800 Miles and counting

$49 Adidas from Kohl's, you served me well!

Today I crossed the 800 lifetime mile mark since I started running a year ago. When I stop and think about it, that is a long way. I'm on pace to cross 1000 miles for 2013 by mid-November. Just crazy.

During these miles I've used 2 pairs of shoes, the first got retired yesterday with 476 miles on them. The second pair, Saucony Guide 6s still have 100 - 200 miles left in them. But soon I'll be heading to the store for my next pair to break in before my half marathon. 

I'm interested in the Altra Instinct 1.5s, but I'm not sure about transitioning to a zero drop shoe. At $100 I need to be sure they are the right move. 

Otherwise, I'm interested in looking into other shoes like the Brooks Pure Flow 2. 

Hammer Nutrition - Hammer Gel - Tropical and Espresso Flavor

I'm most of the way through my 2nd 26 serving bottle of Hammer Gel from Hammer Nutrition. The first flavor I got was Tropical and the 2nd was Espresso. Of the 10 flavors available, these are the 2 flavors that contain caffeine and that is what I was looking for. Now the tropical has 25mg of Caffeine and the Espresso has 50mg. To put that in perspective, a 12 oz can of Mt Dew has 55mg of Caffeine and a 12oz can of Diet Coke has 45mg (12oz of Starbucks coffee has around 250mg). So a 1 oz serving of Espresso does have about the same 'kick' as a can of soda, and at 90 Calories it packs a good amount of energy. Luckily it is a much slower burn than the sugar rush you get from soda.

As far as taste goes, the tropical had a very light sweet flavor and went down very easy especially in the heat of the summer. The espresso, is a lot heavier, it kind of tastes like pure chocolate syrup. So be ready for that. It's pretty strong and a little harder on the stomach in my opinion.

During a long run I will usually have a single serving mixed up to take before my run. I'll mix 2 or 3 servings to take with me. About 5 miles into the run I'll drink 1/2 of my nutrition bottle, then at around 9-10 miles (depending on total distance) I'll drink the rest. This provides a nice steady stream of energy for me.

The 26 serving size is great. I use the 5oz nutrition bottle that came with my Nathan hydration belt and can take as much or as little as I need without having all the foil packs. And at $0.77 a serving it's about 1/2 the cost of single serving foil packs. That is certainly what initially drew me to Hammer Gel over other Gels. I also emailed the company and confirmed that I can mix up some with water and don't have to refrigerate it overnight. So I can get my stuff ready the night before a 4:45am long run.

I've tried single packs of Vanilla and Montana Huckleberry. They were very good, the Vanilla totally tasted like frosting.  One thing I do wish is that Hammer would put out a lighter flavor with the higher caffeine content of the Espresso.

One thing I keep reading is to use practice race day nutrition and hydration. So I will certainly be taking Hammer Gel with me when I run in St Louis in 50 days.

Gear Review: IK Multimedia iKlip Stand

I received the iKlip stand (for iPad and iPad mini) from IK Multimedia for review and wanted to give you a quick run-down on it.

The first thing you will notice (after you follow the easy assembly directions) the iKlip stand is that it has a very sturdy feeling construction. The weighted base gives the overall stand a very low center of gravity which, even though it is on an arm, your iPad is not wobbling around. The slide in clip for the iPad itself is snug without being too difficult to use. I have used other iPad microphone clips that are more of a snap-in design, which make me a little nervous. But the device feels secure on this stand. The arm is comprised of a hinge joint and the clip is attached with a ball and socket joint that has an adjustable screw for tension, so you do have quite a bit of freedom in adjusting the level of the device and the angle at which you are viewing it.

in addition to the horse shoe shaped table top base, the iKlip stand also comes with a C-clamp style base that can be swapped out easily, for mounting the iKlip to the edge of a table or desk. Unfortunately you would have to remove the clip from the desk to be able to remove the rest of the stand from it. So leaving the clamp on the desk and popping the stand in and out is not an option, if you were wanting something you could easily take with you.

I've used the stand in two settings now. First I used it while I was cooking in the kitchen to watch some Netflix and the other is actually in my pedalboard rig. I run through my standard set of pedals:

Analog pedals, the iRig stomp, iKlip and Amplitube.
Sounds good to me. 

Tuner -> Overdrive -> Distortion -> Volume -> Dual Tap Delay -> Memory Man -> Hardwire Reverb

Then I go into the iRig Stomp which then feeds into my iPad which you can see in the pic is on the iKlip stand. Then back into the iRig Stomp and out to a DI box. This worked out really nicely. It brings the iPad up off the floor away from my feet and leaves it in nice usable level. Also the base of the iKlip is thin, so it fits under the back of my pedal board. Overall this is a very nice stand. The one issue I would probably raise is the price, because at $69.99 it is not cheap. But, then again it does not feel cheap. This might be a case of paying for what you get.

IK Multimedia iRig HD and iRig Stomp

I recently received both the iRig HD and iRig Stomp from IK Multimedia for review.

iRig HD

I have had the standard iRig since just after it came out and while it is a decent unit, I've always felt like it was not really usable in a live setting. The main problem is that without using the noise filter pedal in AmpliTube, that there was too much digital noise, then when you used the noise filter it dulled the guitar sound too much by rolling off the high end and making the guitar sound muddy.

This is where the iRig HD comes in and does things a lot better. For one, the iRig HD is not a bi-directional I/O device, you are not sending signal in and out the same unit. It is simply an input device. This is great because it can focus on it's one task. Converting your guitar signal. If you want audio out of your device, you can use a different interface. So in the case of iOS, you simply use your headphones out, or on Mac you could use headphones out or other external audio device if you have one.

This brings up another area where the iRig HD is very handy. It includes 3 adapters. A standard 30 pin iOS cable, a Lightning cable and a USB cable. So if you are using a Mac, iPad, iPhone or whatever, you can probably hook it up. It was nice to make this modular and not make them device specific. So you only have to get one of them for all your devices rather than getting the Mac version or the iPod version, etc.

One issue I do have with the iRig HD is that there is not a way to use it and have your iPad plugged in to power at the same time. This means that if your battery is running low, you are out of luck until you get a recharge. I'm not sure if someone makes a 30 pin splitter that would alleviate this problem, but it is a problem non the less.

For getting the most pristine signal on your devices for recording / practicing, I think the iRig HD is a great option.


iRig Stomp

AmpliTube to your pedalboard. Well you can with the iRig Stomp. The idea is simple, take the basic idea of the iRig and put it in a pedal box. Here's how it works, you have 1/4 inch in and out much like a normal effects pedal. There is a footswitch that turn the pedal on and off. When the pedal is off, signal simply passes from the inputs to the outputs. When it is on, it send the signal to a stereo 1/8th inch I/O jack. Then with the included long male to make 1/8th" cable, to your iOS device. Using AmpliTube, you set up the sounds you want, then the signal comes back in the same cable. The pedal has a volume knob for you to equalize the return signal to your dry signal. There is a 2nd 1/8th" jack that you can use with a pair of headphones,
Being a 'pedal guy' I thought the iRig Stomp was an interesting idea. What if you could bring the power of

With this setup, you turn your whole AmpliTube rig into another pedal. So why not give it a go? I play guitar at my church. I generally run into my pedalboard, then to my Crate V33-212 amp that is in a backstage closet. I gets mic'd up back there. Since AmpliTube is not just effects, but also amp simulation, I though I would try to run from my pedalboard into the iRig stomp, into my iPad, then out of the iRig Stomp into a direct box.

I was pretty surprised at the sound that I got. I did not have tons of time to tweak my sound, so I dialed up the basic crunch amp and set the volume low to simulate the base tone that I usually shoot for with my amp. Pretty clean, but with a bit of breakup. Since I had my American Special Telecaster, which does pick up nasty levels of noise in that space, I turned on the noise filter. This certainly dulls the tone a bit, but I was able to brighten it up a little with the amp EQ.

Overall it sounded pretty good. Certainly a viable option to replace the amp if the need be. It is definitely nice to have the amp knobs at arms reach instead of having to 'set it and forget it'.

If I were to use AmpliTube on the iPad for live settings, I certainly wouldn't use it for all my effects. being able to turn effects on/off with my foot or tap in tempos on certain pedals is a must for me. I could use presets, but again, switching presets is a 2 click process. I would certainly have some usability ideas for IK if they were to ever ask me. Now to be fair, IK is coming out with the iRig BlueBoard which is a BlueTooth pedalboard that will control IK programs on iOS and mac. Perhaps I get my hands on one and see how that works.

Another thing to consider from a purely logistical standpoint is using something like an iKlip. I just had my iPad on my music stand under my music. This was fine until I managed to reset my settings (I think I loaded a preset) right before we started our set. So yeah, that wasn't cool.

I need to fire up the Studio section of AmpliTube still and will be reviewing that in a follow up post soon.

Other Ideas & AmpliTube Custom Shop

Another option would be to run the output of my last pedal into the iRig HD, into my MacBook Pro. Then run AmpliTube Custom shop. Then using a 2nd D/A converter that I have run the output to the sound system. Custom Shop has a lot more options than the iOS version of AmpliTube (rightly so). There is a vast library of amps and effects that you can purchase. You can also try out individual models for 72 hours which is good, because credits will run you between $1 to $0.50 depending on how many you buy at once. Most 'normal' amounts of credits 20-80 credits, they are about $1 a piece. For reference, of the 8 delay pedal models, they range from 10 credits to 15 credits, amps run about 30 credits, speaker cabinets are 5 credits, mics are 5 credits. So using the 72 hour 'try' period is a good idea lest you drop a bunch of cash. The much better way to go would be to spend about $100 on one of the collections and get many more models for the price.

 The free core of the software does come with a modest set of models. Enough that if you were running some 'real' pedals in front of the interface, you could use it in a live setting. But again, would definitely need some external controls, because in the middle of a show, the last thing you want to have to do is mouse around the screen to change settings or presets.

In Conclusion

iRig HD and iRig Stomp are similar products that fill a slightly different space. The iRig Stomp is a great way to either use AmpliTube as another pedal on your board, or use it as an amp replacement so you can run direct. While the iRig HD gives you a cleaner way to connect your guitar into your iPad, iPod or Computer digitally without relying on the crummy D/A conversion that generally happens in the mic in jack on your device.

 I would certainly recommend either of these devices if someone were looking for a way to get a little more digital in their rig or extend some sonic options that may not otherwise be available.

On the software end, there are still drawbacks to using it live, but I think IK is aware of that and hopefully some of their hardware offerings in the future will address these issues.

All Tied Up with the Ian Knot

I must have flunked tying your shoes class when I was a kid. I can't get a shoelace to stay tied. Even when I double knot, it's always coming undone. That is until recently when I discovered the 'Ian' knot. Actually I was introduced to the Ian knot a couple years ago and thought it was interesting. But when I started running, I found it to be invaluable. No more double knotting in order to keep my laces tied.

I won't try to explain how to tie it, instead, here is Ian Fieggen's website where he explains how to tie it and many other shoelace knots. If you have trouble keeping your laces tied and don't want to spend the money on something like Lock Laces, then check out the Ian Knot

Road ID

While I was visiting my Mom and Stepdad, last month, they showed me a great product that they both use. It is not one the improves performance, makes you look good, keeps you hydrated or anything like that. Instead, it is a little bit of insurance that you put on your wrist. I give you, the Road ID.

Simply put, the Road ID is a way for you to carry important ID on you while you are out running / biking / hiking / skiing / whatever. It is fully customizable with your information. Key information about who you are and who to contact in an emergency to "speak for you when you can't speak for yourself."  So for $20 if I were to be injured during a run, either in pain or unconscious, a first responder would have not only my name, but a couple of contact numbers and also be informed of any other important info I would want them to have.

I usually run very early in the morning 5:00am to 5:30am on shorter runs, as early as 4:30 on long run days. I'm a couple miles in be fore the sun is up. So even though I have on some reflective gear and a flashing arm band, there are still bleary eyed drivers out there and I do share the road with them. You never know what could happen.

 I got the Road ID sport in black (just like the sample image above) It is very comfortable and seems like it will be very durable.

So, check them out, they have brackets, dog tags, shoelace tags, ankle tags and even ones for your dog. They have a good deal of testimonials other site as well of people who were wearing their RoadID when it mattered most.

Getting Runstastic to Track your GPS better

I was having a really hard time getting Runtastic to track my GPS in a nice smooth way, sometimes it was decent, but more and more it was becoming unusable. Runtastic recently updated their support site and in their GPS tips section, recommended shutting off WiFi to improve GPS tracking. I guess that way it doesn't try to do any WiFi based positioning. Here are 2 side by side tracks, one with Wifi on and one with it off.

WiFi On	WiFi Off

So yeah, I would say if you are having trouble with getting a good GPS track with Runtastic on your cell phone, try shutting off WiFi and see it that helps

Carb Gel - GU and Hammer Gel

My stepfather, who is an avid cyclist, introduced me to Carb Gel recently. I had heard about them before, but didn't really bother to learn what they were for. During a visit to Phoenix, he sent me home with a bag full of GU and Hammer Gel also some Honey Stingers. Of the 3, the GU and Hammer Gel sat best with my stomach, the Honey Stinger on an empty stomach was not great. The other 2 seemed to be fine in that regard. It may be because the primary ingredient in the Honey stinger is honey which is different than the other 2. For this reason, I'm gonna talk about these 2:

These little pouches contain around 100 calories of carbs. Most of the carbs in both products come the complex carb maltodexterin which is supposed to not give you a sugar rush and crash. Some flavors of GU contain caffeine and some don't the ones that do contain 20mg and the Jet Blackberry GU has 40mg caffeine, the Espresso and Tropical flavors or Hammer Gel contain 25mg.

So far this has been my experience with them: I've put in several 9+ mile runs using these and have been very happy with my energy level. Both products recommend that you take 1 serving 15 minutes before your workout and one every 45 minutes during. At $1 to $1.50 a pouch, that could get expensive. You can mix it with some water and put it in a nutrition flask and spread it out more, that is what I've been doing and it works great. The Hammer gel also comes in 26 serving bottles for a lot less per serving, but then you have to mix it in another container.

Overall, if you are doing endurance sports like running, biking, etc. and find that you run out of juice, you might want to take a look at these gels as a quick source of energy that isn't going to sit bulky in the pit of your stomach for the next 5 miles.

Nathan Elite 1 Plus Waist Pack

I've been running for about 8 months. I am still very new to the sport and am still learning a lot. A week ago I was at Sole Sports in Tempe, (which if you are in the Phoenix, AZ area, I highly recommend for great service) getting a new pair of running shoes, the saleslady asked me if I carry water or nutrition on my runs. I kind of gave her a blank stare and said 'no'. Why would I do that? Well, while I was visiting AZ, I planned on a 13 mile run up and down South Mountain. So it was time to take a better look at this area of running. I ended up getting an Elite 1 Plus Waist Pack by Nathan Sports. This item has been discontinued, so I got it on clearance, but I love it already. It's main feature is a back holster for a 22oz water bottle. I was worried about it bouncing around, but have had 0 trouble. It even has a nice finger ring at the top that makes getting it out really easy. the 'Plus' is a 5oz nutrition flask. This was another new concept to me. My stepfather, who is an avid cyclist, introduced me to Carb Gel (I'll post more about these later) which are great for maintaining energy during a long workout. The flask lets you mix them with a little water and have a quick source to power through. The pack has some straps and a little zipper pouch.

I may never do a training run without something like this again. Staying hydrated on runs of all lengths and getting extra energy in runs that are longer than say 5 or 6 miles makes a huge difference. One I didn't really expect. Nathan Sports makes all kinds of different styles of packs, backpacks, handhelds and such. I would HIGHLY recommend checking them out.

Polar FT7 Heart Rate Monitor and Watch

I was given a Polar FT7 heart rate monitor and watch for my birthday this year and in just a couple weeks, I don't want to exercise without it. It is easy to set up, and the chest strap and monitor are comfortable. It's got a clear display. One really cool thing is that both our home treadmill and the treadmills at the gym are Polar compatible, so the treadmill display and computer constantly are being updated with my heartrate. Which seems to be helping more accurately show my calorie burn (which is lower than it shows without the HR). It's interesting to see that the machines have been overestimating my calorie burn.

I wear the watch and strap during my Insanity workouts and it's great.

You should check it out!

Pedalboard Planner Blog Now Up

The Pedalboard planner blog is now up at

http://pedalboardplanner.com/blog

I'll be moving some of my gear related posts over there and adding reviews of gear there too. Hope to see you there!

Pedalboard Planner Sponsor

Pedalboard Planner now has an official sponsor. WE are proudly brought to you by Pedaltrain. Pedaltrain makes some great pedalboards, and now you can use pedalboard planner to see how your effects will fit on a Pedaltrain pedalboard.

Pedalboard Planner

In trying to figure out exactly how to set up my pedalboard and figure out what size board I could use (and still have room to grow) I wanted a program that would let me pull in the pedals I use, and move them around on the screen. So I've begun a little project called Pedalboard Planner. It uses HTML canvas (no Internet Explorer at the moment, but I'm working on that.) Check it out

Pedalboard Planner

It's still very much in beta, so send me your comments.

Guitar Gear for Beginners - Part 8 - Pitch Effects

There are a couple of effects that will effect the pitch of your instrument. 

Octaver

The octave pedal does what it's name says, it shifts the pitch of your instrument by octaves. Some have options as to what octave you want to add. One octave up, one down, 2 down, etc. Then levels of how much original signal and shifted signal to have. The Boss OC-3 Super Octave is an example of a octave pedal.

Pitch Shifter

The pitch shifter is a much more complex unit. There are some pitch shifters that do the same thing as an octave pedal except with other pitches, like a 5th or a 4th. The new generation of pitch shifters let you tell the pedal what key you are playing in and then it can tell if you are doing say 3rd harmonies, if it should be a minor 3rd or a major third, so that your harmony notes are in the right key. The Boss PS-5 Super Shifter and the DigiTech HarmonyMan are examples of this type of pedal. 

What do I Use?

Right now I don't have either of these types of pedals on my pedalboard. They are just not what I need at the moment.

Do you use an octave or pitch shifting pedal that I have not mentioned? Let us know in the comments.

Guitar Gear for Beginners - Part 7 - Time Effects

Time based effects are those that elongate, or repeat our sounds.  Here are 3 types of effects that fall into this category.

Delay

Delay is an echo effect. Depending on the unit we are using, we will set a delay time (how fast does it echo) and a regeneration factor (how quickly does it get quieter with each echo) and a count of how many echos we want. Some examples of delay effects are the Boss DD-3 which is a pretty simple delay pedal, or the Boss DD-7 which is the same pedal as the DD-3 but has a few more delay styles as well as the option for an external 'tap tempo' which will allow you to set your delay speed by clicking a separate pedal. One Delay pedal that I have not had the opportunity to play, but have heard great things about is the Line 6 DL4. This unit has 3 programmable presets (so you don't have to tweak settings while you are playing) and a dedicated tap tempo button.

Reverb

Reverb is an effect that lets a sound trail off as if it were in a room where the echo time was very short. Or as Wikipedia puts it "Reverbration, or "reverb", is the persistence of sound in a particular space after the original sound is removed. "  A lot of amps have an reverb unit built in. If you have ever moved an amp and gotten a loud sound come out of it that sounded like giant springs, that would be the spring reverb unit in the amp. There are some pedal based reverb units as well if you want more control of your reverb sounds. The Boss RV-5 is one example or the Line 6 Verbzilla which has 11 different types of reverb built it.

Looping

Loopers are a similar idea to delay except that they let you store more than 1 "sample" and then layer them on top of one another.  One major difference between a delay pedal and a looper is that most delay pedals will only let you take a sample of up to maybe 2 seconds, where a looper will provide much longer samples. Here is an example of a guy playing with a looper. Boss make a looper in simple pedal, the Boss RC-2 Loop Station as well as a more complex and larger unit, the Boss RC-20XL Loop Station, Line 6 and Digitech also have offerings in this area as well.

What do I use?

Personally, I use the built in reverb in my Crate V33-212 amp and a Boss DD-6 which from what I can tell has been discontinued in favor of the DD-7. One of these days I need to get my hands on a looper, but it is not really high on my priorities list right now. 

So what time based effects do you use? Sound off in the comments section. 

Guitar Gear for Beginners - Part 6 - Modulation Effects

Phaser, Flanger, Chorus are several of the more popular modulation effects.  The difference between them can be a little difficult to explain, but I'll give it a go. 

Chorus

Chorus works by playing a copy of the sound coming in again just slightly later than the original (like 100ms later) and lightly altering it's pitch. This makes it sound like 2 or more instruments are playing the same thing at the same time, a chorus of instruments if you will. The Boss CH-1 is a nice simple chorus pedal.

Flanger

A flanger works very much like a chorus, except that the delay is much shorter and a portion of the delayed signal is fed back into the delay. This creates a swooshing sound. The term flange actually comes from when in the reel to reel studio days they would have 2 synced up tape machines and press their finger on the 'flange' of the tape reel, slowing it down a little and the combined sound would give the same effect. This MXR Flanger pedal seems to be pretty popular although I have not played it myself.

Phaser

A phaser although it has a similar sound to a flanger works in a different way. The sound rather than being delayed has it's phase shifted and added back to itself based on a filter. This phase shifting creates the phaser sound

Video of an MXR Phase 90 Pedal

What Do I Use?

Right now the only one of these 3 pedals that I use is a Boss CH-1 Chorus pedal. I personally have never been a huge fan of flange/phase effects so I have not spent any money on them. But that is just a personal preference as there is certainly nothing 'wrong' with those effects. They can be used very nicely, but please, use in moderation :)

Do you have a modulation effect that you love? If so sound off below and let us all know what you have discovered!

Guitar Gear for Beginners - Part 5 - Volume Effects

Compressor

The compressor is a tough effect to explain if you have not worked it it before.  The basic idea is this: As you play louder, it turns you down. So that way you can turn up the quiet stuff without blowing out the doors with the loud stuff. Depending on how fast your effect is set, it can create a very "punchy" tone due to the compressor kicking in. The MXR Dyna Comp is a popular compressor  as well as the Boss CS-3.

Tremolo

Tremolo is a volume effect were the volume is turned up and down within a set range at a set tempo. This effect is very popular in 'surf music' The Boss TR-2 or the Voodoo Lab Tremolo are example pedals. Generally the speed and depth are set with knobs on the unit. Some pedals have a "tap" feature, allowing the speed to be setting by tapping your foot on the unit.

 

Volume Pedal

A volume pedal is a rocking pedal that takes it's incoming signal and turns it down based on how far forward or back it is set. The Visual Visual Volume Pedal or the Boss FV-500H are good examples. 

What do I Use?

I have an old version of the Boss volume pedal on my pedal board. It is over 15 years old and still works great (another reason I love boss). I use the MXR Dyna Comp pedal and am currently in the market for a good tremolo pedal. 

If you have favorite pedal in these categories that I have not mentioned, let everyone know by commenting below!

Guitar Gear for Beginners - Part 4 - Filter Effects

Filter effects are basically effects that take your sounds and either cut or boost certain frequecies. 

Equalizer

An EQ pedal does the exact same thing the EQ on a stereo does. It lets you pick a frequency and cut or boost it. Having it in a pedal means you can turn it on or off at a whim and it is within your reach if you need to make a change. The MXR M-108 or the Boss GE-7 are examples of EQ pedals.

Wah

Wah is basically an eq pedal with a small group of frequencies boosted and the others cut, then when you rock your foot on the pedal, it select what that range of frequencies is set at. A talented wah player can get very creative tones from a pedal.  There is also a series of pedals that simulate a wah effect based on how hard you play, these are called auto-wah or envelope filters. The Dunlop Crybaby is probably the most classic wah pedal.

What Do I use?

Well right now, I do not have an EQ or Wah pedal in my rig.

Got a favorite wah pedal? How about a great EQ pedal you use? Post a comment below!

Guitar Gear for Beginners - Part 3 - Distortion Effects

It seems like at the beginning of every gear based email that I write, I start with a disclaimer that xyz is a little complicated, and effects are no different. One of the things that makes effects such a wide subject is that there are so many different types that do drastically different things. 

There are really 2 ways to acquire effects (that can be combined), first is the "Stomp Box", the classic effect pedal and second is multi-effects, which can either be pedal based or rack based. We will first take a look at the various types of effects. With each effect, I'll mention a pedal version. If you are interested rather in multi-effects we will get to that later on.

Distortion Effects

Gain effects are any in a wide variety that effect the overall strength of the signal. The main type of effect in this group is distortion. When you increase the gain past the amount the circuit is designed to handle, it 'clips' this clipping is what causes the distorted sound we are so used to. When you are just on the edge of distortion, it is called overdrive which is very light clipping, adds a bit of 'dirt' to the sound. Usually only on louder notes or chords. Distortion is when your signal is always clipping, the level of distortion is based on how hard it is being pushed. There are dozens of pedals that can give you distortion. One of the classics is the Boss DS-1 this pedal will give you a reasonable range of distortions, although having a DS-1 modded by Keeley Electronics this upgrade takes your $40 Boss pedal and really adds some fullness to it. See this Youtube video for a comparison.  By the end of this series you will probably think I am a shill for Boss, but I have always liked their stuff and I have a bunch of it myself, it is built pretty tough. That being said, The Boss BD-2 is another great pedal. This overdrive pedal when set right can give your guitar that little bit of dirt that really makes it stand out. The Ibanez TS808 is another classic distortion pedal. If you are in to much heavier tones, you also might want to check out the Boss ML-2 Metal Core or the Boss MT-2 Metal Zone which give "high gain" style distortion found in the various forms of metal music.

One last type of distortion worth mentioning is Fuzz. As wikipedia puts it 

"Fuzz was originally intended to recreate the classic 1960's tone of an overdriven tube amp combined with torn speaker cones." 

It has a unique and cool sound. The Dunlop Jimi Hendrix Fuzzface is an example of a popular fuzz pedal.

What do I use?

At the time of this post, I own a DS-1 and a BD-2 for distortion. This gives me a decent range of distortion sounds. Although I do not play straight ahead metal, I am looking at the ML-2 for those times when I need that something extra. I do not currently have a fuzz pedal in my rig. 

There are so many talented folks out there with their own personal favorite, so for any players out there who may be reading this, What is your favorite distortion pedal and why? Chime in below in the comments. 

Guitar Gear for Beginners - Part 2 - The Amp

Nothing strikes fear into the guitar students parent when they realize that little Timmy is gonna need an amplifier to go along with that electric guitar. They have visions of the first scene in "Back to the Future" with a 6 foot speaker mounted into the wall. Amplifiers can be a tricky deal and can really make or break your sound.

Practice Amps

For starters, there is what we call the practice amp. This is a small amplifier that can be used at low to moderate volumes and maintain a simple good tone.  Practice amps are usually what we call "combo amps" where the amp and the speaker are in one unit (as opposed to a head and cab, where they are separate) They are low powered ( < class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; ">Crate FlexWave FW15R 15W 1x12  , the Roland Cube or a Line 6 Spider III, Now do not expect a lot from these amps. They may have built-in effects or amp models, but don't expect much. These amps run around $100. If you move up just a little to something like a Fender Frontman I used this particular amp live for about a year and got decent sound out of it ( mic'd up ). It is basically a slightly larger practice amp.

The Big One

The next step for amps is almost as hard as the next step for guitars. There are so many options and price ranges. You can easily spend $300-$1000 on a amp to play out on. Here are some things to keep in mind and to look for.

Tube Vs Solid State

This is a big debate about which one is better. Personally, I tend to like the sound of a nice tube amp, but unless you find a smoking deal, they are generally very pricey.  A rule of thumb that I have heard is that a tube amp of the same wattage as a solid state is about 3 times louder. I'm not sure how true that is, but anecdotally , it seems to be true. Tube amps need more special care than a solid state. But there are a few things that solid state can offer that tube amps usually do not. 

Combo Vs Head/Cab

Unless you are looking to blow out a large venue, a head with a cab may be a bit excessive. Most students will do fine with a well sized combo amp.

Wattage

For a garage band musician a 25-50 watt tube amp or up to a 100 watt solid state should more than get the job done. 

Speakers

Amps generally have an indication like 1x10 or 2x12 to indicate how many of what size speakers they have. So a 2x12 has 2 twelve inch speakers in it. For fullness of sound, a 1x12 or a 2x12 will do very well for you. There are a few amps that have smaller and sound good, but generally a 12 feels a bit more full to me. If you want a 4x12 you generally need to move to a head/cabinet setup as a 2x12 is about as big as a combo gets. 

Built in Effects / # of Channels 

A growing trend in amps is built in effects. If you look at the Line 6 Spider III amps, you will see their low end models have a few effects to their upper end amps that are fully programmable.  A lot of non-built-in effects amps have reverb built in. It will quite possibly be  a spring reverb unit in the back of the amp. 

Some amps also have more than one "channel",  a clean channel and one or more "drive" channels. The clean channel is the amplified sound of the guitar, clean and clear, The drive channel is a 'distortion' effect. If there is more than one drive channel, it is generally set up for varying levels of distortion. Depending on how the drive channel sounds on the amp, most players will always leave their amp on the clean channel and add distortion or other effects through an effects pedal or unit of some kind. If their amp has a really good sounding drive channel they may opt to use it.

Now most amps are content to sound like themselves, where another newer trend in amps is what is called "amp modelling" where an amp tries to emulate the sound of other amps. Line 6's higher end amps do this pretty well, where they also have an effects unit that does it VERY well. We will talk about that in the post on effects. 

Now when it comes to amps, I am of a very minimalist mindset. Give me an amp that produces a great full clean tone and let me tweak my sound before it gets there with my guitar and my effects. Currently I use a Crate V33-212. It is a 33 watt tube amp and it is very nice, especially for the price it was gotten at. Some folks live and die by their amp choice.  My advice, try lots of them. If you go to a place like Guitar Center, be sure to ask to use a guitar similar to what you own when trying out amps, that way you will have a good idea what it will sound like when you get it home.

Are you a guitarist? What was your starter amp? What is your favorite amp and why? Post your thoughts below! For those looking for advice, was this information helpful, do you need more info on a given part in this overview? Let me know!