4ms Duo Distortor Rouge

Like most Fuzz boxes, it is pretty easy to tweak, but there are two stompswitches (on/off & channel switching), 6 pots (master, one tone & one sustain/fuzz per channel and a "Mud" knob) and two internal trim pots, so it can take some fiddling and time to zero in on exactly what you want. The reassuring thing is that this pedal has tons of unique tones and if you have a sound in your head [hopefully, it is not tinnitis :) ], you can probably get it out of this box.
The quality of the sounds is very high and relatively noise-free, except of course where noise is the whole idea and purpose.

I use lots of different guitars, but generally I use gibson style things with humbuckers including an Ibanez Artist, a Yamaha SBG3000 and an old SG jr. I play through an Hiwatt DR504 and an older Marshall Super Lead 100 thru two older Marshall 4x12. I have used the pedal with a Tokai Strat and Tele as well as some old wacky Kawais, Hofners and Ekos and The pedal doesn't seem to favor any of them. It has enhanced the distorted sound of most any guitar i have tried.
You can probably get almost all the standard fuzz sounds out of it (ie Mudhoney, Blue Cheer, Cynics, Swervedriver and on and on ...) and great od sounds as well (TS-808 on PCP might describe the red channel)
It has lots of bottom and plenty of sizzle also.

These things are built real well with high quality components, but i never play anywhere without some sort of backup. Thus far, i have had no problems with the pedal.

I dealt directly with Dan Green who designs, builds and sells the pedals although i understand that Pedalman is now the distributor of Dan's standard line of pedals.
Dan was very helpful and sounds like he will pretty much try to build anything you can dream up. I just emailed back and forth with him until we determined the best custom version of the Duo for what i needed.
I don't really think i could have asked for better customer service. Hopefully as 3MS gets bigger ( as it likely will), Dan will be able to continue this level of service.

I would definitely purchase the Duo again. It is extremely useful, especially for recording.
To let you know where i am coming from i can tell you that I love music of all sorts. The only stuff i don't really dig is bad Hair-farming Cock-Rock Metal and Classical. I love Blues, Country Blues, Soul (esp. Motown!!), Rock, Punk, Metal, Garage-Retro... You name it I dig it. I play (rarely nowadays w/ the arrival of my son Lukas) in a just-for-laughs-and-beer Band called Nasty Phlegm Build-up. The Idea originally was to only cover only Stiff Little Fingers songs and call ourselves Rigid digits, but We worked about 6 SLF tunes and started branching out. We cover the Damned (neatneatneat), Adverts (gary Gilmores Eyes), The Circle Jerks (Coup d'etat), Misfits (Where eagles dare) and whatever else comes to mind. We try to play incredibly loud and as fast as we possibly can (it is a great way to blow off steam so you don't end up going postal some day).
In the band, i usually just use the Duo to boost the same standard old school punk rock sound for solos. The Duo is quite useful for overdrive purposes on the red channel with the Sustain knob around 12:00. It is great for hitting the front end of the super lead for a crunchier rhythm sound or a boosted lead sound. If you crank the sustain knob full on it behaves like a thinner fuzz (Maestro, Ibanez Overdrive etc.)
The Duo's green channel compares favourably to most fuzzes i have owned (i have had most), but the green channel IMHO seems to be a cross pollination of the Foxx Tone Machine, the Big Muff and a Roland BEEBAA. It isn't a clone by any length, but it can sound similar to those boxes. I love the fuzz sounds for recording. Dan added what he calls a "mud" knob to mine. It is wicked. Essentially, at lower gain settings of Green channel and all settings of Red channel, turning the mud knob slightly clockwise punchs up the gain slightly. Turning further clockwise gives the effect of a dying battery (which is very cool) until the sound really starts to crap out. On the green fuzz channel, a similar thing happens but at higher gain settings the sound starts to swell (ie the harder you hit the strings, the less sound comes out at first, then the sound swells in). If you tweak it carefully, you can almost get some backwards tape swell effects.
There isn't alot that i don't like about the pedal. The stompswitches seem a little weaker than you typical ones but i haven't broke one yet. I understand that Dan uses these switches because the heavy duty ones would drive up the cost of the pedals too high for his liking. Also, I wish i had of got Dan to add an extra Master volume knob so i could match levels between green and red channels
Personally, I think the idea of using junction boxes for the pedals is excellent, but any one who buys one of Dan's pedals shouldn't really expect to get a glossy looking DOD or Boss style pedal. If you care more about the sound than the look you will dig the Duo.
Regardless of Musical style, Most players would probably find a use for the Duo. Considering the price, I don't think you can lose. Great big bang for your Buck!!!!

Anybody should be able to use an effect pedal semi effectively. Basically just winding knobs on this unit until you like the sound, makes it successful

This unit is noisy on the Green channel(when fully gained) but it;s SUPER quiet at the Red fuzz stage. There is hardly a bad spot in the effect on either channel. They have a nice spectrum of length in the sounds. The distortions and sustain are different from each other and all the better for it. two good sounds.

Housed in electrical boxes and has regular electronics switches. so far so good

Great customer support. you can call and ask questions or order

i wouldnt buy this unit again(because it's two in one) but i would buy a single distorting unit made by Dan Green in a monments notice. I'd buy this unit again for others or to replace lost or stolen one i love the sounds possibilities when used with a two channel amp. I've compared it to everything. Bang for buck and originality won over. I wish it has an AC transformer or true 9volt input(i use an adaptor hooked to the battery terminals.

quite easy to use, lots of controls for all parameters

very good quality sounds, and good "thru" sound too, not too much coloration

i worry a LITTLE about the footswitches, but i'm REALLY hard on these things....i would use it on a gig no problem (already am!)

dan is the GREATEST, he will do ANY sort of modification you want or need. top rating here!

3Ms effects....you may have checked out their website at: http://homepage.interaccess.com/~green/3ms/
or you may have read something about them on the newsgroups. custom handmade effects bu dan green at unbelievable prices. well, i decided to take the plunge and order a few of the interesting units, and here's my full report. i have used the pedals on both studio sessions and live doing gigs with my band down here in good ol' florida.
first impressions: they are quite unusual looking, i always have people coming up to ask "what the heck are those things?". dan has housed his effects in electric junction boxes, and they plain look weird at first. i have mixed emotions about these, but i know they keep the prices down to the end user. they are painted in various colors. the parts used are of high quality, but the stomp switches seem a bit delicate. i haven't broken one yet though.
i have tested and used the duo distortor, the tremelus lune, the fuzz jade, and the phaser fleur so far. my fave is the duo distortor pedal, it combines the fuzz jade and the distortion granite into one pedal. it's kind of like having a tube screamer and a fuzzface in one pedal, pretty cool. i REALLY like the fuzz, it reminds me of how fat and dynamic my FOXX tone machine is-and that's no small compliment! i can leave my precious tone machine at home and take the duo to gigs now instead and not have to worry about my drunken bass player stomping on it or someone spilling beer on it from the dancefloor. YES! the distortion granite side of the duo (both pedals are avaliable as separate units) is very much like a tube csreamer, but with a LOT more gain, and a bit more "bite", or top end. i really like using mine with a "real" tube screamer, the combination is really cool. i love having both pedals in one box, and for only $95, it's pretty cool. dan has also recently added a "rectifer" control, that adds a bit of "sag" to the signal like a tube recitifer does, and i use a little of that too. both of these pedals, or the combo, are winners!
the tremelus lune is wonderful! mine has five knobs, you can control all sorts of stuff. i like mine VERY much, it does a great chop, or it can be as smooth as silk. there are two speed controls, rough and fine, and these can go from achingly slow to hyperactively fast. and the cool little green light pulses in tempo with the tremelo, nice touch! this is only a $50 pedal, and worth every penny. this one is becoming part of my "rig" for sure!
the phaseur fleur is a great pedal, dan even put in a few extra mods for me, like a "ring" control to add in some ring modulation effects...but my partner saw this when i opened the box, and he TOOK IT! i will report on this pedal as soon as i can pry it from his hands, he always steals all my cool effects pedals so he can process drum loops, voices, ambient sounds, etc. i'm not sure if the phaser fleur will replace my vintage small stone, but it has five knobs of control as compared to the lone "rate" knob on my small stone, and that's a plus for a control freak like me!
all in all, you owe it to yourself to check out these pedals. they are nothing like factory made BOSS or DOD pedals, so don't expect fancy packaging all all that nonsense...but they do indeed sound GOOD, and are different. i know that there won't be 10 other guitarists around here with the same pedals i use, getting the same tones. support your custom effects makers out there, they can make a big difference in your sound! :-) bobby devito----LVX NOVA http://www.sar.usf.edu/~devito