Ludicrously affordable flangers, fuzzes, drives and delays line up alongside a boatload of effects and utility pedals in Harley Benton's mammoth new pedal lineup
(Image credit: Harley Benton)
Harley Benton is known for its arsenal of immensely well-priced catalog of guitar gear, though the brand’s latest – and arguably most expansive – drop goes well beyond what we’ve become accustomed to from the affordable gear champion.
Hot on the heels of its revamped single-cut and double-cut models, Harley Benton has announced its MiniStomp series of effects pedals, which features 27 – yes, 27 – individual micro pedals.
Broadly divided up into four main categories – drives and fuzzes, tube amp tones, sound sculptors and utilities – Harley Benton’s bounty of new pedals arrives to offer up an entire kaleidoscope of sounds at the usual cut-price point.
Highlights from the drive and fuzz pedal cohort include the Sucker Punch, Silly Fuzz, Fuzzy Logic and Big Fur, which aim to deliver aggressive high-gain fuzz tones, as well as the saturation-heavy Dealbreaker and Dropkick units.
Rodent and Green Tint, described as gritty pedals with plenty of punch, complete the eight-strong gain pedal collection. According to the brand, each pedal pays homage to "legendary circuits" – though it doesn’t say which ones – for a broad range of high-gain tones.
In the tube amp department, Harley Benton has sought to emulate iconic tube tones via its Plexicon and Dr. D pedals, with the True Grit and The Heat vying to achieve a spectrum of versatile valve sounds.
Harley Benton Magnum D.I.(Image credit: Harley Benton)
An array of workhorse utility pedals are also included in the collection. A pair of graphic EQs – 5-Band and The Deep – offer visual tonal controls for guitars and basses, respectively, while Troubadour aims to transform electric guitars into acoustic guitars by way of a Piezo/Standard/Jumbo toggle switch.
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Elsewhere, the Intersection ABY pedal aids in the creation of dual amp setups, and the Magnum D.I. and MicroCAB concern themselves with curating genuine cabinet simulations.
Digital delay, auto-wah, flanger, and chorus effects are addressed by Edgy, Shaft, Fast Lane and Spinner, respectively, with the 15-minute looper-equipped Copy Paste featuring alongside the “sound mangling” Alien Signal.
Last but not least is the Hot Mod multi-effect modulation pedal, which boasts 11 effect modes, and the room/shimmer/spring-equipped Deep Blue reverb machine.
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Harley Benton Fast Lane(Image credit: Harley Benton)
Of course, this is merely a whistle-stop tour of Harley Benton's all-new pedal range, given the lineup's colossal nature.
And, as is the case with most Harley Benton gear, the pedals are all immensely affordable. The majority of stompboxes are strapped with a humble $19 price tag, while the most expensive MiniStomp units are priced at $34.
Matt is a Senior Staff Writer, writing for Guitar World, Guitarist and Total Guitar. He has a Masters in the guitar, a degree in history, and has spent the last 16 years playing everything from blues and jazz to indie and pop. When he’s not combining his passion for writing and music during his day job, Matt records for a number of UK-based bands and songwriters as a session musician.
