Looking for some advice on Effects!!

Hey there, I have been playing for a number of years..my main focus has always been improving and trying to learn as much as possible, while this is still my main focus, I am starting to focus more on adding effects to my playing for my band and just for fun in general. I mean I work, so I upgrade whatever equipment I can, guitar or amp, the main thing im lookin into now are effect pedals and such...I just dont know exactly what I should be looking for. I mean I use to have a V-Amp 2, but it got damaged, and havent been able to replace it...And I use effects processors through my computer, to I understand enough about the various effects, also Overall I know I want a good Chorus Pedal, Wah Pedal, Overdrive Pedal, and possibly A Sustain pedal...I just want to know, what brands, models or even types of effects should I possibly look into, I know its about personal preference, what I mean is that Im into Classic Heavy metal like Iron Maiden, Dio, OLD Metallica, Megadeth etc...In my band we have some good songs along those lines, but the thing is we jam in a studio sumtimes, I use a Marshall stack, with a Marshall head and a 4x12 cab....its a tube head..its a cool sound, but personally it does NOT have enough Crunch at all for me....if u understand what I mean...The sound Im looking for, is nice and full, with a HEAVY killer distortion, yet when adding sum heavy palm mutes I want to be able to hear the Crunch of the muted strings.
If anyone has experience with the V-amp 2 or even a Line 6 Amp(use to play my bud's amp)..the Rectifier(V-Amp) and the Insane setting (Line 6), are very KILLER sounds and I am looking to create something along those lines I guess u could say... n e ways Im just looking for advice on name brands, models and effect types...My sound would be like a cross between Maiden, Priest a LITTLE Metallica for the crunch, and Dio....Thanks in advanced for any help, if you have ideas/any suggestions and would like to talk about it, you can msg me on MSN (maxm411@hotmail.com) is my email.

I've had great success with throwing an overdrive(not distortion) pedal in front of an already dirty amp. Specifically, I use the MXR ZW-44 overdrive. It works great for tightening up a some what loose or muddy distorted sound, and just puts it over the edge into metal meltdown (if you want), or it can act like a little treble boost. One problem with getting a good chunky crunch is too much bass. In my experiance, of all the amps I've played, the bass is either too much or not enough. This is where the overdrive comes in. I like to set my amps dirty channel to give me a good classic rock to slightly hard rock and then switch on the overdrive pedal when I need to tighten things up and add a little more gain. Plus, it can give you a really sweet bluesy crunch through a slightly clean channel. On it's on through a clean channel it is possible to get in the AC/DC range, but not much more. But it really shines through an already dirty amp.

For the chorus, I love my Boss CH-1 Super Chorus. It has a great tone and is fairly versatile. There's a review of it in the "Gear Review" section.

For the wah, you can't go wrong with a Dunlop Cry Baby. I have the "original" model, but they have several other models that are defanately worth checking out that are more versatile.

I can't help you out with the sustainer, but I will say that the overdrive will help with that some.

The main thing is, you need to go to a stor and try some pedals out for yourself. The best thing is to try it out on your own gear if it's possible.

Good luck in your tone quest, and keep us posted on what you try/buy!

Howdy !

I'm by no means an expert on this, and I know some of my equipment are pretty old by now, but I really do like my setup I can get all kinds of sounds .. but .. like I said the stuff are pretty old now..

you can check them out here:
http://www.shell.linux.se/kenhan/index_pedal.html

have a good one :)

//Kenneth