Suhr Riot versus Joyo US Dream distortion guitar effects pedal shootout

[@windsongstudios]

GMD the fact that you played "Somebody Save Me" just proves why you are a freakin awesome cat!!!

[@TamagoTamago77]

i bought the joyo pedal 2 years ago and it's still going strong as one of my main distortion pedals. excellent review, it helped with my decision to go with it

[@ck2music712]

Hey, hoss, I'm only at the beginning, but I SERIOUSLY wanna thank you for actually using a CLEAN tone! I review and demo budget gear myself and a TON of these KZbinrs are way more worried about sounding "good" than giving folks an ACCURATE depiction of what the gear actually does, lol... Thank you!

[@SJ29ML]

Joyo is definitely starting to break the boutique notion. Gear snobs just don't want to admit or r afraid of it. I'm pretty dam sure live people won't notice a diff or in a blind test. If there is a diff it's the slightest most minimal thing. Build quality is a whole other story but I can take it to my local tech and have a joyo modded for $20 bux. This has given me some perspective on gear given my board has expensive stuff on it lol

[@KyleCarrington]

Exactly, for the $150 difference, you'd have to blow up a few JOYO's before you spent the same money.

[@SJ29ML]

KyleCarrington yeah u could b right but I think the first time would b enough and I doubt I'd keep buying one after the other lol guess I'll have to find out for myself

[@monomono]

the difference is pretty obvious. but to be real 30 bucks ?! WHAT THE FUCK i'd definitely get the joyo's and then If I really want the real stuff id go for an original. But for a working rig... the joyos are just more than enough.

[@srh361]

Well the joyo is in a plastic enclosure and it's noisey. Tone wise I'm sure live no one could tell the difference but remember you get what you pay for.

[@andrea4809]

The joyo is in an aluminum enclosure.

[@nickcg]

joyo is a little less bright in the sound... but an excellent pedal as well

[@fellipebarnabe]

I heard the same way as you.

[@jimdunstan798]

I just bought the US Dream pedal for $25 Canadian. The Suhr Riot is going for over $300. The Riot may be slightly better (subjective) tone wise but barely discernible to the average ear. In terms of build the US dream is all metal and solid. Really comes down to how important the name on it is to you.

[@Jemilio96]

Somebody Save Me -from spending all my money on guitar pedals :)

[@reymonti5504]

I love Joyo US Dream, amazing sound. Definitely Joyo the best.

[@jaguar15ful]

I love it.

[@b.scottfarthingsworth]

@@jaguar15ful do ya?

[@jasonlee8497]

The Joyo is just slightly less aggressive.

[@shaunm1983]

I prefer the Joyo tbh

[@tributeborn6036]

I just got the US Dream for $5 at a guitar shop. Even came with the adapter. Was missing 2 housing screws and one of the 9V battery wires looked accidentally cut and spliced with clear tape lol. Fixed all that. The housing is metal with 4 rubber feet to stop from sliding around and very sturdy. I'd recommend it over the Riot considering the price and surprising durability.

[@thefumigator]

3:09 its noticeable in the heavy metal part, that the joyo lacks a bit of balls. The riot sounds like a harley davidson engine while the joyo messes it a little bit. Not a terrible thing, but there's a difference.

[@shadowsong1]

big big difference? i didn't watch the video i just listened. i couldn't tell when he switched between the two. you can say the words but...the proof is in what my ears tell me. i'm sure with the voltage and the switchy thing there are tones that the suhr can do that the joyo can't.....but....aside from that there is almost no audible difference that i can hear.

[@Deathrape2001]

Your deaf, or your speakers or headphones R junk. The Joyo is a bazillion X better.

[@mattgilbert7347]

@@Deathrape2001 LOL

[@mattgilbert7347]

@Rem Dusad Double LOL

[@ilovecops5499]

Germanmandude is a great guityar players!

[@benzuckerman]

I have to think that in a live show, with the drums pounding, the bass driving, and the other guitar player laying down rhythm, it would be incredibly difficult to distinguish between the two.

[@onerandombruh]

Suhr basically sounds more aggressive but that is something you can appreciate by hearing it quite a while...

[@ErGoyoTV]

Excellent review. Came to check the Joyo and I like it

[@HairyScaryMark]

The absence of the voice switch on the US Dream may account for some of the tonal differences. I own a Riot and if I am playing with my strat, I use the left voicing, whereas for rhythm guitar with my Ibanez 7 string, the middle voicing is best. There is more punch when in the middle voicing, which is great for metal rhythm guitar parts. I also tend to stack a lower gain drive in front for rhythm parts and have nothing but praise for the pedal. I must get myself a US Dream to compare and backup.

[@Tmidiman]

I purchased the Joyo amp character pedals and I've been majorly impressed. Not I'm listening to examples of their other pedals and I am amazed. Great tones, great price. As a former effects designer and builder the Joyo works for me. Great demo, BTW!

[@mattgilbert7347]

Tmidiman AC tone is great! Didnt like the American one.

[@NY-bw2go]

1:40 - 1:45 Real sound.Riot win by far 😊

[@JoelCL9713]

Nice boots, dude

[@sld67869801]

I would like to try that Joyo pedal out with a 10 band eq pedal.

[@fastfrankblack]

As someone who was cursed with owning a Dod Super American Metal pedal in the 1990s, it is LITERALLY MENTAL that people can now get that Suhr tone for $30!

[@TheBrunoleocoelho]

They are similar, but at 2:54 forward I felt Suhr Riot a little bit more "harmonic" than Joyo US Dream... More highs and mids on it... Both are worth to buy, depending the money you have...

[@macheted01]

So very close. You can surely tell that the Riot has a tighter and all around better sound, but not by much. If I was a regular gigging player, I would definately go with the Riot. Would I get the US Dream as a back up, most certainly. If I played dive bars and was worried about having expensive gear with me, I would go with the US Dream. Currently, I am a casual player that has not played out in quite some time, so pulled the trigger on the Joyo. If things were to change, I would get the Riot.

[@megahurtz30]

For the price... it's a no-brainer, the Joyo wins, of course! But the Riot does sound a little punchier, maybe with more lows or low mids.. it just sounds a bit more agressive/alive

[@mattgilbert7347]

Agreed. A bit more amp like and fuzzier as well. But for what I need, I can't justify the $ difference. I reckon the Dream, Vintage Overdrive, and the Sweet Baby are pretty much all you'd need to cover most drive/distortion tones. Prolly Joyo's 3 best pedals. Ultimate Drive is ok if you like the OCD thing. I have a modded one and prefer it to my old OCD 1.4 (which I sold). Joyo is no joke.

[@jkrunch2166]

The Suhr marginally beats it; the attenuated mid-range of the Joyo makes it sound like a thin sheet is put over your amp, whereas the Riot is so open. But that marginal difference doesn't justify the Suhr being over $150 more than the Joyo. Honestly I think manufacturers are going to start having more fair prices if they want to start competing with the Chinese clones. Hand-wired pedals are one thing, but if pedals are being mass-produced, I shouldn't be paying more than $200 for them.

[@wonjulee92]

I beg to differ. I hear no significant tonal difference as you mentioned.

[@jkrunch2166]

Everyone's ear is different I suppose

[@utooberblooper]

Wonju LEe check at 1:53 ,the difference is quite dramatic.the suhr pedal is definitely better,and IMO its worth double but not worth almost 10 times the amount of the joyo,so double i think would be perfectly fair.anyone agree with this assumption ?

[@wonjulee92]

trillriff-axegrinder Yeah. I see what you are saying. They do sound quite different but, I think you can treally micro tweak the knobs to sound like suhr. plus, we also gotta know that these pedals are very responsive. His playing has a huge influence on the way things break up. Suhr might need to lower their price haha.

[@wonjulee92]

trillriff-axegrinder I actually own few joyos and man i am very impressed with the sound and price.

[@JohnIainMcFarlanewaspfactor]

One of my growing JOYO drive pedal collection,I love it, it's solidly built and sounds great.One of their best so far.

[@plz7788]

holy shoot was not expecting that similarity when he stomped on the US dream it does sound slightly thinner tho, which i think would be amplified in real life (ie the feel of the US dream will be different, will feel thinner when you play it yourself), sounding a bit on the boxy side

[@Banditsalive]

Welcome back GMD, if ya can't tell the difference - but for those that can.. Let there be rock! Nice work as always. Thanks from oz.

[@gagekelly0723]

hope youre right on the bullet cable SLUGs. Im getting a white coily cable of " " and a few SLUG packs

[@stretchedbag1963]

An extremely useful video, thank you for taking the time to post. You’re right, the Riot is probably a better pedal but the Joyo US Dream does compare very favourably soundwise, but particularly in regards to price. Also, I really dug your guitar playing... nice snarly licks with those “lost 80’s chunky 1/8th notes”. One other thing: I would normally steer clear of anyone wearing snakeskin boots, but in this setting those boots help to establish your bona fides as an honest rocker, out to help the world of up and coming guitar players and hopefully save our planet by killing all the snakes (good) and stomping on true bypass pedals (even better) to demonstrate how gain and distortion can make better human beings of us all. ;)

[@dudeduck]

Awesome demo dude i'ts given me much to think hey can you do a comparison of the malekko phaser and the cmatmods phaser?

[@aviator_bryan]

I have the US Dream. For $33 you can't beat it. It's a lightweight alum casing, but seems sturdy enough, especially if you mount it to a board, and don't leave it rolling around in a gig bag. Sound wise, it rips! I think it's important to start with a decent clean sound, but the USD sounds full and has lots of harmonic content. Check out Mark Day's Riot demo. I can get my Joyo to sound exactly like that. Best $33 I've spent in a long while. Does mid gains well too, responsive and quiet.

[@smoss469]

What about the Sweet Baby and the BJF (can't recall the name off hand) equivalent? Or the E-Wave Ninth Sky and the MP Little Green Wonder?

[@CTuxford]

Am I right in saying this pedal scoops the mids down for the modern distortion sound? My Boss DS-1 tends more to the mid-push 80's distortion with "more cream but less teeth" (just thought it up). If I scoop the mids more I'm guessing I'll get more of the Riot distortion. I discovered this fact this afternoon when I had the DS-1 cranking through my amp. When I began to change the EQ knobs and flick the EQ wave switch a radical change in tone occurred. Just a pain for gigs (single channel amp).

[@GuitarLessonSarasota]

Riot player here, and from here they sound identical!

[@ZJProductionHK]

Riot seems more firm and hold to a point? (Correct me if im wrong?)

[@caleshtcincredibles]

I have a US Dream and I bought it for $32 delivered and it ROCKS!

[@BrianSheu]

Not sure if the riot sounds "fuller", but the joyo definitely has some mids in a different place than the Riot.

[@AllenPinchloaf]

Howdy gearmandude I have a request for the Gearman. A shootout between a Friedman Od Deluxe and a VS Royal Flush vs the Wampler Pantheon. It would be an epic shootout .Thank you kindly. Mr Pinchloaf Use

[@yobhsiFehT]

You could always minimize your browser window o.O Also, Caps Lock can be turned off by pressing the button of the same name (typically to the left of the 'A' key).

[@gtrwndr87]

Fwiw, I run my US dream at 18V and it has not died. Sounds awesome.

[@OrganicRecordsCL]

The knobs are in different positions in both pedals, put both to 12.00 oclock and then compare

[@hawg427]

Very close but the nod goes to the Riot by a hair. Sounds fuller to me but what is the price difference?

[@miglanc777]

what's the name of the song at 4:25??

[@MsTooncesthecat]

miglanc777 "man i sound like jack black"-by cowboy boot

[@JoshASchneider]

miglanc777 darude "sandstorm"

[@nietzsche688]

I 've had the Ultimate Drive and the Analog Delay for over a year and they're still singin!

[@barbwirebats]

Yep, the on-off switch, input jacks etc are dirt cheap and feel like they will break soon.No telling what other corners they cut to keep the cost down, but at that price it's understandable. For around the house or band practice and just fun, I wouldn't hesitate to use a Joyo. But for a show unless there was a few upgrades to some components, it's just a matter of time before something goes tits up.

[@CTuxford]

I have managed to get the same tone and drive by running both my eWave Texas Drive and Boss DS-1 at the same time. It took a lot of soul searching not to buy the Joyo pedal (priorities)! Make sure you put the OD pedal first in the chain.

[@MaggaraMarine]

I think the Suhr was more fizzy and scooped. To me the tone of the Joyo sounded a bit more usable. Not as much fizzy high end and a bit more lower mids. Not as aggressive as the Suhr, though. I did like the sound of the Suhr when you played those sustained chords.

[@joshrdealmusic]

The Ultimate Drive. It's based off of a Fulltone OCD and can achieve low gain transparent overdrive tones. I would be careful about using those pedals to boost with. They can hit the front end with a healthy amount of bass (sounds good on a bright Vox amp, might be muddy on others). The Vintage Overdrive or Sweet Baby might be better for boosting, as they are based off of a TS808 and a Mad Professor Sweet Honey, respectively.

[@Pedrokata]

There’s a slight difference,probably due to ‘voicing’,but does the difference in price justifies it? The Joyo seem quiet usable.For what,30€+?

[@zdwilliams]

Somebody saaaave me!!!

[@steveiliev8912]

I'm more wondering are they both made in the same factory ?!?

[@mattgilbert7347]

Steve Iliev Some of the parts, for sure. The actual assembly, soldering etc, will be different. The boards inside Joyos are thin. If you ever want to see gold standard pedal workmanship, open up an Earthquaker Devices pedal. Best soldering work i have ever seen

[@ozmarichardson6524]

jack black, I have always loved your gear reviews, keep up the great work!!!

[@alext8218]

hahaha

[@alexchejlyk7764]

Great comparo! The Suhr seems to have a fuller tone, but I doubt one would notice the difference if they weren't tested back to back.

[@bingefeller]

Any of you guys know if Davy Knowles is still using his signature Joyo pedal?

[@joshrdealmusic]

Great bedroom sound and usage VS. better build quality and tweaking options (good for live usage). That's what's at play here. They both sound good.

[@SpankyFC]

You're right. Joyo did their homework on this one but, I would think that the Suhr would last $100 longer and have $100 better customer service. So, with $100 more reliability it's not going to cost you $100 worth of down time at a gig. That makes it a bar of gold vs a bar of lead comparison. Also, the Suhr was a little crisper and had a hair more presence.

[@sixstring4]

SpankyFC I've had this pedal on my board for about four years now, the pedal itself looks like hell but has never given me a problem..with all the gigs it's been through, it has surely paid for itself 50x over..take that to bank.

[@cramalot2]

I don't how much the Riot is but the Joyo on Amazon was $33.95. I own 3 Joyo overdrive pedals they all sound great and all were under $40.00.

[@omfg51]

This is why Catalinbread is awesome, they have that DIY pedal kit. You can build any pedal you want with that kit. Sure, it requires the know how, but any gear nerd should be willing to spend the time to learn to build his own gear. I personally want to build my own Catalinbread RAH and get some great Zep tones!

[@roy-batty]

Other than US Dream having a little more mids, I don't hear any other difference (and I am not sure even about that). Character is more or less the same, the difference is so slight. And if your cover the pedals I couldn't tell by sound which is which. Makes me rethink my whole life. And also order the damn US Dream.

[@SJ29ML]

@nafariouspower I can understand Ur views but just cuz something is built in America doesn't mean its parts r also manufactured in America. That goes for almost everything nowadays. Shoes, clothing, glasses etc. Down the the fuckin cups and utensils we use to eat r made elsewhere. Anyway joyo is great I'd rather spend $30 and with the money I save go out for a steak dinner haha

[@bennyjudo4623]

Those some bad ass boots!!!! Nice pedal comparison

[@jorgemartins1738]

Close enough. Love this modern distortion.

[@DomasBanevicius]

Finally some real metal riffs!!!

[@hawg427]

Just got done reading an article of Boutique pedals. It said that MANY of these $200 and up "Boutique" pedals are actually made by JOYO and just re-painted and made overseas. $200 for the Suhr & 39-49 for the JOYO pedal. LOL Somebody's getting screwed. Pedals are like Batteries. There are Duracell, Energizer and Rayovac. All of these are made by the same company and sold to these others to put their name on the battery. This was on the news 5 years ago.

[@therealthomasbraam]

Thanks this is awesome! Could you please demo more Joyo Pedals like the Plexi drive? Would be awesome! Thanks

[@Billy_Blades]

Joyo wins,,,, more lively n the suhr seems slightly scooped and a lil more tame

[@NoPrayer4TheDying]

Do they come with a can of hairspray? if so i'm sold on either.

[@126wfer]

what is the best copy for the jhs angry charlie? i want these pedal jcm 800 voice :p i want a joyo or biyang or moer pedal that be the copy for the jhs angry charlie, can you give me some answer?

[@Hopfolk]

Riot's like Iommi on Vinyl, Dream's like Iommi on CD... or is it the other way around...

[@mercedes260d4]

Donner Morpher is a clone of the Suhr & Mooer Solo, has the 3 mode switch & is even cheaper.

[@kimmolingonheimo]

glad i didn sell my two us dreams, work well with my other pedals...methinks us dream is more like vintage softer while riot is brutally modern...( depends how and with what you use them with ...)

[@kimmolingonheimo]

the Joyo can be set quite delicate with a strat neck pup for slight jazzy breakup style!, also the Mosky Crazy Tone and the Saphue US Dream can be set very jazzy, AT a minimal cost compared to the Suhr..., I have two Joyos, three Moskys n four Saphues and not one has malfunctioned yet.., cheers, K : )

[@hawg427]

I'll have to look into that. I have bad arthritis and even playing my elec. guitars is hard on my bad days. Don't know if I could solder the little stuff that's inside a pedal. I'd probably solder myself to the circuitboard. LOL

[@MrTorriann]

Suhr makes excellent guitars. They are use the brand name for the sale e-waste.

[@mattgilbert7347]

MrTorriann Yeah. Their S-types sre the shit. Pete Thorn uses a.lot.of Suhr guitars. I'd love one.but...$$$

[@therealthomasbraam]

Would love to see the Joyo plexi drive vs the wampler plexi drive!

[@telecaster1961]

Riot sounds best with the toggleswitch to the right, not in the middle and leftpos. like in the video. If even kills on a Blues Junior and it's fab on the clean channel of my Rockerverb 50. The amount of bass is amazing. It cleans up like a good tubeamp too. Absolutely worth it's pricetag!

[@andrea4809]

I get these for just over $30 on ebay, Joyo pedals rock! And I have not had a problem with any of mine yet, crosses fingers.

[@lolobuggah2670]

What's that very first riff from?

[@Timothy0430]

out of us dream and ultimate drive which one would be better for boosting my amps front end???

[@Satansbitch101]

i think he has done one already, try searching it on his channel

[@swanker63]

Just ordered the Joyo!

[@mattgilbert7347]

swanker63 Same! $25 as new

[@alfaomegaenergia]

could you review some more these Joyo things, please?

[@arturitoaav]

any joyo clon of the shiva overdrive?????

[@vonmilash823]

When's your next movie coming out ?

[@DanielAraujoNazar]

On my homestudio monitors, I heard a hair more bass from the Suhr, but I also heard some high frequencies that I find unpleasant. I actually like the cheapo better.

[@Xenozenomusic]

The Suhr is fuller in the spectrum. The Joyo has some low mids cut out. Probably is good enough for the price as well.

[@azdh85224]

At $30 the joyo is a great value. In a band setting, they would be difficult to tell apart.

[@2hotdownunder]

riots got alot more chunk to it. love the sound. nice work jack u rawkk

[@robzvlogs1987]

Bro does your joyo make a hiss?

[@Disharmonikash]

I like the Joyo more, it is less scooped, and it has less of that annoying dissolving clipping in the background that you can barely hear but is there. Yes, I think that the Joyo sounds better.

[@iagobroxado]

Not a distortion guy so much but to me, the Joyo has obviously a tiny bit less output and treble. In a band situation I doubt someone would be able to point which is which every time. if GMD turned that tone up a bit on the Joyo it would probably sound even closer to the Riot. People saying that "Joyo puts a blanket over the amp" are exageratting quite a bit, IMO.

[@manifestgtr]

I use the vintage overdrive in a wide open configuration to "boost" my amp....it sounds about as good as any stock ts808 that I've tried...except the ts808hw...that's the nicest ts ever built imo...at $45 shipped, you can't really argue...I've heard some people complain about joyos reliability but I've been using 2 of their pedals (the other being this one) on my board for about a year with no issues at all...you could maybe use the us dream to boost too...it's a very good peda

[@jcoulter43]

Gearmandude, Waiting for delivery of my Joyo US Dream based on your review! Thanks for your reviews and insight. Most likely just saved me $150!!! I agree with the other comment requesting more reviews of the other Joyo pedals. Good tone on the cheap is always appreciated. God Bless and Rock on!

[@Maxx61]

What minute tone difference between the two can be compensated with the amp's tone controls so I honestly couldn't justify $200 for the Suhr when the copy can be had for $59. As for the Suhr "lasting longer," I could buy three of the Jojo's for the price of one Suhr and keep one in rotation, the other two newbs on standby, rendering that observation moot.

[@victori.ramirez8208]

Would you consider this pedal to be the best distortion pedal for any pedalboard?

[@aceman42]

which of the joyo distortions would you recomend? i mean what is the best? this US dream, or the joyo crunch or the california? im torn between the three. pls reply anyone

[@joefreakhouse1]

Absolutly freakin true. thank you for saying this. This goes for guitars as well in general. I could rant for hours about people swearing to name brands before even playing the mentioned equipment.

[@DJNosebleed]

I own a Suhr riot, and i must say, the sound of the joyo was quite close. But can't beat the build quality of the riot. That thing is built like a fucking tank! Best pedal i own

[@roy-batty]

Bought the Joyo a month ago. Definitely a lot more bass. On YT it doesn't sound like much. But when you play it it's quite noticeable.

[@ianryan5727]

Wow the Joyo does sound quite a lot like the suhr and I guess for a fraction of the price