HombreJones

Really nice neck with good quality tuners. Very solid body but some might find it heavy. ATN controls are a bit hit and miss in terms of what they aim to emulate, but still add some interesting versatility. Actual pickups are pretty good quality, but may need to play with the ATN to find tones you like Pickguard and tremolo block are the weak points. Pickguard prone to breaking and not particularly good quality tortoiseshell effect. Original blocks typically crumbly and need to be replaced at this point. A good buy for an intermediate player upgrading from a beginners guitar or a great base for a project guitar.

Tube Screamer derived apparently; can't say how it compares but I can say it's my favourite pedal out of all the pedals I own.

Maybe I got a dud one but my pedal hisses more than a nest of viper being attacked by angry wasps (all the other pedals in my chain are fine and wiring it up solo it's still noisy, so discounting other factors). In terms of distortion, it's 'fine' but nothing special. The best use I have found for it is actually as more of a lo-fi effect so it's not without it's uses; but if you want a proper distortion pedal, there are better options for similar money (I got mine for about £10 on eBay so I reckoned it was worth a flutter). I will say however that it is solid/well built pedal, so worst case scenario, I might use it to house a kit pedal at some point.