Geni Swing Guitars

Distortion Overdrive

Guitar Effects Explained

Guitar effects are an extremely important part of any electric guitarists’ life. Yet, most beginners have very little knowledge about effects. Effects are electronic devices that alter or moderate the sound, tone or pitch of an electric guitar. Effects are used in many popular genres of guitar music like rock, heavy metal, blues etc. They are housed in guitar pedals, amplifiers, simulation software and rack mount processors or preamplifiers. There are different types of effects. Here is a brief look at them.

Distortion related effects

Distortion is an effect that is commonly used in rock and heavy metal guitar music. A distortion pedal which is used to create this effect clips the signal and distorts its waveform leading to a distortion in the sound. There are many different types of distortion effects. Each one of them has their own distinct characteristics and features.

•    Overdrive distortion: This is one of the most well known distortion effects. Most pedals that provide the distortion effect attempt to create a high grain sound. Some advanced distortion amplifiers like the Marshall, have went past the normal point of tonal break up and created a sound called as saturated grain also called total distortion in some cases. Some of the common distortion pedals are Marshall Guv’Nor, Pro Co Rat, Digi Tech Hot Tech.
•    Fuzz: Fuzz pedals were originally created to recreate the classic sound of the 60’s overdrive tube amp combined with torn speaker cones. The original fuzz pedals have now been replaced by extreme designs that have effects like octave, gating etc. Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face is one of the most commonly used Fuzz effect pedals.
•    Hi Gain: This effect originated from the high gain amplification used in electric guitars. In ordinary elec guitar terms, high gain is a sound that is produced by overdriven amp tubes or a distortion pedal. The sound produced is extremely thick. The modern hi gain pedals produce a sound that is unmatched and cannot be produced using any other device. The Boss ML2 metal core is a very common hi gain effect pedal.

Filtering related effects

•    Equalizer: An equalizer is used to adjust the frequency response in a variety of frequency bands. A graphic equalizer which is a common feature in most music player software provides a slider interface for different frequency regions. In guitars, a rotary control is available in place of these sliders and they change the level of the frequency band.
•    Phase shifter: Have you ever heard a sound during a guitar concert that is similar to the sound of a flying jet? That’s what a phase shifter can do for you. The effect is commonly known as phase.
•    Wah Pedal: Just like the name, this foot operated pedal can create a sound that is similar to a man saying wah. The sound was most commonly heard in psychedelic rock from the 1960’s and funk music from the 1970’s.

Volume related effects

•    Volume Pedal: This is nothing but a foot operated potentiometer that can be tilted forward or backward. A musician can easily adjust the volume of his instrument during performance. The pedal is also used to create a fading effect.
•    Tremolo: This is a repetitive variation in gain for the complete duration of a single note. This is based on a very common effect that was built into guitar amps.
•    Compressor: This is very much like an auto volume controller. The output level decreases as the incoming signal increases and vice a versa.

These are the most basic but commonly used guitar effects. There are many more advanced ones that you can use during concerts or gigs.

Jeff Carson is the owner of TheReviewMine.Com.  His web site offers a diverse selection of ebooks, CD’s, DVDs, and other information that will teach you how to play guitar.

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Novice guitarists

Used Behringer Overdrive Distortion Od300 $29.99 In Store Used USED behringer overdrive distortion od300

Used Boss Os2 Overdrive/Distortion $39.99 In Store Used USED BOSS OS2 OVERDRIVE/DISTORTION

Used Boss Overdrive Distortion Pedal $39.99 In Store Used USED BOSS OVERDRIVE DISTORTION PEDAL

Used Boss Od20 Overdrive/Distortion $99.99 In Store Used USED BOSS OD20 OVERDRIVE/DISTORTION

Used Boss Overdrive\Distortion Os-2 $59.99 In Store Used USED BOSS OVERDRIVE\DISTORTION OS-2

Used Maxon Real Overdrive/Distortion $129.99 In Store Used USED MAXON REAL OVERDRIVE/DISTORTION

Used Boss Os2 Overdrive Distortion $40 In Store Used USED BOSS OS2 OVERDRIVE DISTORTION

MXR M-181 Bass Blowtorch Overdrive Distortion Pedal $139.99 MXR M-181 Bass Blowtorch Overdrive Distortion Pedal

Maxon 9-Series OSD-9 Overdrive/Soft Distortion Pedal $163.13 Maxon 9-Series OSD-9 Overdrive/Soft Distortion Pedal

Mxr M-181 Bass Blowtorch Overdrive Distortion Pedal $139.99 MXR M-181 Bass Blowtorch Overdrive Distortion Pedal

Boss OS2 OverDrive/Distortion Pedal $119 Flexible distortion pedal gives choice of overdrive or distortion or lets them combine both. Distortion maintains subtle nuances of single-coil guitar pickups. Level, tone, drive & color controls for precise tonal shaping.

Fullt1 Gt-500 Fet Distortion + Booster & Overdrive $169.15 Fulltone GT-500 FET Distortion + Booster and Overdrive Guitar Effects Pedal Red

Used Boss Od-20 Drive Zone Overdrive/Distortion $99.99 In Store Used USED BOSS OD-20 DRIVE ZONE OVERDRIVE/DISTORTION

Used Behringer Od100 Overdrive/Distortion 613 04292 $19.99 In Store Used USED BEHRINGER OD100 OVERDRIVE/DISTORTION 613 04292

Used Krank Krankshaft Overdrive Distortion Pedal $79.99 In Store Used USED KRANK KRANKSHAFT OVERDRIVE DISTORTION PEDAL

Used Fulltone Ocd Overdrive/Distortion Pedal @826 $115 In Store Used USED FULLTONE OCD OVERDRIVE/DISTORTION PEDAL @826

Used Boss Os-2 Overdrive/Distortion Ultra Versatile! $29.99 In Store Used USED BOSS OS-2 OVERDRIVE/DISTORTION ULTRA VERSATILE!

Used Fulltone Gt500 Overdrive/Distortion Pedal $124.99 In Store Used USED FULLTONE GT500 OVERDRIVE/DISTORTION PEDAL

Maxon RTD800 Real Tube Overdrive and Distortion Guitar Effects Pedal $435 Maxon RTD800 Real Tube Overdrive and Distortion Guitar Effects Pedal

Fulltone GT-500 FET Distortion + Booster and Overdrive Guitar Effects Pedal Red $169.15 Fulltone GT-500 FET Distortion + Booster and Overdrive Guitar Effects Pedal Red

TC Electronic NDR-1 Nova Drive Overdrive and Distortion Guitar Effects Pedal $199.99 TC Electronic NDR-1 Nova Drive Overdrive and Distortion Guitar Effects Pedal

Tc Electronic Ndr-1 Nova Drive Overdrive And Distortion Guitar Effects Pedal $199.99 TC Electronic NDR-1 Nova Drive Overdrive and Distortion Guitar Effects Pedal

Used Digitech Bass Overdrive/Distortion Pedal 9.5 @ 394 $49.99 In Store Used USED DIGITECH BASS OVERDRIVE/DISTORTION PEDAL 9.5 @ 394

Used Visual Sound Jekyll And Hyde Distortion Overdrive Pedal $99.99 In Store Used USED VISUAL SOUND JEKYLL AND HYDE DISTORTION OVERDRIVE PEDAL

Used Creation Audio Labs Holy Fire Overdrive Distortion $149.99 In Store Used USED CREATION AUDIO LABS HOLY FIRE OVERDRIVE DISTORTION

Used Boss Od20 Overdrive/Distortion Twin Pedal 05082 613 $79.99 In Store Used USED BOSS OD20 OVERDRIVE/DISTORTION TWIN PEDAL 05082 613

T1 Box Scssdord Skull Crusher Stainless Steel Distortion/Overdrive Pedal $399 In Store Clearance TONE BOX SCSSDORD SKULL CRUSHER STAINLESS STEEL DISTORTION/OVERDRIVE PEDAL

Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi Overdrive & Distortion $102.9 Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi Overdrive and Distortion Guitar Effects Pedal

Maxon 9-Series Osd-9 Overdrive/Soft Distortion Pedal $187.5 The Maxon OSD-9 Pedal may look just like your old overdrive/soft distortion stompbox, but that's where the similarities end. With improved circuitry, the OSD-9 Pedal stands at the forefront of the Maxon 9-Series effects pedal evolution.The OSD-9 Overdrive/Soft Distortion uses a signal-distorting diode (Panasonic #MA150) that is located in the amplifier stage's negative feedback loop (this stage also contains the JRC4558 IC chip). Therefore, the OSD-9 distorts signal in the amplifier section itself which, yields a smoother, milder, more natural sounding distortion than a separate clipping stage. This is also the reason that the IC type used in the circuit has such a large impact on the unit's tone. Maxon developed this unique design more than 20 years ago--an industry first that is commonplace today.The OSD-9 stombox's circuit uses different output resistors than its predecessor. After the unit's initial release it was discovered to have a high susceptibility to noise due to static electricity buildup. To improve performance, the values of the output resistors on the OSD-9 were increased, but their positions kept the same as the original. This circuit change has no audible affect on the sound of the unit, save for reducing unwanted noise levels. In addition, the OSD-9 effect pedal features True Bypass Switching for natural, uncompromised tone in bypass.Like the OD808, the OSD-9 provides the natural, mild overdrive of a tube amp without sacrificing the guitar's original tone. It can also be used as a clean booster to provide increased gain from an amplifier.Improved circuitryNatural sounding distortionTrue bypassClean boost option

Behringer 2-Mode Overdrive/Distortion Effects Pedal for Electric Guitars $23.99 Create overdrive and distortion effects with this pedal that features dedicated level, tone, drive and mode controls for dynamic sound shaping. The LED status light indicates battery and activity status.