Danelectro DJ-1 Pastrami Mini Overdrive

Ok...2 knobs...level & drive...how hard is that?...get the amount of drive you want and then either optimise your level or boost it...i guess you could cut it if you want, but that is tonally degredating

I use this to boost the gain on my Marshall VS65R. I use this amp as my rhythm amp (lead is a Peavey Classic 30) and I only use the overdrive channel because I don't use pristine clean...just drop the gain down on the drive channel for semi-clean/lightly overdriven and then kick in the pastrami crunchy rhythm tones and power chords. This works well enough in that it boosts the gain just a little, not too much and doesn't sound like crap as long as the gain on the pedal is below 12 o'clock. The cool thing is that, since this pedal is a little bright (compared to boss) it keeps the marshall from being muddy with the gain boost. If I need any more gain than the pedal at 12 o'clock then I boost it from the amp to keep the tone smooth and decent cause this pedal will sound like crap at higher gain levels. So, 9 for gain boosting (for me anyway)-6 for anything any gainier than that.

Yeah...its plastic...I will only use soft velvit gloves on my hands and press the footswitch with my index finger. Well...not likely in a gigging situation, I think as long as I don't actually stomp on it I will be ok...I don't really need a backup because I can always bust out the channel switcher and use that...I just hate the pristiness of the clean channel...but I can live with it if I had to.

Right...don't know, don't care

Playing 8 1/2 years, classic rock and blues based rock. This gets me the crunch rhythm tones that I need for most of the stuff on the set list without making the tone crappy thin or muddy, so it works for me...plus...I only paid $20, I can live with that. Replaced? like I said I can live without it, but I might get it again seeing as its cheap.

It has two knobs and a footswitch... ummm... pretty easy to figure out

First, I paid a measely, lousy $10.00 for this thing "used" it still had the "Editors Pick" label from GP on it, it looked like it was used maybe once...its not all that noisy, I use it in front of my Fender Champ 12 tube amp, with a frankenstein style tele with a vintage noiseless bridge pup and a texas spec. rythym pup, its a fuzz box / Semi-clean boost pedal as far as I am concerned. Fuzz tones are hard edged and mid-rangey, and this I like alot. To my ears, its Jimmy Page-ish all the way. As a boost (with little drive added) its well suited to use with my Champ, like a third channel almost. At one time I owned a Vox Cambridge 15, and for reasons I cannot explain, This pedal warmed up the Hybrid Vox very nicely when used as a "clean Boost" I am partial to this pedal, At times it can sound harsh and edgy, but again, I like that, you may not.

Its plastic, but its heavy plastic and all things considered, fairly well built and solid... for living room use that is.. the the controls are tiny, and the foot switch is suspect... My plan is to (someday...) gut it and stick it in a more suitable ie. rugged housing, or i could just go buy a couple more of them and keep them as backups.. Hell for $10 or even $20 apeice who cares.

? dont know

Hell its a $10 pedal, cant think of a better or cooler gizmo for that much... I happen to like it alot, If i gigged (I dont) I would either buy a backup or rehouse it and upgrade the footswitch. I think at this point it may become a keeper and a permenant part of "my tone" I play a bit of everything from Zep to the replacements and everything between. for some tones its not the tool for others it is... I wont part with mine... could become a "Pawn Shop Prize in ten years..." Try it, you may like it and as I have stated over and over its CHEAP!

Actually, folks, this thing requires a little fiddling to get it to sound good, all over my rig. Of course, the pedal itself is only two knobs. If you can't figure out two knobs, you are at least one knob...

I use an Epiphone Special with PAF style humbuckers into a Fish N Chips, then into a Milkshake set low to emulate something between a reverb and a tremolo, and then into a Pastrami. Then I send it all through a Beringer Firebird 15 Watt retro-style amp.
If you play with all of your knobs, you will discover that the Pastrami Overdrive is the absolute God's truth COOLEST overdrive you could possibly have a la "Spirit in the Sky". Oh, man, does this thing kick some lovely juices into my joints. I may get evicted over it, but darnit it's so freaking cool! Use your Fish N Chips to pump up your tremolo and bass and cut out some middle, then give it just a hint of swelling with the chorus. Then crank up your guitar to about six or seven. Then keep your amp sound crisp and clean (because the Pastrami will handle all the dirty). Play your clean, crisp chords, then during your heavy riffs, kick your sound into the killzone with the Pastrami. Man, what a great sound. It is a dead solid "Spirit in the Sky", and I was born to be wild, folks.

Yes, it is plastic. So don't jump on it, punky. Of course, the jumpers probably are going for something less hipcat, and more slipknot. So don't jump on your Licorice either, kiddies. Still, it ain't broke yet...

Haven't dealt with them.

I call what I play neo-retro. I don't necessarily dress in bowling shirts and wear Buddy Holly glasses, but I like to connect with the clean sounds and powerful playing of the late sixties, and early seventies. Something about that period was so pure, and wonderful. I am also very poor, and cannot afford vintage equipment. Thus, I play Danelectro pedals, and dig them, daddio. Man, if you want the real thing, and not the eighties hair band, wanking wunderkinds, but the real God's Socks Goodness, this is the pedal for you. And what a price! I get the best pedal I can get for my sound, and I get it so cheap! I feel like I'm stealing beauty, without having to sit through that long movie again!

Two knobs, Level and Overdrive. Easy to get sounds from it.

This baby runs almost on any guitar and amps, I compared it with a Boss Super Overdrive and I think this pastrami thing its way much better. It has a brighter sound, and you can set it up quickly than the other. Brighter sound is not always the best but the Boss was too warm and dark for me.

This is maybe the best pedal made by Danelectro, and maybe it will become a classic, It is has a lots of uses, first you get warm sounds wich open chords have good sounds, blues and funky solos are great too. And with the full settings you get a fuzz box, a little shy but a decent fuzz. Some classic rock I get from it.

I use this pedal with songs with open chords, I try not use it for heavy stuff or punk, it doesn't work for it, it's only an overdrive pedal. If you think that you will get a distortion from this pedal you will be dissapointed.

It's a 10, it makes me play more inspired and confident. It does it job well on stage, zero noise, zero headaches. Try to use it with choruses, reverbs and delays, it gets much better. However it is still great working alone.

This is the "but" part. It's plastic, and I had it repaired two times. I would buy another if it breaks on gigs.

I live far from the USA, they wont assist me

Great, for everything that requires overdrive. I would buy another and would kick ass if it's stolen, it has a wide range of overdrive sounds, and it works perfectly for me.

Listen to it live in www.geocities.com/billysefue

I have a very brainless dog who could probably operate it.

At first I like d it, but then realised it's quite crap. Its just fuzz with no tone, rather like my old squire amp that came with first guitar. Not nice. On lower overdrive levels its quite good for blues but you can't get a decent rock n roll sound.

Seems quite tough, but its plastic so i dunno.

I'm a student, and it was cheap, so I bought! Thing is, with guitars, amps, and fx pedals, you get what you pay for. A good pedal for a beginner, but for not much more you can get a much juicier RAT pedal, which I plan to purchase soon.

After doing some research on the Internet to find out how to get "that sound" (the dirty Chicago Blues sound) out of my harmonica/condenser/solid state amp setup, I found out I could go two ways: a real tube mic preamp or its solid state counterpart. The tube mic preamps are expensive for what they do and I don't need studio quality, so I went the other route. As it turns out, the non-linear characteristics of diodes/leds in the feedback loop of an op-amp (low-voltage, solid-state) spectrally produce the sound of an overdriven preamp tube in the 12A*7 family. Circuits for the Tube Screamer, Blues Breaker and others abound on the 'Net. The Danelectro Pastrami Overdrive falls into this class of circuit. Many published schematics show germanium or silicon diodes used to reproduce the sound, but also suggest that LEDs (a specialty diode that has a higher forward voltage drop and produces visible light) can be used. While I didn't take my Pastrami apart, I've been able to determine (by the led lighting behind the plastic case when this unit is driven) that it probably uses a hybrid approach - signal diodes and leds in combination. This design approach tends to spice up the overdrive and when used in combination with a tie-clip condenser mic and driven into my solid-state Behringer KX-1200 keyboard amp is hard to tell this from the real McCoy!

This is not a metal distortion unit so if that's what you want check out some of the other effects by Danelectro such as the Black Coffee, T-Bone or Grilled Cheese. The Pastrami is all about simulating overdriven tube distortion and it does this very well. Simply dial in the amount of drive using the overdrive control, and set the output level with the "Level" control. It doesn't get much easier than this. Although the unit came with a "suggested settings" sheet, if you know why you are buying this unit, you'll control it beyond the "starter" position.

The only way I could get more authentic with the sound is a bullet mic which typified the '40s and '50s Chicago Blues sound, and pipe it into a Twin Reverb. I've got a bullet coming in the mail thanks to a vintage mic collector on eBay, but why bother with the Twin? I've got an amp and setup now that works great.

As I mentioned, this is a simulation of tube overdrive and it does it in probably the best way you can with a solid state device. There is no audible hiss characteristic of op-amp and other solid-state effects, even with high volume settings. I'm a keyboard and harmonica player and getting that Paul Butterfield or Little Walter sound is a piece of cake. This is the most cost-effective effect that I need to get the sound I want.

As I just bought it, I don't know about reliability. Numerous complaints in this department abound, but Danelectro has been providing effects, amplification, and pickups to the music industry since 1947. These are inexpensive effects! You won't find a better bang for your buck. These are not for "stompers", I will be switching mine by hand when it's sitting on top of my amp. The case is plastic, but Danelectro is shipping these with a "knob guard" which is removable, to prevent "foot damage". I'd feel comfortable using it on a gig without a backup, but for $20 (list $29.99), why not have a backup, just in case? I'll rate this an 8 because of the "no experience" factor.

I have no input for this area, as mine worked fine out of the box, and it came with a battery included - not bad for a company who is already hitting rock-bottom in the price-point department. Why not throw in a battery to get you started? It makes great business sense.

I have no complaints with this unit. I tried out one in the store with my one of my blues harps, my mic and one of the store's amps with all the controls set flat. I've got tube overdrive sound out of a solid-state setup for $20. I was going to build my own from plans I found on the Internet, being an electronic/computer engineer as a career, but the price of this unit was so low, I couldn't have built it for less. My time to buy components, assemble, test, etc. just didn't make sense if I could buy it ready to use for the $20 I spent. When I can cough up another $20, I'll get a backup just to insure I can get "that sound", when I need it. 'Nuff said.

Easiest thing in the world. There are 2 knobs, one adjusts the gain and the other one does nothing. You just press the button and thats it, you can play it straight out of the box without touching it.

If you want total fuzz, where the audience doesn't know what you're playing this is for you. Turning the knobs changes the volume, but not the sound. So you get mute or incredibly loud. However, if you like fuzz and your into playing toneless noise then this will be the greatest pedal ever for you.

If you step on the pedal it turns to dust. It's made of plastic so it takes no punishment at all. however, I'm sure the circuits are very nice. Never gig with this thing, you'll be so very sorry.

Never talked to danelectro

The horror....thr horror.....

i give this pedal a 10 cuz its totally simple only 2 knobs and a button

i use this discontinued version of the squier stagemaster which sounds awsome with it and an ibanez gio but i dont like the way they sound together and i run this all through a marshall mg15ms (very cool amp)

i got this pedal for christmas and by new years it wasnt working it was like one day it worked then the next it stoped hasnt worked since but so im told danelectro is very reliable with customer service so i sent it back and got a complet new pedal it was some sort of a mal function but i would definatly have a back up on stage with me

i heard that danelectro is awsome with their costumer support the people are very easy to talk to

i play punk so the overdrive gives it a good distortion punch but not over powering great soundive been playing for three years i also own a boss overdrive belive me i prefer the danelectro the boos is to over powering

Pretty easy - Drive and Level. Didn't come with a manual, but there are some suggested settings on the Danelectro website.

I'm using this with a Gibson Les Paul Gem Series, '78 Fender Strat, and Jimi Hendrix Strat through a Peavey Delta Blues. I really only use this as a clean boost. It works great for me. I would recommend it to other tube amp users. I have used it like a normal distortion, though, but found that it starts to sound like more like a cheap stomp box when you turn up the gain. I'll give it an 8 because it gives me the sound I'm going for when I use it with my amp.

Well, it's never given me any trouble, but it doesn't look too reliable to me. Wish it had a metal case, but I trust it enough to use without a backup.

Never dealt with them, although they have a pretty helpful web site.

I've been playing or around 4 years and play classic rock and blues. I use my amp's tube overdrive (Peavey Delta Blues, check out my review), so I only use this pedal as as clean boost. I think it is a bit more harsh than a tubescreamer, but I think for the money, this is a fantastic value.

2 knobs...duh

This is perfect for what is supposed to do. Its not meant for a triple rectifier sound, but a chunky fat overdrive. Its sounds like a cheap fuzz box when overdrive is put past 2'o clock

Its small and flimsy but i don't stomp on it, you cant its too small. Good as a boost for solo's but danelectro could've added more protection, I don't use back ups at gigs.

Their website kinda sucks but haven't dealt with them.

I use my metal zone for the sound I usually want, but this is great for a fat and chunky overdrive that just adds some personality to your guitar

2 knobs:level and overdrive. Use the level to match your signal when the overdrive is off and when its on. (overall volume, not overdrive). Use the overdrive knob to add more or less overdrive...duh

For what it is, it actually sounds pretty good. I was expecting a more distorted sound, so I was let down at first. I know it says overdrive, but I can hope cant I? After giving it a second try and listening to it with an open mind, I was impressed. With the o.d.knob 1/2 way or a little more, it does a damn good "overdriven amp sound", but past that level it turns to fuzz. The fuzz-side of the pedal is great for that beatles/revolution or chuck berry/jonny b. good sound. I use it with a les paul copy going straight to a 100 watt stereo. (i recently lost ALL my gear, and am starting from scratch. Dont expect monster metal, but if you want a good o.d., then check this out. Not noisy at all. And your origanal signal really comes through, it does not muddy up your tone. I'm guessing with sounds like that, it probably sounds pretty damn good as a second o.d. used for solo boost.

I dont slam my stuff around, so I trust it. It also came with a see-thru plastic case to fit over it to protect the knobs. I'd go gigging but since I play rock I'd take some kinda backup no matter what pedal i had

Dano is the mother of all gentlemen when it comes to customer service. I've sent them a different mini-and got it back 3 weeks later (a new one)

It sounds great for overdrive, just don't go expecting Pantera or something heavy. It's helped me cause now I'm jammin on older stuff (60's & 70's) and it's helped broaden my musical vocabulary. If I had metal-dist, I'd just be wailing on the same shit I've been playin all my life

Danelectros are fairly easy,knobs are nice to turn and the button is cheap feeling in a good way

i use Session Strat > Boss MT-2 > Dan Pastrami > Rocktek EQ-7 > Boss NS - 2 > DOD FX76 > Crate Limo Amp. My band plays punk - This is an essential pedal to my songs. Lemme show you how a song goes...

starts with guitar doing power chords with MT-2
bass plays simple riffs with an EQ
then goes into vocals, wich is when i tone down to Pastrami turning MT-2 off.
this is the "breakdown" that i play to compliment my backing vocals.
When we get into chorus, MT - 2 switches on Pastrami Off
I play more power chords and then riffs.
Near the middle of the song is when the pastrami really Shines.
I play solo with bass, we both play into same 2-channel amp trough channel switcher and the pastrami. I play call-and-answer chords with my bassist constantly switching channels. This works out well, and because the overdrive is so versitile, the overdriven guitar/bass solo
is purley magnificent and will surley get us somewhere in this business. The song ends with a MT-2 BreakUp and the bassist just slaps his strings until its over.
I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this unit as it is my workhorse to my band and worth every pennie spent(wich isnt much). Works well with chorus wich i use in only one song (try a milkshake). Theres a reason why this pedal won many awards such as the Guitar Player:Editor's Picks

Danelectro's mini's arent very dependable. Apparently Danelectro doesnt think their pedals will be played by punks, they would of made them a metal or at least diecast.
They're made of plastic and you cant jump on one - its not really because of its casing, its the size, try landing on one of these minis.... slip!
As for gigs - we take 3(total) with us as backup. Very light, good for travel, bad for setup when it moves around to much.

The people at Danelectro are nice and gave me ALOT of product information during my time as an ametuer punk looking for the right distortion. Gotta give em a 9 for their horrible website.

This pedal is ideal for punk. If your a starting guitarist (or bassist) who wants to play punk but have no money for those expensive tube amps or mxr's. Danelectro offers all you need for any type of music.

I don't remember if it had a manual or not, but it doesn't matter, because it's as simple as a pedal gets.

I have played a 67 Guild X175 Archtop, Fender Strat with a Dimarzio Fast Track 2 pickup in the neck, an electric/acoustic Yamaha, and a great new Jay Turser Custom Pro SG(this deserves a review of it's own). For $20 this little pedal is awesome. I own a Peavey Ultra 212 combo, and at clubs I've played it through some Marshall stacks. This pedal definitely enters the fuzz realm when you crank the overdrive knob. It isn't very noisy either. One night after a band practice I accidentally kicked it and knocked off the volume knob. Luckily it didn't even snap off the inner knob arm(whatever it's called) all I had to do was put the outer casing back on. It does a good hard rock sound, and a great early punk/hardcore sound as another reviewer mentioned.

I own a Metal Zone but it doesn't fit the songs that I pay with my band right now. The Pastrami is a cheap effective pedal. I've gigged with it about a dozen times and I've been using for 5 months steady. I will probably get another as a backup since it's so inexpensive. But yes I've used it without a backup. It's the only thing I've brought to gigs so far as well as band practice.

Never had to.

If this were broken, lost or stolen you're damn right I'd buy another. At $20, why not? It's the only pedal in my signal chain at this point, though that will change shortly. Obviously it would be nice if it wasn't constructed with a plastic casing, but for $20 something has to give.

Easy as pie.

I look for an overdrive/boost pedal to add a very smooth, creamy low level distortion to the input signal. Not crunch or fuzz, let alone metal-land. This is NOT an easy task for a pedal to achieve ... and very, very, very few overdrives have pleased my old ears. My verdict - *IF* you feed this pedal with a low gain pickup(s) (single coil) you can achieve a decent overdrive boost with the pedal's "overdrive" knob set between zero (7 o'clock) and maybe 8 o'clock, with the appropriate amount of "level" knob dialed in to avoid clipping. In that case, it works quite well. Other than that, this is a fuzzy crunch box and not an overdrive/boost. 'Nuff said.

Not to be used as a stomp box, should be used as a set-and-forget pedal. I'd never gig without pedal backups.

Whatever.

Playing fretted instruments since '55 - gigged out for 11 years - use Strats and Teles and old tube amps - this pedal is useful as a true overdrive/boost ONLY under certain conditions (read above), and when those conditions are met it'll do the job.

This is so simple! Two knobs: level & overdrive. One on/off button. Small unit!

This pedal gets a pretty decent sound. When I bought it, I was impressed with how such a small and inexpensive pedal could work so well. I've noticed very little excess noise coming from the unit.

The biggest problem I've had is that the level is very sensitive. I rarely turn the level knob very far (only 9 o'clock or so). The overdrive is kept in the opposite direction (3:00 or so). With the overdrive down and level up, it works nicely as a boost. The guitar volume and strength of your playing greatly effects the sound that comes out of the pedal (though I haven't tried it with a compressor yet). I'm no pro on tube amps, but to my ear, it sounds like a pretty decent simulation of overdriven tubes.

I've been able to pull everything from a hot boost, to warm distortion, to tight fuzz. However, if you want harmonics, they're not going to be there. The sound is warmer and cleaner/nicer than that of the Big Muff or Rat.

I use a Mexican-made Fender Stratocaster and a Peavey KB-80 Keyboard amp. The other effects I use vary (DOD FX85 Harmonic Enhancer, Dano PB&J Delay, Dano BLT Slap Echo, Dano Chicken Salad Vibrato). I haven't yet used it in conjunction with any other distortion pedal (I also own a Big Muff (Russian) and a Rat2).

I've used it with a Fender Jazz Bass and it's worked pretty decently. I haven't used it in any live settings yet, so I don't know how well it'll work in a group.

Also, I've used it mainly with a 9V battery and that's lasted quite awhile!

Pretty dependable. Haven't had a problems with it yet. I haven't read all the reviews on this, but I've never heard of one breaking. The plastic is pretty thick. I wouldn't play baseball with it or anything like that. Maybe shuffleboard...

I e-mailed them with a question once and never heard back. Haven't had any urgent concerns requiring customer support.

I play a lot of my own original work (modern rock, blues, etc.) as well as covers of Pearl Jam, Pink Floyd, Smashing Pumpkins, and other similar artists. I've been playing 5 or 6 years.

With as inexpensive as it is, if it were lost or stolen, I'd just buy another. However, my ownership of other fairly reliable distortions makes it sort of an extra. It's small and light, so that makes it easy to tote around (I've carried it in the pocket of my flannel shirt).

I love that this inexpensive pedal sounds so good and is so versatile, but I hate that the level is so sensitive! I haven't used it in any groups, so in a practice setting, it can make things pretty loud!

As I said earlier, it has a fairly nice/clean sound with few harmonics. If you want a nastier sound, with harmonics, and good fuzz at a low volume, try the classics like the ElectroHarmonix Big Muff, ProCo Rat, etc.

Not much else to say. As inexpensive as it is, it can't hurt anyone to give it a try!

Very very simple to use... only a couple nobs.

I am playing a B.C. Rich Platinum series Warlock through a Peavey Envoy 110. This pedal sounds incredible on the clean setting on my amp... but when I play with any distortion at all on my amp all it does is make it louder. But if you have no gain or anything coming out of your amp it will sound great for a lot of different types of rock and such.

It's solid.

never dealt with them.

I play mostly classic rock ranging from Zeppelin to Van Halen to Sabbath and stuff like that. I have only been playing for 2 to 3 years now. It sounds great especially for the price.

No manual, but I got one of the later ones with the invaluable foot shield. Very easy- two knobs, one volume, one fuzz. Takes 15 seconds to adjust.

It's not an overdrive. It's a fuzz box. I was originally getting this (mail order) to round out the fuzz off of my ProCo Rat with some warm overdrive, having heard the nice tones coming out of the 'overdrive' on a Dano mini amp. But this is really fuzzy, and not a lot better. It's still nice, I use it with the Rat as a limiter for a nice kick of distrotion on solos and such.

My rig:
Dano 56-U2 --> Snarling Dogs Very Tone Dog --> Boss Flanger --> Dano Pastrami --> Proco Rat --> Dano Tremolo --> Boss analog Delay --> Cheap Peavey amp.

This thing is useful $20 worth, but not a lot more. A very predictable and uninteresting overdrive.

It's made of plastic, don't drive over it with your SUV. But with the foot shield it stands up well from my use. Had it 6 months, no issues.

I've talked to them with my Tuna Melt Tremolo, and they sent out a replacement free of charge...

Overall it's a nice cheap additive to a better distortion pedal, the Rat. If you want this kind of sound, get a ProCo Rat. They're wonderful, and only about 3 times as much used... If you want an extra button ot push which will make your solos scream with fuzzy distortion, get one of these. I wish it had a limiter, or a 'warmer' setting, but I'll eventually get a Blues Driver or Tubescreamer to replace it.

Very simple, only 2 knobs (level and drive). Because it's very small, the input/output are very close to each other.

WOW!!!! My search is over! I was looking for that early eighties punk/hardcore sound (think Negative Approach, Minor Threat, Black Flag etc.) and this pedal is perfect for that. Other pedals I tested were always missing something; overdrives were missing dirt, fuzz boxes were ehhh too fuzzy, distortions were too metallic sounding. The pastrami is overdrive with a little bit of fuzz (just the right amount for me). I play a telecaster and epiphone les paul through a Fender sidekick reverb (solid state). I once tried it during a band practice through my soundcity head (tubes), sounded also great!
It's a bit noisy, but who cares, I play punk!
I never use it for other music styles, so I don't know if it's versatile. If you won't a nice warm, smooth overdrive I think you better look somewhere else.

I don't know. It's from plastic......But I never had any problems thus far (6 months). I have not used it during shows.

It's totally perfect for old punk/hardcore. Very dirty, raw overdrive (NOT for blink 182 stuff!!!!!!!) with a little bit of fuzz. I only wish that they made it in a metal box instead of a plastic one!
I also have other overdrives/distortions, like the MXR distortion +, danelectro daddy's, Turbo Rat, metal zone and they are great pedals but just not it for the sound I was looking for. They should call the pedal "Punk Overdrive"

It's got 2 knobs Level and overdrive. No manual needed, just a good set of ears. lol

I'm using an Epiphone Les Paul not sure what model it's got the open humbuckers with a Rocktron Rampage R50C (must review this amp soon)...It rocks with this amp!I sometimes use it with a Yahaha bass.
Very versitile stomp box.

People say that it's made of plastic, well it's pretty thick plastic & it arrived with a protector for the knobs! It feels EXTREMELY solid almost a metalic feel to it. I don't gig but I wouldn't need to gig with a back-up since if it fails I'd just kick in the crunch from the Rocktron, or mabey dig out the vintage electro harmonix big muff Pi.

Never delt with Dano customer service, I'm sure it's good or word would get out that it's bad.

I play classic rock and some new stuff. I hook this up to the guitar and amp on the clean setting on my amp so that I don't need to switch from 'clean' to 'crunch' on the amp. That saves me changing the settings and that is fantastic...I don't like to keep dialing in a sound.
Where can you get this much for so little $$? What are you sitting her looking at this review..Go out and get you a Dano DJ-1!

2 knobs, 1 button. Level and OD. Quite simple to dial in a light fuzz or crank some crunch out.

Ok, this pedal has it's applications - all I can say is if your in need of your first distortion pedal, this could be the way to go if you like to play multiple styles. I'm not guitar guru, but I do enjoy tweaking my sound (I'm a solo industrial recording artist). You can get a great bark out of the tiny little pedal, but of course the highs seem to leave a bit to be desired IMHO. Tested it out on my Ibanez GRX20Z bargain bin and a buds Ibanez Ghostrider. Ghostrider obviously sounded better, but with this Dano pedal the crunchy bark comes out naturally on my GRX20Z.

Reason for the "8" rating is the fact that mine seems to be picking up radio stations, unless I position it in a area of low interference (which happens to be my dorm roommate's bed, top bunk).

Overall, not bad, but certainly not something you'd want to use the rest of your life.

I've chipped chunks of plastic off, and sometimes the nobs will come off easy. Other than that, yeah, no prob.

Never had to, never want to. My mother does tech support back home, and I don't want to frustrate someone like her over a stupid pedal :)

I play Industrial rock, jazz, blues, and a little metal. This pedal helped me out by being nice, cheap, and reliable to get me started. I understand you can wrap the inner casing with tin foil to reduce the radio frequencies, but I never tried.

If it was stolen... I don't know. I think I'd use it as an excuse to bug parents to get me a new pedal since I'm a broke college student :) (hey, there's an idea...)

Been playing for 5 months guitar, 8 months bass, and I've been in the music industry in general for about 8 years. I'm a musician, but not quite a guitarist yet - most of my friends say I've evolved quite a bit more than they did after 5 months. I spend my life with my guitar though, so I guess I should :)

Kinda wish Dano wouldput the buttons at more of an angle and more sensitive to the press, it'd be easier to use it that way for me at least.

nuff sed

I have scads of Dano effects, both mini and maxi. This may be my favorite or very close. It is certainly applicable to a wide range of music, so I wouldn't say it is ultra-specialty. The crunch sound is very high quality. Furthermore, it excels when used in conjuction with other pedals.

bad. don't break a Dano item

I play punk, classical, new wave, classic rock, blues, avant-garde, ALT-country, you name it. This pedal helps out. Think about the cost! It ain't much....

Very easy. Two dials and a button.

This overdrive has a really nice fuzz, crunch sound that I love. I can get the same sound as areosmith "Walk this Way." I chose this pedal over all the other dan electro pedals that were twice as much as this.

Also the type of amp can change the sound to it.

I have stepped on it, dropped it, overload it and much more, and it still holds up. Yes, this little cheap plastic thing! I am so amazed that it has lasted this long.

N/A

I have been playing for over 3 years. I play rock, classic rock, a little bit of metal and rhythm. And it happens that this pedal fits in every category. If this was lost or stolen, I wouldn't be too upset because its only $25, then I would buy it again in a heart beat.

Well, its got two knobs, level and distortion. I can handle that. they are kinda teeny tiny knobs, but i can forgive it.

I love this pedal. Especially for the price! I use it a lot on my bass and I really like the sound it gets. It doesn't overpower the bass like some of the other distortion type pedals I have. It makes it sit nicely behind the guitars on recordings, but yet stand out somehow. I don't use it much for my guitar, but also use it on very low settings on a pos drumkit I record with to hide their hideousness.

I havent had a problem with it, but I would be gentle with it. It's got to be so cheap for some reason.

It probly sucks, but who knows.

I'm very happy with this pedal. Ive bought other dan pedals since and Ive been pretty happy with most of them. The only one I have a beef with is the octave pedal, it really struggles, but thats for another review. I recommend this pedal if you're looking for a nice, not over the top, nicely priced overdrive pedal.

Plug it in and stomp on it.

I use a 68 SG and a 75 LesPaul Black Beauty through a Boogie .22t or
an old Beltone tube amp. It's great alone or as a second overdrive to boost your lead over the mix. It sounds like an old overdriven Fender tweed to me..

As long as you don't stomp it with army boots I believe it should stand up. I've used it on many gigs and had no problems.

I'm sure if it's a company fault they would replace no problem.

I love the sound of this thing either alone or as a second boost. I've been playing for 33 years and tried them all. I can put my old TS-808 Tube Screamer away from the road now. I don't really care for the input output jacks being so close but it's a mini.. one on either side would be better.When in doubt..Duct tape! I have a few other mini Dan pedals and they all have been great..the Surf and turf is great especially with a bass. Well worth the bucks.

Two knobs.

A real nice sounding unit for the money. Gets a slight to medium amount of gain (no metal here). Sounds more like a dist. than an overdrive. Not very noisy at all, and doesn't load down your signal. I use mine with a Mesa Maverick a 1991 Les Paul Standard, 1995 Explorer, and a 2001 Fender American Hardtail Strat. A good 70's + 80's style rock tone (again, no metal).

Plastic construction, not too overwhelmingly sturdy. I keep mine in the pedalboard, if you don't kick it around it should be fine. Plastic PC mounted jacks and knobs stink but, for 20 bucks what do ya' expect.

For under $20.00 it's the best overdrive out there (not that there are many if any to compare it with). It provides a good useful sound. Worth looking in to. Great "Bang for the Buck"!