Distortion

Types of distortion

Overdrive, Distortion and Fuzz

Parameters of Distortion

Drive: Amount of Gain

Tone: Shapes frequency response of distorted signal

Level: Volume control (after distortion added)

How was distortion used before the 1950s

it wasn’t used it was actively avoided (but in modern times it often desired)

How distortion changes a sound wave

It squares it off its peaks

Willie Kizarts impact on distortion

poked hole in his amp through the cone making it have a distorted sound which he used to play guitar on rocket 88

example of a distortion pedal

Boss DS-1 used by Kurt Cobain of Nirvana and John Frusciante of RHCP

Famous song which uses the boss DS-1 distortion pedal

Nirvana Smells like Teen Spirit (1991)

Distortion in a DAW

-redlight distortion plugin on studio one

= much easier to alter and tweak than other versions of distortion

how fuzz affects the frequency range of the clean signal

cuts away mids and emphasises highs

What does distortion add to a signal which alters its tone

Saturation and alters the signal with harmonic and inharmonic overtones

overdrive

weakest form of distortion which just pushes the signal hard not changing its existing tone

known as crunch on amp settings giving more grit

used in chordal passages and riffs

How distortion was created

In the 1950s Willie Kizart poked a hole in his amps speaker cone in order to create a fuzz sound

when distortion pedals began to be used in music

1962

Types of music which welcome distortion and peaking

Punk, Metal and Rock

How distortion was avoided before 1950s

live mixing engineers would ride the faders to ensure signals didn’t peak

radio broadcasts in 1930s and 1940s would avoid distortion by using compression

Guitar Simulators

used to emulate guitar and amplifier sounds

Jimi Hendrix fuzz pedal

fuzz face

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