The JHS Ross Distortion is a JHS Pedals distortion pedal. Close alternatives include the MXR Prime Distortion and the MXR M69P Prime Distortion. It pairs well with the Dumble Steel String Singer and the Fender Prosonic.

JHS Ross Distortion

JHS Pedals · pedal

The JHS Ross Distortion is a faithful recreation of the vintage Ross Distortion, a 1970s distortion pedal that used a circuit topology closely related to the ProCo RAT and the MXR Distortion+ family. The Ross Distortion was known for its aggressive, cutting distortion character with a specific op-amp voicing that produced a bright, punchy saturation suited to hard rock and early metal of the period. JHS recreates the Ross circuit with modern components while preserving the original circuit topology and tonal character.

What stands out

  • “The JHS Ross Distortion is a faithful recreation of the vintage Ross Distortion, a 1970s distortion pedal that used a circuit topology closely related to the ProCo RAT and the MXR Distortion+ family”

    — from the listing

  • “cutting distortion character with a specific op-amp voicing that produced a bright”

    — from the listing

  • “The Ross Distortion character is bright and cutting with a specific punch that differs from both the RAT and the Distortion+ in subtle but audible ways”

    — from the community notes

  • “JHS recreates the Ross circuit with modern components while preserving the original circuit topology and tonal character”

    — from the listing

  • “The JHS Ross Distortion faithfully recreates the vintage Ross circuit with modern component reliability”

    — from the reviews

Trade-offs

  • “jhs build quality provides modern reliability over fragile and inconsistent original vintage units”

    — from the community notes

  • distortion
  • cutting
  • bright
  • punch
  • op amp
  • vintage
  • hard rock
  • metal

Genres the JHS Ross Distortion is commonly used in

  • Metal
  • Alternative Rock
  • Hard Rock
  • Heavy Metal
    citedInferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag.
  • Punk
    citedInferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag.
  • Rock
    citedInferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag.

Amps that pair well with the JHS Ross Distortion

Dumble Steel String Singer

Dumble

26% match

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (bright → smooth)

Where this leans bright, Dumble Steel String Singer answers back smooth

Comes later in the signal chain

Fender Prosonic

amplifier

25% match

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (bright → warm)

Fender Prosonic leans warm right where the bright tone needs it

Comes later in the signal chain

Hiwatt Park P18LH 'Little 45' Handwired18W

Hiwatt

tonal match
$4300via Reverb

Comes later in the signal chain

Where this leans bright, Hiwatt Park P18LH 'Little 45' Handwired18W answers back warm

Orange BT1000H Terror Bass 1000-Watt Bass Amp

Orange

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Run Orange BT1000H Terror Bass 1000-Watt Bass Amp after it and the bright edge settles into something more warm

Orange Terror Bass

Orange

tonal match
$754.36via Reverb

Comes later in the signal chain

Orange Terror Bass's warm balances out the bright tone

Orange Little Bass Thing

Orange

tonal match
$683.03via Reverb

Comes later in the signal chain

Orange Little Bass Thing leans warm right where the bright tone needs it

Gibson GA-50

Gibson

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Gibson GA-50's warm balances out the bright tone

Victory Amplifiers V50 The Earl

amplifier

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Victory Amplifiers V50 The Earl leans warm right where the bright tone needs it

Pedals that stack with the JHS Ross Distortion

Hughes & Kettner Tube Rotosphere MKII The Analog Leslie Simulator

pedal

22% match

sits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor.

Put Hughes & Kettner Tube Rotosphere MKII The Analog Leslie Simulator after JHS Ross Distortion in the signal chain, clear of JHS Ross Distortion's own gain stage

Comes later in the signal chain

BBE OptiComp

Bbe

18% match
$109.99via Reverb

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (bright → warm)

BBE OptiComp's own dynamic character is the real reason this is worth trying

Comes earlier in the signal chain

Electro-Harmonix Green Russian Big Muff

Electro-Harmonix

18% match
$76.22via Reverb

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (bright → smooth)

Electro-Harmonix Green Russian Big Muff's smooth balances out the bright tone

Comes later in the signal chain

Greer Mizuki blue

Greer

18% match
$199via Reverb

fills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (bright → warm)

Where this leans bright, Greer Mizuki blue answers back warm

Suhr Discovery

Suhr

15% match
$579.53via Reverb

sits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor.

Keep JHS Ross Distortion's bright voice out front: Suhr Discovery goes after JHS Ross Distortion in the signal chain so its warm voice doesn't muddy it — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)

Comes later in the signal chain

T-Rex Junior Roomate

T Rex

14% match
$108.38via Reverb

sits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor.

Put T-Rex Junior Roomate after JHS Ross Distortion in the signal chain, clear of JHS Ross Distortion's own gain stage — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)

Comes later in the signal chain

SolidGoldFX Commodore Breaker Overdrive

Solidgoldfx

tonal match
$152.15via Reverb

Comes earlier in the signal chain

Run SolidGoldFX Commodore Breaker Overdrive after it and the bright edge settles into something more smooth

Dunlop Blue Hippo Optical Tremolo

Dunlop

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Where this leans bright, Dunlop Blue Hippo Optical Tremolo answers back warm

Alternativessee all similar tone character →

MXR Prime Distortion

MXR

67% similarity
$72.90via Reverb

Shared character: bright, distortion, aggressive playing

MXR M69P Prime Distortion

MXR

64% similarity
$81.83via Reverb

Shared character: bright, distortion, aggressive playing

ProCo RAT 2

Proco

61% similarity
$86.97via Reverb

“that used a circuit topology closely related to the ProCo RAT and the MXR Distortion+ family.”

RHC Rat Turbo Rat Distortion

Rhc Audio

61% similarity

Shared character: metal, hard rock, distortion

Donner Dark Mouse

Donner

60% similarity
$39.99via Reverb

Shared character: bright, distortion, aggressive playing

Wampler Phenom Distortion

Wampler

57% similarity
$99.97via Reverb

Shared character: high gain settings, hard rock, bright

JAM Pedals Rattler mk.2 Distortion

Jam Pedals

57% similarity

Shared character: high gain settings, alternative, distortion

Catalinbread CB-Distortion

Catalinbread

57% similarity

Shared character: high gain settings, punch, metal

NuX Lacerate

Nux

56% similarity

Shared character: metal, hard rock, distortion

Suhr Riot

Suhr

56% similarity

Shared character: high gain settings, metal, hard rock

T-Rex Totenschlager

T Rex

54% similarity
$41.04via Reverb

Shared character: metal, distortion, aggressive playing

Fulltone OCD Obsessive Compulsive Drive

Fulltone

54% similarity

Shared character: distortion

See all alternatives to the JHS Ross Distortion (cheaper + boutique) →

Questions people ask

What are good alternatives to the JHS Ross Distortion?+

The closest matches in character are the MXR Prime Distortion, the MXR M69P Prime Distortion, the ProCo RAT 2.

What pairs well with the JHS Ross Distortion?+

Strong matches from rig and tone-complementarity evidence: Dumble Steel String Singer, Fender Prosonic, Hiwatt Park P18LH 'Little 45' Handwired18W — Where this leans bright, Dumble Steel String Singer answers back smooth.

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