Arion Stereo Distortion SDI-1

Heavy distortion with excellent control over tone and intensity are the strengths of the SDI-1. A low cost, very versatile effect.

Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price: $54.00

Arion

Submitted by andy from Lowell, MA (10 points) on Oct 11, 2005
cheap, gratifying distortion. very feedback-y...can get rather uncontrollable sometimes. having a different channel on your mixer for both direct and soft can give some cool differences and make other pedals sound weirdly different. the main draw does seem to be the dual outputs, but really this is nothing more than a standard distortion. casing is lightweight plastic, not the most durable, but at least it has no paint to worry about chipping. the battery connection is shit, mine broke after a while just trying to take the battery off, so i either use an adapter i have lying around or exclude it completely. still, worth 20 bucks for sure.
Good Points: -cheap -pretty brutal for a one-trick pony -dual outs
Bad Points: -flimsy construction -not special whatsoever (but still not "bad")
Price Paid: US$0.00
Purchased At: gift
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Submitted by Bill from Richmond, VA (4 points) on Jul 4, 2004
I tried this because I saw one cheap and it had two outputs and ended up using it a few years. Mainstream use was a way to kind of sneak effects through a distorted amp, by putting delay effects on the distortion and mixing it back in on the dry signal, it's kept from overwhelming the dry signal, and the mix (seperate) can go from stright thru to white noise. The thinness of the distortion actually complements that use. The distortion itself grew on me: plastic, synthetic, but smooth as butter and great for noodling in a haze of reverb. And of course distortion and treble is generated, you know what to do with that. (P.S. delete this review if it's too informative.)
Good Points: An extra trick is the outputs are out of phase with each other. Adding these together (dry, no effects between in this case) can produce a harshified sound when combined with additional distortion sources, including running into amp distortion.
Bad Points: Mine is now useless unless I replace the jacks or rehouse it, worn out.
Price Paid: US$20.00
Purchased At: forgot
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Submitted by nkondi from Portland, OR (610 points) on Jul 17, 2003
standard run of the mill distortion. comparable to a dod supra, but not as harsh. the selling point on this guy is that it has stereo outs, and a direct soft switch which works well for semi-mutes.
Good Points: can start a feedback loop. this thing is deffinately a step up from rogue or rocktek...
Bad Points: not much, even though this thing isnt terribly exciting.
Price Paid: US$20.00
Purchased At: ebay
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