So does the amp have to have a distortion channel for the pedal to work?
Well, obviously so. You can't switch to something that doesn't exist. You might want to visit some sites and read what they say, then go to your local music store and ask for help.
http://www.behringer.com
http://www.line6.com
http://www.roland.com
http://www.voxamps.co.uk
Actually, that settles that lol. No sense buying a pedal if my amp won't work with it. Thanks a bunch. You've all been a huge help.
Just goes to show you how stupid I am. I thought the pedal provided the distortion, and if you ran it throught the clean channel of the amp, you'd get distortion.
No??
Arjen was reffering to a footswitch to change between channels not a distortion peddle.
Your amp does have a distortion channel. it is called "overdrive" .Gain controls the amount of distortion. The only problem is, distortion on your amp (according to reviews) sucks. If you get a good clear sound from your clean channel then your speaker and amp section are probably ok.
A distortion peddle may give you a better distortion sound than what you have now but don't expect a miraculous difference.
When and if you get a distortion peddle try to make it a multi effects peddle and it will have more value to you when you get a new amp with a decent overdrive channel.
Oh ok, now I understand completely. Thank you again.
Pedals have many effects, but I assume you are only interested in getting a fatter, more distorted, sound. There are four pedals that can significantly add to it, I'll put some models behind it.
-Distortion pedal (Boss DS1, Proco Rat)
-Booster (Ibanez Tubescreamer, Seymour Duncann Booster)
-Compressor (Boss CS3)
-EQ (Boss GE7, Danelectro Fish&chips)
What exactly does a compressor do?
I always thought a compressor was to cause a tube amp to saturate or mimic saturation at lower volumes?
A quick history of distortion. Not verbatum.
In the old days all amps where tube amps. when bands started playing to large audiences some bands pushed thier amps past the point of saturation and distortion occured (much like turning up a radio too loud and having the signal start to break up) it bacame a distinctive sound and started to be widely used. Along came solid state. At first there was no distortion as solid states circuits don't rely on saturation and you basically get the same sound at any volume so manufacturers started adding cicuits to try to mimic the sound "overdrive channel" some come kind of close but you will never really get the exact sound without a tube amp (as technology progresses solid state amps get better and better)
GO find a cheap DSP pedal, you'll get a whole bunch of different distortions and they ussually have two or more footswitches with them. I have an alessis amp that has all the dsp effects on it. But this is the same thing, u just put it into your own amp
'You and I in a little toy shop, bought a bag of balloons with the money we got"
feel free to talk with me on msn at [email protected]..... no icq anymore
Yeah, whether your amp has distortion or not has no relevance to the pedal.
I'd go with a multi pedal in your case too.
Maybe think about saving the money for a new amp though?
Line 6 seems right up your alley.
I'm still not sure which to get, but I might be better off with an amp.
Just one question, is their any point to a multi-effects pedal, or any pedal if your amp already has multi-effects?
If you've got the cash get an amp with fx on it. Like Taso said, Line 6 is defianatly what I would recommend looking at. However, if u get yourself a pedal in the mean time, u can always use that on the old amp once you get a new one if you decide to jam with someone using the fx. An amp with fx, like has also been said, u can add a footswitch to switch the fx during playing!
'You and I in a little toy shop, bought a bag of balloons with the money we got"
feel free to talk with me on msn at [email protected]..... no icq anymore
Depends on the effects and how much control you want over it.
Example: My Crate GTX212 has a wah effect but it is set to a beat and i have very little control over it. with a wah pedal I have complete control.
Turning certain effects on or off during a song is much easier with a pedal.
Really giving the Line 6 a good look. More specifically the Spider II's. Really good amps for a good price. I just hope if I ever get one I don't wreck it by drooling on it.........
Yup, Spider II is what I had it mind. Sounds like it'd be perfect for your style.
