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Tone
,→Dirt, Distortion, and Fuzz
I always like to start with using an EQ alone as a boost - it is more transparent and offers more control than most boost pedals. Then you can find where the sweet spots are for your guitar and amp. If you also like the tone of some boost that isn't strictly related to frequency response, try to use it with as neutral settings as possible and use EQ to refine the resulting distortion. Then try it with neutral EQ and use the boost's tone to find the sweet spot. The best settings are probably somewhere in the middle of these two, using both the boost's tone and some EQ refinements.
=== Dirt, Distortion, and Fuzz Pedals ===''Distortion pedals'' have a few different labels attached to them: ''fuzz'', ''overdrive'', ''distortion'', ''dirt''. What they all have in common is that they are internally creating the distorted signal, usually by clipping a solid state amp (or in more expensive cases a tube or two). Most distortion pedals ''can'' be used as boosts, but here we're only discussing their usage in creating their own distortion. You usually find a few different types, which describe the distortion they create: * ''Overdrive/Blues Driver'' - Creates warm tones similar to vintage overdriven tube amps. The distortion is usually rather mild and "purrs".* ''Fuzz/Dirt'' - The noisiest and nastiest of the bunch. Can sound like blown speakers or broken amps.* ''Distortion'' - Like fuzz, but a bit cleaner and more harmonic and controlled, similar to heavily overdrivven amps from the late 70's and 80's.* ''Metal'' - Very focused, harmonic, searing distortion, similar to modern high-gain amplifiers. Tight bass and djenty palm mutes. Distortion pedals are voiced to be run into the front (pre-amp) of an amp, with the amp dialed in for a clean sound (clean channel). They anticipate the "fattening" up of tone that the pre-amp delivers and may sound thin and harsh when run directly into a power amp. Certain models and settings may provide exceptions, however.
=== Dirt Pedals vs. Pre-Amp Pedals ===