software

I don't know if this is a stupid question but will distortion from a pedal such as a Boss DS-1 sound much different from amp distortion?

Depends on the quality of the amp

Some of the modeling stuff sounds pretty close to what they're supposed to, though.

I'd say yes, it sounds different. Then again, try the line out of your fancy amp without a speaker emulation...

No stupid questions on the SD forum. No one knows anything until someone else tells them.

What amp have you got? Regardless of this I'm certain that the Boss will sound different to an amp. Not to say that one is better, just different. That's the beauty of pedals, I'm a big fan, they provide more tonal possibilities.

The DS-1 is a good choice, though I would advise caution when getting into pedals, particularly distortions and O/Ds. Most of them are designed to sound good with valve amps and if you don't have one, then the sensible choices are narrowed considerably. If you post what amp you've got then folks here will be able to offer a lot more help.

To add a bit on benjaturner's wisdom, you can also learn by trial and error, but with guitars and amps, that will cost. If it includes fiddling with the innards of tube amps, it may cost your life. So asking is always good.

I just got a Marshall AVT150 head. I don't have a cab yet, but i'm getting one soon. Feel free to leave cab suggestions also.

Nice amp. I think the AVTs are sadly under-rated. Am I right in thinking the AVT has a single ECC83 (12AX7 for our friends across the pond) in the pre-amp?

cab suggestion: if you wanna go with an all marshall setup then the 1936 is a decent 2x12 cab. Depending on the application you're looking for though. Although a 4x12 won't neccessarily be louder it will appear louder and this isn't always a good thing. We've all been to see bands where one of the members is way louder than everyone else, not good. If it was me I'd go for the 2x12 1936. It's a good cab and I don't think price difference between them and the 4x12's is justified in the performance. You'll be glad when you get to a gig and realise you're playing upstairs!

Another pedal I'd recommend in the DS-1 price bracket is the Digitech Bad Monkey, can be bought for bare money now, though it is considerably more polite. Good for adding weight to your crunch tone rather than a stand alone tone running through your clean channel.

Anything by Boss is good. They don't make bad pedals, though they don't really make great ones either. However, you always know you're safe with them.

Danelectro are usually rubbish at pedals, though they came out with a good range in the Wasabi. Look into these because they're good and have a lot more versitility than most pedals at this price. Avoid all other danelectro ranges like the plague though. They are to tone what Macdonalds is to the British Heart Foundation, seriously.

That's about all I can think of right now, hope this helps.