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Distortion Pedals & Overdrive Pedals

Distortion and overdrive pedals will give your bass guitar or electric guitar an edgier, harder tone.
An overdrive pedal will add gain to your electric guitar signal, causing it to break up or distort a bit (or more) depending on how much is used.
A distortion pedal produces more gain and clips the signal even harder.

You will find distortion and overdrive pedals from brands such as MXRCatialinbreadWamplerKeeley, Electro-Harmonix, and Xotic.

If you are looking for similar sounds, check out a fuzz pedal.

  • Suhr Riot Mini Distortion pedal - black edition Suhr Riot Mini Distortion pedal - black edition

    Suhr Riot Mini Distortion pedal - black edition

    Suhr Riot Mini Distortion pedal - black edition FREE shipping anywhere in the USA! Identical circuit and tone of the Original Riot Mini Circuit. The Riot Mini has inherited all of the Classic Hi-Gain DNA of it’s larger sibling, only now...
    ﷼615.43
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  • Suhr Shiba Drive Overdrive pedal - black edition Suhr Shiba Drive Overdrive pedal - black edition

    Suhr Shiba Drive Overdrive pedal - black edition

    Suhr Shiba Drive Overdrive pedal - black edition FREE shipping anywhere in the USA! Identical circuit and tone of the Shiba Reloaded Circuit (Original Shiba circuit is discontinued). Shiba Drive™ is a smooth sounding overdrive pedal that...
    ﷼906.76
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  • Suhr Riot Distortion pedal - black edition Suhr Riot Distortion pedal - black edition

    Suhr Riot Distortion pedal - black edition

    Suhr Riot Distortion pedal - black edition FREE shipping anywhere in the USA! Identical circuit and tone of the Original Riot Circuit (Riot Reloaded circuit is discontinued). Riot is a versatile high-gain distortion pedal with the sonic...
    ﷼906.76
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  • MXR WA44 Wylde Audio Overdrive pedal MXR WA44 Wylde Audio Overdrive pedal

    MXR WA44 Wylde Audio Overdrive pedal

    MXR WA44 Wylde Audio Overdrive pedal FREE shipping anywhere in the USA! Celebrate the 20th anniversary of the explosive collaboration between Dunlop and Zakk Wylde with the MXR Wylde Audio Overdrive. Custom built for Zakk’s loud, tough, and...
    ﷼473.37
    Out of stock
  • MXR Custom Shop CSP039 Duke of Tone Overdrive MXR Custom Shop CSP039 Duke of Tone Overdrive

    MXR Custom Shop CSP039 Duke of Tone Overdrive

    MXR Custom Shop CSP039 Duke of Tone Overdrive FREE shipping anywhere in the USA! Designed in conjunction with indie pedal builder Analog Man, the MXR Duke of Tone Overdrive is for players who want to add a touch of warmth and grit to their rig...
    ﷼546.20
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  • Xotic Effects RC Booster Classic boost pedal Xotic Effects RC Booster Classic boost pedal

    Xotic Effects RC Booster Classic boost pedal

    Xotic Effects RC Booster Classic boost pedal FREE shipping anywhere in the USA! After all those years... transparency is still the name of the game here. Dynamic and sensitive to the nuances of the player, the RC Booster offers 20db+ of transparent...
    ﷼655.49
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  • Maxon OD-808X Overdrive Extreme pedal Maxon OD-808X Overdrive Extreme pedal

    Maxon OD-808X Overdrive Extreme pedal

    Maxon OD-808X Overdrive Extreme pedal  FREE shipping in the USA! For over 40 years Maxon’s legendary "808" overdrive circuit has been an essential ingredient to achieving great guitar tone. Whether it’s used as a booster to drive an...
    ﷼579.01
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  • Way Huge Smalls Red Llama Overdrive MKIII

    Way Huge Smalls Red Llama Overdrive MKIII

    Way Huge Smalls Red Llama Overdrive MKIII FREE shipping anywhere in the USA! Due to dealer agreements, we're unable to ship this item outside of the USA. Please click here for more details. The iconic Red Llama Overdrive pedal is back—and...
    ﷼546.20
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  • Catalinbread Dreamcoat Blackmore Preamp pedal

    Catalinbread Dreamcoat Blackmore Preamp pedal

    The Catalinbread Dreamcoat Blackmore Preamp pedal. FREE shipping in the USA! Dreamcoat About What began as an exploration of Ritchie Blackmore’s tone evolved into a multidimensional gain machine capable of anything between unruly sputtery...
    ﷼691.87
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  • Electro-Harmonix Nano Metal Muff pedal Electro-Harmonix Nano Metal Muff pedal

    Electro-Harmonix Nano Metal Muff pedal

    The Electro-Harmonix Nano Metal Muff pedal. FREE shipping in the USA! The EHX Nano Metal Muff was built for the player who demands nothing less than hard-hitting distortion and an intense, aggressive sound. It’s a combination of weaponized...
    ﷼307.35
    Out of stock
  • Wampler Pedals Ratsbane Distortion pedal Wampler Pedals Ratsbane Distortion pedal

    Wampler Pedals Ratsbane Distortion pedal

    The Wampler Pedals Ratsbane Distortion pedal. FREE shipping in the USA! If you are looking for a single pedal solution with multiple degrees of gain from light overdrive to full out saturated fuzz tones, then you’ll surely love the Ratsbane. The...
    ﷼546.13
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  • Wampler Pedals Belle Transparent Overdrive pedal Wampler Pedals Belle Transparent Overdrive pedal

    Wampler Pedals Belle Transparent Overdrive pedal

    The Wampler Pedals Belle Transparent Overdrive pedal. FREE shipping in the USA! The pedal that inspired this circuit has been around for a long time in various forms but most versions of it have too much of a “Hi Fi” sound about them, they...
    ﷼546.13
    Out of stock
  • Catalinbread Epoch Boost Preamp pedal

    Catalinbread Epoch Boost Preamp pedal

    The Catalinbread Epoch Boost Preamp pedal. FREE shipping in the USA! You’ve heard the rumors: Some of rock ‘n’ roll’s greatest tones were achieved without pedals. Not so fast! While that’s technically true, some of the most...
    ﷼582.62
    Out of stock
  • Wampler Plexi Drive Mini Overdrive pedal Wampler Plexi Drive Mini Overdrive pedal

    Wampler Plexi Drive Mini Overdrive pedal

    The Wampler Plexi Drive Mini Overdrive pedal. FREE shipping in the USA! First there was the Plexi-Drive. Then there was the Plexi-Drive Deluxe. Now Wampler Pedals brings you the all new Plexi-Drive Mini. Brian has managed to cram an improved version of...
    ﷼546.13
    Out of stock
  • Friedman Amplification Smallbox Overdrive pedal Friedman Amplification Smallbox Overdrive pedal

    Friedman Amplification Smallbox Overdrive pedal

    Friedman Amplification Smallbox Overdrive Pedal FREE shipping in the USA! Dave Friedman’s Small Box all-tube amplifier is well known for being one of the most flexible and touch-responsive amplifiers on the market today.  You can now get...
    ﷼728.28
    Out of stock

What is the difference between overdrive and distortion?

Both overdrive and distortion add distortion to your signal. Overdrive does this by adding gain to your guitars signal. The main difference is the amount of distortion you can get out of each pedal. Overdrive will give you a mild to medium amount of distortion, while distortion gives you a much more intense level. Overdrive will boost your sound, while distortion will alter your sound.

Should I get a distortion or overdrive pedal?

As with all pedals, this is dependent upon the type of sound you are going for. In general, heavier rock and metal music will use distortion pedals, while country, blues, and pop music will favor overdrive pedals.

Of course, there is no right or wrong pedal for styles of music! If you are unsure what type of pedal you should get, we would love to help you decide. Give us a call or use the chat feature!

Can I use gain and overdrive together?

Yes, you can use gain and overdrive together. This is called gain stacking. You will usually want to put your overdrive pedal before your gain pedal in your signal chain.

Can I use distortion pedals on bass?

Yes, you can use distortion pedals on your bass guitar. The distortion pedal will give your clean bass tone some grit and an overall more aggressive tone. Some of our favorites are the Source Audio Bass AfterShock, the Electro-Harmonix Bass Big Muff, and the MXR Bass Distortion.