Danelectro D-1 Fab Distortion

I've been playing guitar for over 30 years, took my first lesson at age 10. I play guitar and mandolin. Currently I play in a folk/bluegrass trio, and a four-piece rock band. I listen to all kinds of music.

I bought this pedal new on-line at Musiciansfriend for $14.99! I was looking for a good sounding distortion pedal but am on a budget.

This pedal is another hit from Danelectro! The unit is plastic, but very sturdy, and well made for the price you pay. Easy to use, with controls for level, tone, and distortion. A bright blue light tells you when it's on. The sound really surprised me. It's got that fuzzy, 60's distortion that's great for a variety of music styles. It's held up well for me so far. A good value for the price!

The plastic housing may not hold up over the long run, but for $15, it's easily replaced! For the price, you could buy a spare!

I was surprised at how sturdy this unit was considering the plastic housing. The footswitch is smooth, and the 1/4" connectors seem quite sturdy.

If you're looking for that fuzzy, 60's-style, Cream 'Wheels Of Fire' type sound, for under $20, the Fab Distortion pedal is the right choice !

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

A small distortion pedal, light and easy to use.
Connect to sector or with a 9V battery.
When it is plugged in, it does not sucks the battery. (Yet happy)
Finally everything has already been said 20 times. ^ ^

UTILIZATION

No manual indeed, but very very easy to use.
3 buttons, the most common ones: a general, one tone and one disto.

SOUND QUALITY

This is not the pedal of the century of course ... But for an entry level it's great.
And on a bass ... it's excellent. In the lowest string (I play 5-string), B-string has a little trouble ... but hey, the goal of the distortion is still to be aggressive (I'd say almost yucky ... lol)

OVERALL OPINION

I do not use it much effects on my bass, but as I wanted a little pedal for a little heavier tracks, the seller made me try ... When he told me the price ... I took it ... lol At 17 € I could do something "crazy" I think. And for the way I'm using it, it is enough. Maybe later, I will buy a more powerful pedal, but sincerely, for bass players looking for a nice little effect, test it.

The Danelectro D-1 Fab Distortion is a very low end distortion pedal designed for use with electric guitar. I don't own this pedal, but a friend picked up one of these to see what it could do. It's cheap enough where it would be worth the gamble for anyone I guess. The pedal overall feels very cheaply made and easily breakable. It's got 1/4" connections for input and output and takes power from a nine volt power supply.

UTILIZATION

The make up of the Danelectro D-1 Fab Distortion is incredibly simple. If you have ever used a distortion or overdrive pedal, you will undoubtedly recognize the parameters found here, as they are quite ubiquitous. These three parameters are those for level, tone, and distortion. These three parameters in some form or another can be found on virtually ever distortion pedal out there, so a manual isn't needed at all.

SOUND QUALITY

I'm really just not a fan of the way this pedal sounds. I guess I really wasn't expecting much from the Danelectro D-1 Fab Distortion because of the unrealistically low price to begin with. The sound comes off as being thin and lacking the fullness that I would look for in a distortion pedal. The configuration that I used the pedal with was a Fender Telecaster and a Fender Hot Rod amp, so I was definitley getting a good idea of what the pedal actually sounds like. When I switched on the built in overdrive on the amp and compared it with the sounds of the D-1, it was clear that it just wasn't cutting it.

OVERALL OPINION

I'm all for checking out the budget end of pedals, but I just can't recommend the Danelectro D-1 Fab Distortion. The good news is that it is cheap enough that you could pick one up and find out for yourself if you wanted to without it being a loss at all really. The price of the D-1 will definitely drive people to it, but if it's me I'd spend a few extra bucks on something legitimate.

It is a small plastic pedal effect sold for a small fee in Germany or the United States (18-20 euros). In France, it costs almost double. Why so much hate? Shame importers ...
The plastic is very hard, the switch is reactive, it is much more robust than one might think at first. In any case, it's the strongest air mini-pedals the same brand (pastrami, Grilled Cheese). For my part, I do not support it like crazy. So I do not see why that fart.
The buttons are placed at the back, it's a good thing because there is no risk of disrupting the stepping on it. However, they walk in the opposite direction of the knobs (roughly, when you look pedal is EVRS left it to turn the knob to get more gain, treble or volume). Well, the first time it will surprise you, but it should go ...
Little more has its charm, the blue LED ... class.

USE

Three knobs: Level, Gain, Tone. What more?

SOUND QUALITY

Essentially was an attack.
It is a generous distortion, natural, hyper reactive to the game of the person using it. It smashes any pedal that costs six to seven times more expensive ... basically, forget the distortion Boss. The Boss has a nice sound, certainly, but it often lacks natural, then, when you press it, you just feel like you just mounted the gain of your amp. It's amazing that a small pedal with such a low price so sound that is as respectful of the guitar and the amp. There are not that impression as the Boss that the sound comes from elsewhere. So the transition from clean to distorted sound will be smooth. I find that it does not make much noise, even with my single pickups (but they are very quiet) ... Anyway, it's happiness, gold bar. Bass and treble are respected, and of course like any pedal such that respects, it injects a bit of midrange in the sound.
At the palette, it will cool the distortion has the big rock that task. It is still very musical, very slightly compresses the sound, so it's not a dirty pedal, and you can not therefore be compared to a Big Muff - in this genre, I would recommend the Pastrami more magnificent Overdrive just as dirty must ...

NOTICE GLOBAL

Value amazing.
Frankly, I do not know how they do, at Danelectro. In a metal case, such a pedal easily sell in 150 euros, and everyone would cry genius. I even sold my Boss to make room for this little wonder in my Pedal Board. I played on dozens of pedals overdrive and distortion, and when I say that it is truly exceptional in any category, I'm not exaggerating. If after playing it, you prefer to opt for a Super Distortion Boss, well ... sorry, I can do to convince you nothing! Anyway, it breaks all the distortion pedal from 60 to 150 euros ... to find better, it is better now invest in a lamp pedal.
I read also that the Overdrive is just as well. frankly, I want to believe!
TO SUM: you buy it FOR THE PRICE AND YOU keep for QUALITY !!