold, and it's on my to do list. Should be nice sounding.

[Chris60601]

Right on Frank! I fancy the Wamplers myself. I have yet to build mine but the two you mention are on my to-do list and not too far down the list.

Actually, I'm finishing up my Galileo and I'll start sourcing the parts for the Wamplers. They will complete my Amp Emus

Cheers
Chris

[alltrax74]

I built the Dr Boogie and didn't really like it, but the Mark V could be the one (I didn't find the layout on Harald's site though)

[dexxyy]

The numero uno is on Haralds site, it`s a good mk1 emulator (it`s a ROG circuit which is always a good thing) and it fits in a 1590b longways.

[Alex]

Tech21 Sansamp Classic?

[boratto]

take a look on stone grey either

[rocket88]

Here it is. It's a mark iv lead channel.

[alltrax74]

Thanks !

[rocket88]

No problem buddy. It's on my list to build, but haven't gotten around to it. Hopefully it sounds as good as I would hope, especially since I LOVE mesa boogie amps. Let me know how it turns out and sounds, cause I'm hoping it gets  to build.