Seymour Duncan SFX-08 Power Grid Distortion

Very easy to use.Plug in,dial in, stomp and go.

HORRIBLE!!!!I bought this pedal new after seeing the demo given by Seymour Duncan on their website and it sounded great but when I plugged it in myself I was highly disappointed.Very poor sound.One of the worst distortions I have ever heard,EVER!No sweepable mids,almost no separation or clarity.Just really,really bad.My set up is Ibanez 540 STDL w/EMG 81/85 or Ibanez SZ320 w/Kent Armstong Motherbuckers into Ernie Ball stereo volume/pan,Dunlop 535q wah,Boss TU-2,Electro Harmonix Double Muff,Boss Keeley moded DS-1 into the front of my Fender 212 Hot Rod Deville.In my loop I am running various modulations and delays.Now I know that the placement of the pedal in your chain can greatly change the sound of it so I tried several different placements in my chain as I do all pedals that I buy and still sounded just absolutely horrible.It was sold 3 days later on ebay.I will say that their other overdrive boxes I have heard are excellent ie the Twin Tube Classic and Mayhem pedals.

Seems to be very sturdy.Metal casing.Built very good.

I give this a 5 for reliability though I only owned it for a few days but it seemed to be made very well and I have heard nothing but good things of their customer support.

A straight forward effects pedal, 1 Gain knob, 1 Volume + Treble, Mid & Bass Control. True Bypass Switch. Simple Manual with some sound settings example.

I tried it with a Fender Malmsteen Signature Strat ( Dimarzio HS-3 & YJM pickups), a Killer Pirates ( Dimarzio Tonezone & Breed Neck) & a Jem 7VWH ( All Dimarzio Evos ) through a Marshall AVT 20 ( tube in pre-amp) & a solid state Marshall VS15R. It sounds better with humbuckers than single coils. A little bit of noise if gain is turn beyond 12 o'clock position. Very British-like distortion, similar to Marshall amps. Good for riffs, but sounds better for solos, very smooth for lead guitar playing. True-bypass, I am using the clean sounds directly from my amps, but turn the SFX-08 for distortion when playing heavy. It sounds good through the AVT 20 but sounded a bit harsh when using my Fender, no problem when using humbucking guitars. When using through the VR15R, it sounded like my old Zoom Valve DSP Processor especially on the Lead channels. Almost a tube-like distortion.Not bad sounding for a non-tube distortion box.
Compare the SFX-08 Power Grid Distortion to my other pedals, I own a Line 6 Uber Metal, a Zoom Tri-metal, a Marshall Jackhammer, the SFX-08 is in a class of it's own. A stand-alone pedal if you like British Distortion only. It's pretty loud for a pedal. If you prefer versatility, the Uber Metal is the best choice since it has Marshall & Mesa Boogie Like Distortion & sounds good using single coils or humbuckers.
The Zoom Tri-metal has Marshall to Mesa Boogie like distortion also, but sounds good only for riffs & but not lead playing.
The Jackhammer is good also but not as loud as the SFX-08 & a drop in volume if switch from Overdrive to Distortion mode.

For Single Coil guitars my settings are:
Gain = 2 O'clock, Bass & Treble = 2 O'clock, Mid = 12 O'clock, Volume as you like.

Humbucking guitars my settings are:

Gain = 12 O'clock, Bass & Treble = 3 O'clock, Mid = 12 O'clock,
Volume as you like.

It is made of metal, no problem. My backup would be my Line 6 Uber Metal or Marshall Jackhammer should I go on a gig.

Never deal with the company, it is not a digital effects pedal, hence no need for any upgrading. The store I got it from brings in Seymour Duncan pickups as well as pedals. They would be of help if I ever needed any.

The SFX-08 Power Grid Distortion gives a meaty tone, good for playing metal & classic rock but only if you like British-style Distortion. Would love to try it through other amps, maybe a Fender to see if it can make a Fender to sound like a Marshall!