Nuno Bettencourt reveals the most important pedal in his guitar rig: “I tried playing without one and f**kin’ hated it!”

Guitarist Nuno Bettencourt performs during the Generation Axe show at The Joint inside the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on November 9, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
(Image credit: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Extreme electric guitar star Nuno Bettencourt has revealed the effects pedal that is essential to his red-hot high-gain sound – and it might not be the kind of stompbox you’d expect.

In the latest issue of Guitar World magazine, 60 guitar stars name the pedals they can’t live without, and Bettencourt took the opportunity to wax lyrical about a unit that has long served as the secret weapon behind his sound.

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Michael Astley-Brown
Editor-in-Chief, GuitarWorld.com

Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master's degree in journalism from Cardiff University, and over a decade's experience writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as 20 years of recording and live experience in original and function bands. During his career, he has interviewed the likes of John Frusciante, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Matt Bellamy, Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell, Joe Satriani, Tom DeLonge, Ed O'Brien, Polyphia, Tosin Abasi, Yvette Young and many more. In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe.

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