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,→Dirt, Distortion, and Fuzz
=== Dirt, Distortion, and Fuzz ===
=== Dirt Pedals vs. Pre-Amp Pedals ===
Somewhat recently, amp manufacturers have begun to make "pre-amp" pedals that have a similar, albeit larger, form factor as classic distortion pedals. Yet, they are named ''pre-amp'' and have tubes just like a normal guitar pre-amp. Confusing the issue further, many big names have started making rather expensive distortion pedals, some sharing the names of their more popular amps (for example the Bogner Ecstacy pedals). Should these be run into the front (pre-amp) of an amp, or bypass an amp's pre-amp section by running directly into the effects loop return, or into a dedicated power amp?
The key thing to look for is whether the pedal has a bypass switch. If a pedal is meant to replace a pre-amp, it likely will not include a bypass switch. Another thing is to see how many tones it offers. Many distortion pedals will offer 1 or 2 dirty tones but no clean. You get the clean by bypassing it and letting your amp's clean channel offer that. The dirty tones anticipate being run into the clean channel of an amp, so they are voiced a bit differently than a full pre-amp would be. A full pre-amp pedal would not offer a bypass, offer at least a clean and dirty channel (but likely offer clean, crunch, and lead channels), and sound like a full pre-amp when run directly into a power amp.
True pre-amp pedals should be considered identical to rackmount pre-amps or the pre-amp portion of a full amp. It's not a wise idea to daisy chain pre-amps, which you'd be doing if you ran a true pre-amp pedal into the front of your amp. Other distortion pedals, regardless of their price or brand, should be considered the same as classic distortion pedals, designed to be run into the front of an amp. Some distortion pedals can be run directly into a power amp and sound good, but the problem there is that you usually don't get a clean tone, other than the direct guitar signal, which tends to sound percussive, nasal, and bright.