The Ross "Distorsion" is a Ross distortion pedal. Close alternatives include the T-Rex Bloody Mary and the Crazy Tube Circuits Orama. It pairs well with the Peavey MiniMAX and the Hiwatt Custom DR20H.

Ross "Distorsion"

Ross · pedal

The Ross Distortion is a classic American distortion pedal from the late 1970s, producing warm, harmonically rich distortion with the characteristic smooth, compressed saturation of Ross circuit design. The Ross Distortion is a vintage classic that influenced many subsequent distortion designs and is sought after by collectors and tone enthusiasts.

What stands out

  • “The Ross Distortion is a classic American distortion pedal from the late 1970s, producing warm, harmonically rich distortion with the characteristic smooth, compressed saturation of Ross circuit design”

    — from the listing

  • “The Ross Distortion is regarded as a vintage American distortion classic, valued for warm, smooth compression and harmonically rich saturation”

    — from the community notes

  • “Blues and rock players who want the authentic vintage Ross distortion character find it a sought-after piece of gear”

    — from the community notes

  • “The Ross Distortion delivers warm, harmonically rich distortion with the characteristic smooth, compressed saturation of the vintage Ross circuit”

    — from the reviews

  • “The Ross Distortion is a vintage classic that influenced many subsequent distortion designs and is sought after by collectors and tone enthusiasts”

    — from the listing

  • distortion
  • harmonically rich
  • smooth
  • vintage
  • compressed
  • compression
  • blues
  • saturation

Genres the Ross "Distorsion" is commonly used in

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

Amps that pair well with the Ross "Distorsion"

Peavey MiniMAX

Peavey

28% match

pushes an already-dirty tonePushes an already-dirty tone harder and tightens it up. (saturated → tight)

Peavey MiniMAX pushes a saturated tone toward tight

Comes later in the signal chain

Hiwatt Custom DR20H

Hiwatt

28% match

pushes an already-dirty tonePushes an already-dirty tone harder and tightens it up. (saturated → tight)

Hiwatt Custom DR20H pushes a saturated tone toward tight

Comes later in the signal chain

Peavey MiniMAX II Bass Head

Peavey

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Stack Peavey MiniMAX II Bass Head on top and a saturated tone tightens toward tight

Hiwatt Leeds AC60

Hiwatt

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Feed a saturated signal into Hiwatt Leeds AC60 and it comes out closer to tight

Gallien-Krueger MB115MK2

Gallien Krueger

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Gallien-Krueger MB115MK2 takes that saturated character and pushes it toward tight

Blackstar HTV-212 Bronco TAN

Blackstar

tonal match
$250via Reverb

Comes later in the signal chain

Feed a saturated signal into Blackstar HTV-212 Bronco TAN and it comes out closer to tight

Mesa Boogie Stiletto Deuce 50/100W Tube Head

Mesa Boogie

tonal match

Comes later in the signal chain

Stack Mesa Boogie Stiletto Deuce 50/100W Tube Head on top and a saturated tone tightens toward tight

Peavey MiniMEGA 1000W Lightweight Bass Head

Peavey

tonal match
$588.98via Reverb

Comes later in the signal chain

Peavey MiniMEGA 1000W Lightweight Bass Head takes that saturated character and pushes it toward tight

Pedals that stack with the Ross "Distorsion"

Browne Amplification Carbon

Browne Amplification

24% match
$339via Reverb

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

Browne Amplification Carbon's bright balances out the warm tone

Comes earlier in the signal chain

Xotic EP Booster

Xotic

22% match
$145.29via Reverb

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

Run Xotic EP Booster after it and the warm edge settles into something more bright

Comes earlier in the signal chain

Jackson Audio Bloom MIDI

Jackson Audio

15% match

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

Jackson Audio Bloom MIDI's own spring character is the real reason this is worth trying

Comes earlier in the signal chain

Maestro PS-1A Phase Shifter

Maestro

14% match
$180via 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.

Maestro PS-1A Phase Shifter's lush voice goes after Ross "Distorsion" in the signal chain — it's not there to compete with Ross "Distorsion"'s own harmonically rich character

Comes later in the signal chain

Boss DD-200 Digital Delay

Boss

9% match
$236.92via 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 DD-200 Digital Delay's shimmer voice goes after Ross "Distorsion" in the signal chain — it's not there to compete with Ross "Distorsion"'s own harmonically rich character — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)

Comes later in the signal chain

Alexander Pedals History Lesson Vol. 2

Alexander Pedals

9% match
$100via 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.

Run Alexander Pedals History Lesson Vol. 2 after Ross "Distorsion" in the signal chain, clear of Ross "Distorsion"'s own gain stage — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)

Comes later in the signal chain

TC Electronic Spark Booster

TC Electronic

tonal match
$74.89via Reverb

Comes earlier in the signal chain

TC Electronic Spark Booster takes that saturated character and pushes it toward clean boost

Boss GEB-7 Bass Graphic EQ

Roland

tonal match
$119.33via Reverb

Comes later in the signal chain

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

Alternativessee all similar tone character →

T-Rex Bloody Mary

T Rex

59% similarity
$174.06via Reverb

Shared character: distortion, warm

Crazy Tube Circuits Orama

Crazy Tube Circuits

58% similarity
$289.14via Reverb

Shared character: compression, warm, vintage charm

TC Electronic Vintage Dual Distortion

TC Electronic

58% similarity
$80via Reverb

Shared character: distortion, warm, vintage charm

Crazy Tube Circuits Venus

Crazy Tube Circuits

56% similarity

Shared character: compression, warm, smooth

One Control Anodized Brown Distortion

One Control

55% similarity
$79via Reverb

Shared character: distortion, warm, classic rock

Catalinbread Silverkiss

Catalinbread

54% similarity

Shared character: smooth, warm, vintage charm

Tone City Black Tea

Tone City

54% similarity
$52.88via Reverb

Shared character: distortion, warm

Orange - Vintage Distortion

Orange

53% similarity

Shared character: smooth, distortion, warm

Dunlop MXR M78 Custom Modified OD, also known as the Bad Ass Modified OD

Dunlop

53% similarity

Shared character: compression, smooth, distortion

JHS 3 Series Distortion

JHS Pedals

52% similarity
$92.30via Reverb

Shared character: smooth, distortion, warm

Maxon D&S II Reissue

Maxon

52% similarity

Shared character: 1960s, distortion, vintage charm

Univox UD-50 Uni-Drive

pedal

52% similarity

Shared character: distortion, warm, vintage charm

See all alternatives to the Ross "Distorsion" (cheaper + boutique) →

Questions people ask

What are good alternatives to the Ross "Distorsion"?+

The closest matches in character are the T-Rex Bloody Mary, the Crazy Tube Circuits Orama, the TC Electronic Vintage Dual Distortion.

What pairs well with the Ross "Distorsion"?+

Strong matches from rig and tone-complementarity evidence: Peavey MiniMAX, Hiwatt Custom DR20H, Peavey MiniMAX II Bass Head — Peavey MiniMAX pushes a saturated tone toward tight.

Compare

Related searches