How to get a distortion tone — and 215 famous songs that use it, each with researched amp settings and gear you can adapt to your rig.
Distortion is tighter, higher-gain and more compressed than overdrive — an amp-in-a-box (Boss DS-1, ProCo RAT, Metal Zone, HM-2) that makes even a clean amp sound heavy and consistent. Set DRIVE for saturation, TONE to tame fizz, and LEVEL to unity. The go-to dirt for hard rock, metal and punk rhythm.
Famous songs that use distortion include Seek & Destroy by Metallica, Everlong by Foo Fighters, Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana, Creep by Radiohead, Dead! by My Chemical Romance, Mr. Crowley by Ozzy Osbourne — and 215 tones on this page have researched settings you can adapt to your own rig.
More effects: Fuzz · Wah · Delay · Chorus · Overdrive · Phaser · Flanger · Octave & Pitch · Tremolo · Boost · Reverb