Guitar pedals are small metal enclosures containing circuitry that you step on to activate them, providing various effects such as driving, distorting and modulating signals for creating different tones and textures.
Your pedal selection matters; typically compression, wah and overdrive pedals should come first followed by modulation (chorus or flanger) pedals before time-based effects such as delay or reverb pedals at the rear.
Modeling pedals
Modeling pedals differ from regular pedals in that they take in your original guitar signal and process it through various effects before producing an altered version of it. This makes them the ideal way to add effects without needing separate pedals, amplifiers and instruments; many even feature built-in cab emulation that can be disabled as well as multiple options of effects that you can select from.
Many of the most sought-after models are distortion pedals that allow guitarists to add some edge and bite to their guitar sound. These pedals can emulate tube amps and provide warm organic distortion that stands out in any mix; some even offer multiple forms such as overdrive gain and fuzz so you can find your ideal sound.
Other popular pedals include modulation and delay effects. Modulation pedals such as flanger and phaser can add an enveloping, buzzy tone to your guitar; delay effects such as echo are ideal for creating varied rhythms that provide backing tracks or practice opportunities to solo over.
Delay pedals add space and depth to your signal similar to reverb pedals, but with more control over what type of delay effect you get. Some even allow you to tap out the tempo of your delay to match up with the beat of your song – perfect for creating an expansive and multidimensional guitar soundscape!
Other pedals are more specialized; among these pedals is the ubiquitous “wah pedal.” This effect alters your frequency range to make the sound resemble that of voices or instruments, making it popular across genres such as funk and metal music. Other more specialized pedals such as Electro-Harmonix Key9 pedal can even make your guitar sound like an organ or electric piano!
Volume pedals
Volume pedals come in various forms on the market. Some act as traditional volume controls that can mute your signal while others act as master volume controls that directly alter overall guitar volume (obviously). Expression pedals connect directly with your signal chain, using their inputs to control various effects parameters like delay length or reverb – even controlling those settings from their inputs!
One of the most essential pedals in any guitarist’s arsenal is a basic volume pedal. From temporarily muting your signal during breaks or song changes to creating beautiful soundscapes when combined with ambient reverb or delay pedals, volume pedals provide many useful applications.
Location can make an immense difference to how volume pedals function, with initial recommendations that they be placed before any drive pedals to clean up your signal and avoid an excess of gain and grit. However, they can be placed anywhere along your chain depending on your needs and interactions between pedals.
Effects pedals can drastically change your guitar tone and add a ton of creativity to your playing style. They’re also an easy way to experiment and experiment with new sounds without the commitment of buying an amp setup; from subtle reverb swells to mind-boggling modulation effects there’s something suitable for every taste and preference!
Tremolo pedals
Tremolo pedals provide guitarists with an easy way to add vibrato-like effects to their guitar sound, making them an invaluable addition to their pedalboard. Tremolo pedals work by altering the volume of your signal in an ongoing cycle and producing that warbling vibrato effect. Some tremolo pedals also include depth or color controls as well as bias controls which add tube-styled wobble into their signal.
There are various types of tremolo available on the market, but harmonic tremolo stands out as one of the most sought-after styles. This tremolo creates a full and rich tone by modulating a low and high pass version of your signal 180 degrees out of phase with each other, giving your tone that sweet amp-like sound tremolo effect and giving it extra character.
Amplitude modulation (AM) tremolo is another popular variety, working by rapidly increasing and decreasing your guitar’s amplitude at a rate determined by its pedal’s rate control. While this form of tremolo can still provide some useful effects, its feel doesn’t match that of harmonic tremolo; longer notes tend to become disjointed from its tone as sound fades.
Tremolo can be used alone, but is usually best when combined with other effects like reverb or delay. But it can add extra punch and texture to solo guitar work at fast tempos; similarly tremolo pedals may come in handy in the studio for giving an already recorded take more vibrancy without needing to go back and rerecord again.
Compressors and Limiters
Compressors and limiters can make your guitar sound far more polished. By limiting the dynamic range of your signal and smoothing out sudden volume peaks, compressors and limiters help your music sound great on loud PA systems or broadcasting media, and also make it more competitive within the record industry.
Overdrive pedals are designed to emulate the sound of an overdriven tube amp, producing the classic crunchy tone associated with rock ‘n’ roll. By limiting how much gain you apply to your signal without exceeding safe operating limits for tubes, ratio and threshold controls provide more control over how much distortion occurs in your tone.
Fuzz pedals utilize square waves to produce buzzy, sputtering and “fuzzy” effects popular in genres like stoner rock. Artists such as Jack White and Jimi Hendrix have used fuzz pedals extensively. Modulation effects like chorus or flangers create trippy sounds which add depth and dimension to music performances; there are numerous types of modulation pedals to choose from as well.
Delay pedals add depth and space to your sound by recording audio signals and then playing them back a short amount of time later. Many delay pedals allow users to set the length and tempo of repeated delays for maximum creative expression. Loop pedals offer another tool, as they record and replay entire segments of audio to build richly textured sounds; often these require quite some creativity from musicians in order to produce great results.
Time-based pedals
Modulation pedals like flangers, chorus and phasers alter the timing of your guitar signal to add rich textures that enhance music and give your sound its desired character. Modulation effects tend to work best before harsher effects like distortion can take hold in your pedal chain; for this reason they tend to appear first after tuners but before distortion pedals.
Delay pedals are another common type of modulation pedal, creating an echo that extends beyond where it would end without it. Like chorus and tremolo pedals, delay pedals should be placed prior to distortion pedals for best results.
Fuzz distortion is an extreme form of distortion characterized by heavy clipping. As fuzz does not compress its signal like other forms do, fuzz works best as the first pedal in a chain before using compressor or limiter pedals to compress signal further.
Proper pedal order is essential to getting the most from your guitar rig. By optimizing your pedal chain, you can enable each effect to shine while avoiding muted, unprofessional tones. While great tone is subjective, taking the advice in this article will give your rig a strong foundation on which to expand and experiment.