In the crowded distortion pedal market, tc electronic dark matter review is one of the few pedals that can deliver true plexi-style tube amp tones without being a single-trick pony. It can sit at lower gain levels and provide classic rock tones that sound like they came from a cranked tube amp, or you can push it a bit further with the Voice switch and dive into crunchy modern distortion territory.
The control set for the tc electronic dark matter is pretty straight forward with the standard gain, level and bass/treble controls. The gain knob works a little differently than most distortion pedals, since it also acts as a tone control by altering the character of the sound. At low settings, it produces a very natural overdrive tone, while cranking it up delivers chunky blues crunch and by the 9 o’clock mark you’re getting into Marshall Plexi style distortion.
Unlike many other distortion pedals, tc electronic dark matter doesn’t have any mid controls so you’re really getting an overall sound from the pedal. That said, there is a little toggle switch labeled Voice which functions similar to a Tone Print knob on other TC Electronic pedals. This is actually a very useful feature, as it allows you to taper the low end of your signal which can help get you closer to some famous guitar players’ tones.
Overall, tc electronic dark matter is a fantastic pedal that will work well in just about any genre of music. It’s simple to use and offers a great range of sounds from bluesy distortion to full-on vintage cranked tone. Regardless of how you set it up, this will be a go-to distortion pedal for years to come.
