Best pedals for blues overdrives, reverbs and more, primed for blues

Origin Effects RevivalDrive Compact pedal leaning against an amp
(Image credit: Future)

Whether it’s to play out or just to jam at home, more blues ‘boards are assembled than any other kind of pedalboard. For a genre which centres around raw, gritty and simple tones, players have got myriad options when it comes to the best blues pedals with which to populate their ‘board – so it’s important to make sure the right decisions are made for your sound, and your style.

Typically, blues tones are harmonically rich, overdriven affairs. When working at high volumes, this wholesome drive tone is achievable with a cranked tube amp – but those ‘high-volume moments’ are few and far between for most of us. That’s where the best blues pedals enter the fray.

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Alex Lynham

Alex Lynham is a gear obsessive who's been collecting and building modern and vintage equipment since he got his first Saturday job. Besides reviewing countless pedals for Total Guitar, he's written guides on how to build your first pedal, how to build a tube amp from a kit, and briefly went viral when he released a glitch delay pedal, the Atom Smasher.

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