The Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 is a Tone City distortion pedal, currently around $88.80. Close alternatives include the Source Audio L.A. Lady and the MXR Super Badass Distortion. It pairs well with the Fender Super Reverb and the Milkman Sound Creamer 20W Combo.
Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31
Tone City · pedal
The Tone City TC-T31 Model B is a budget US-style high-gain distortion inspired by a Mesa/Boogie Rectifier, the hottest-voiced pedal in Tone City's range. A Vintage/Modern mode switch changes its character substantially: Vintage gives a crispy, tight crunch building into the saturated high gain of the 1980s and early '90s, while Modern scoops the mids further and lets the low end bloom for the thick, chunky rhythm tone heard on countless '90s and 2000s metal records. A three-band EQ gives real control over the voicing, and a boost switch adds volume and saturation for lead work. It spans tasteful crunch to fully saturated modern metal, though reviewers note it does not fully match a real valve preamp. True bypass, 40mA draw, requires a 9V DC supply and will not run on a battery.
What stands out
“The Tone City TC-T31 Model B is a budget US-style high-gain distortion inspired by a Mesa/Boogie Rectifier, the hottest-voiced pedal in Tone City's range”
— from the listing
“Build quality is adequate for the price”
— from the community notes
“It spans tasteful crunch to fully saturated modern metal, though reviewers note it does”
— from the listing
“A Vintage/Modern mode switch changes its character substantially: Vintage gives a crispy, tight crunch building into the saturated high gain of the 1980s and early '90s, while Modern scoops the mids further and lets the low end bloom for th…”
— from the listing
“A three-band EQ gives real control over the voicing, and a boost switch adds volume and saturation for lead work”
— from the listing
Trade-offs
“The Model B delivers Fender Blackface-inspired character in Tone City's compact budget format”
— from the reviews
- distortion
- crunch
- low end
- high gain
- eq
- modern
- bloom
- metal
Good for
- Busking
- Live
Price updated Oct 25, 2026
Genres the Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 is commonly used in
- Metal
- Hard Rock
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag. - Heavy Metal
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag. - Death Metal
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag. - Christian Rock
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag. - Djent
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag.
Amps that pair well with the Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31
Fender Super Reverb
amplifier
36% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
Stack Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 on top and a scooped tone tightens toward mid-forward
Comes later in the signal chain
Milkman Sound Creamer 20W Combo
Milkman Sound
35% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
The Creamer's sweet, roots-voiced breakup gives the Model B's high-gain crunch a warm amp platform to push into.
Comes later in the signal chain
Fender Dual Showman Reverb
amplifier
34% matchThe Model B's modern, EQ'd crunch pushes the Dual Showman's own warm tube headroom into real drive.
Comes later in the signal chain
Fender Hot Rod Series Blues Junior 15W 1x12 Tube Guitar
amplifier
34% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
The Model B's modern, high-gain crunch pushes the Blues Junior's natural, balanced breakup further.
Comes later in the signal chain
Bruno Cowtipper 45
Bruno
32% matchPush the Cowtipper 45's roots-y blues breakup with the Model B's modern, high-gain crunch and the two compound fast.
Comes later in the signal chain
Fender Pro Junior III 15-Watt 1x10 Guitar Combo Amp
Fender
28% matchRun Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 into that high headroom platform and it finally leans toward mid-forward
Comes later in the signal chain
Magnatone Varsity Reverb (Spanish Mission)
Magnatone
28% matchTone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 leans this high headroom tone toward mid-forward, which it doesn't make on its own
Comes later in the signal chain
Fender Blues DeVille
amplifier
27% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 pushes a scooped tone toward mid-forward
Comes later in the signal chain
See all 42 amps that pair with the Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 →
Pedals that stack with the Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31
Soldano SLO
Soldano
25% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
Soldano SLO leans toward high gain, and that's a real, usable character to pair with
Comes later in the signal chain
Klon Centaur
Klon
25% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
Klon Centaur's own mid-forward character is the real reason this is worth trying
Comes earlier in the signal chain
MXR Dyna Comp
MXR
21% matchfills a frequency gapFills in a frequency range the other side doesn't cover, instead of piling more onto what's already there. (scooped → mid-forward)
MXR Dyna Comp leans toward bright, and that's a real, usable character to pair with
Comes earlier in the signal chain
Orange Series Phaser
Orange
18% matchsits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor.
Orange Series Phaser's mid-forward voice goes after Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 in the signal chain — it's not there to compete with Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31's own crunchy character
Comes later in the signal chain
MXR Analog Delay
MXR
11% matchsits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor.
Keep Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31's crunchy voice out front: MXR Analog Delay goes after Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 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
Catalinbread Epoch-Set
Catalinbread
11% matchsits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor.
The Model B's modern, high-gain crunch gives the Epoch-Set's tape echo a dense signal to work with. — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)
Comes later in the signal chain
MXR CAE Wah
MXR
tonal matchComes earlier in the signal chain
MXR CAE Wah goes in front of Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 — a wah tracks picking dynamics best on the raw signal
J. Rockett The Dude V2
J Rockett
tonal matchComes earlier in the signal chain
Put J. Rockett The Dude V2 in front of Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31
Cheaper alternatives
Fender Hammertone Metal
Fender
57% similarityShared character: metal, true bypass, distortion
Ibanez CD5 Cyberdrive
Ibanez
53% similarityShared character: chunky, voicing, metal
Sonicake MiniLane Shark Classic Crunch Distortion
Sonicake
51% similarityShared character: metal, crunch, distortion
Fender Hammertone Overdrive
Fender
50% similarityShared character: voicing, distortion, high gain settings
Fulltone Fulldrive 2 MOSFET
Fulltone
95% similaritysimilar tone character
Boss SD-1 Super OverDrive
Boss
94% similaritysimilar tone character
Boutique & premium upgrades
Airis Effects SPEC-Defier
Airis Effects
55% similarityShared character: chunky, thickness, crunch
Beetronics Fatbee JFET Overdrive
Beetronics
54% similarityShared character: high gain settings, crunch
Black Country Customs Monolith
Black Country Customs
54% similarityShared character: metal, crunch, distortion
Free The Tone IF-1D
Free The Tone
53% similarityShared character: thickness, crunch, distortion
Mesa Boogie Dynaplex Crunch
Mesa Boogie
52% similarityShared character: crunch
Alexander Pedals Jubilee Silver Overdrive
Alexander Pedals
51% similarityShared character: crunch
Similar charactersee all similar tone character →
Source Audio L.A. Lady
Source Audio
64% similarityShared character: chunky, high gain settings, crunch
MXR Super Badass Distortion
MXR
57% similarityShared character: voicing, thickness, crunch
JHS Charlie Brown
JHS Pedals
55% similarityShared character: chunky, voicing, thickness
Wampler Belle
Wampler
53% similarityShared character: voicing, crunch, distortion
Marshall Guv'nor
Marshall
52% similarityShared character: voicing, thickness, crunch
Subdecay Variac
Subdecay
52% similaritySimilar role and voicing
See all alternatives to the Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 (cheaper + boutique) →
Questions people ask
What are good alternatives to the Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31?+
The closest matches in character are the Source Audio L.A. Lady, the MXR Super Badass Distortion, the JHS Charlie Brown. Budget picks: Fender Hammertone Metal, Ibanez CD5 Cyberdrive, Sonicake MiniLane Shark Classic Crunch Distortion. Boutique upgrades: Airis Effects SPEC-Defier, Beetronics Fatbee JFET Overdrive, Black Country Customs Monolith.
What pairs well with the Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31?+
Strong matches from rig and tone-complementarity evidence: Fender Super Reverb, Milkman Sound Creamer 20W Combo, Fender Dual Showman Reverb — Stack Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 on top and a scooped tone tightens toward mid-forward.
How much does the Tone City Model B Distortion TC-T31 cost?+
Around $88.80 (live listing price, updated Oct 25, 2026).