The Joyo dark flame is a Joyo distortion pedal. Close alternatives include the Menatone None More Black and the Fuzzrocious Dark Driving. It pairs well with the Vox AC30 Guitar Combo Amp and the Matchless DC-30.

Joyo dark flame

Joyo · pedal

The Joyo Dark Flame (R-17) is a modern metal high-gain distortion pedal with 3-band EQ and a 3-way toggle switching between three distinct crunchy distortion voicings, drawing comparisons to the Revv G3. It delivers aggressive, high-gain chug tones well suited to heavy riffing, though it isn't voiced for low-to-medium-gain rock or blues tones. The 3-band EQ gives real shaping control over the low, mid, and high content of the distortion. It suits metal players wanting an affordable, aggressive high-gain distortion pedal focused specifically on modern metal chug and lead tones rather than versatile all-purpose drive.

What stands out

  • “A dark-voiced heavy distortion from Joyo Audio, targeting players who want thick, weighty, dark saturation for doom, sludge, or heavy alternative rock”

    — from the community notes

  • “The dark voicing is a specific choice ; players who want it find it effective at the budget price”

    — from the community notes

  • “The dark character is the defining strength; players who want cutting or bright high-gain distortion should look elsewhere”

    — from the reviews

  • “Effective budget choice for dark-toned heavy playing”

    — from the reviews

  • “It delivers aggressive, high-gain chug tones well suited to heavy riffing, though it”

    — from the listing

Trade-offs

  • “The dark voicing emphasizes low-end weight and harmonic density over bright attack”

    — from the reviews

  • dark
  • distortion
  • high gain
  • rock
  • doom
  • metal
  • attack
  • saturation

Genres the Joyo dark flame is commonly used in

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

Amps that pair well with the Joyo dark flame

Vox AC30 Guitar Combo Amp

Vox

29% match
$799via Reverb

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

Vox AC30 Guitar Combo Amp's bright balances out the dark tone

Comes later in the signal chain

Matchless DC-30

Matchless

28% match
$4756via Reverb

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

Run Matchless DC-30 after it and the dark edge settles into something more glassy

Comes later in the signal chain

1964 Vox AC30

Vox

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Run 1964 Vox AC30 after it and the dark edge settles into something more glassy

Vox AC30 Rose Morris 80s

amplifier

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Run Vox AC30 Rose Morris 80s after it and the dark edge settles into something more bright

Gretsch 6160 Chet Atkins Amp

Gretsch

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Gretsch 6160 Chet Atkins Amp leans glassy right where the dark tone needs it

Díaz CD-100 Amp Head

Diaz

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Díaz CD-100 Amp Head's bright balances out the dark tone

Dr. Z Maz 38

Dr Z

tonal match
$1200via Reverb

Comes later in the signal chain

Dr. Z Maz 38's bright balances out the dark tone

Vox AC30CH Custom 30W Head

Vox

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Vox AC30CH Custom 30W Head's bright balances out the dark tone

Pedals that stack with the Joyo dark flame

Catalinbread VariOboost

Catalinbread

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. (dark → bright)

Catalinbread VariOboost leans bright right where the dark tone needs it

Comes earlier in the signal chain

J. Rockett Archer

pedal

24% match

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

Where this leans dark, J. Rockett Archer answers back bright

Comes earlier in the signal chain

Keeley Compressor Plus

Keeley

21% match

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

What Keeley Compressor Plus brings here leans toward compressed — that's worth building a pairing around

Comes earlier in the signal chain

Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble

pedal

18% match
$570via 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 Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble after Joyo dark flame in the signal chain, clear of Joyo dark flame's own gain stage

Comes later in the signal chain

Boss RV-6 Reverb

Boss

13% match
$140.99via 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.

Boss RV-6 Reverb's shimmer voice goes after Joyo dark flame in the signal chain — it's not there to compete with Joyo dark flame's own dark character — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)

Comes later in the signal chain

Boss DD-200 Digital Delay

Boss

13% match
$237.32via 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 Boss DD-200 Digital Delay after Joyo dark flame in the signal chain, clear of Joyo dark flame's own gain stage — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)

Comes later in the signal chain

Boss GEB-7 Bass Graphic EQ

Roland

tonal match
$118.73via Reverb

Comes later in the signal chain

Where this leans dark, Boss GEB-7 Bass Graphic EQ answers back bright

TC Electronic Spark Booster

TC Electronic

tonal match
$75.01via Reverb

Comes earlier in the signal chain

TC Electronic Spark Booster leans bright right where the dark tone needs it

Alternativessee all similar tone character →

Menatone None More Black

Menatone

68% similarity
$249via Reverb

Shared character: high gain settings, dark, metal

Fuzzrocious Dark Driving

Fuzzrocious

64% similarity
$149via Reverb

Shared character: dark, bright, alternative

DSM & Humboldt Electronics Black Clouds

Dsm Humboldt Electronics

62% similarity
$248.83via Reverb

Shared character: noise, thickness, distortion

ProCo RAT 2

Proco

60% similarity
$86.93via Reverb

Shared character: high gain settings, dark, noise

T-Rex Totenschlager

T Rex

59% similarity
$41.02via Reverb

Shared character: countless rock and metal players, metal, distortion

Wampler Dracarys

Wampler

56% similarity
$199via Reverb

Shared character: high gain settings, noise, metal

Catalinbread Sabbra Traditional Ink

Catalinbread

56% similarity

Shared character: high gain settings, dark, noise

Greer Amps Gorilla Warfare MkII

Greer

55% similarity

Shared character: distortion, aggressive playing, high gain settings

Joyo Uzi Distortion

Joyo

54% similarity

Shared character: high gain settings, noise, metal

Maxon OD808

Maxon

53% similarity
$134.09via Reverb

Shared character: dark, metal, middle

TC Electronic Magus Pro Distortion

TC Electronic

53% similarity

Shared character: distortion

Friedman BE-OD Deluxe

Friedman

52% similarity
$229.49via Reverb

Shared character: countless rock and metal players, high gain settings, noise

See all alternatives to the Joyo dark flame (cheaper + boutique) →

Questions people ask

What are good alternatives to the Joyo dark flame?+

The closest matches in character are the Menatone None More Black, the Fuzzrocious Dark Driving, the DSM & Humboldt Electronics Black Clouds.

What pairs well with the Joyo dark flame?+

Strong matches from rig and tone-complementarity evidence: Vox AC30 Guitar Combo Amp, Matchless DC-30, 1964 Vox AC30 — Vox AC30 Guitar Combo Amp's bright balances out the dark tone.

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