Pedals & Effects
The secret sauce of your signal chain. We test pedals for durability, sound quality, and musicality.
Start Here: Pedal Buying Priorities
Buy the problem you actually have. A Tube Screamer will not fix a noisy wall wart, and a looper will not replace a power supply. Order the board, then the power, then the one effect you will use every night.
| Need | Start With | Best Next Page |
|---|---|---|
| Blues / rock mid-hump overdrive | Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer | TS9 review |
| Practice and solo looping | Boss RC-5 | RC-5 review |
| Hum that appears when pedals turn on | Isolated power, not another dirt pedal | Pedal power guide |
| What goes first in the chain | Tuner → wah → drive → modulation → delay | Signal chain order |
Buying Notes (Listing Checks)
- Confirm TS9 vs TS808 vs Mini, and RC-5 vs RC-500, before you click a generic “Tube Screamer” or “Boss looper” search result.
- Check current draw and 9 V vs 18 V on the manufacturer page. Daisy-chaining digital delays is a common noise source — see how to reduce pedalboard noise.
- A cheap multi-effects unit can replace five analog boxes. Compare best multi-effects pedals if you want one board, not a collection.
- Need the amp side next? Use the amplifier hub.
Boss
Boss DS-1 Distortion
$62.99
Sound Profile:
"Hard-edged distortion with a mid-scooped character."
Boss
Boss GT-1000CORE Multi-Effects Processor
$699.99
Sound Profile:
"Natural, dynamic amp response with studio-quality effects."
Electro-Harmonix
Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi
$99.00
Sound Profile:
"Thick, wooly fuzz with heavy saturation and long sustain."
HeadRush
HeadRush MX5 Multi-Effects Processor
$399.99
Sound Profile:
"High-definition amp modeling with premium effects processing."
Ibanez
Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer
$109.99
Sound Profile:
"Mid-focused overdrive with soft clipping and subtle compression."
Line 6
Line 6 POD Go Multi-Effects Processor
$449.99
Sound Profile:
"Studio-grade amp modeling with rich, detailed effects processing."
MXR
MXR Phase 90
$89.99
Sound Profile:
"Lush 4-stage phasing with a warm, analog swirl."
Strymon
Strymon BigSky Multidimensional Reverb
$479.00
Sound Profile:
"High-resolution digital reverb ranging from realistic rooms to ethereal pads."
Zoom
Zoom MS-70CDR MultiStomp Chorus/Delay/Reverb
$129.99
Sound Profile:
"Clean, transparent effects that play well with any amp."