Pedals are effect units designed to take an instrument’s signal at one end and alter it before outputting an altered version at the other end. Often they’re built so they plug directly into pedalboards for optimal signal flow.
Gain effects such as overdrive or distortion will add power and crunch to your tone, while pitch-based effects such as flanger and chorus will give the impression of multiple guitars being played at once.
Overdrive
Overdrive pedals are designed to emulate the effects of overdriven tube amplifiers by saturating your guitar signal and adding harmonic complexity, simulating overdriven tube amplifiers and creating the same feel and sound. Results may range from subtle saturation effects all the way up to full-on crunchy distortion based on genre and personal preferences. Overdrive pedals are often utilized before high gain amplifiers for tightening down their signal for palm muted riffing applications.
Distortion pedals rely on hard clipping to create square wave style saturation with third order harmonics and a more aggressive tone that may sound harsh or harsher, and are ideal for metal guitar tones and giving your amp that hard rock sound.
Many overdrive pedals feature an onboard preamp circuit to help shape your desired sound, such as using an EQ setting to modify frequency content of sound or different gain structures to achieve various tones. Furthermore, it’s wise to experiment with various levels of overdrive in your pedal to see what best complements your amplifier and amplifier’s tone.
Overdrive pedals can help extend the lifespan of your tube amplifier by enabling you to play at lower gain settings than usual – thus protecting its tubes from being overworked, potentially saving money through reduced repair bills or replacement expenses in the long run.
Most guitarists employ overdrive pedals as part of their effects chain to craft an ideal guitar tone tailored to their instrument and musical genre. An overdrive pedal may be combined with other pedals such as EQ effects, compression effects and noise gates to achieve their ideal guitar sound; for instance it could be combined with a tube screamer to produce a crunchy blues sound; alternatively you could put an overdrive pedal first and use boost as an aftereffect to cut through a mix and ensure solos stand out more.
Distortion
Nothing compares to the gritty sound of a distortion pedal for elevating your guitar tone to new levels. From crushing power chords and searing solos, having a high-quality distortion pedal will help set yourself apart in any band setting.
Distortion pedals work by hard-clipping the input signal, creating harmonic overtones and clipping peak waveforms to produce an aggressive overdriven sound that cannot be achieved simply by turning up your amp. Many guitarists rely on distortion pedals as a staple effect in their sound arsenal or use them to emulate different amplifiers’ sounds.
An effective distortion pedal offers an extensive selection of tones, so experiment with all of its settings until you find your ideal sound. Most manufacturers include controls for amount of distortion (Drive), output volume, and some form of equalizer; typically these consist of Tone knob, Bass/Mid control and Gain/Treble controls – use Drive knob for increasing levels of distortion while using EQ controls to customize tone to suit playing style and genre.
Some distortion pedals also offer a Clean boost option for leads, enabling you to push the distortion pedal beyond its limits without overburdening your amp with noise. This feature can help set rhythm tracks for soloing practice purposes.
Boost
Boost pedals are designed to increase either volume, gain or both in your guitar signal. When placed at the start of a pedal chain (before any distortion or overdrive effects), boost pedals can create brighter, more aggressive tones or be employed as master volume controls at the end.
Overdrive and distortion pedals amplify a signal by increasing its amplitude while also adding diodes or transistors that “soft-clip” your guitar signal, mimicking what happens when valves in tube amplifiers reach saturation. Overdrive pedals may provide mild distortion effects or provide heavy, searing sounds which drive an already dirty amplifier further into overdriven territory.
Clean boost pedals can serve as the centerpiece of any rig, providing pure, high-fidelity tone that stands out in any mix. Kink Guitar Pedals PC Boost is an example of such pedal; providing no overdrive of its own while still providing an effective boost to your guitar signal. A more advanced boost such as Suhr Koko Boost combines both clean and mid boost capabilities for increased lead articulation.
Modulation pedals like chorus, flanger and tremolo should be placed near the center of your pedal chain. As these effects tend to work best when compressed for maximum effect, placing these effects before distortion or overdrive pedals (if applicable) and before delay pedals will allow for smooth repeats that add depth to guitar solos.
Tremolo
Tremolo pedals were once popular, and are still used today, to add rhythmic pulses to guitar riffs. Tremolos can create dramatic and ethereal-sounding tremolo effects – usually speed and depth controls to adjust volume modulation; more advanced pedals may feature various LFO waveforms that alter texture of tremolo sound (such as triangle wave tremolo from Radiohead’s Planet Telex album from The Bends era) such as triangle wave tremolo LFO waveforms for alteration texture of texture of sound (for instance triangle wave tremolo create classic pulsating effects); popular tremolo pedals include Boss TR-2, Fulltone Supta-Trem DrScientist, Tremolessence.
As with other effects, tremolo can be combined with others on a pedalboard to produce unique sounds. Or you can run it through an amp’s tremolo circuit for more subtle and controlled variations – or use it emulate vintage amps that do not offer this feature!
Pedalboards are an increasingly popular choice among guitarists as they allow easy access to multiple effects. You can build one yourself or buy pre-built with all connections and wires already connected; once connected, pedals can be connected in any order; though keep in mind that changing their order could alter sound output; for instance, running a tremolo before a compressor could decrease its effect.
Guitar pedals are a critical component of an electric guitarist’s rig. Used to add textures and tones to your sound ranging from distortion to ambient effects, there are numerous choices out there which may prove overwhelming at first. Experimentation will help determine which pedals are most beneficial to creating your unique sound.
Looper
No matter if you are performing solo like Ed Sheeran or Jacob Collier or playing in a band, a loop pedal can make a significant impactful to your sound. Recording chord progressions or riffs and then over-dubbing them gives an excellent basis for guitar leads as well as providing opportunities to experiment with scales melodies riffs which work well together with specific chord sequences.
Loop pedals work by recording the signal being fed into them from your guitar and then playing back its recorded loop at a predetermined time, controlled with its foot pedal. You can adjust both its length and speed via foot pedal to activate this effect; some loop pedals serve both functions; for example the Digitech Jam Man Stereo Looper Delay Pedal is one such dual function pedal.
At its core, using a looper depends on your playing abilities – its quality depends on how accurately and precisely you played the initial sequence or riff you recorded. If there are pauses in its performance that reduce its utility as a backing track. Therefore, be sure to practice any chord sequence or riff thoroughly prior to using a pedal looper pedal for testing purposes.
Guitarists typically place drive pedals like overdrive, distortion and fuzz near the beginning of their pedalboard order for this reason; this allows them to get as pure a signal into their pedals without distortion from using an effect pedal. Reverb or delay effects should be placed at the end of their chain so their echos won’t be compromised by recorded sounds overlaid onto them.
Guitar pedals take the signal from your guitar and alter it before it reaches an amplifier and speaker, creating unique tones in your sound. There are a wide variety of pedals on the market from subtle to wild that can alter its frequency ranges and transform your sound completely.
Singers frequently make use of various effects such as chorus and reverb to add ambience and dimension to their performances.
Time-Based Effects
Delay pedals take a short snippet of your guitar signal and play it back for you, from slapback to reverb-like trails, at different rates to add depth to your tone that may otherwise not be achievable through simply increasing or decreasing volume knob(s).
Guitar players frequently utilize delay effects in combination with other effects like modulation pedals like flangers and chorus pedals for ambient music to build layers of sounds that create space and dimension.
Delay pedals can add depth and weight to a guitar or bass solo by creating an echoy effect that allows individual notes to “ring out.” Guitarists such as U2’s The Edge, Slash and David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) often utilize long and high feedback delay settings to craft signature sounds.
Modulation pedals are essential components of any guitarist’s pedalboard, providing effects like tremolo, flanging, chorusing, vibratoing and vibratoing. Modulation effects are especially useful when combined with effects that change frequency response such as distortion pedals.
Pedal placement is ultimately up to you; some guitarists choose to put their delay pedal at the end of their pedalboard while others like it placed earlier in their drive section. If placing at the end, be mindful of your amplifier’s gain setting; placing after drive pedal allows for quicker adjustments without any unwanted effects such as phasing or other unwanted features. Alternatively, opt for a MIDI compatible delay such as Roland RE-201 or RE-2 Space Echo units which enable full control via MIDI and can automate or sync delay times between other MIDI compatible equipment.
Volume-Based Effects
Many effects that influence your tone rely on gain staging, so they should often be added first to a chain. Gain-staging pedals alter the fundamental character of the guitar signal and can serve as the basis for harmonically complex tones. From clean boosts to heavy overdrive and distortion pedals, gain staging pedals can shape it all!
Other volume-dependent pedals include pitch shifting effects like whammy or octave shifters that modify the frequency response of your guitar signal. We advise using these before any drives so they won’t add extra octaves or other frequencies (unless that’s what you desire! ).
Auto-wah or envelope filters use an electronic circuit to adjust the volume of your signal when played, altering its volume as you play. Rocking this pedal creates everything from soft chorus sounds to intense vocal effects reminiscent of Crybaby pedals made famous by psychedelic rock and 1970s funk artists.
Compressor pedals act as an automatic volume controller by gradually decreasing output from your guitar as the signal gets louder, thus helping prevent sudden, dramatic notes with short attacks such as distortion pedals from becoming too loud too quickly.
Another type of pedal called a flanger uses similar technology to alter the volume and phase of your guitar’s signal, creating volume fluctuations via modification of phase. Flangers are great after drive pedals to avoid too much reverb being added onto your tone. Finally, loopers create layers which can be added or subtracted at will; many famous guitarists such as KT Tunstall and Ed Sheeran use loopers in creating their signature sounds.
Modulation-Based Effects
Modulating a signal’s pitch and/or frequency with an effect pedal can add movement and sweeping sounds to your tone, such as chorus, flanger, tremolo or vibrato effects. Such pedals work by altering its waveform – creating everything from spaceship-inspired vibrato sounds to classic vibrato sounds. Recently there has been something of a revival in modulation-pedal production from companies such as Line 6 and BOSS producing an array of modulation effects in this category.
Delay pedals take your original signal and play it back at a slower rate than it first came through, often at digital or analogue rates depending on personal preference. Both forms have their own distinct benefits that could work for you.
Reverb pedals are another time-based effect pedal commonly found on guitarists’ pedal boards that can add space and depth to your tone. Reverbs have long been considered essential elements in creating that spacey vibe guitarists love so much.
Modulation pedals may be difficult to understand at first, but they provide an easy way of adding subtle, yet dramatic sound effects to your guitar tone. One such modulation pedal from TC Electronic is the Corona Chorus; this device takes your signal and splits it in two paths before slowing one half while speeding up another to produce shimmering chorus-type sounds. Another effect commonly used with modulation pedals is an octave divider which works similarly but produces higher pitched sounds such as those produced from moving up and down on whammy bars whammy bars whammy bars whammy bars.
Tremolo is an effective modulation effect with various applications that is both straightforward and versatile, from sounding stuttery or smooth depending on how you adjust its settings. Many tremolo pedals also include an expression control for additional control over its amplitude and rate of delivery.
Compressors & Limiters
Compressor and limiter pedals can make or break your sound. A compressor works by turning down any volume that exceeds a certain threshold; while limiters have extreme ratios to create an impactful wall of sound that squashes any over-amplitude that may come through your mix – both are essential elements in creating polished performances in both studio and live settings.
Utility pedals add another element to your tone and enable you to hone your musical skills as an artist. They include effects that alter pitch or modulate guitar tone like pitch shifters or modulation devices; alter guitar volume using drive pedals; or simply alter its tone with simple drive pedals like drive wah pedals; adding treadle-operated wah pedals (that allow you to shift guitar tone with treadle rocking) is another effective way of altering guitar sound while adding some unique effects; multi-effects units are another essential addition – these compact devices allow space saving effects for all effects needs in one convenient package!
Gain pedals are also indispensable tools for any guitar player. Overdrive pedals provide less distorted tones while fuzz pedals offer that “Jimi Hendrix or Seattle grunge feel.”
Finding the ideal pedals may take time and research; the Sweetwater Buying Guide makes the search simpler by breaking down major categories of guitar pedals that shape tone – making it simple for you to find exactly what you need for yourself.
Looper Pedals
As with choosing an ice cream flavor or paint for your living room, there is an array of effects pedal options. Selecting which pedal best meets your needs can be daunting for beginning guitarists.
One of the most versatile pedals available is a distortion pedal. By increasing gain and adding some character to your sound, distortion pedals allow your music to become fuller and stand out in band settings or simply add depth and dimension to lead lines and riffs.
A boost pedal is another effective tool that can be used to easily alter the overall volume of your signal. Some models are user-friendly while others contain additional features that may take some getting used to.
Reverb, delay and chorus pedals are also commonly found among effect pedals. Reverb pedals such as the Dunlop Cry Baby can help recreate an echo effect, or create the sounds of an enormous concert hall. Delay pedals like DOD Rubberneck allow you to repeat your signal at gradually fading volumes for quick slapback effects or long delays ala Pink Floyd-style delays.
Chorus pedals such as the Electro Harmonix Small Clone or MXR Micro Chorus can help add thickness and body to your guitar tone, either subtly to add fuller sounds or more dramatically for warbly modulations effects. They often overlap with modulation effects; therefore it is wise to experiment until you find what suits you best.