Born out of a chance meeting between songwriter/producer Aryan King and P.A.F. pickup specialist Alexey Dovnar, Octaking Labs has announced its first pedal, the Burstphonic PAF.

This debut release sees the company teaming up with guitarist Jack Moore – son of Northern Irish legend Gary Moore – to create a pedal that aims to “authentically capture the Greeny Moore legacy” via its “massive headroom, rich, clean harmonics, and that unmistakable, soaring out-of-phase sound.”

The 100 percent analog pedal features controls for level, bass, sparkle and P.A.F., with two mini switches to select between ’59/Greeny and LP/Strat modes.

Octaking is calling it “the world’s first ever guitar pedal” because it was designed to reproduce the tonal identity of the storied 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard that was owned by Peter Green and Moore before it made its way into the hands of Kirk Hammett.

Instead of emulating amplifier saturation, the pedal reshapes the input signal to reflect vintage P.A.F. response curves, midrange complexity and bloom, as well as the natural compression and harmonic richness of aged tonewoods.

“Dad’s sound was never just distorted guitar,” Jack Moore tells GW. “It was a living thing – mid-forward and singing, with this bloom after the note that made even a simple bend feel like it had air around it.

“There was grit, but it was musical grit. The amp and the guitar talked back to him. You could hear the pick attack, then the note would open up and hang there just long enough that he didn’t have to rush.”

This particular relationship with tone was undeniably symbiotic – the sound of the guitar and the amp together inspired the much-missed blues giant to find the right lines and phrases to play.

“When the sound has that kind of sustain and harmonic richness, you start writing phrases around it,” Moore adds. “You hold a note because it wants to be held. You leave space because the decay is doing half the work. You bend slower because the overtones are already doing the drama.

“A drier, tighter tone would have pushed him toward shorter, more percussive ideas. His sound invited melody, vibrato, and those little vocal-style inflections. The gear didn’t replace his hands – it gave his hands a voice that matched how he heard music.”

As for sonically replicating one of the most recognizable guitars in rock and roll history, Octaking deliberately chose not to pursue the instrument itself and instead opted for a more empirical and forensic approach to the project.

“We gathered primary source data, including measurements from Gary’s late-’90s signature model,” Aryan King explains.

“We also had access to Stripe – Gary’s iconic 1959 Les Paul heard on Still Got The Blues. Alongside these, we analyzed isolated DI tracks from benchmark songs like Parisienne Walkways and Need Your Love So Bad, and selections from the Blues For Greeny album.”

The company’s engineering team mapped the electrical profile of the original pickups using a spectrum analyzer – precisely tracking inductance, impedance, and the resonant peak response.

“A massive part of the pedal’s architecture accounts for the famous accidental Greeny mod,” explains Director and co-founder Alexey Dovnar. “The flipped neck-pickup magnet polarity that created Gary’s piercing, nasal, out-of-phase middle position.

“We modeled that exact phase cancellation and frequency curve inside the circuit to ensure that when the Greeny mode is engaged, the pedal delivers that unmistakable hollow, vocal bite. And then the ’59 mode captures the broader dynamic envelope of an authentic late-’50s P.A.F. ’Burst, with the woody lower-mid bloom, transparent top-end clarity, pick attack sensitivity, and smooth sustain.”

The final thumbs up came from Jack Moore, who had been working with Aryan King on the pedal prior to the company being launched, offering his personal insight, feedback, and – ultimately – approval.

“For the family, this release is very personal,” Moore says. “My dad’s voice is still in the room. For fans, it’s respectful and useful. They’re not being sold a costume. The best tribute isn’t imitation for its own sake – it’s when a kid in a bedroom hears that midrange bloom, writes a line they wouldn’t have written on a sterile clean amp, and the music keeps moving forward.

“That’s the point: preserve the character of the tone so people can use it, not just admire it.”

• Head to Octaking for more information.

What is it?

The Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble arrived in the 1970s and helped put that lush, swirling analog chorus sound on the map. It also featured a separate vibrato mode and an analogue preamp that became part of its unmistakable character.

Original units are big, bulky and command collector prices, but their influence lives on in countless chorus pedals.

Warm Audio's original WA-C1 recreates much of that vintage magic, right down to its oversized enclosure and distinctive appearance. The new WA-C1 Mod takes the same basic approach but puts it into a smaller, more pedalboard-friendly package. It's an all-analogue chorus and vibrato pedal that aims to capture the character of the legendary CE-1 while introducing a few modern conveniences, including greater flexibility over the preamp.

With so many chorus pedals available today, the WA-C1 Mod is aimed at guitarists who appreciate the warmth and character of vintage analog modulation but need something that fits more comfortably into a modern pedalboard setup.

Specs

• Launch price: $199 | £199 | €229
• Type: All-analog chorus and vibrato
• Controls: Preamp Level; Chorus Depth and Rate; Vibrato Depth and Rate; High/Low sensitivity; single footswitch with press-and-hold Chorus/Vibrato switching; rear Hi-Z and Vintage/Modern switches
• Features: Analog preamp with optional bypass; LED modulation-rate indication; selectable 50k-ohm / 1.1M-ohm input impedance
• Connectivity: One 1/4-inch input; two 1/4-inch outputs (mono and stereo)
• Bypass: Vintage mode retains preamp when effect is off; Modern mode bypasses preamp
• Power: 9V DC pedal adapter; 200mA current requirement
• Dimensions: 71 × 61 × 114 mm (W × H × D)
• Weight: 16 oz / 0.45 kg
• Contact: Warm Audio

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★½

The original WA-C1 was a pretty big pedal, so the smaller Mod enclosure is a welcome change. It retains the distinctive wedge-shaped design and textured finish of the original, giving it that unmistakable vintage look. The metal enclosure feels solid and substantial, with a reassuring heft that makes it feel like a serious piece of gear rather than just another stomp box.

The vintage-style knobs are a nice touch, adding plenty of character that complements the pedal’s retro appearance. They're easy to grip and turn smoothly, with just the right amount of resistance for making precise adjustments. The heavy-duty toggle switch is another nice touch, with a firm, distinctive click that adds to the pedal's substantial feel.

The footswitch feels equally solid with a smooth, positive click of its own and the top-mounted connections help keep everything neat and tidy.

Despite having quite a few controls packed into a smaller space, nothing feels cramped or awkwardly placed. Overall, it's a handsome, well built pedal that looks and feels ready to gig.

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★★½

The controls are pretty straightforward once you get familiar with them. Chorus and Vibrato each have their own Depth and Rate knobs, so there's no need to readjust everything when switching between effects.

A quick tap of the footswitch turns the modulation on or off, while pressing and holding it switches between chorus and vibrato. It's a clever design that lets one footswitch do the work of two, rather than the separate footswitches found on the original WA-C1. It takes a little getting used to but becomes second nature with a little practice.

Then there's the preamp, and that's where things get interesting. The Level knob adjusts its output, while the High/Low sensitivity toggle on the front determines how hard your guitar's signal drives it. Low provides more headroom, while High pushes the preamp harder.

Around back, the Vintage/Modern switch gives you another option. Vintage keeps the preamp in the signal path even when the modulation is switched off, while Modern bypasses it when the effect is disengaged. It's a handy feature, especially if you want to use the preamp independently of the chorus or vibrato.

The rear Hi-Z switch is also worth checking out, particularly if you're using passive pickups like those in my Les Paul and Strat. It lets you choose between the original CE-1-style input impedance and a higher-impedance setting better suited to modern guitar setups.

There's a single input on one side of the pedal and two outputs on the other, allowing you to run it in mono or connect two amps for stereo operation. There's plenty to explore here, but none of it feels complicated once you spend a little time with the controls.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★½

With a Supro Blues King 12 dialed in for a clean to edge-of-breakup tone, I’m running both my Les Paul and Strat through the WA-C1 Mod to get a feel for its character. The first thing I want from a chorus is a little movement without losing the sound of the guitar underneath.

That's where the WA-C1 Mod makes a strong first impression. Setting the Chorus Rate and Depth fairly low produces a warm shimmer that gives open chords and picked passages a little extra width and color. It's great for when a song needs some atmosphere, but the guitar still has to sound like a guitar.

The Strat is a natural fit for the brighter, more chimey side of this effect. With clean arpeggios or lightly picked chords, a low chorus setting adds a lovely sense of movement without blurring every note. Bring the Depth up and the swirl becomes much more obvious, with that thick, liquid character people associate with the old CE-1.

The Les Paul, with the pickup selector in the middle position, brings a different flavor that's warm and round, with a little more body behind sustained chords. I like keeping the Rate slow but making the sweep deeper, so the effect breathes rather than speeds up.

Switch over to vibrato and the mood changes. Instead of making the guitar sound wider, the pitch starts to move. At lower settings, it gives held notes a slightly dreamy, almost tape-like warble.

Turn up the Rate and Depth and things get a little weird with a pulsing, rotary-style feel that's great for bluesy single note lines or funky rhythm parts. There's a lot more fun to be had here than using vibrato as an occasional special effect.

Then there's the preamp and that's where things get interesting. Switching to Vintage mode lets me hear what the preamp brings to the table, even with the modulation turned off. It adds a little extra warmth, punch and compression, giving the guitar a fuller, slightly more driven character. The High/Low sensitivity toggle on the front offers another way to shape the response.

With my Les Paul, switching to High gives the humbuckers a little more muscle, adding bite, grit and a thicker, more aggressive character. The Strat responds nicely too, with a little extra snap and spank that makes clean rhythm playing livelier. Switching back to the Low setting smooths things out, giving both guitars a cleaner, more open response.

I like the extra character Vintage mode brings to the sound, but I also appreciate having Modern mode available, which lets me bypass the preamp when the effect is off and hear more of my guitar and amp's natural tone.

The Hi-Z switch adds another dimension, particularly when using passive pickups. Engaging it helps preserve the Strat's sparkle and the Les Paul's attack, while switching it off brings a softer, slightly darker character that's closer to the original CE-1's response.

It's another useful option for fine tuning how the pedal interacts with different guitars. And while all these extra features are nice, it really comes down to the ultra-rich, warm analog chorus and vibrato that make this pedal so addictive.

Verdict

The WA-C1 Mod brings those rich, old-school chorus and vibrato sounds into a smaller, more practical pedal with the utmost swagger. I love the depth and movement it adds whether using humbuckers or single coil pickups.

Having the option to keep the preamp's vintage character or bypass it when the effect is off is another nice touch and switching between chorus and vibrato with a single footswitch is pretty clever.

There are a few things worth pointing out though. The rear switches aren't the easiest to reach once everything is plugged in and the press-and-hold footswitch takes a little getting used to. You'll also need a 9V power supply capable of delivering 200mA.

But those are small complaints for a pedal that's so much fun to play. At $199, the WA-C1 Mod delivers the kind of lush, musical chorus and vibrato sounds that make you forget about tweaking knobs and just keep playing.

Guitar World verdict: There's a lot to love about the WA-C1 Mod, from its lush, swirling chorus to its rich, expressive vibrato. Add in the smaller enclosure and the ability to bypass the vintage preamp and you've got a terrific pedal that's loaded with character and a whole lot of fun to play.

Also try

Hands-on videos

Warm Audio

Jack Fossett Guitar

Music For Miles

• "This is a truly touch-responsive, dynamic pedal that reacts like a good amplifier": Warm Audio Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive review

What is it?

Clearly not content with simply commanding the digital effects pedal space, Strymon is evidently on a mission to flex its engineering expertise in the analog world, too. In case you missed it, the mastermind behind some of the guitar world’s most celebrated digital delays, reverb pedals and more, recently embarked on its analog stompbox journey with the Fairfax Class A Output Stage Drive.

Now, it’s got another pedal to add to its burgeoning new Series A lineup, the La Brea. For me, this one was even more exciting on paper than the Fairfax. Why? Well, because it effectively takes one half of Strymon’s cult classic Deco Tape Saturation/Doubletracker pedal, gives it an all-analog makeover, and crams it into the company’s new – and super sleek – form factor.

Full disclosure: I love the Deco. It’s a bucket-list pedal for me. But I love it mostly for the tape saturation side; that thick, chewy, vintage cassette-style tone is there in abundance. It can be snipped for an always-on thickener with amazing compression, or cranked for a unique-sounding overdrive / distortion / fuzz.

As such, $400 for a Deco is off the cards for me – and, I imagine, a lot of other folk out there. But the La Brea? Now, that’s a different story. It’s the pedal all Deco fans have been asking for. Home-in on that one circuit, give me an analog take on all that harmonic richness, and I could be a very happy guitar player indeed.

So, safe to say I had a lot of hype going into this one. I was excited to see if it could deliver…

Specs

• Launch price: £199 | $199 | €229
• Type: Analog tape drive
• Controls: Tape Saturation, Level, Dry, Shift (High, Flat, Mid), Gain (High, Norm)
• Connectivity: Mono in/out
• Bypass: True-Bypass
• Power: 9 volts DC center-negative, with a minimum of 500mA
• Dimensions: 4.53″ x 2.83″ x 2.33″ (11.51 cm x 7.19 cm x 5.92 cm)
• Weight: 0.29kg
• Options: N/A
• Contact: Strymon

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★★

I gave the Fairfax top marks for its build quality, so it will come as no surprise I’m giving the La Brea an identical score. But it wasn’t by default; the La Brea is incredibly well put together.

On the hood, there’s not too many moving parts. So there’s not too much that can go wrong, but Strymon has done its work diligently. The three control knobs have a firm but responsive twist, the two toggles - a nice satisfying snap. Like the Fairfax, the controls are sitting on a slightly raised metal plate, which is probably purely for aesthetics, but it’s a nice touch. I like the soft-touch footswitch, too.

Those controls have been set into a robust metal chassis that feels surprisingly light, yet fills me with confidence that it’d have no problem sitting on my pedalboard. There’s just something about this style of pedal build that I really like. I wish all my pedals were built and styled like this; almost military-like in its precision, utilitarian in its overall vibe, and lets the tones do the talking.

I said it before, but the box-like efficiency of the build gives the La Brea a nice visual distinction from the rest of my drive pedals, and the no-nonsense contours make it a breeze to fit into a busy pedalboard. Top marks for the top-mounted input and output jacks, too.

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★★½

Although the control plate can feel at first a bit cosy, what with its three control knobs and two toggle switches, it becomes apparent that operating the La Brea is every bit as easy as the Fairfax. Strymon could have over complicated things here, but in keeping with its new analog ethos – and the military precision of its new chassis – it serves up everything you need to get dialed-in smoothly.

Level and Tape Saturation are self-explanatory: the former dictates overall output of the effect, the latter adds the soft-clipping, tape-style drive into the mix. Dry, meanwhile, is a lovely addition that serves as the MVP of the pedal: it lets you blend in your dry signal with the tape saturation for the desired mix, and it’s ultra responsive to tweaking your tone. More on that later…

Plus, with the addition of those toggles, the La Brea suddenly becomes even more expansive. With Gain, High and Norm offering two different levels of gain staging. As you probably guessed, those are high gain, and low-to-medium. Shift, meanwhile, adapts the frequency response.

And this goes through the whole spectrum, from added high-end chime to more dense mid-range heft. All in all, it’s a very comprehensive control set that, while not completely recreating the Deco workflow, expands and improves upon its potential with some choice refinements.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★★

It’s a small control set, but all three work well together and respond nicely to what’s going on in the circuit – and the result is a broad array of amazingly usable tones that include (and go beyond) the Deco remit.

As mentioned, Dry is a standout feature of the pedal. On the Deco, you only got Saturation, Tone and Volume controls and the Tape Saturation side. Here, you can really decide how much of your signal gets saturated, as it were, meaning the La Brea can be applied in a number of ways.

For me and my Quad Cortex mini, I usually have a JHS Morning Glory as my ‘always on’ pedal, but the La Brea is arguably better at thickening the juice of my harmonic character. It’s not amp-like, per se, but it gives a really noticeable, almost transparent warmth to your tone.

But I also feel the potential of the La Brea is underserved as a ‘set and forget’ pedal to sit at the start of a signal chain. I ended up using my QC mini to capture a host of different settings for the La Brea, because I kept finding new ways to use it.

As per Strymon’s recommendations, you can crank the Level and dip the Dry, while diming the Tape Saturation, for some genuinely gnarly tape drive that smashes into spitty fuzz territory. Vice versa, you can knock back Level, bump the Dry, and balance Tape Saturation for a more sensible lead cut that gives you some color and oomph without getting too dirty.

Verdict

I was expecting half a Deco, but I got so much more. I am struggling to think of a pedal maker out there right now who can match Strymon’s recent run. The company may have made its name in the digital space, but its analog future could be equally impactful. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if the La Brea is held up alongside the Flint and BigSky as Strymon’s gold standard pedals.

In hindsight, half a Deco would have been a missed opportunity. The La Brea has gone beyond the design brief to deliver one of the most unique yet usable pedals I’ve come across in some time. Now it’s got the Fairfax and La Brea on its books, I can’t wait to see what Strymon does next.

Guitar World verdict: A worthy addition to Strymon’s burgeoning Series A line, don’t go into the La Brea expecting half a Deco – because this is so much more. An expanded palette with some clever control appointments mean this all-analog tape drive is one of the best of its kind currently on the market. This is up there with the BigSky and the Flint as one of Strymon’s most accomplished pedals

Also try

Hands-on videos

Andertons

Strymon

Mike Hermans

What is it?

The Boss RC-600 Loop Station is the company’s most advanced floor-based looper pedal. It’s a product I have plenty of experience with, as well as its predecessor, the RC-300. Working in a guitar store, the RC-300 was probably the most requested demo product, as artists like Ed Sheeran and KT Tunstall dominated the airwaves with catchy loop-based tracks that made the technique look easy.

Looping has had a long journey from the avant-garde experimentation of Brian Eno and Robert Fripp’s analog tape reels, otherwise known as “Frippertronics”. DigiTech brought looping to the floor in the 1980s with its PDS series, while brands like Line 6 incorporated looping functionality into products like the DL4 in 2000. A year later, Boss released a product that would launch a range that eventually became the gold (or red) standard of looping pedals: the Boss Loop Station RC-20.

The RC-20 helped establish Boss as a dominant force in looping, and there have been many iterations since. Today, the Loop Station series offers everything from simple loop sketch pads like the RC-1 to the beatboxing-friendly RC-505MKII, right up to the flagship model that is the subject of my review today: the RC-600.

Launched in 2021, the RC-600 built on over two decades of looping innovation since the RC-20, becoming a go-to choice for guitarists seeking the most feature-packed floor unit available. There have been a few changes since the RC-600's predecessor, including the removal of the built-in expression pedal, an increase from three tracks to six, and a jump to around 13 hours of total recording time across all memories, to name but a few.

The flagship Loop Station now faces competition from an increasing number of pedal brands, including Sheeran’s Looper X, the Singular Sound Aeros Loop Studio and Headrush’s Flex Prime. Does the RC-600 remain the cream of the crop? That’s what we're going to find out.

Specs

• Price: $659 | £499 | €496
• Made: Malaysia
• Type: Floor-Based Looping Station
• Controls: 3x Record/Pay footswitch, 3x Stop footswitch, Track Select footswitch, Undo/Redo footswitch, All Start/Stop footswitch, Output Level knob, 4 LCD screen control knobs, 7x buttons (Menu, Loop, Rhythm, Tap Tempo, Enter, Exit, Page)
• Features: 6 stereo tracks, 200 rhythm types, 16 rhythm kits, 49 input effects, 53 track effects, 2 master effects, 99 memory channels, Graphic LCD display, 32-bit AD/DA conversion, 44.1 kHz sampling frequency
• Connectivity: 2x XLR inputs w/ DC 48V phantom power (10 mA max), 4x ¼” TS instrument inputs (2x stereo pairs), 2x ¼” TS main outputs (1x stereo pair), 4x ¼” TS sub outputs (2x stereo pairs), 1x ¼” TRS headphones output, 2x ¼” TRS expression/control inputs, MIDI in + out, DC power jack in, USB-B port
• Power: 9V DC center-negative, 1.2 A (with phantom power), 1.1 A (without phantom power), AC adapter included
• Dimensions: 435 mm x 163 mm x 66 mm
• Weight: 2.5kg/5lbs 8oz
• Contact: Boss

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★½

The change in size from the RC-300 to the RC-600 is quite astonishing; it’s around 4 inches narrower and 3 lbs lighter. The RC-600 has three rec/play switches and three stop switches, with a track select switch allowing you to switch between tracks 1 to 3 and 4 to 6. Gone are the trigger latches, replaced by smaller metallic footswitches. The switches, whether rec/play, stop, or track select, all press reassuringly on my demo model and have a soft click.

However, in an attempt to save space, the switch surfaces are small, and I find them a little fiddly to hit accurately. On a looper where timing is imperative, this could prove frustrating during a live performance. If I were to keep this in the long run, I’d invest in some footswitch toppers to expand the surface area and make accurate tapping easier.

The metal chassis of the RC-600 feels incredibly durable. It feels premium straight out of the box, and if you’re planning on using this for gigging, I wouldn’t worry about its ability to survive the rigors of the road. Gone, too, is the expression pedal of its predecessor. Now, if you want to use an expression or control pedal, you’ll need to connect an external one to the appropriate input.

On the left side of the RC-600, you’ll find a backlit graphic LCD screen. It’s easy to read on a dark stage, straightforward to use, and isn’t cluttered with unnecessary options. Underneath, there are four continuous rotary knobs that let you select different settings when pressed, change effect parameters, and toggle between options.

Each knob is pleasingly weighted and allows for controlled menu diving without getting frustrated. The device itself is naturally angled, with a raised section for the top controls.

Around the back, you’ll find the impressive connectivity options. The chassis-mounted 1/4-inch jacks are all incredibly sturdy. This feels like a small feature, but when you’re running multiple cables between expression pedals, instruments, and other devices, a secure connection is paramount.

The only downside to the connection options, for me, is the power. In terms of build, the RC-600 is certainly gig-worthy, but the AC adapter cable lets it down. I’d prefer a more robust IEC connection, which is much more widely available at venues.

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★★½

Switching the RC-600 on for the first time, I’m greeted by dazzling lights of many different colors. Didn’t Dolly Parton sing about that? Anyway, you’ll quickly realise that the light show is more than a pretty feature. In fact, as the user, you depend heavily on the colors, which indicate many different things.

For example, the track select button starts with a solid white light, indicating that tracks 1, 2 and 3 are selected. When track select is red, you’ve got access to tracks 4, 5 and 6. Holding the track select button switches the controls over to the effects, turning the indicator blue.

The effects are split between input effects, where you get 49 different types, from flangers and phasers to pitch bends and robot voices. Input FX affects your incoming signal, and when you record with an effect applied, that effect becomes part of the audio playback.

This is a minor gripe of mine, as I can’t simply remove the effect from the audio once it’s been recorded. Although the input effects are split into A, B and C for footswitch control, I can actually have four different effects available at once, with effect D requiring access through the screen or an external footswitch.

On the right-hand side are the track effect controls, also split into A, B and C, with option D selectable through the menu. These effects color the playback of your recorded tracks and include things like slicers, beat scatter, and vinyl flicks. If I’m honest, I don’t really get much use out of these. I struggle to find much use for them as a guitarist or singer-songwriter, but they’re there to experiment with if you’re feeling funky.

Although you’d imagine the LCD screen being the main visual cue, it’s actually the cycloptic, circular indicator to the right of it that I find most helpful. This can be found, albeit in a simpler form, on more affordable models like the RC-1. The circle moves to show the loop’s position, helping you keep track of where you are without constantly looking at the screen. When recording, a rotating red border makes it clear what’s happening. When the track is playing, this border turns green and moves around until the loop reaches its end.

There’s no denying that Boss has created a device that could easily be complicated, but it’s laid out intuitively with clever color coding. However, nailing the timing when stopping a loop so it flows perfectly can be tricky. Diving into the menu and activating quantization is a real eureka moment. This is a fantastic feature that helps snap your loop to the correct measure, and it’s something I recommend using.

Every time I use a Loop Station, I keep things fairly simple. After getting to grips with everything, I start layering a track with A, B, and C sections in the style of Prince’s “When You Were Mine.” I use the octave effect on the Boss RC-600 to create a bass part with my Gibson SG Standard, monitoring through Logic Pro with a Neural DSP plugin. On top of that, I play the song’s chord progression.

On track 2, I record the lead line, bringing it in and taking it out when needed. The B section, which I recorded on track 3, was the chorus, while part C, or the bridge, used tracks 4 and 5, applying similar techniques. Of course, this is just scratching the surface of what the RC-600 can do.

Building the arrangement this way also highlights the benefit of having six tracks available. I can dedicate separate tracks to the bass, lead, and additional parts without having to constantly reuse or overwrite existing loops. For a singer-songwriter building a fuller arrangement from scratch, that extra flexibility is a real advantage over a more basic looper.

While I keep things fairly simple here, you can delve much deeper into its effects and control options to build more elaborate arrangements. This is where the RC-600 can become as complicated as you want it to be, but it also means there’s plenty of room to grow as your looping skills develop.

Spending around an hour layering tracks, getting the timing right and making everything sound great, I got sidetracked peeling the potatoes for tea. I came back to my horror to find the RC-600 had powered down and my work was gone. Nightmare.

I have a look online and find that the RC-600's auto-off function is designed to shut the unit down after a period of inactivity. However, my review model seems to be powering down much sooner than I expect. I recommend checking the auto-off settings on your own unit and saving your work regularly, so you don't end up losing an hour's worth of looping to a potato-related distraction.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★½

Being the flagship model, I expect top-notch audio quality, and that’s exactly what I get. Boss has upped the AD/DA conversion to 32-bit, alongside 32-bit floating-point processing, and the playback is crystal clear.

I am impressed by how clearly the RC-600 reproduces my layered parts, even as the arrangement becomes busier. I tested playback through my audio interface and Logic Pro, using a Neural DSP plugin, before switching over to my Peavey Classic 30 amplifier. This gave me a chance to hear the loops outside of my computer-monitoring setup and get a better feel for how the layered arrangement translated through a guitar amp.

The octave effect is useful for creating a bass part from my guitar, while the modulation options offer further ways to shape the sound before recording. I’m less drawn to some of the more experimental track effects, which feel better suited to more adventurous loop-based performances than the guitar arrangements I put together.

While these give you plenty to experiment with, I would have liked to see more recognizable recreations of Boss's standalone stompboxes. Given the brand's extensive pedal lineup, this feels like an opportunity missed, and something that could have taken the RC-600 to the next level.

I also barely notice any lag. My setup involved monitoring through Logic Pro via an audio interface, and I was skeptical about how well it would function as even the smallest amount of latency can throw things off musically. However, it performed admirably and was pleasingly responsive. I experience the same immediate response when switching over to my Peavey Classic 30, and have no complaints about the playback feel when interacting with the loops.

Verdict

The Boss RC-600 is a seriously capable piece of kit, and it's easy to see why it sits at the top of the Loop Station range. The audio quality is excellent, playback remains clear as you layer tracks, and the six-track setup gives you plenty of room to build arrangements. I also found the interface more intuitive than its cockpit-like appearance suggests, with the color-coded controls and visual loop indicators helping you stay on top of what's happening.

However, it's not without its frustrations. The footswitches are small and can be fiddly to hit accurately, which isn't ideal when timing is everything. The onboard effects are useful, but I would have liked to see more recognizable recreations of Boss's standalone pedals. The Auto Off experience on my review unit was another unwelcome surprise, so I'd recommend checking the settings and saving your work regularly.

For guitarists and singer-songwriters who want to build elaborate live arrangements, the RC-600 offers a huge amount of creative potential. Beginners may find its deeper features take time to master, and those who mainly want to sketch out simple ideas could be better served by a more straightforward looper. But if you're willing to explore what it can do, there's a lot to get excited about.

Guitar World verdict: The Boss RC-600 is a powerful looping station for guitarists who want to build elaborate arrangements, with six tracks, extensive connectivity, and a flexible recording workflow. The small footswitches take some getting used to, and not every effect inspired me, but its creative potential makes it a compelling choice for players who have outgrown simpler loopers.

Also try

Hands-on videos

Ben Rowlands Music

The Loop Academy

Devan Bishop

What is it?

Walrus Audio is well versed in the creation of textural ambient soundscapes.

We’ve previously looked at its Slö Reverb, Lore Reverse Reverb and Fable Granular Generator pedals, and the latest in the genre, the Lüm Texture Engine, draws on elements of all three of these precursors.

The general idea here is to transform your signal to create atmospheric textures by ‘fracturing’ it into tiny grains wrapped in different washes of reverb.

Specs

• PRICE: $279 | £259 | €299
• ORIGIN: USA
• TYPE: Textural ambience pedal
• FEATURES: Buffered bypass, Trails or Instant Cut bypass modes, 3x onboard presets
• CONTROLS: Decay, Filter, Mix, X, Stretch, Mode/Ramp switch, Bypass footswitch, Moment footswitch
• CONNECTIONS: Standard Input, standard output
• POWER: 9V adaptor (not supplied) 100mA minimum
• DIMENSIONS: 66 (w) x 125 (d) x 60mm (h)
• CONTACT: Walrus Audio

Build quality, usability and sounds

The pedal centres around three different modes and has knobs to adjust Decay time, a low-pass Filter (effectively EQ), and Mix, which adds a proportion of the effected sound to your dry sound up to fully wet.

There’s also an X knob that has a different function for each mode, and a Stretch knob for time-stretching the effects from half- to double-speed with consequent pitch shifts.

Grain Cloud (Mode I) mode offers a granular texture built from dual taps reading from a feedback delay line. It’s an ambience fractured by glitches that are not unlike unsynchronised delay repeats or wayward tremolo pulses, with the X knob controlling the grain size – basically, the speed of the glitching.

Grain Verb (Mode II) is more of the same but delivers an increase in spacey ambience as it incorporates reverb built from dual taps reading from the delay memory of a reverb algorithm tank.

Forward/Reverse Verb (Mode III) is perhaps the most conventional of the three, with a forward reverb algorithm running into a reverse reverb algorithm whose decay is adjusted by the X knob, producing deep pulsing reverb.

Whether you’re carrying out measured juxtaposition of the knobs or tweaking them randomly looking for happy sonic accidents, the pedal is ripe for creative exploration, and there are three easily switchable presets to store and recall favourite sounds for onstage variation without resorting to knob twiddling.

Verdict

Verdict: ★★★★½

There’s no provision for an expression pedal here, but the Moment footswitch allows you to automate any one of the five knobs. You hold the footswitch to glide to a defined target with a choice of 10ms, 1,000ms and 5,000ms glide times.

It’s highly effective in injecting a sense of movement or as instant drama. Moment settings can be saved with each preset.

Guitar World verdict: Complementing your standard delay and reverb, and stacking nicely with dirt pedals, the Lüm offers a great way to build some textural ambience into a standard guitar chain, either as subtle ear candy or the main event.

Hands-on videos

Walrus Audio

Ambient Endeavours

• Best reverb pedals 2026: from spring to shimmer, these are our top picks for your pedalboard

When it comes to cheap gear, few firms can lay a glove on Behringer. Now it’s teasing a new pedal line, with each stompbox price at just $10 – $15 apiece.

While Behringer’s habit of releasing super-affordable versions of classic pedals has often landed the firm in hot water – it's legal tussle with Klon creator Bill Finnegan was highly publicized – the German’s reputation for cheap slices of gear is formidable.

But even with that in mind, this new line-up of all-metal pedals is something else. It will see Behringer double down on tiny outlays for – hopefully, at least – big sounds.

“Guitar players. We owe you an apology. We’ve been so busy disrupting synthesizers, mixers and DJ gear that we completely forgot about you,” Behringer says in a new social post.

Sure, the firm has been doing a lot in those spaces of late, but has still had time to release four new Klon copies, and simultaneously make fun of their lawsuit drama.

Still, the new pedal range sounds sizable. It will surely make up for a little guitarist neglect.

Priced as little as a couple of packs of strings per pedal the new range takes in “200–300 all-metal guitar, analog and digital pedals” ranging “from legendary legacy pedals to wildly innovative new designs.”

There’s also the promise of “open-source pedals you can hack, modify and reinvent yourself.” Behringer certainly isn’t doing half measures here.

It also jokes that it will “probably” disrupt the pedal market in the process, with the lineup shown in the post said to be “just the beginning”.

As Behringer puts it, “Great tone should come from your fingers, not your credit card.”

The photo has everything from a Brat analog distortion – a Rat copy, no less – to Time Bridge delay, and a Space Temple reverb. There’s also an intriguing analog phaser called Whetstone, and some interesting-sounding mini-stompboxes, including one called Slow Motion, and one simply called Noise.

Beyond that, there is pretty much every effect you can think of – from overdrives, distortions, and fuzzes to vibrato, octaver, and modulations including chorus. We’ve also spotted two Zentara overdrive pedals, which means its already cheap Klonalike is set for an even cheaper offering. Or are they just in there for effect?

“Will this upset a few boutique pedal manufacturers? Probably,” Behringer bluntly writes.

Responding to one user’s comment, Behringer also promises that bass players will be accommodated in the new range. But when it’s set to be launched is currently a closely guarded secret.

Whatever the case, Behringer will b e looking to flip the budget pedal market on its head with this range. $10 for a pedal is insanely cheap, much cheaper than the company's cult classic SF300 Super Fuzz.

It also looks to undercut Doner’s own range of $29, all-metal pedals considerably.

Ironically, Behringer has been issuing lawsuits of its own, and recently targeted Boss over a polyphonic tuner.

If you’re a tone chaser obsessed with vintage blues rock legends, specifically Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jimi Hendrix, you may have already come across Pedal Pawn. The company was founded in 2019 by British guitarist Chris King Robinson, who started out working from his mother’s garage.

Since then, they’ve delivered a range of guitar products for those enthralled by two of the most influential Strat-wielders of all time – even going as far as tracking down SRV’s TS9 to reverse-engineer their BluesPrint dual overdrive in 2023.

Today, they announce the arrival of the Say Wah – their first-ever foray into the world of wah pedals, named after the opening track of SRV’s third studio album, released in 1985.

“I’m stupidly excited about this one,” says Robinson, admitting that it’s the longest he’s ever spent developing a product to the point where he felt happy putting his company’s name on it.

“The first Say Wah concept actually dates back to 2020, so it’s taken about six years to finally get here. A wah has probably been the most requested Pedal Pawn product over the years, but I never wanted to make one just because people kept asking for it.”

Having owned and played hundreds of wahs over the years, Robinson is the first to admit he’s “ridiculously picky” when it comes to the legendary spectral glide sound.

Some of them, for example, might have “amazing midrange quack,” but not quite have that magic touch “at the top end.” Others might boast “a great sweep while lacking that all-important vocal quality”.

When it comes to the greatest wah recordings of all time, he cites Hendrix’s Voodoo Child (Slight Return) as “almost impossible to beat, because that’s the sound most people hear in their head when you say ‘wah pedal.’” He also cites SRV’s Say What! for its “aggressive, throaty, almost vowel-like midrange.”

The true bypass Say Wah comes with a hand-wound inductor, custom-designed PCB and circuitry plus a CTS 100K custom-taper McCon-O-Pot II. Every unit is hand-assembled in the UK.

“The big inspiration was those late 60s/early 70s Italian-style wah sounds, particularly one of my favourite vintage V846s with the old TDK-style inductor,” adds Robinson. “But we didn’t want to just photocopy one old wah.

“Over the years we’d heard characteristics we loved in different examples, so it became about understanding why certain ones had that really vocal midrange and then building our own version around that.”

The Say Wah circuit was developed from scratch in order to get the right response, especially when engaged alongside fuzz and overdrive effects.

“For the pot, we teamed up with Mike McConachie, the man behind the McCon-O-Wah,” Robinson says. “He’d already absolutely nailed the feel with his CTS 100K custom-taper McCon-O-Pot II. Rather than pretend we could improve on it, we put his pot in ours.

“It’s rated for two million cycles, which is also a massive bonus because scratchy old pots are one of those things every vintage wah owner knows all too well. And because vintage wahs can vary so massively, I’m personally setting up and testing every single Say Wah at the end of production.

“I want every customer to get one that has the magic rather than having to hunt through 10 of them hoping to find a good one.”

• The Say Wah will retail for £327/$435. Head to pedalpawn.com for more information. 

As mentioned in a previous Power Tools column about the Electro-Harmonix Electric Mistress flanger, the introduction of low-cost bucket-brigade device (BBD) integrated circuits kicked off a revolutionary period for the guitar-effects marketplace.

Dozens of companies introduced new chorus, flanger and analog delay pedals all around the same time in 1976, which makes it nearly impossible to determine which product came first. Like the Electric Mistress, the Electro-Harmonix Memory Man can’t be verified as being the very first analog delay pedal on the market, but it was certainly among the first.

The original 1976 Memory Man was a basic analog delay effect featuring three controls and a maximum 300ms delay time. In 1977, EHX rolled out the first version of the Deluxe Memory Man with four knobs (a Level control was added) and a slightly increased delay time. The model that really put the Deluxe Memory Man on the map was the five-knob version (generally known as the EH-7850, then EH-1343B, then EH-7850C) introduced in late 1978 that added a chorus/vibrato effect and individual wet and dry outputs.

With its maximum delay time increased to about 550ms, this version of the Deluxe Memory Man provided almost twice the maximum delay time of more expensive competitors like the MXR M-118, which topped out at 300ms.

Thanks to its affordable price and expanded features, the five-knob Deluxe Memory Man became an instant hit. Its modulated delay sounds quickly made the pedal irresistible to numerous pros in the studio and on stage for crafting warm, lush textures and complex rhythms.

The preamp is also a key element of the Deluxe Memory Man’s sonic personality, adding sumptuous grit and body to the sound when the Level control is cranked up far enough to make the overload LED illuminate. Many players, including Adrian Belew, Geordie Walker, Robert Smith and (most notably) the Edge, used the box as a cornerstone of their signature sounds during the early Eighties and beyond.

The Deluxe Memory Man virtually vanished from guitarists’ thoughts when Electro-Harmonix temporarily went out of business in 1984 and digital delay pedals started gaining popularity. However, the original “big box” version made a comeback as the reissue EH-2000 and EH-2002 versions produced between 1996-2007.

With the exception of a few modifications like true bypass switching and an external 24vdc adapter, the reissues offered an accurate reproduction of the original unit that even looked like the real thing. This version was promptly embraced by a new generation of grunge and alternative artists seeking retro tones.

Initially the reissue even used the same pair of Matsushita MN3005 BBD chips as the earlier version. Online forums are filled with varying opinions about whether the dual MN3005 configuration sounds better than the quad MN3008 circuit and whether the Xvive MN3005 reproductions featured in the current pedals sound as good as the originals.

As with any musical gear, users should let their own ears be the guiding force. It’s worth noting that a properly calibrated original or reissue is going to sound much better regardless of what type of chips it has inside.

Anyone looking for a 2007 or earlier unit should also replace the electrolytic capacitors, which also can improve sound and performance considerably.

• This article first appeared in Guitar World. Subscribe and save.

Fresh from becoming the first artist to get a signature Squier Paranormal guitar, Queens of the Stone Age’s Troy Van Leeuwen is releasing a new stompbox with Dr. No Effects – and it features a severed finger.

The TvL Blameshifter is being labeled as a “switching architect” and has been 10 years in the making, having started as a rehearsal room joke.

Back in 2016, Van Leeuwen and Dr. No Effects worked on two signature pedals, the TvL Raven and TvL Octavia – a clean boost and vintage fuzz, respectively.

The latter featured the word “blameshifter” beneath one of its knobs, which led to the in-house QOTSA line of, “What if there was an effect that shifts the blame for a fuck-up to the other guy’s amp?”

A decade later, after a severed finger fell out of a draw one day in the Dr. No workshop – no further context has been given – the Dutch firm has given birth to the Blameshifter.

What the story ultimately amounts to is a switching pedal built on a quartet of outputs with ultra-transparent buffers and a new approach to effects loop switching.

The severed finger points to where the signal is routed. Output 1 offers a buffered effects loop or an amp send (dealer’s choice) for adding an extra amp to your rig, with Output 3 the return.

That means players can create two separate loops, engage entire pedal chains at once, and return to their main output when it’s disengaged.

But it’s Output 2, described as an “A/B marvel”, where things go a little more left-field. Flick the side-mounted miniswitch to A, and you’ll get Output 2 only. Position B engages Output 2 and the main Output, providing “wet/dry chaos”.

“Troy mapped the labyrinth like a Sonic Architect, Dr. No gave it a body and soul,” the firm says.

The pedals are all handmade from out of Eindhoven, and ship with a goodie box including guitar picks, stickers, and buttons, to the tune of $375.40.

The Blameshifter is currently on pre-order, with shipping expected on November 15.

See Dr. No Effects for more.

Fender has confirmed that NAM A2 is coming to the Tone Master Pro in what is set to be the modeler’s most significant update yet.

Max Gutnik, Fender’s Chief Product Officer, confirmed rumors online. It will find Fender capitalizing on a tech innovation that has taken the amp modeler world by storm over the past few months.

NAM A2, which launched in June, is an open-source gear modeling architecture that lets users capture their gear, and explore both brand- and user-generated amp, cab, and pedal models.

Its maker humbly calls it the “most accurate and best sounding amp modeling technology in history”, but there was some credence to the claims: NAM A2 beat a number of its biggest modeling rivals in a blind listening test.

Modelers with access to NAM – which includes the newly announced Zoom Neurig and the Blackstar Blackstar BEAM Mini – have access to thousands of pro- and user-made tones via the TONE3000 platform. The raft of options is only going to keep on growing, too.

That makes Fender's embrace of the tech all the more significant. It also makes the company one of the earliest big-name modeler makers to partner with NAM A2, getting ahead of the likes of Neural DSP, Line 6 and IK Multimedia.

The confirmation comes from a post made to the official Tone Master Pro Users forum and shared via Reddit.

Sadly, no release date has been mooted yet, with Gutnik saying Fender’s in-house team is currently “putting it through its paces,” with Fender aiming to strike a balance between getting it ready at pace, and not rushing matters.

“Our goal,” he says, “is to make TMP an amazing platform to play NAM, just like we do with the rest of your amps and effects.

“Captures drop into your signal chain like any other amp, and they work with the touchscreen and in the app like everything else,” Gutnik then explains. “You will even be able to assign each one its own cool graphic.”

While it isn’t likely to completely eradicate the need for other amp models, such as those that come baked into our favorite modelers, NAM A2 does vastly expand the tonal capabilities of any unit that can accommodate it.

How long we’ll have to wait is anyone’s guess – the TMP’s last major update was a biggie in December 2025. But with Fender wanting to reveal it’s in the works, it’s clear it is desperate to get ahead of the curve.

JHS Pedals founder has built some crazy pedals, often based on classic or cult favorite designs. The infamous Flerb setting of the EHX Holy Grail has been one that fans have been dying for him to turn his hands to, and now he’s done just that… almost.

According to company founder Josh Scott, the JHS Pedals comments sections, its Discord channel and email boxes are all unanimous in their requests: “Josh,” they say, “build us a Flerb.”

But here, Scott doesn’t want to be a copyist, so he’s made the JHS Pedals Pherb instead – a “dark, moody lo-fi reverb”.

The term Flerb is an amalgamation of flanger and reverb, which is what you get with that quirky Holy Grail setting. But Scott has gone slightly off-piste, this time combining phaser and flanger.

Impressively, the whole pedal was turned around in 35 hours, making it the quickest pedal to go from dream to reality in JHS history. Its very simple-but-effective core is largely to thank for that.

Of its three controls, Mix dials in the amount of phaser and reverb (which are tied to the same dial), Speed is for just the phaser alone, and Length controls reverb decay and pre-delay.

There’s also a Break mode, which, JHS says, “takes the whole signal – reverb, phaser and your dry guitar – and destroys it.”

In literal terms, it adds a bit crusher with analog-style clipping before it hits the twin effects. To our ears, it produces an altogether more mangled sound, ideal for those wanting to sprinkle a little more chaos and carnage into the mix.

Finally, there are two other key perks. With the Break switch turned off the phaser can actually be turned off completely via the Speed switch, and turning the Mix dial down and engaging the Break mode finds the bit crusher operating solo.

“You asked us for Flerb, says Josh Scott. “You're getting Pherb.”

Honestly, it seems a really cool compromise, and puts a nice spin on an effect that has, over the years, become half-adored, and half-meme. Scott is on the latter side.

“Flanger inside of a reverb just makes my skin itch,” he notes. “Phaser inside of a reverb however, is a different story, and that's the one nobody ever built. So I'm giving you the thing that should have been and never was.

“The reverb is dark, moody and lo-fi on purpose,” he adds. “Not a plate. Not a hall. It's chorused and chunky, and at longer decay times it slightly pulses.

“The phaser is a four-stage vintage style phase shifter (think MXR Phase 90) with the feedback left off and the notch sweeps moved up through the frequency spectrum, so they stay out of the way of the reverb's low mids.”

The JHS Pedals Pherb can be yours today for $99.99.

See JHS Pedals for more.

Scott, meanwhile, is sticking some weird and wonderful items from his personal gear collection onto Reverb, after cramming two of its best-loved overdrive pedals into one ultimate stompbox.

What is it?

With a lineage dating back to the ‘70s and hundreds of pedals released, Boss knows a thing or two about guitar effects. The company's catalogue of products covers everything a guitar player will need, whether that is a classy overdrive, an over-the-top modulation, or a space-creating reverb. Naturally, with all that in the locker, Boss has a number of multi-effects pedals in its lineup too, but none quite like its newest multi-effects release - the Boss EX-4 Effects Expander.

The EX-4 takes 120 Boss effects compiled from the likes of the GX series of multi-effects, some classic stompboxes, and discontinued legends like the SG-1 Slow-Gear, and crams it all into a two-footswitch pedalboard-friendly chassis capable of running any four effects at once.

Adding to this is a number of features that could make the Boss Effects EX-4 Effects Expander the perfect pedalboard companion.

Specs

• Launch price: $329 | £289 | €349
• Type: Multi-effects unit
• Controls: 2 x encoders for menu browsing, 3 encoders for parameter editing, Menu, Gear Suite, 4 fx buttons, 2 footswitches
• Features: 4 effects at a time, Boss Multi-effects, Gear Suite effects presets, 128 factory and 128 user presets
• Connectivity: Stereo in and out, effects loop (when in mono), MIDI in and out, EXP/CTRL input, USB-C
• Power: 9v, 300mA, center negative
• Dimensions: 117x138x63mm/4.6"x5.4"x2.4"
• Weight: 1.7lbs/800g
• Contact: Boss

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★★

Boss is known for making pedals that will probably outlive most of its users. The EX-4 is no different, thanks to a metal chassis that feels like it would withstand all but the most unreasonable punishment, and a collection of buttons and controls that give an equally hardy impression.

The centerpiece is the display, which keeps things compact at 2.4”. It is not a touchscreen, nor is it high resolution, but a touchscreen would be difficult to use at this size; the simple images and text are clear, and the screen is more than bright enough for difficult lighting conditions.

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★★½

Speaking of size, at 117x138x63mm, the EX-4 is impressively small for the amount of I/O featured, and will easily slot onto most pedalboards. At 300mA, the current draw is reasonable for a digital pedal, and something that most pedalboard power supplies will support too.

That I/O consists of stereo 1/4” inputs and outputs, MIDI In and Out, an Expression pedal input, and USB-C connectivity. Cleverly, if you are not using the stereo input and output, the right side can operate as an effects loop.

As the name suggests, the signal chain consists of four effects. This may sound limiting, initially but there are a wealth of options here.

Firstly, the chain can be set to five different preset signal paths, allowing for different configurations of serial and parallel paths in both mono and stereo setups. The effects can then be freely moved around within the blocks of each path, making everything feel pretty versatile.

The effects parameters line up with the three encoders along the bottom of the screen so that I can simply turn the encoder to adjust the aligned parameter. Pressing the outside encoders will scroll the page left and right to further parameters if needed. Easy.

Changing effect types and moving them around means using the two larger encoders at the top of the unit’s front panel. These encoders are also used to browse the menus.

Some of those menus can be a little text-heavy, but those are mostly reserved for things like global settings, footswitch assignment and behaviour, etc. Meaning that, although they are not that much fun to navigate, you probably won't need to be diving into them during a gig, which goes some way towards redeeming them.

At said gig, there are only two footswitches to play with, but this can be expanded (pun intended) via the EXP/CTRL input for another two switches, or via MIDI with a MIDI footswitch. Without this, two of the four effects are assigned to the footswitches, with the other two effects remaining on, unless turned off by one of the four small FX buttons that correspond to each effect block.

Personally, I see this pedal as being utilized by players to cover the odd effects used only once or twice throughout a gig. For example, that one song you need a rotary effect for. In this context, having only two footswitches isn’t that much of a drawback, as you are highly unlikely to need to switch more than two of these effects within a song.

There are 256 presets altogether (128 factory, 128 user). The footswitches can be in Manual mode, which means turning individual effects on or off within a preset, or Preset mode, which means, well, navigating up and down presets.

Which mode you are in is clearly shown by bright LED’s around the footswitches. These LEDs are also color-coded to indicate the effect type assigned to them when in manual mode. Again, all very straightforward and a lot easier to figure out than it may first sound.

Lastly, the Gear Suite button takes the user to a selection of expertly crafted presets for each effect. A great way to get beginners started on effects they may be unfamiliar with, or for experienced users who want a shortcut to good sounds.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★☆

And that shortcut may be a significant time saver, as there is a lot to play around with, ranging from the staples to the wild. All are usable; some are brilliant, some are not as great.

Starting with a highlight from the sensible column, the Compressor is wonderfully transparent and capable of subtle evening of your dynamics or super-squashy funk strumming. It makes playing those Nile Rodgers riffs on my Stratocaster nothing short of addictive.

Similarly, the Slow Gear is a ton of fun. The original Compact Pedal is sadly discontinued and somewhat legendary among collectors, so it is great to see a version of it in the EX-4. The idea is that it fades in your signal in a violin-like way, with its simple parameters of just Sensitivity, Rise Time, and Level allowing for a surprising amount of control over this function.

I am also surprised by just how good the Acoustic Simulator is. The low end sounds a bit artificial, as there is just too much of it, but it is a relatively convincing acoustic tone that is devoid of the plinky-ness associated with affordable acoustics and cheap piezo’s. In fact, I would choose this simulated tone over a low-end acoustic piezo pickup any day of the week.

The Sitar sim, however, does not live up to this bar. Rather than emulating the iconic Paint It Black lead riff, it just makes my guitar sound anemically thin.

Moving on to more typical electric guitar effects, the modulations are brilliant. The Chorus is a good example, adding lovely wobble that still retains enough brightness and transients to be heard in a mix.

Of all the modulations here, however, the Rotary is my favorite. Its strength is in its versatility, as its controls include Speed Select, Slow Rate, Fast Rate, Level, Rise Time, Fall Time, Mic Distance, Balance, Drive and Direct. With these, I am able to create many iterations of a rotary sound, making for an effect that is a lot of fun to dive into.

There is plenty of space here too, with a wide selection of Reverbs and Delays. The Reverbs are a little mixed, as, to me, most of them sound a bit separated from my dry signal. However, the Spring Reverb does not suffer from this and adds a convincing spring sound that wraps the guitar in some comforting space.

The Drives are where I feel the Effects Expander EX-4 is weakest. My biggest pet peeve is that they don’t clean up particularly well on the volume control, resulting in tones that aren’t the most dynamic.

Some specific models are a bit of a miss too - for example, the T-Screamer feels too thin at lower gain levels, and the ‘60s Fuzz is just thin in general.

The Delays, in contrast, are hard to fault. The options here are varied, delivering everything from subtle slapback to The Edge-like soundscapes. The Space Echo, for example, gives out warm repeats that stay out of the way of your mix, perfect for fattening solos. The Giga Delay is the opposite, recreating the input in a much more pristine way that is well suited to rhythmic delay parts.

But that does not mean there aren’t some great sounds to be had. For example, crank the gain on the T-Scream, and it's a thick, mid-forward, chewy drive that is spot on for lead sounds. On the heavier side, the A-Dist provides some equally thick high-gain sounds, whilst retaining high-end definition.

Lastly, it is worth noting the weird ones. The Guitar Synth does what it says on the tin, whilst leaning on the more bity side of the synth world, and the Humanizer adds vowel sounds to your signal, akin to a cross between an envelope filter and Korg's infamous Miku pedal.

The point is, everything is covered.

Verdict

What this all adds up to is a capable little device that offers a huge amount of versatility.

When this sort of versatility is crammed into a unit so small, it can often mean that things get a little difficult to use. While there are some text-heavy menus, the EX-4 is straightforward where it matters most and manages to avoid annoying hidden functions altogether.

Whether you need a few one-off outlandish effects, or some more sensible options that don’t quite justify separate pedal purchases, the EX-4 has you covered with a range of great sounds, as well as a few that could be better.

Guitar World verdict: The Boss EX-4 Effects Expander does what its name implies - expands the sonic possibilities of your pedalboard. Some well-thought-out features, a large collection of great sounds, and a rugged build make for a carefully considered multi-effects unit that could slot into anyone’s pedalboard.

Also try

Hands-on videos

Boss

Pete Thorn

Thomann

What is it?

Of all the effects manufacturers to achieve stardom over the last decade or two, EarthQuaker Devices must be one of the most avowedly left-field.

Sure, there's traditional overdrive and modulation to be had from the Akron, Ohio shop, but remember – EarthQuaker is the company that gave us that barking-mad oscillating pitch generator, the Rainbow Machine. Or the utterly preposterous Data Corrupter, a three-voice, harmonizing analog fuzz/guitar synth.

It's to be applauded that these complex circuits, with all their hand-built insanity and inarguably niche appeal, are made widely available so that more people can experiment with the outer fringes of viable guitar and bass tone.

So when EarthQuaker announced an addition to the fashionable compact bass preamp/overdrive pedal landscape, it's fair to say none of us were ever expecting a straightforward Sansamp or Darkglass me-too. But then, EarthQuaker often does unexpected things - maybe it could be just that. Is this a classic comedy double bluff? (You never know.)

Today I'm investigating the Scrolls Bass Odyssey, EarthQuaker's take on a bass preamp pedal, co-designed with Japanese alt-rock bass hero Kentaro Nakao. Let's see what's what.

Specs

• Launch price: $349 | £399 | €399
• Type: Bass preamp and overdrive/fuzz pedal
• Controls: Level, Bass, Middle, Treble, Vari (boost/cut), Vari-Freq, push-buttons for Deep, Process, Bright, Drive Level, Blend, Drive, Bandwidth, Tone, footswitches for EQ and Drive
• Connectivity: ¼” instrument input, ¼” amp output, ¼” parallel output, XLR direct out (with Ground/Lift), ¼” effects loop Send, ¼’ effects loop Return
• Bypass: Relay-based true bypass
• Power: 9v DC, 70mA
• Dimensions: 121 x 114 x 57 mm
• Weight: 340g
• Contact: EarthQuaker Devices

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★½

EarthQuaker never disappoints on the quality front, and the Scrolls is a typically sturdy build. Its muted black-and-orange aesthetic is topped off by EQD's signature swirling script for the pedal's name, but the dense black-and-white forest of controls are all very clearly labelled.

The buttons and footswitches click satisfyingly and all the knobs turn with a nicely-damped weight - with centre detents on many of the pots for ease of dialing in.

Despite the surfeit of controls, the enclosure design is such that you shouldn’t have to worry too much about accidentally knocking anything with your feet - yet it’s not excessive in size. In fact, it’s a very reasonable alternative to other bass preamp pedals in terms of footprint.

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★★½

That footprint has a hell of a lot packed into it though – more than many rivals. The two footswitches control an EQ section and a Drive channel; these can be used separately or together.

These sections have individual controls too – to start with, the EQ side offers a Level control, the standard Bass-Middle-Treble setup, plus a two-knob ‘Vari-Freq’ circuit – essentially, allowing you to sweep the EQ range and cut or boost any frequency desired.

Then, push-buttons for ‘Deep’ and ‘Bright’ boost 80Hz and 5kHz respectively, while ‘Process’ drastically scoops out low mids for a more guttural, aggressive bark – although you’ll need a lot more Level to counteract the resultant drop in perceived volume.

The Drive section, meanwhile, gives you a further five knobs to play with. Of course, Level, Drive and Tone are all present and correct, as is a clean blend – vital on a bass overdrive. The fifth control is ‘Bandwidth’, determining the frequency range in which the clipping is most active; from a softer, warmer low-focused overdrive to a tighter, brighter, treble-focused grit. Or “from Motown to metal”, as EarthQuaker puts it.

Whew – it’s a lot of controls, for sure. But it’s intuitive to use; it’s to EarthQuaker’s credit that it isn’t really necessary to resort to the manual in order to dial-in a great tone. I’m a big fan of this ‘what-you-see-is-what-you-get’ style of user interface on pedals and amps.

It can send you down a rabbit-hole of tweaking – but then, Nakao wanted this pedal to function effectively as an all-in-one portable rig solution, and it's certainly not short of features to that end.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★½

I plugged the Scrolls directly into my Laney 2x12 powered cab, to sample the ‘analog speaker simulation’ on the DI output – EarthQuaker elected to add some filtering here, to combat the harsh top-end that can blight direct XLR outputs. I began with a passive Jazz Bass, and was instantly taken with the way the EQ made the flat speaker signal full-bodied and characterful.

The Drive section is full of great tones too - especially when combined with the EQ. I found a swathe of chunky, powerful blended overdrive sounds, but with the Gain turned up and less clean signal in the mix, it’ll go far beyond a traditional grit and tip decisively into fuzz territory. This definitely isn't your grandad's bass preamp.

I tend to keep the Bright setting engaged, for the amount of high-frequency definition that I like. Deep, by contrast, needed to be used with care for my setup. It’s a monstrous bass boost; low-end isn’t lacking from the pedal to start with.

It comes into its own when I switch to my StingRay, and am able to augment its aggressive upper-mid with a gut-punch of deep low end.

These two buttons by themselves can work wonders for quick EQ adjustment when switching between different types of bass.

Verdict

The Scrolls can be seriously good fun as a highly tweakable, high-gain overdrive or fuzz, with far more nuanced control of EQ and gain structure than a typical example of those breeds.

But if you want to treat it as a Sansamp alternative, or even a clean preamp with a powerful EQ, it’s no less impressive. It's similarly punchy money to a similarly-featured Darkglass, but a completely different vibe – it's an EarthQuaker, after all.

Nakao's input gives the Scrolls serious credence – on the one hand, he's a bass hero with a unique playing style that calls for an equally characterful-sounding rig. But he's also a session-man; he needs something accomplished, versatile and rugged, which lets him plug straight in and crack on. Objective achieved, I'd say.

Guitar World verdict: The Scrolls really is a fantastic contender in the crowded bass preamp market. It’s got everything that you need in a compact box, with all the useful tones you’d expect from this kind of pedal – plus a healthy slug of EarthQuaker’s characteristic fuzz madness.

Also try

Hands-on videos

EarthQuaker Devices

Empire Music

• “It’s like a Christopher Nolan movie in a pedal. Don’t think – feel”: EarthQuaker Devices Towers review

What is it?

There is no denying the success of IK Multimedia’s Tonex platform. The affordable Tonex Pedal and even more affordable Tonex One brought professional-grade guitar tone to pedalboards at an accessible price point. Although both can run limited effects, the focus of these units is clearly on IK Multimedia’s stellar capture tech - the Tonex Tone Models. This left us wondering: will there ever be a fully featured Tonex floorboard? The answer is yes, and it’s here in the form of the IK Multimedia Tonex Board.

And it is not like this is coming out of nowhere either. IK has long been doing guitar effects via its AmpliTube plugins as well as the limited versions we see in the Tonex Pedal and Tonex One hardware. So a full suite of multi-effects built around its Tonex platform feels like a natural step for the company.

But the Tonex Board also comes with a rather big change in direction when it comes to price - $999. This puts it beyond the affordable credentials of the company's previous Tonex hardware and into the realm of much stiffer competition.

Meaning, there is not a lot of wiggle room for the Tonex Board if it’s going to live up to the bar set by the likes of Neural DSP and Kemper.

Before we get started, it is worth clarifying the difference between capturing an amplifier and modeling one.

When creating a capture, the guitar amp is set to the desired tone and then mic’d via the capture device/interface. The device plays a bunch of otherworldly sounds through the amp, and then processes the results to create a snapshot of the amp at its current settings.

A model, on the other hand digitally recreates each component of the amplifier, mapping the entire amp's behavior in digital form, controls and all. In other words, the former commits the user to one sound, whereas the latter allows the tone to be tweaked as would be the case on the real thing.

The benefits of capturing are that almost anyone can do it with a few simple tools, meaning you can take the sound of a specific amp that you love on the road, without the backache of lugging a tube amp around. And you can gain access to hundreds of coveted amps that you would never otherwise get the chance to play via libraries like the aforementioned Tone.net.

It’s also worth mentioning that although you are committed to the captured amp sound, captures can be tweaked after the fact, via some generic EQ and gain applied to the model. Also, IK Multimedia calls its Tonex captures ‘Tone Models’ (confusing, I know).

And lastly, drive pedals can be captured too. Okay, with that out of the way, let's see if the Tonex Board can live up to the rest of the Tonex line.

Specs

• Launch price: $999 | £949 | €999
• Type: Amp/stomp capture and multi-effects
• Controls: 4 footswitches, Volume, Home, Live, Edit, Save, Browse, 6 mini encoders
• Features: Tonex Tone Models, AmpliTube and Tonex effects, dual signal path
• Connectivity: 2 ¼” inputs, 2 balanced ¼” outputs, 2 XLR outputs, 2 mono/1 stereo effects loop, ⅛” headphone output, 2 ¼” external control jacks, MIDI in and out, USB-C connectivity
• Power: 9v, 1.5A, center negative, DC adpater provided
• Dimensions: 235x184x72 mm/9.25"x7.24"x 2.83"
• Weight: 1.6kg/3.52 lbs
• Contact: IK Multimedia

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★½

Styled like the other offerings in the Tonex line, the Tonex Board features a robust metal chassis with a matte black finish, tube-like side lighting, metal protective rails (which double nicely as handles too) and aesthetically pleasing geometric lines.

I say gig-worthy, but it isn’t perfect. For example, on a board that could potentially run standalone, I would rather see an IEC cable than the external DC adapter. IEC cables are sturdier and more widely available should one break, and the supplied adapter sports some thin wiring that I would be wary of being too reckless with.

It should be noted that, while slightly bigger than ideal for this, it is small enough to feasibly run on a pedalboard. So, if you own a pedalboard power supply that can handle the Tonex Board’s 1.5A power draw (there aren’t many, but the MXR Iso-Brick Pro is one example), this will be a non-issue.

As you might expect, the front panel contains everything you need to control the unit, featuring four buttons and six rotary controls that are plastic but feel sturdy.

However, the center piece is that five-inch, high-definition touchscreen. It is vibrantly bright, meaning it won't get drowned out by stage lights, and it is impressively detailed to boot.

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★☆☆

Having owned and used the Tonex Pedal at a number of gigs, and positively reviewed a few Tonex One iterations, I think highly of the line in general, but have previously criticized the products for being difficult when it comes to tweaking anything past surface-level changes.

Safe to say, things have improved on the Tonex Board, mainly thanks to that high-definition touchscreen.

The interface has three UI modes - Home, Live, and Edit - quickly accessible via three buttons located by the corners of the touchscreen. Home displays the Preset number in large font, Edit takes you into the signal chain to tweak to your heart's content, and Live will clearly display what each footswitch is assigned to.

Footswitches can be set to the usual three modes we expect from tech of this ilk - Stomp for turning individual effects blocks on and off, Presets for switching through presets, and Scenes for gapless switching between different sound configurations within the same preset.

Edit mode is where you'll be spending the majority of your time tweaking, so I start there and begin setting up my own preset. The good news is that the Tonex Board follows the same conventions that have become the norm when it comes to signal chain and parameter editing - input on the left, output on the right, and a connected chain of up to 12 effects blocks in between.

Effects blocks can be dragged around the signal chain, and touching the block will display its parameters in line with the five physical encoders along the bottom, scrolling right to access further parameters if there are more than five.

When a tone model or effect is added to one of the blocks, it is represented by an impressively high-resolution image that makes it easy to keep track of what is going on, even in complicated setups. So far, so intuitive.

With 76 AmpliTube and Tonex effects models to scroll through, capacity for 1,440 presets, and a huge list of preloaded Tone Models, there is a pretty extensive selection of things to browse. Thankfully, this is all split up into categories (Drive, Delay, Modulation, Amps, and so on) and is searchable via a time-saving search bar.

In doing this, I can’t help but notice a bit of lag on the touchscreen, particularly when scrolling. It’s not slow enough to be problematic, but it is a little annoying.

Having set up a preset featuring a Fender Deluxe Reverb Tone Model, and a collection of effects, the next job is to assign Scenes and Stomps to the footswitches. This is a little clunky, as it involves pressing and holding parameters and going through a menu to designate the effects footswitch assignment.

This is not indicated in any way on the screen, so it requires either reading the manual or some experimentation. Other hidden functions include accessing the tuner by holding footswitches B and C, as well as holding the CTRL footswitch to change its function to designated footswitch modes (Scene, Preset, and Stomp).

In the heat of a live gig, you don’t want to have to rely on memory for these things. Better to have it clearly displayed on the unit.

I am also noticing some limitations in processing power. The Tonex Board consists of two paths, each with six blocks that can be linked together for a total of twelve blocks in one chain.

IK Multimedia says the Tonex Board can run up to four Tone Models per chain, but this includes the cab. Furthermore, you cannot run two cabs or two amp models on a single path. In other words, it is one amp tone model and one cab tone model per path.

It’s worth noting, however, that it can run up to four Tone Model Stomps per path (eight in total).

I notice more limitations when it comes to the effects too. For example, on the second path in my preset, I have the Chorus-1, TX Noise Gate, Analog Delay, and TX Room active. When I go to fill the last two slots, a large number of the other effects are greyed out.

For clarity, the first path on that preset consists of the D'Comp, Chorus-1, a Tone Model Stomp, Uni-V, Ambass'dor, and a Tone Model Amp.

So, signal paths on the Tonex Board take a little bit of thought to get the most out of. However, once you have done this, there are a few handy features that go a long way towards redemption.

Firstly, the ability to designate individual parameters as ‘Quick Parameters’. This assigns said parameter to one of the rotary encoders for quick access in Live and Home mode. A godsend for things like Delay Mix and Drive when playing live.

Another handy live tool is the mode configurator that allows the user to choose which Footswitch modes the pedal browses through on the CTRL switch, and in which order.

This sounds like a small thing, but in practice, it is surprisingly useful. For example, I am unlikely to be changing presets during a song, so I find it more useful to remove Presets from the cycle and have the CTRL switch quickly change between Stomp and Scene mode. This helps add flexibility to scenes in a live context by allowing me to more quickly switch stompboxes on and off within each scene.

The I/O is fairly extensive too, featuring two ¼” inputs, two balanced ¼” outputs, two XLR outputs, two mono/one stereo effects loop, a ⅛” headphone output, two ¼” external control jacks, MIDI and USB-C connectivity. Bluetooth would have been a nice addition, however.

This allows some pretty flexible routing, even with just the two output blocks (one pre path), thanks to the options available here. For example, the outputs can be set to stereo, dual mono, all, just left, just right, and so on. Also, the effects loops can be utilized as extra ins and outs.

Outside of what is on the board, we have the Tonex software to contend with. I say contend, because it can be a frustrating experience.

For example, to update the Tonex Board firmware, I first need to make an IK user account on the website. Then I need to download the IK Product Manager and register the Tonex Board. From the IK Product Manager. From here I can download what IK Multimedia sometimes refers to as the Tonex Suite in the manual, but is actually called Tonex Max in the Product Manager.

Tonex Max is a suite of apps, one of which is the Tonex Board Editor. Once that is installed, I can then use the Tonex Board Editor to update the firmware.

Contrast this with updating the Line 6 Helix. Make a Line 6 account and download the Line 6 Updater. Done.

Despite the name, the Tonex Board Editor is not yet capable of editing presets. While this is slightly odd, it is not that big a deal given the touchscreen on the hardware. What it does do, however, is allow the user to easily manage their presets and browse Tone.Net in one app.

Tone.Net is where IK Multimedia hosts over 60,000 user-generated Tone Models. The Tonex Board Editor seamlessly accesses these in the centre of the screen, and adding them to your Tonex Board is as simple as dragging them into the hardware's preset/Tone Model list on the right-hand side of the app.

The drag-and-drop interface also makes managing your own impulse responses, presets, and already downloaded Tone Models a breeze - a huge improvement upon previous iterations of the Tonex ecosystem.

The only little bug is that the sorting drop-down does not seem to work properly when browsing presets on Tone.Net, but it does work perfectly everywhere else.

In terms of adding your own Tone Models to the library, the Tonex Board cannot capture Tone Models on its own. This is a bit of a miss, considering gear like the Neural DSP Nano Cortex and the Mooer GS1000 can do it on the hardware alone, and are both around half the price of the Tonex Board.

To create a Tone Model, you will be using the included Tone Modeler software on a computer. If you happen to have an interface with a dedicated re-amp output - something like the PreSonus Quantum HD2 -, then you are all set. Otherwise, you will need to get your hands on a re-amp box.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★½

As I’ve already alluded to, the quality of a Tone Model depends entirely on how well it was made, with variables like mic placement, mic quality, and the room the amp is in all having an effect.

For example, a lot of the Dual Rectifier Tone Models are too muddy to be useful, but these variables are the same for any capture tech.

In tweaking these models, the generic three-band EQ is useful in that it is fairly powerful, but just be careful not to ruin the character of the Tone model. I am cutting a bit of mids and boosting a little treble on the aforementioned Deluxe Reverb, which adds a little sparkle and helpfully brings out some high-end definition when using my Les Paul.

Testing out the drive Tone Models, the included Ibnz TS9 Hot and JHx MD OD Neutral Tone Models both do a brilliant job of mimicking the mid-forward compressed drive of a pushed Tube Screamer and the transparent offerings of the JHS Morning Glory.

Leaving the land of captures and onto the included digitally modeled effects, IK Multimedia is making use of the effects from its AmpliTube plugins here, and the results are stellar.

The drives are among the best I’ve played on digital floorboards, with a particular favorite being the Ambass’dor - a recreation of the Marshall Guv’nor. It feels accurate with plenty of gain and definition, plus it cleans up nicely on the volume control, whilst reacting well to my picking dynamics. What more can you ask for?

Another highlight is the Fuzz Age, covering Fuzz Face duties. A big, fat fuzz that feels pretty accurate to the original, with the only flaw being that it does not quite open up the high end with the volume dialed in as the real thing does.

Equally as impressive are the reverbs. All the basic food groups are covered, with effects like the TX Room reverb adding some subtle space, right through to the Shimmer for the more ethereal moments. Both feel as if they are part of your sound rather than on top of it, resulting in a natural feeling expansion of the core tone.

And of course, we cannot talk about space without covering delay. I’m enjoying the Analog Delay to widen those lead lines up. It’s gradually darkening repeats stay out of the way of the mix, as does the Echoman Delay in its mimicking of an EHX Memory Man. Perfect for the dotted eighth thing.

One quick note here, though: that Analog Delay seems to clip when placed after the cab in the chain. A little odd, but easily solvable by placing it between the amp and cab, and it's an issue that seems specific to just that effect.

For a bit of movement, there are plenty of modulations to choose from, all of the same high quality. My favorite is the Uni-V doing a convincing Uni-Vibe effect, something which I have found is rare on multi-effects units.

The only effect I feel deserves some criticism is the Pitch Shifter. Put plainly, it quickly darkens the tone to a point where it is not particularly useful.

As is always the case with this tech, Tone Models vary in quality depending on how they were captured, but as we already know from the Tonex Pedal and Tonex One, the Tonex Tone Models can absolutely stand toe to toe with offerings from the likes of Neural DSP and Kemper.

Browsing through the pre-loaded Tone Models, I am immediately drawn to the Luxury Clean Amp Model, which is captured from a Fender Deluxe Reverb. The tone is as you would expect from this type of amp - a full bass end and sparkly highs, great for strumming through some chords, showing off your funk chops, and adding a bunch of pedals in front of it.

A big upgrade above the Tonex Pedal is the ability for the Board to run dual paths - meaning we can have two amps on the go at once. Take the UK Crunch factory preset, for example. A combination of a Marshall 1959 Super Lead MKII and an Orange Rockerverb MKI, both driven to a tight, bright, mid-forward classic rock gain.

I spend a ton of time here playing through a few Led Zeppelin riffs and classic rock chords. What becomes apparent is how well the Tone Models react to my picking dynamic. Things get gainier as I dig in, and cleaner as I hold back and roll the guitar's (in my case, a Les Paul Classic) volume down.

The amps feel dynamic and lively under the fingers. In other words, real.

Verdict

I find myself a little conflicted about the Tonex Board. On one hand, it’s rather underwhelming. The Tonex line of products has always offered professional-grade tones at great value for money, with a few compromises on the usability side of things.

So, for $999, I was expecting a little more processing power than the Tonex Board provides, and perhaps a couple more footswitches considering the ‘Board’ moniker.

Also, the usability is still a little awkward in some aspects, and, at this price, it really should be able to create Tone Models without requiring an extra purchase (as its competition can).

With this in mind, the Tonex Board feels more like an upgrade to the Tonex Pedal than a brand new product. However, viewed this way, it is a significant upgrade.

Depending on when and where you buy it, the Tonex Board is roughly two/three times the price of the Tonex Pedal. But with a vastly increased I/O, a five-inch touchscreen, a fully editable signal chain, and a collection of high-quality multi-effects, it is more than reasonable to say that it easily does more than twice as much.

And the tones are undeniably brilliant. The array of effects is almost universally stellar, and the Tone Models are right up there with the competition in terms of both sound and feel.

Speaking of which, the likes of Neural DSP, Kemper, and Line 6 don’t yet offer something quite like the Tonex Board.

The Neural DSP Quad Cortex Mini, for example, is significantly more expensive than the Tonex Board (but also does modeling); the Nano lacks a touchscreen, as does the Kemper Profile Player, and the Line 6 Stadium lineup with the new Proxy capture tech has yet to launch something as compact and affordable as the Tonex Board.

An outlier, of course, is NAM. We are seeing this free capture tech becoming more mainstream with its inclusion in products like the Darkglass Anagram Guitar Essentials, and while there is still nothing exactly like the Tonex Board (the Anagram lacks the vast number of effects), this is certainly something to keep an eye on.

Guitar World verdict: The Tonex Board cannot create Tone Models on its own, and is not quite as powerful as some may have been expecting, so it is imperfect. But those imperfections are redeemed by the sheer quality of the effects and Tone Models, meaning that when it comes to guitar tone, the Tonex Board easily holds its own.

Also try

Hands-on videos

The Studio Rats

John Nathan Cordy

Pete Thorn

To say that JHS Pedals founder Josh Scott is stompbox obsessed would be an understatement. He’s scoured every corner of the earth to find weird and wonderful devices, and many have inspired some of his firm’s most cherished creations.

Now, he’s selling a “crap ton” of that collection on Reverb. The store is launching on the online marketplace on Wednesday 21 October. The Josh Scott Collection includes JHS Pedals prototypes, one-of-one builds and some obscure oddities from his gear-hunting adventures.

Some standout picks from the lot, described by Reverb as “a pedal lover’s paradise,” include a Klon Centaur Silver Horsie, and a pre-lawsuit Behringer Centaur, which kicked up quite the fuss last year.

Other notable offerings include a swarm of Delta Lab Tube Drivers – fans kept sending them to him after he mentioned it in a video several years back – and Barcus-Berry preamps, which were a big player behind-the-scenes during JHS infamous Notadumble fiasco.

There’s also a Behringer Vintage Distortion, which Scott describes as “a weird Big Muff clone”; a Silvertone 1484 Twin Twelve amp, which he based the Twin Twelve drive pedal off; and a grey casing for the JHS Color Box from its NAMM debut 10 years ago.

Since then, fans have been moaning to Scott that they prefer the grey enclose to the white one it ultimately released with. “This is one of the craziest items in our history,” he says.

A “boxload” of Boss JB-2s signed by Scott and some paper-wrapped “artisan” JHS pedals featuring custom artwork also stand out. In short, there’s a lot.

“I’m about to sell a crap ton of really cool stuff that I need to sell because it’s all just crashing down on me and ruining my life,” says Scott. “It’s a truckload of things, literally. A freight truck arrived and took pallets of gear for this Reverb shop.

“I’ve played and tested every single piece of gear in this shop, and it’s all ready to be passed on to the next player. That’s why it's all going on Reverb.”

Unfortunately, some items will be exclusively for those with deep pockets, given their provenance. Still, Reverb notes that most pedals in the shop will range from $60 to $600, with more than half under the $500 threshold.

See Reverb for more.

JHS Pedals has just crammed two of its most popular overdrive pedals into one god box unit, weeks after launching a collaborative pedal with DIY specialist, Coppersound. It’s the pedal Scott was building right before his horror bike crash.

What is it?

The Super Black Mini, as the name suggests, is an 'amp in a box' pedal modelled on a black panel Fender.

As a result it's got a punchy, vintage voicing and can be used as a preamp as well as a standalone boost, pre or drive pedal.

It's a stripped-down version of their original Super Black, which also contained Mad Professor's Sweet Honey drive on its own footswitch.

Specs

• Launch price: $219 | £174 | €219
• Type: Preamp/drive
• Controls: Cut/Comp, Presence, Volume, Gain, Bass, Middle, Treble
• Connectivity: In/Out, Power
• Bypass: True
• Power: 9V Battery or 9VDC Centre-negative 27mA
• Dimensions: 58 x 36 x 110 mm
• Contact: Mad Professor

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★½

The Super Black build quality is what you'd expect from such an established and long-running boutique pedal outfit. The pedal is rock-solid and the six rotary controls are well laid out with two mini switches above them.

The black hammered metal casing with an off-white typeface color scheme is simple and classic – reflecting the influence of the Fender amps it takes influence from.

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★★☆

The Super Black is a true 'amp in a box', which recreates the signal path of a black panel Fender amp.

It's designed this way so that it can be used either as a standalone preamp, or into the power stage of an amp (or a sim) to replicate the tone of that amp in a compact package. To help with headroom, the pedal can be run at up to 18V if needed.

Though this functionality isn't as complex as it initially sounds, I'm pretty certain using it that way rather than just into the front of an amp is more of a power user feature. Besides, for the average bedroom player, there's enough ways to emulate a Fender amp using DAW plug-ins, modelling pedals and amp sims.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★½

Luckily for the Super Black, it sounds the business. I'm primarily a pedals in-front-of-amp kind of player, leaning on a trio of tube amps in the studio: a 100-watt JCM900, 50-watt Mesa DC-5 and a DIY EL84 5-watt mini amp.

Each amp reacts differently, with the Super Black more than capable of pushing the lower-wattage crates into power tube saturation even at moderate volume levels.

True to its inspiration, it's easy to get a voicing that's akin to a black panel combo, but naturally it's closest on the Mesa clean channel.

Like a black panel amp, across all three it's quite brittle on bridge pickups, but easy to pull back from the edge with the presence control. I found myself with Les Paul in hand, writing punchy, edge-of-breakup lead parts in no time.

My favourite setting was with the low-cut on and more compression, to get greater saturation out of it when pushed. As an 'amp in a box,' it comes into its own when stacking gain stages.

With a discrete op-amp boost in front and the gain pushed up a little, there was a lot of sustain on tap. Into the real amps, it functioned as a great full-range mid-weight drive with 3-band EQ.

Elsewhere, its punchy and tight saturation meant I had to track some lead lines with it to experiment with DAW amp sims and NAM A2 captures. Like with the real amps, it works well as a pre, but I found myself mainly running it into either a full Mesa stack emulation, or even a 5150-style amp.

As it stacks so well, the greater harmonic content resulted in more characterful recorded tones. For lead parts, this unlikely pairing resulted in tight, compressed, dirty alternative rock leads.

Verdict

Amp-in-a-box pedals are strange in a way; the truer they are to their mission, the less flexibility they offer. That's true of the Super Black. It sounds like a black panel, and even into the front of another amp, it gives a little of that black panel flavour.

Naturally, if that isn't for you, you're probably better off with a more straightforward drive or boost.

Guitar World verdict: As far as non-tube Fender emulations go, the Super Black is a good effort, and the Mini brings that to a tiny form factor. As a bonus, it's affordable compared to larger or digital emulations. It sounds good, it's inspiring, and it gets the riffs flowing. What more could you ask for?

Also try

Hands-on videos

Mad Professor

Mike Hermans

Pete Honore

• "An impressive drive/boost pedal with a unique Body control": Mad Professor Little Green Wonder review

JHS Pedals has packed two of its most popular overdrive pedals into an all-powerful twofer pedal, the Wanderer – and taken the two-in-one concept to a new dimension.

The Wanderer houses both the Morning Glory, a Bluesbreaker-inspired transparent overdrive, and the Notaklön, the company’s celebrated Klon clone.

Josh Scott’s firm, then, is understandably billing this as “the ultimate overdrive,” and it’s the first pedal to feature JHS’ new vertical two-in-one format.

With top-mounted jacks offering separate in/outs and effects loops for each pedal, players can weave them into different spots in their pedalboard signal chain. It’s also compatible with JHS’ Red Remote switch (sold separately) to unlock four separate gain stages.

That unit-splitting independence also means each pedal can be run on separate sides of a loop on a switcher, and have settings saved in different presets. It’s leaning hard into the two-in-one concept.

For those unfamiliar with how each of the pedals are designed, Morning Glory “delivers all the tonal and responsive nuance that your amp is missing” and is very-much intended to be on all the time.

The Notaklön, a take on the lauded Klon Centaur that first launched as a DIY pedal pack, pushes clean tones to edge-of-breakup and injects further vintage rock grit to already pushed tones.

The pairing means stacking them on top of one another could have some seriously entertaining and timeless tonal results. Scott has had them both on his ‘board for years, stacking the Notaklön atop the Morning Glory for his rhythm tone, and then using the Red Remote for an extra gain boost when playing leads.

All the controls for both pedals remain, with a total of six dials, two footswitches and two miniswitches. That’s Volume, Drive and Tone for the Morning Glory, and Volume, Gain and Treble, for the Notaklön.

For the Morning Glory, flipping the Gain toggle engages high gain mode, while the +/- switch of the Notaklön kicks things up by 4 dB, increases the midrange and engages an additional stage of hard clipping.

For fans of both pedals, and for pedalboard space saving, the JHS Pedals Wanderer could be a real doozy for $299, as buying both separately would set you back a good $30 more. Plus, if the build-it-yourself element of the Notaklön was off-putting, this one comes ready made.

The JHS Pedals Wanderer is available now for $299.

See JHS Pedals for more.

Also this year, JHS Pedals has corrected its biggest mistake with the relaunch of its cult classic DIY Dumble pedal, and its latest reverb has found a fan in Guitar World’s Matt McCracken.

What is it?

Few corners of the guitar world inspire as much mythology as the original late-’50s Gibson PAF humbucker.

OctaKing Labs goes straight at that mythology with the Burstphonic PAF, a limited-production, fully analog pedal designed to add the harmonic bloom, compression, resonance and slightly airy top-end character associated with a great vintage Les Paul.

Rather than positioning the Burstphonic as another amp-in-a-box or conventional overdrive pedal, OctaKing describes it as an “instrument-response” pedal. The production voicing was developed around the frequency and dynamic behavior of a 1959 Les Paul, with the company specifically referencing Gary Moore’s famed “Stripe” ’59 Les Paul.

Four controls handle Level, Bass, Sparkle and PAF, while a Strat/LP switch adapts the response for lower-output single-coils or humbuckers. A second switch accesses the standard ’59 voice and Greeny mode, which reshapes the signal toward the hollow, nasal out-of-phase sound forever associated with Peter Green and Gary Moore.

The concept is ambitious and some may think the language around it occasionally borders on the impossible, but the Burstphonic is more useful than the sales pitch suggests. It can work as an always-on enhancer, a low-gain preamp, a tone shaper or a surprisingly muscular boost.

Specs

• Price: $420 | £315 | €360
• Type: All-analog preamp / harmonic-enhancement pedal
• Controls: Level, Bass, Sparkle, PAF; Strat/LP and ’59/Greeny toggle switches
• Features: Fully analog signal path; guitar-specific input voicing; harmonic and dynamic shaping designed around vintage PAF response; Greeny style out-of-phase voicing
• Connectivity: 1/4" instrument input, 1/4" amp output
• Bypass: Footswitch bypass
• Power: 9V DC pedal power
• Dimensions: 89 x 114 x 38mm (W x H x D)
• Weight: Approx. 1.1lb / 0.5kg
• Contact: OctaKing Labs

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★½

Pick up the Burstphonic and it immediately feels like a well-made piece of gear. The enclosure is solid and substantial, the four full-size knobs have enough resistance to keep them where you set them, and both mini toggles click firmly into position. The footswitch has a positive, reassuring action, and everything about the pedal feels built to handle regular use on a pedalboard.

OctaKing also does a nice job with the presentation. The black-and-gold graphics give the Burstphonic a distinctive boutique look without getting too flashy, and despite having quite a bit going on across the top panel, everything is clearly labeled and easy to see.

At €360, it sits firmly in premium pedal territory, but the quality of the construction, controls and overall finish are right in line with what I would expect from a boutique pedal at this price.

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★★½

The control on the Burstphonic are pretty straightforward. Level sets overall output, Bass controls low-end weight, Sparkle controls upper-frequency presence and air and PAF adds a bit of overdrive, compression and harmonic character. You can hear each control doing something useful without having to chase tiny sweet spots.

The Strat/LP switch turns out to be more important than I expected. LP keeps a humbucker-equipped guitar from becoming too thick, while Strat gives lower-output single-coils extra body and authority. The ’59 setting is the fuller, more natural everyday voice. Greeny pulls the mids into a noticeably more hollow, nasal shape that works especially well with a Les Paul in the middle pickup position.

I run the Burstphonic with both my Les Paul and Stratocaster into a Fender ’62 Deluxe Vintage Reissue, with the amp set for a warm edge-of-breakup tone. That setup makes it easy to hear what the pedal is adding without the amp doing all the work, and it also shows that the Burstphonic responds very differently to the two guitars rather than simply stamping the same EQ curve over both of them.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★½

With the pedal in ’59 mode, PAF around 10 o’clock, and the EQ close to noon, the first thing I notice isn’t more gain but more dimension. Chords sound wider, single notes have extra bloom after the initial pick attack, and there is a soft compression that makes the guitar feel easier to play without flattening the dynamics.

The Strat benefits the most dramatically. In Strat mode, the Burstphonic fills out the lower mids and takes some of the hard edge off the top without sacrificing the snap that makes a Strat a Strat.

Sparkle brings back as much glass as I want, while Bass adds weight and gives the bridge pickup a much bigger voice. It never becomes a Les Paul, but it moves in that direction.

The Les Paul in the LP mode keeps the bottom end tight while the PAF control adds a chewy upper-mid quality and a little extra harmonic haze around sustained notes.

Around noon, the pedal makes bends feel vocal and gives the amp that sensation of being pushed harder than the actual volume suggests. Rolling the guitar volume back retains clarity and much of the extra liveliness.

Turn the PAF control past noon and the Burstphonic starts showing its teeth. There’s enough compression and grit for it to function like a low-gain overdrive, with substantially more push than I expected. Bass and Sparkle become especially useful here: trimming Bass keeps humbuckers from getting congested, while a little extra Sparkle preserves pick attack as the circuit gets thicker.

Greeny mode is the most obvious special effect. With the Les Paul in the middle position, it produces that scooped, nasal vocal quality immediately, and it is convincing enough to send you straight into Peter Green and Gary Moore phrasing. It’s far more than a novelty and saves you from rewiring or modifying a guitar to get into that territory.

What impresses me most was that the Burstphonic never completely took over the rig. My Strat still sounds like my Strat and my Les Paul still sounds like my Les Paul but sounds fuller, more harmonically active and more responsive under the fingers. Much more useful than literally pretending either guitar has become a 1959 Burst.

Verdict

The Burstphonic PAF is an easy pedal to be skeptical about. Trying to bottle the character of a ’59 Burst is one thing. Putting it in a stompbox is another. Any product that invokes ’59 Bursts, PAF magic and Greeny in the same breath is walking into a room full of guitar players with their arms already crossed. And no, this pedal cannot reproduce the wood, pickups, pots, hardware and six decades of history contained in a great vintage Les Paul.

What it can do is make a very good guitar rig feel better. The Burstphonic adds harmonic complexity, weight and a soft, musical compression while preserving enough pick attack and individual guitar character to keep it from feeling like another generic overdrive.

The Strat/LP switch is genuinely useful, Greeny mode is a great extra voice, and the Bass and Sparkle controls make it easy to dail in vintage inspired tones.

After spending time with it, the Burstphonic feels less like a gimmick chasing PAF mythology and more like an unusually good analog tone enhancer.

Guitar World verdict: The Burstphonic can’t put a ’59 Burst under your foot, but it gets surprisingly close to some of the feel players are really chasing. It adds bloom, harmonic texture and touch-sensitive compression without erasing the guitar in front of it, while the Strat/LP and Greeny options give it considerably more range than you may expect.

Also try

Hands-on videos

OctaKing Labs

Pete 'Danish Pete' Honore

Dagan Wilkin

• Best boost pedals 2026: lift your tone, push your tube amp and cut through the mix

Given that NAM is being widely tipped as the future of guitar tones, it’s no surprise to see big-name brands embracing the technology. Zoom is the latest to do so with the Neurig – an affordable touchscreen-equipped modeler that is packed with impressive features.

A compact but by no means stunted amp modeler, Zoom believes the Neurig is “a next-generation guitar pedal that will redefine everything.” Chief among its stacked spec sheet is the fact it natively supports NAM A2 Lite from TONE3000.

An open-source amp modeling architecture, NAM hype has been sweeping through the guitar industry in recent times and could change the way we interact with digital guitar tones.

Blackstar was the first to implement it into its own offerings via the Beam Mini, and it feels like something of an arms race for others to follow suit.

Zoom, then, is ahead of the curve, and what is being labelled the “most accurate and best sounding amp modeling technology in history” serves as the brains behind the Neurig.

The tech, it says, “reproduces the amplifier itself, not just the tone,” therefore bottling “the behavior of every knob and parameter of legendary amplifiers and effects pedals,” which are all stored within the unit.

In all, there are 32 amp heads built in, ranging from a Marshall JTM 45 and 1965 Fender Twin Reverb to the more gnarly sounds of a Diezel Herbert and a Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier.

Notably, there are six original amplifier sounds, from the Redloom, which is a ‘60s-styled small tube amp, Muddy, a blues-rock-leaning vintage crunch amp, and the Pollex, which is specifically engineered to handle drop tunings, djent, and slap bass.

But the Neurig isn’t limited to just what’s built in, as NAM integration means users can freely load amps, pedals and cabinets into the mix, and even capture full signal chains of their other gear picks.

Users can import over 700,000 NAM capture and IR libraries into the Neurig for free.

Unsurprisingly, the Neurig packs an insane amount of effects into its chrome-encased guts. A rich array of reverbs, delays, and modulations are augmented by more leftfield options including a bit crusher, rotary speaker sim, ring modulator, and pitch shifter.

On top of that, 17 effects have been tailored for use in conjunction with an expression pedal (you’ll need to bring your own) with volume and a breadth of wah sounds joined by reverbs, resonance effects, and more.

As for connectivity, it features a send and return for pedalboard integration, MIDI in/out, stereo and mono outputs, and the signal path can also be split in two.

Other notable mentions include Bluetooth connectivity, the ability to run series, parallel, and split routing, and run up to 14 effects simultaneously. Plus there’s a looper, and a battery that can last 4.5 hours.

It also has four footswitches and two rotary controls for dialing in signal chains.

Leaning further into the futuristic side of the Neurig, it even features an AI-driven tone generation and even AI stem separation functionality for removing guitar parts from tracks. These are accessible via the SessionZ Pedal cloud service.

All this totals to the sum of ¥47,800, which is approximately $300. Of course, that is a rough conversion while we wait for an official US price, but if it is anywhere near that ballpark, the Neurig could be one to watch. That’s a slither of the cost of a Quad Cortex or Tone Master Pro.

See Zoom for more.

Getting hold of the cash for an original Klon Centaur pedal in 2026 increasingly involves the sale of vital organs, so it’s not surprising that affordable Klon clones have proliferated. Now, seemingly undeterred by a lawsuit for its on-the-nose copy, Behringer has announced for four more clone builds.

The Behringer Zentara and Zentara Mini, with both models offering gold and silver variants, albeit with the same circuitry as their predecessor. The firm says the priority here is “to make sure everyone has access to these sounds.”

As such, there are no tonal differences to note between the Zentara and Zentara Mini. It is really down to how much spare real estate you have on your pedalboard, and what kind of shiny you prefer.

The German brand’s provactive take on the original Centaur model was pulled in light of the legal action taken against it, and soon many appeared for hugely inflated prices on second-hand sites.

“So please,” Behringer’s YouTube host Adam Husk nudges, “don’t be bidding up the old version on eBay.”

Replicating the transparency of the original has been a key goal here, with the Gain offering subtle touches of grit, or full blown overdrive bite. Like the original, too, it is accompanied by Treble and controls, and they can be stacked together for even more oomph.

Bill Finnegan, who developed the cult classic pedal in the early ’90s, called Behringer’s $69 Centaur Overdrive “a blatant counterfeit” as he launched his lawsuit in May 2025.

That forced the firm to make some changes to its design, rebranding as the Centara Overdrive and updating its artwork, and the case was ultimately – and quietly – dismissed in October last year.

So, after a very public lawsuit – which Behringer pokes fun at throughout the quartet’s unveiling video – Behringer is doubling down on one of the cheapest Klon copies around.

All four pedals are available now, with most stockists selling them for $75.90 apiece.

Finnegan, though, isn’t the only one mad at Behringer for its cheap remakes of classic stompboxes. The makers of Mu-Tron III had some choice words to say about the brand after another $69 clone hit the market.

See Behringer for more on Zentara pedals.

If you’re looking for a budget multi-effects pedal with plenty of flexibility and features, there are two great deals available in the Prime Big Deal Days Sale at Amazon right now. The Mooer GE150 Max Li is available for just over $200, while the Mooer GE150 Pro Li is down to just $132.03.

They’re both amazing value for money even at full price, but with these additional discounts you’re getting a lot for relatively little money. Looking back at what was available when I first started playing, these units blow those out of the water.

The Mooer GE150 Max Li has a lot of features. It’s compatible with NAM (Neural Amp Modeler) captures, can be operated on a built-in battery, is rechargeable via USB-C, has a looper, and plenty of footswitches that make it usable when gigging.

It’s fairly lightweight and sized so that you can easily chuck it in a backpack. It feels very sturdily built with a chassis that’s a mixture of metal and hard plastic, and the footswitches click satisfactorily when you press them. The expression pedal is also made out of metal, giving it a very hardy feel.

In my testing, I used it for a good three hours solid, and it only lost one bar of battery, so Mooer’s claim of nine hours looks to be on point. There are plenty of cues on the front of the unit, so it can be operated without diving into the manual, and the screen is bright and clear.

One thing you will have to do with this unit is dial in the tones. It’s got great sounds in it, but the stock presets aren’t the best. This is one of the factors in buying something cheaper that I’ve noticed having tested many different multi-effects units.

The Mooer GE150 Pro Li is very compact, small enough to fit into a gig bag pocket if you need it to. The build is very plasticky, but it feels overall robust enough to take some abuse. It’s not got a huge amount of connectivity, but then this is aimed at beginner players playing in their first bands.

There’s no touch screen here, so everything has to be handled via the hardware knobs. The select and mode dials do most of the controlling here, and everything is clearly represented on the screen. Everything reacts instantly, and we found zero latency when putting signal chains together.

The amp models are solid if unspectacular. But at this price, we’re not expecting Quad Cortex quality. The clean tones are actually pretty good, but the more distorted amps can end up feeling a little generic. Obviously, beginner players won’t know the difference, and if you’re looking for a cheap modeler for practicing with, they’re more than respectable.

• Read our full Mooer GE150 Pro Li review

Today marks day one of Amazon's Big Deal Days sale, and with it comes a myriad of budget stompboxes available at serious discounts, but which should you get? Let's face it, cheap pedals can be hit or miss. For every diamond in the rough, 8 or 9 should probably end up in a landfill.

So with that in mind, before Prime Day guitar deals even started, the Guitar World team bought 8 of the most talked-about cheap pedals on Amazon to test them and see what they're really good for. We've used them with real tube amps, with a modeling amp, and through an audio interface with guitar plugins to see how they hold up.

Tonally, there's some really great stuff here, especially if you're willing to tweak. You can absolutely use them to record and rehearse. Where they typically fall short of more expensive models, however, is build quality; they're fine for a home pedalboard, but I'd stop short of playing them live.

For the money, it's hard to knock these pedals, especially if you're building a budget second-home board or want to try some iconic pedal circuits without committing to spending hundreds of dollars. Of the 8 pedals we tested, 7 were on sale, so here's what we thought of each one. We've also ranked them by preference.

Shop the full sale

• Amazon: All Big Deal Day deals
• Guitars: Save on beginner guitars
• Amps & pedals: Save big on fresh tones
• Accessories: Strings, slides, straps, and more

If you have ever searched for elite overdrive pedals, you already know about the Analog Man King of Tone. You probably also know about its legendary five-year waiting list and crazy second-hand market prices.

Fortunately, you do not need to wait half a decade or blow your gear budget to get those iconic tones on your rig. The MXR Custom Shop Duke of Tone delivers that exact mojo in a compact mini pedal. While it usually retails for $159.99, Amazon currently has it on sale for $127.99, making it even cheaper to add this iconic sound to your rig.

I actually had a Duke of Tone on my pedalboard for ages. It was my core drive sound for tone-shaping and pushing amps. The only reason it is not on my board right now is that my band’s singer and rhythm guitarist tried it out during rehearsal, fell completely in love with it, and stole it for his own setup. I haven't been able to get it back since. At $127.99, this deal is the perfect excuse for him to finally buy his own!

The original King of Tone is a dual-channel pedal built on heavily modified Marshall Bluesbreaker circuitry. The Duke of Tone echoes the control layout of the single-channel Prince of Tone, squeezing that versatile sound into a tiny footprint with standard MXR build quality.

A simple three-way toggle switch on the front panel lets you jump between three distinct drive voicings:

Boost Mode uses op-amp clipping rather than diodes. Unity gain with the Drive knob at minimum sits around two o'clock, giving you plenty of Volume knob range for a clean boost. It adds subtle grit around the edges, preserves your core guitar tone, and stacks exceptionally well with other pedals. You can also run the pedal at 18 volts for even more headroom.

OD Mode utilizes diode clipping to deliver a natural, airy low-level drive sound that retains touch sensitivity. Distortion Mode adds harder clipping for more compression, grit, and sustain when you need to take things further.

Alongside the Volume, Drive, and Tone controls, the pedal also includes an internal treble trimmer so you can fine-tune the high-end response to suit your specific amp.

Now, can a $127 mini pedal truly compare to a hand-built classic? Well, side-by-side A/B testing reveals that any differences between the Duke of Tone and a single King of Tone channel are subtle enough to make virtually no difference when playing live or in the studio. Honestly, I found it hard to hear a massive difference between the two stomps – it’s pretty scary how close this little unit gets to its big brother.

With true bypass switching, high-grade construction, and three distinct drive voicings, the Duke of Tone is one of the most practical drive pedals you can buy. Getting that tone for $127.99 on Amazon is a total steal – just make sure your rhythm guitarist does not take yours too.

Want to know more? Well, you can read our full MXR Duke Of Tone review to see why we gave it an impressive 4.5 stars.

If you are looking for more guitar deals, keep your eyes on our dedicated Big Deal Days hub for the best offers from Amazon and beyond.

DSM/Humboldt has caused a stir on Instagram with the announcement of its first-ever digital pedal. Well, sort of.

In a recent post, the effects and amp modeler specialist turned heads with its absolutely bonkers Chilean Floorboard, which was dubbed “the longest and narrowest digital pedal ever created”.

Now, you can probably tell, but there is a slight catch. The Chilean Floorboard doesn't actually exist. Which is a bit of a shame, because it looks a helluva lot of fun.

Just look at the thing. There are 12 footswitches and nearly 40 dials placed horizontally to control its smorgasbord of effects. They include, but are not limited to, overdrive delay, compression, modulation, and a looper. Plus, there’s a glut of mini-switches too.

But the method to the madness is in making it a homage to the country in which it was designed. The firm calls it “an unprecedented format inspired by the unique geography of the country where it was designed”.

It has, it adds, “an endless signal chain, an unreasonable amount of controls, and enough footswitches to cover basically every possible situation.” We have no arguments there.

It is completely and uttelry and mad, and totally impractical, but we love it. Do the right thing, DSM/Humboldt, and make this a reality.

DSM/Humboldt do have some serious offerings in its roster, including the Dumblifier Dumble-in-a-box pedal, an innovative analog amp simulator, and a triple threat bass preamp in the Bass Master.

But given that the Chilean Floorboard isn't listed on its website, and the sheer absurdity of the design, confirms to us this is just a very good joke.

Then there’s the pedal’s disclaimer.

“When in Chile, The Chilean Floorboard must always be operated sideways, following the longitudinal orientation of Chile,” it says. “If positioned transversely across the country, Argentina may apply import taxes, while exposure to the Pacific Ocean could compromise its tonal integrity.”

So, yes, the Chilean Floorboard is more of a rib tickler than it is a genuine solution to pedalboard space saving (in its own way). But in a world of lawsuits and stolen gear, internet-breaking moments like this are very welcome.

Strymon has unveiled the La Brea – an all-analog tape drive pedal that continues the legacy of one of its most beloved stompboxes.

The effects specialist’s digital Deco Tape Saturation and Double-Tracker quickly became a firm fan favorite when it was released 12 years ago. For many, the tape saturation side became a must-have tool – as an always-on tone thickener, switchable boost, or all-out overdrive.

Now the firm has dropped the La Brea – a next-gen pedal that singles out that tape saturation goodness in a new all-analog form, all while keeping one eye on expanding into unchartered territory.

It is, in effect, a tape drive that replicates classic reel-to-reel mastering tapes that add fullness, rather than harshness, to the signal the more aggressively it is cranked.

Before he became an analog pedal engineer at Strymon, Josh Forbes read Strymon co-founder’s white paper on the story behind the Deco. He became fascinated with how he could mimic “true tape behavior in a fully analog design.”

After 10 years of research and putting vintage effects under the microscope, La Brea delivers plenty of saturation options with a simple interface design.

Handily, a three-position switch allows players to add in the high frequencies naturally lost as the saturation ramps up. The first mode is for injecting high frequencies exclusively. There is also Mid – for adding upper midrange frequencies – and a Flat mode.

It has more gain on tap than the Deco, too, and a fully discrete dry path serves up “two distinct personalities that players can use to craft personal sounds.”

In essence, the dry path always stays in phase with the saturated output, meaning players can add a little or a lot with no comb filtering or other artifacts. Alternatively, the discrete options can see La Brea doubling as a clean boost for more fatness.

The benefits don’t stop there, either, and it could breathe new life into existing gear.

“It’s a powerful tool that can help wake up dark humbuckers, add bite to older strings or make setting up a rig even easier,” Strymon says.

“It’s quickly become the favorite drive pedal for a bunch of people at the office”, Sytrymon’s marketing lead, Sean Halley, says. “The fact that it’s based on tape means that it never gets harsh, never gets strident, and mates really well with all different types of amplifiers.

“I’ve had one on my gigging board since the beginning of the year in disguise, so I’m excited to take the tape off and finally let people see what it is!”

La Brea is available now for $199, and adds a new chapter to the Deco’s fabled heritage.

See Strymon for more.

What is it?

Following a trend started by the Hanami pedal, this latest offering from ThorpyFX has a colourful paint job that doesn’t follow the usual military theme.

It’s named after a South African antelope called the Greater Kudu because, as Adrian Thorpy told us recently, “it makes everything greater”.

What you’re getting here is a drive pedal that started out as a modified MXR Distortion+ but in the design process evolved into something with much more versatility – while still being easy to use.

Specs

• PRICE: $238 | £209 | €209
• ORIGIN: UK
• TYPE: Drive pedal 
• FEATURES: True bypass
• CONTROLS: Level, Bite, Drive, Clip switch (Soft/Hard/Soft+), Bypass footswitch
• CONNECTIONS: Standard input, standard output
• POWER: 9V DC adaptor (not supplied) 30mA
• DIMENSIONS: 65 (w) x 125 (d) x 53mm (h)
• CONTACT: ThorpyFX

Build quality, usability and sounds

That versatility comes about via a choice of three toggle-switched clipping options that basically set the pedal for optimal operation depending on what amp you’re using. Besides this, the usual Drive and Volume knobs are complemented by a Bite knob for EQ functions.

Now, we kid you not, but there’s a South African sport of ‘kudu dung spitting’ where the winner is the contestant who can spit a pellet of kudu dung the furthest distance. A bite is the last thing you’d want in that situation… But with this Kudu’s dirt, the Bite knob is essential as it adds in presence and treble, really focusing the tone.

The Soft clipping option provided by silicon diodes offers drive with squidgy compression as a direct contrast to the more in-yer-face LED-driven Hard clipping, while the Soft+ option delivers elements of both to our ears.

All of this means that whatever amp you’re using – clean or already compressing and saggy – there’s a setting here to complement it.

The actual gain ranges from clean through to a medium gain that’ll make a clean amp at bedroom levels really sing, and there’s strong clarity at all levels as well as great touch-sensitivity and clean-up characteristics.

The transparency that sees the Kudu blend with any amp also translates to stacking with other dirt pedals where it’ll slot into a pedalboard and give them extra dimension.

Verdict

Verdict: ★★★★★

Beyond that always-on capability, the Kudu could be your go-to switchable asset that moves the game up a level when needed, either as your primary drive pedal or as a gain-stacking adjunct to other dirt pedals for boosts and enhancement.

Guitar World verdict: Truly an amp improver, this ThorpyFX pedal can offer those subtle shifts in perspective that you’d instantly miss if you turned it off. It’s endowed with a versatility that will deliver a positive sonic contribution to any rig or pedalboard.

Hands-on videos

Buddy Blues

Pete Honore

Demos In The Dark

• “It feels like you’re plugged straight into an amp, rather than a pedal”: ThorpyFX x Lazy J The J review

“For Weezer’s upcoming tour – The Gathering – I’ve got my arsenal pretty dialed in. It’s kinda like when Santa leaves the workshop and the elves get to play! [Laughs]

“It’s insane the sounds we can make by tweaking knobs. It’s fascinating because there are people who can hone in on different elements of music and love gear. And I do love gear to the extent that I’ve got a new pedalboard made by a guy named Mason Marangella, who’s the [owner and CEO of] Vertex Effects. I basically spent a week up in Oakland to construct it. He did the work; I told him what I wanted, and my pedalboard has some swirl. [Laughs]

“It has distortion, it has fuzz, it has boost, it has analog delay, reverb and a talk box. I have to use the talk box for Beverly Hills. It’s all just so beautifully laid out.

“The signal path starts with a Radial SGI RX receiver. Then there’s my Boss TU-3W Waza Craft Chromatic Tuner, a Fulltone Supa-Wah and The GigRig Quartermaster QMX-6 true bypass loop selector in the Number 1 input. Then there’s Loop 1 – a Nu-X Optima Air acoustic simulator; Loop 2 – a DryBell Vibe Machine v3; Loop 3 – an Electro-Harmonix Big Muff fuzz; and Loop 4 – a ProCo Rat 2 [fuzz/distortion].

“After that, there’s The GigRig Quartermaster QMX-6 true bypass loop selector Number 1 output and TheGigRig Quartermaster QMX6 true bypass loop selector in the Number 2 input.”

“After that, we’ve got Loop 5 – a J. Rockett “The Jeff” Mod Archer [overdrive/boost]; Loop 6 – a Boss DM-2 analog delay; Loop 7 – an Electro-Harmonix Holy Grail Reverb; and Loop Eight – an MXR Talk Box. Then there’s another TheGigRig Quartermaster QMX6 true bypass loop selector in the Number 2 output and a Lehle Little Dual II Amp Switcher.

“As for amps, I’ve got SGI TX Stereo to Amplifiers (A) Clean - Vox or (B) Dirty - Mesa Boogie MKI. It’s all powered by a Cioks DC7 and Cioks 8 Power Supplies.”

• This article first appeared in Guitar World. Subscribe and save.

Boss has unveiled the EX-4 Effects Expander, a powerful, compact standalone multi-effects unit that frees up vital pedalboard space.

Coming out of the gate like a bigger and bolder take on the Line 6 HX One, which also boasted many effects in one, the EX-4 can run four effects simultaneously. These are drawn from a “vast onboard library” of effect options, taking in overdrive and distortion, modulation, delay, and reverb across a 120-string roster of familiar Boss pedals.

Beyond that, there are bass-tuned effects and some of Boss’ more outlandish creations. That includes the Slow Gear, introduced in the late ’70s for effortless violin-like swells, and the Slicer, which turns played parts into glitchy, percussive patterns.

A global EQ for sound shaping is also in place. Moreover, dedicated utility blocks can be placed anywhere within an effect chain – including foot volume, two noise suppressors, send/return, and divider/mixer – as Boss looks to maximize its usefulness.

Away from what its digital innards can do, two dual-function footswitches can be configured to a player’s needs, whether for a specific preset (Boss calls them memories) or a system–wide preference. Examples include effect block on/off, memory up/down, master bypass, and tap tempo.

Boss has also gone back to the drawing board to nail a colored LED system for clearer on-the-fly feedback on what the pedal is doing.

Connectivity includes four audio jacks for mono and stereo connectivity, with two of those slots used for an effects loop for placing external pedals within the EX-4’s internal effect chain.

Its inputs give more options, too, with space for two external footswitches – like Boss’s FS-5U tap tempo, freeing up one of the unit’s footswitches – as well as an expression pedal. Low-profile TRS MIDI in/outputs also make plugging it into a wider MIDI-powered rig or switching system a doddle.

That’s a lot of features for $299.99, and an interesting prospect in an age where amp modelers and traditional pedalboards are both vying for a player’s loyalty. The Boss EX-4, then, lands in the happy medium spot between the two, and could theoretically be hooked up to a modeler as well, with the modeler treated as a single external pedal within the EX-4’s chain. Lots of possibilities.

“Modern players carefully curate their pedalboard builds, and every slot must earn its place,” Boss reasons. “Offering a large selection of classic Boss effects in a space-saving design, there’s no better utility pedal than the EX-4. It’s an essential toolbox.”

The Boss EX-4 is available now for $299.99.

See Boss for more.

What is it?

Strymon is to the reverb pedal world what Gibson and Fender are to electric guitar. There is no brand out there that commands such a stake in this space; there is no equal to its influence. And for good reason. I can’t even begin to imagine the number of pedalboards the boutique effects pedal specialist has found itself on across the globe.

It isn’t just reverb, of course. The US pedal maker also specializes in delay, modulation, drives and more. But its 'verb pedals almost sit in a category of their own. The BigSky MX is the premium reverb workstation to beat. The smaller BlueSky tops best reverb pedal lists across the internet.

And then there’s the Flint. Strymon's twofer ambient pedal that has become the first-choice reverb-tremolo solution for players across the globe. It's almost laughable how many big-name players have – or have had – it on their pedalboards over the years.

John Mayer, Noel Gallagher, Billy Corgan, Gary Clark Jr., Graham Coxon, Chris Shiflett… the list goes on. For Mayer fans in particular, it is one of the most crucial components of his rig.

All of that is to say, the Flint is a very popular pedal, one that has stood the test of time thanks to its tonal superiority and foolproof functionality. But it’s got its fair share of competition. After all this time, does its latest iteration still hold up to scrutiny?

Specs

• Launch price: $349 | £315 | €369
• Type: Reverb and tremolo pedal
• Origin: USA
• Controls: Tremolo on/off footswitch, Intensity, Speed, three-way toggle switch | Reverb on/off switch, Mix, Decay, Color, three-way toggle switch
• Features: MIDI, Stereo/Mono Input, USB-C, Stereo Out, Class A JFET TRS stereo input
• Connectivity: 1/4" Stereo/Mono Input, L and R Stereo Output
• Bypass: True
• Power: 9V DC center-negative, 300mA
• Dimensions: 101.6mm (W) x 114.3 mm (D) x 44.5 mm (H)
• Weight: 1.1lbs (0.5kg)
• Contact: Strymon

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★★

The phrase ‘it’s built like a tank’ gets bandied about far too easily these days, but we should make an exception for the Flint. I wouldn’t recommend testing this theory, though.

Now, this is a review of the V2 – which I have spent plenty of time with – but before that I’ve had the V1 on every permutation of my pedalboard over the past two years. Therefore, I can say with some confidence that I’ve found it to be one of the most hard-wearing workhorse pedals money can buy.

I’ve had it on pedalboards big and small, and dragged it to venues of all shapes and sizes. Granted, it’s not the stompbox in my rig that has the highest stomps-per-night ratio, but it’s never shown any signs of weakness or any chinks in the armour.

What’s more, the robust box-like chassis has a nice brushed-aluminum finish that feels well equipped to protect the circuits inside. The toggle switches are firm with an authoritative ‘snap’ between modes – safe from any accidental switches when tweaking the innermost knobs – and the parameters all have a healthy sweep with a nice amount of resistance.

Between the V1 and the V2, the build quality and overall components are the same: top-notch. The looks is clean and classic – a Strymon calling card – and it all comes in a tidy package that, while not exactly on the small side, doesn’t take up too much pedalboard real estate considering the two effects it hosts. And any space you might sacrifice will be worth it.

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★★½

Another reason why the Flint has stood the test of time is because of how intuitive it is. If, like me, the sight of a BigSky MX gives you cold sweats, the Flint is an excellent entry point into top quality Strymon effects.

The reverb and tremolo effects get their own sides. On the left, you get a bypass footswitch for the tremolo, along with a three-way voice toggle and controls for Intensity and Speed. On the right, reverb has its own bypass switch, another three-way toggle, and Mix, Decay and Color parameters.

On the face of it, that’s all you need. For some, that might be limiting. But the V2 added MIDI connectivity, meaning you can save and store up to 300 presets that can be recalled using an external MIDI controller.

It can be a faff to set up, and for players (like myself) who try to avoid MIDI at all costs, the lack of any onboard preset slots is a bit of a shame. Regardless, normal operation is so easy you could practically do it in your sleep, so as long as your changes aren’t too drastic, you could probably get away with doing it on the fly.

There are also some secondary controls worth noting hidden away, including Pre-Delay, Tap Division, and Boost/Cut. To access these, you need to either press and hold both footswitches, or engage Live Edit mode by holding a single switch.

It can be a pain if these secondary functions are key to your tone, and it's not the most intuitive layout for them. Some additional tagging on which knob does what would be helpful here.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★★

Naturally, Strymon pedals excel when it comes to sound. And there are plenty of excellent reverb and tremolo tones to unpack here. For my money, you won’t find a twofer reverb/tremolo pedal that sounds better.

The V1 and V2 share the same core effects algorithms, but with hardware differences around them that I will get to. On the right side, you get ‘60s Spring Tank Reverb, ‘70s Electronic Plate Reverb and ‘80s Hall Rack Reverb, while the tremolo gives you ‘61 Harmonic Tremolo, ‘63 Power Tube Tremolo and ‘65 Photocell Tremolo. The nice thing about the Flint is that, thanks to the independent toggles, you can mix-and-match any reverb and tremolo combo you like. The V2 also lets you determine the order of effects.

On the reverb side of things, the Flint can be used as a ‘set it and forget it’ end-of-chain or effects loop ’verb, or you can have fun with it and move between modes depending on what you need.

I’ve done both, and the Flint can do them easily. At first, I used it similar to how Mayer did: locked on the ‘60s reverb mode, with Decay and Color around noon and Mix just below. With that, you get a no-nonsense, solid spring-style reverb reminiscent of vintage tube amps. It’s digital, but it could fool anyone, with a lovely three-dimensional dynamic feel that escapes some lesser reverb pedals.

The tremolo I initially used for subtle lead lines, again similar to how Mayer deploys it. Intensity around noon, speed around nine o’ clock, just for a tone tonic that can thicken and add a bit of character and personality when you need something to stick out in the mix. Lead lines, for example, or jangly melodies that would otherwise fall flat.

When I went ampless and started using the reverb in my Nano Cortex, I then deployed the Flint in a more ambient role, leveraging the experimental tones you can get from the reverb and tremolo effects.

Namely, I moved to the ‘80s Hall setting, cranked the Mix and Color, and used it for soundscaping: textural parts and atmospheric pads that sounded absolutely incredible in the mix. This is how I used the Flint when I played at Portman Road Stadium in the UK with a band, and the thought of those reverbs still gives me goosebumps. It filled the 30,000 cap venue absolutely magnificently.

The Color control really comes into its own when you give it freedom, too. When it’s bumped, you get a darker vibe that almost gives your chain a bit of grit. It affects the decays, so when your reverb time is bumped, you get this irresistible break-up that filters out in an incredible musical way.

The tremolo can get more involved, too. As well as those aforementioned subtle warbles, you can really crank the controls to get into gnarly, choppy territory. Dime the Intensity and it will make you feel seasick, such is the responsiveness of the control. Up the Speed and it could give you whiplash.

Again, I’ve followed the Mayer school of thought, but I’ve also paired it with fuzz pedals and overdrives for more bit-crush-y, shoegaze-y tones. Granted, it’s not easy switching between all those different effects without a MIDI controller, but it’s nice to have those options. There's also the option of using the Strymon MiniSwitch ($49, sold separately) to recall a favourite setting and switch between that what's dialed into the Flint at the time. You can also tap in tremolo speeds with it too. If that appeals, you'll just have to make extra space on your pedalboard as well as your wallet.

For this V2 version, Strymon also adds a Mono/Stereo input signal switch. A bit of a gamechanger, especially for players like myself, who somewhat struggled with the V1’s placement, given the fact it had a sum-to-mono input. Not ideal, especially when you’re running it alongside stereo effects beforehand – like I would with choruses and ping-pong delays.

I should also mention the premium analog JFET input circuit of the V2, which is said to offer improved responsiveness to your playing. An A/B test with both shows there’s certainly a distinction there, with a great receptiveness to dynamic playing – particularly when rolling back the volume on your guitar.

Verdict

It’s easy to see why the humble Strymon Flint has played a starring role in John Mayer’s rig for such a long time, and become the go-to reverb/tremolo pedal for players across the world. As a standalone reverb pedal, you’d be hard pressed to find three better algorithms in one unit. Pair that with three wholly distinct tremolos, and the ability to match them as you see fit, and it really is a winning formula.

Sometimes, the simplest solutions are often the best, and while the Flint V2 did introduce some very handy features – MIDI compatibility, USB-C connectivity, and a stereo input switch – it would probably have retained its title without them. That said, as an avid fan of the V1, I’d definitely be looking to make a permanent switch to the V2.

It’s one pedal that has never left Mayer’s pedalboard and except for some very minor cases, I doubt it will ever leave mine.

Guitar World verdict: And still the reverb/tremolo pedal to beat, the Flint V2 updates an already world-beating two-in-one that has little to prove in this day and age. It's good enough for some of the most particular toneheads on the planet, it's good enough for me.

Also try

Hands-on videos

Strymon

Mike Hermans

Andertons

Like countless guitarists, Peter Frampton sent Slash scurrying to his local guitar store to get a talk box of his own. Now he has a signature MXR version.

With timeless cuts like Baby, I Love Your Way and Do You Feel Like We Do, Frampton made the strange little effect a household name. The unit, which features a plastic tube that players quite literally sing into, rose to prominence in the 1970s, and Jeff Beck and Aerosmith were big fans, too.

Slash’s model is based on the classic Heil circuit, the same one that Frampton preferred for its higher output. Using that as a platform, it’s been duly hot-rodded for even more firepower and offers an upgraded loudspeaker.

The firm also believes it has better articulation than other models, plus a thicker low-end. It’s finished in the Candy Apple Red finish that Slash has stayed loyal to down to the ears, resulting in a pedal that MXR stresses was “built to say something.”

“I’ve had a talk box since I was 16,” Slash says of his new collab. “The first time I heard it was Frampton’s Do You Feel Like We Do, then Jeff Beck’s She’s a Woman, and Aerosmith’s live Walk This Way.

“To me,” he adds, “it’s right up there with the Cry Baby Wah: a classic effect that transforms your guitar into an extension of your own voice.”

That’s quite the claim from someone who has made the wah pedal such a key part of his arsenal since the Appetite for Destruction days. Maybe we’ll hear it in action on the new Guns N’ Roses album, although don’t expect that to arrive anytime soon.

The MXR Slash Signature Talk Box is available exclusively on Reverb for $499.99.

In other recent Slash news, the top-hatted one has opened up about his surprise Marshall exit.

What is it?

It’s been a few years since the Strymon BigSky MX was released, so it’s about time we got around to reviewing it. Successor to arguably the most popular reverb pedal of all time, the MX looks to build on the success of the original, adding more sounds, more processing power, better connectivity, plus loads more.

The headline here is that you can now run two reverb engines simultaneously, whether that’s in series, parallel, or with each engine panned separately. The MX also significantly increases the power to do this, replacing the 366 MHz SHARC DSP chip with an 800 MHz tri-core ARM processor.

The impulse and chamber engines are fresh additions to the lineup, but it's not just new stuff that's been added. The spring, plate, hall, room, and shimmer engines have been rewritten from the ground up, with many of the other returning sounds getting additional functions and enhancements. The ability to load custom impulse responses up to 10 seconds long adds a lot of potential flexibility, and it ships with 22 stereo IRs as stock.

The footswitches have had some slight changes, with a dedicated infinite footswitch, while the A and B footswitches can now be set to toggle each reverb engine independently. It has USB-C, bringing it firmly into the future versus the original, which required a MIDI-to-USB adapter to use the Nixie companion app. It can also do MIDI over USB-C, TRS, or the traditional 5-pin DIN connection.

Specs

• Launch price: $749 | £699 | €699
• Type: Dual-engine reverb workstation
• Controls: Type, Value, Decay, Pre-Delay, Tone, Mod, Param 1/2, Mix; 3 footswitches (A, B, Infinite)
• Features: 12 reverb algorithms, dual reverb engines (Series/Parallel/Split routing), 10-second stereo impulse response loading and editing, Nixie 2 editor software
• Connectivity: Stereo in/out, MIDI in/out (5-pin DIN), USB-C (MIDI, editor, firmware updates), EXP jack (expression pedal / MultiSwitch / TRS MIDI)
• Bypass: True bypass (electromechanical relay) or buffered bypass, selectable
• Power: 9VDC, center-negative, 2.1mm, 500mA minimum
• Dimensions: 172mm x 127mm x 48mm (7" x 5" x 1.87")
• Weight: 800g
• Options: N/A
• Contact: Strymon

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★½

Despite the workstation moniker, it’s not actually as big as you think it might be. The MX is slightly wider than the original BigSky but only just, and it weighs well below a kilo. It’ll take up the same amount of space as two and a bit Boss stompboxes by my reckoning. It’s not tall either, offering a relatively low-profile platform that won’t stick out too much alongside other pedals.

All of the parameter control knobs offer a nice, firm travel and feel robustly applied to the chassis. The endless encoders for selecting reverb engines and adjusting certain values, on the other hand, are a lot softer in their response.

There’s no ratcheting to the engines, which are instead dictated by an LED light, and when I turn slowly, it takes a second or two to move to the next option. The push-in function of each encoder is nice and tactile, but personally I’d like a little more resistance when turning them.

One thing I didn’t enjoy was the white text on the blue background. Great when playing on a dark stage, but at some angles could be difficult to read with the overhead lighting in my home studio. No such issues with the screen, which works brilliantly in any light thanks to the contrast of green on black.

The footswitches feel very robust, and they click quietly when I press them in. There’s no reason to suspect it’s any less durable than the original BigSky, which has graced players’ pedalboards for a good thirteen years and counting.

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★★½

To test its stereo capabilities, I plug the BigSky MX into my Universal Audio audio interface and started by seeing how easy it is to navigate the pedal without resorting to the manual. At the other end of my guitar cable is the Sire S7 HSS S-type.

Moving banks is handled by the ‘value’ encoder or by pressing the A and B footswitches to bank down, or the B and Infinite footswitches to bank up. The presets stay disengaged until you click one of the A or B footswitches, which could be quite handy for live players who want to tee a fresh sound up without necessarily engaging it. If you leave the pedal for too long, it engages a screensaver function that scrolls the preset across to prevent burn-in.

Due to the seven parameter-specific knobs on the chassis, hands-on control is an absolute breeze. Any time I want to change something about the preset, I’m easily able to dial in those most important controls with a quick turn of a knob. A handy up arrow marks where the knob was originally set to, should you want to go back to the original sound.

Pressing the value encoder opens up further settings, allowing me to change the low end, size, diffusion, output level, pan, and loads more options. It’s all quick and easy to change, and it's nice that Strymon has kept the way you interact with the pedal the same as the original.

Holding the ‘Value’ encoder down unlocks the global settings for the pedal, where I can get even more granular. Things like the display mode for the screen, screen brightness, MIDI settings, expression settings, spillover, and even the footswitch LED brightness are accessible here.

Downloading the Nixie 2 companion app, I’m surprised to find there is still no preset editability, despite the pedal having launched several years ago. The only real use for the software is for loading third-party impulse responses or adding new presets, so if you prefer doing your editing on a computer, there’s currently no option for it. Strymon hasn’t said when this is coming, but they have promised it will be part of a future software update.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★★

In order to test the stereo capabilities, I route the outputs to inputs 1 and 2 of my interface, then load a couple of clean amp simulations in Pro Tools and pan them hard left and right. Scrolling through the presets, I come across the ‘Drippy Spring’ setting. It’s a delightful tone, perfect for surf rock noodling and tremolo picking on the middle position of my Strat-style guitar.

It’s easy to see why the cloud engine got its own pedal when I switch to the ‘Silverscreen’ preset. It manages to be washy and atmospheric without drowning out your core playing, ideal for ambient players who want that huge reverb sound but still need to keep their original guitar tone clear in the mix.

The shimmer engine tracks brilliantly and allows me to select basically any harmony I can think of, including tritones. It stays on point even with complex chords and non-linear harmonies, and I can add two different harmonies at once when running dual engines, making it a very flexible tool for some soaring tones that coalesce beneath whichever note I’m playing.

The chorale engine is similarly superb, providing a lush undertone for pretty much any kind of sound. Riffs with prominent drone strings ring out with clarity, all underpinned by the soaring or impending (depending on what I'm playing) synth pad-like sounds.

The magneto engine is an interesting one. On the face of it, it's actually tape echo emulation, but at higher diffusion settings it blurs the line between echo and reverb. It’s cool but feels slightly out of place initially. It really comes into its own when I pair it with another reverb in dual mode, which results in some incredible sounds as I feed the delay tails into the reverb algorithms.

There are so many sounds here that it’s not possible for me to list them all within the constraints of this review. But the main takeaway I got is how good they are at not completely overpowering your playing. The engines can all do this with the right mix setting, of course, but the presets are remarkably good at balancing the wash of reverb whilst still keeping the attack when I strike the strings.

Verdict

The Strymon BigSky MX succeeds in delivering some spectacular reverb tones that will cover all bases, whether it’s a classic room tone or you want huge waves of ambient wash that drown your guitar completely. The sheer quality of the sounds is unbelievably good, up there with anything Line 6, Neural, Eventide, Boss, or any other manufacturer is putting out there, and it's easy to see why the BigSky has been such a popular pedal for such a long time.

Its real strength, though, is in how refreshingly easy it is to dial in the sounds. There is no companion app with preset editing for the BigSky MX at the time of writing this review, but I didn’t miss it at all. A lot of pedals like to hide functionality behind an app these days, so having all the controls on the front of the unit is a breath of fresh air. For those who do prefer doing their tweaking on the computer, the immediate lack of app editing could be a deal breaker.

Is it overkill for a lot of players? Absolutely, and especially when you consider the price point is well north of $600. If you just want one or two reverb sounds, then this pedal would likely be wasted on you, and some players could easily get lost in option paralysis instead of just concentrating on their playing.

Guitar World verdict: The Strymon BigSky MX is a worthy successor to arguably the most popular reverb pedal ever made. It’s not just a quick rehash either, with entire engines being rebuilt to improve the quality, and the addition of running dual algorithms seriously expanding the sound-sculpting possibilities. Despite the huge depth, it’s incredibly easy to edit and adjust sounds, which is the real strength of this pedal. It’s a worthwhile upgrade for anyone who already owns a BigSky, as well as a potentially huge boon for players who want a wealth of top-quality reverb tones at their fingertips.

Also try

Hands-on videos

Secret Weapons

Andertons

Chords of Orion

Anyone who has followed Adrian Belew’s eclectic career will know that the guitarist has an ear for unusual sounds. Throughout his time in some of rock’s biggest bands, he’s always had an Electro-Harmonix flanger pedal by his side, and now the firm is dropping a limited-edition signature model.

The eponymous EHX Adrian Belew Echoflanger does what it promises, and so much more. It’s an all-analog, multi-mode modulator voiced for versatility. So expect a subtle, smooth signal waver, through to calculated carnage.

A host of classic modes from the original pedal have been copied over. That includes Filter Matrix, Flange, Chorus, and Slap Back. It's bolstered by new combination modes.

So, you can double your money by blending Slap Back and Filter Matrix, or Adrian’s go-to blend of Chorus and Flange, which is all over his King Crimson records.

Its controls have also been expanded at Belew’s request. Volume is a new addition, sitting alongside Rate and Width dials, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Speed, Range, Tune – for dialing in the centerpoint of the modulation waveform – and Feedback combine to present new ways to get weird.

Further, the Blend switch either adds or removes the dry signal from the effect, serving up more traditional modulation sounds and intensifying the vibrato sounds on offer.

Belew has worked with Frank Zappa, Talking Heads, King Crimson, and David Bowie, and also collaborated with the late Ken Parker on a bonkers MIDI-powered Parker Fly signature. This is his next madcap invention.

“I got my first Echo Flanger in 1980, and I had it for the [Talking Heads offshoot band] Tom Tom Club,” Belew remembers. With the pedal at his feet, the guitarist was able to achieve a “steel drum” sound with his guitar, and it went on to make the single Genius of Love. According to Belew, it helped it become “the most sampled song of all time.”

“Electro-Harmonix is the one company you could make do things they’re not supposed to do,” he continues. “You could make it do really weird sounds that I started doing off the bat with King Crimson. As someone who loves sonic design, you’re going to love it. I’m so happy this pedal exists.”

Priced at $239, the Echoflanger features stereo outputs and true bypass with mechanical relays. It also ships with a 9V power supply.

See Electro-Harmonix for more info.

What is it?

It’s hard to believe that the Z.Vex Fuzz Factory is over 30 years old, heck, it’s almost as old as I am. This tiny, yet pioneering stompbox launched way back in 1995 and proved that not all boutique pedals had to recreate historic units from the past. Instead, they could innovate and push the medium forward into bold new territories.

Used by everyone from Deftones axeman Stef Carpenter to resident Red Hot Chili Pepper John Frusciante, Muse frontman Matt Bellamy, and noise junky Trent Reznor, the Fuzz Factory has a long list of famous admirers – and it seems it’s just as popular today as it was back in the day.

The unit is built around a pair of new old stock germanium transistors, and it ditches the traditional tone-shaping of level, tone, and gain in favor of direct control over transistor bias and stability to unlock everything from Velcro-like sputter and gating to infinite, self-oscillating synthy squeals – but it can do some classic Fuzz Face sounds as well, if you like your fuzz tone boring...

As you’d expect from an old-school boutique pedal, the vast majority of Z.Vex pedals are hand-painted, hand-assembled, and produced in relatively small batches in Minneapolis, Minnesota. That said, the model I’m reviewing is part of the Vexter series. This is a slightly more affordable version of the Fuzz Factory. While the innards are the same, this one features UV-printed artwork and is assembled in Taiwan.

Those who like to run pedals on batteries will be happy to hear the pedal draws very little current: a tiny 3 mA, to be exact. For context, and as Z.Vex points out in the manual, an Ibanez Tube Screamer runs at almost 40 mA. Of course, the pedal can also run on a standard 9V center-negative pedalboard power supply.

Today, I’m taking this famous box of fuzz for a test drive to see if it lives up to its stellar reputation and to see if, after 30 years, it’s still one of the best fuzz pedals on the market.

Specs

• Launch price: $229 | £189 | €199
• Type: Germanium Fuzz / Self-Oscillating Fuzz Effect Pedal
• Controls: Volume, Gate, Comp, Drive, Stab
• Features: NOS 1960s Germanium transistors, interactive self-oscillation, velcro-fuzz to synth tones, silk-screened graphics, LED indicator
• Connectivity: 1/4" Mono Input, 1/4" Mono Output
• Bypass: True Bypass
• Power: 9V DC center-negative / 9V Battery (~4mA current draw)
• Dimensions: 4.70" x 2.38" x 1.82" (119 mm x 60 mm x 46 mm)
• Weight: 0.5 lbs (0.23 kg)
• Options: Hand-Painted Fuzz Factory, Fat Fuzz Factory (with bass switch), Fuzz Factory 7
• Contact: Z.Vex

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★½

It's fair to say the Fuzz Factory is an iconic-looking pedal. Now, while it does do other enclosure styles, this small horizontal format has become somewhat of a trademark of the brand. Yes, it may not be the most practical when trying to Tetris together a pedalboard, but I’ve always thought it looked cool – and it certainly stands out among the sea of other boutique stompboxes.

Another trademark is the cartoony, colorful hand-painted graphics, which are unfortunately missing on this version. That’s not to say the UV-printed graphic is bad; I actually think it looks great, but it doesn’t quite have the charm or uniqueness of the original.

Really, though, it’s not about how a pedal looks, it’s more about how well it’s built, and like all Z.Vex units, this one feels expertly put together. There’s a reassuring heft to the pedal, the knobs are smooth, and the footswitch is robust. Really, what more do you need in a pedal?

Usability and features

Usability and features rating: ★★★★½

When I say this is one of the most interactive fuzz pedals around, I really do mean it. Each dial parameter seems to morph and change depending on how the others are set. Even in the manual, Z.Vex jokes, “Although the five knobs are named for the parameters over which they seem to have the most control, please don’t hold me to it.”

The result is a pedal that’s genuinely fun to experiment with. It’s somewhat unpredictable in its nature, and that’s what’s so engaging about it. A few small adjustments can make wild changes to the tone.

Going through the controls, the first, aside from the output volume, is Gate. As you’d expect. This can be a noisy little pedal, so this is used to fully kill any unwanted buzz, hiss, or feedback. Now, it can even be used to tune the feedback pitch, too, if you’re a fan of things getting a little unruly and a touch mad.

The Comp control adjusts the overall attack character of the fuzz. Turn it left for a softer sound, and right for a harder, more immediate one. Again, though, like the other controls, its parameters change when used in conjunction with the other dials.

Drive is used to dial in the amount of distortion. Well, it is if you’re running the Fuzz Factory as a traditional fuzz pedal. This control doesn’t really do anything if you have the Comp dial maxed out.

When it comes to the Stability control, there’s a warning in the manual, “Use all the way right. Do not adjust this control below 2:00, unless you like your fuzz soft and squishy.” Very basically, Stability regulates the voltage supplied to the pedal's internal germanium transistors. By starving or feeding the circuit power, it dictates whether the pedal behaves like a “normal” fuzz or a spitting, sputtering noise machine.

Rarely do I get to play with a pedal that’s so simply laid out, yet invites so much experimentation. I think a large portion of the success of this fuzz is how fun it is to dial in. I lost hours of my life finding cool and interesting settings, and I don’t care one bit – in fact, I loved spending so much time endlessly tweaking.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★★

For testing, I’m running a Gibson Les Paul directly into the Fuzz Factory and then into a Vox AC30 set fairly clean and open, with a smidge of reverb.

With so much talk of experimentation, it's easy to write off the Fuzz Factory as only for those who like absolutely feral fuzz tones, but it does the classic sounds very well indeed. Leaving the Gate and Comp dials all the way down for the moment, I push the Drive to around halfway and keep the Stab on max. The tone is somewhat Fuzz Face-like. It’s smooth, seriously dynamic, and plays very well with my guitar’s volume pot.

Push the gain further and bring in the Comp, and things start to get very heavy and thick with tonnes of compression. I did start to dial up the gate here too, trying to catch some of the buzz. Things get pretty filthy in this setting, and in the best possible way.

These settings alone are worth the price of admission, but this tiny stomp can do a whole lot more than that, it is a factory of fuzz, after all.

If you max out the Comp and Drive, and pull back on the Stab, you get that quintessential “Velcro” fuzz sound that is addictive to play. It sounds fierce and unpredictable, and it's perfect for garage rock-style single-note riffing. I genuinely love this setting.

Would I use it all the time? No, of course not, but it’s bags of fun. The tone here shifts from something you’d instantly recognize as a standard guitar sound to something that could be considered synth-like, especially as those high octaves start to creep in.

Moving the dials while playing can create filter sweeps. At times, it almost sounds like tuning an old radio, with wild feedback screams and other equally mad, noisy sounds that are all part of the fun with this pedal.

It isn’t for the faint of heart, or guitarists who like a mild Tube Screamer into a slightly overdriven tube amp to go with their equally beige cup of tea. It’s for lovers of over-the-top filthy saturation and those who don’t mind more than a little knob tinkering.

Verdict

The Z.Vex Fuzz Factory is a true icon in the world of effects pedals, and after three decades, it still stands out as a bold, innovative stomp that more than lives up to its reputation.

Unlike troves of boutique pedals that simply pay homage to the past, the Fuzz Factory has always forged its own path, offering a unique and experimental approach to fuzz that has attracted a legion of devoted fans, famous and normies alike.

For me, what sets the Fuzz Factory apart is its sheer versatility and interactivity. The unusual control set invites hours of sonic tinkering. Each knob interacts with the others in unpredictable ways, making the pedal as much an instrument as an effect. Whether you crave classic, dynamic Fuzz Face-like tones or wild, synth-like oscillations and velcro-gated textures, the Fuzz Factory delivers it in spades.

The Vexter Series provides the same legendary circuit at a more accessible price point, trading the original hand-painted graphics for sleek UV-printed artwork. Despite the change in aesthetics, the build quality remains exceptional, with robust components and a solid feel underfoot. Honestly, outside of the printed graphic, most of us would be hard-pressed to notice, or indeed hear, the difference.

Okay, I’ll admit that this pedal isn’t for everyone. Its unpredictable character and penchant for chaos make it best suited for players who live on the wilder side of the street. But for those willing to dive in, the rewards are immense.

I genuinely think the Z.Vex Fuzz Factory remains one of the most creative, inspiring, and fun fuzz pedals ever made. It’s a modern classic in every sense of the word, and one that continues to push the boundaries of what a stompbox can do.

Also try

Hands-on videos

Pedal Of The Day

Matt Kelly

The electric guitar was still in its infancy when guitarists and electrical engineers sought new ways to make the instrument sound different than an acoustic guitar ever could.

Only a few years after the first guitar amps emerged, foot pedals appeared that allowed players to manually adjust volume and tone settings while performing.

However, the very first outboard device that provided a truly new sound effect was the DeArmond Model 60 Tremolo Control unit and its big brother, the Model 800 Trem-Trol volume/tremolo pedal, which DeArmond introduced during the late ’40s.

DeArmond actually planned on introducing the Tremolo Control as far back as 1941 as an effect device for electric organs and early electric pianos, but parts and materials shortages during World War II delayed its debut.

Even though tremolo became a built-in feature of many combo amps (usually on models designed for accordion players) shortly after these DeArmond effects came out, the Model 60 and Model 800 both enjoyed a pretty long and successful lifespan until the late ’50s, mainly thanks to guitarists who were more enthusiastic about the device than keyboard or accordion players.

During the early ’60s, DeArmond replaced the Model 60 with the 60B, which was enclosed in a less-costly plastic housing and featured push-button on/off switches for selecting the straight instrument signal or the tremolo effect.

The most fascinating element of the DeArmond unit’s design is that the tremolo effect (volume/amplitude modulation) is created purely by electro-mechanical means instead of an electrical circuit.

The interior components are a steampunk wonderland of spindles, rubber flywheels, a motor, pendulum arm and a small canister filled with conductive electrolytic liquid (Windex is an ideal substitute for replacing the original fluid that has evaporated).

The motor shakes the canister back and forth causing the amount of signal reaching the output to fluctuate, creating a very organic-sounding tremolo effect. The flywheel and gears allow users to adjust the effect’s speed via the Rate/Speed control, and a separate control potentiometer adjusts the effect’s depth/intensity.

The shark-shaped Model 800, which is longer and bulkier than an average wah pedal, is probably the most “pedalboard friendly” model of the three variations, although the only way to bypass the tremolo effect is via a slider switch on the side. Modern players who want a stompbox-style means of experiencing the vintage mojo of the Model 60 or 60B can incorporate these units in their rigs via a loop switcher.

Only a handful of classic recordings featuring the DeArmond Tremolo can be verified, but they are quite influential. The first known instance is Muddy Waters 1953 Chess recording of Flood.

Later, during the mid-to-late-’50s, Bo Diddley and Duane Eddy used their DeArmond Tremolo effects frequently, including on the hit singles Bo Diddley and Rebel Rouser, respectively. A gray 60B unit made a notable appearance during the late ’60s on stage with Canned Heat at the Woodstock Festival (Rollin’ Blues and On the Road Again).

Although the DeArmond Tremolo became forgotten by the ’70s after it was discontinued, players like Ry Cooder and Billy Gibbons revived its cult status during the ’80s and ’90s, respectively.

Gibbons has used his DeArmond Tremolo effects frequently on ZZ Top albums starting with Rhythmeen in 1996, and he often plays through two at once for a psychedelic, unsynchronized stereo tremolo effect on stage.

• This article first appeared in Guitar World. Subscribe and save.