The last couple of pedals we’ve reviewed have had a sort-of similar theme: expanding on and being more creative towards traditional pedals and the way they look or function. While there are a lot of reverb pedals with tons of functionality and options available today, it would be hard to find one with as many sounds to choose from in as small of an enclosure that the Amethyst Reverb Mini from Classic Audio Effects is able to do,...
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We review a lot of overdrive pedals on this site, as our rabid readers can attest to, and each one is unique and special in its own way. Some have a ton of balls, some are more mellow and laid back and some are entities all on their own. Today’s overdrive, the Piper Drive from Westminster Effects, definitely falls into the laid back category, but features some great tone-enhancement and a well-rounded low-gain range. The hip...
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Personally, I love volume pedals, and have had one on my board for over 10 years. While there have been some updates, features added and modifications galore as of late, volume pedals in general were always about the same size, shape and functioned as you’d think they would. The cats over at Tapestry Audio decided enough was enough, and set to building a revolutionary product that has forever altered the volume pedal landscape:...
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First off, we’d like to welcome you to the next phase of Pedal of the Day: website update, more info for the reviews, higher quality sound and layout for the demo videos and more. Please take a minute to look around the site and see what’s new (and don’t forget to check out our latest Instagram Giveaway!). Now that we’ve got the business out of the way, let’s move on to today’s featured pedal. This...
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Yesterday, we reviewed a compact pedal that featured a bunch of reverb options, the Boss RV-5 Digital Reverb. Today’s pedal is also a reverb, with a bunch of options, except WAY more than the RV-5, and in a pedal about twice the size. The Cathedral Stereo Reverb from Electro-Harmonix is a beast of a reverb, with almost too many sounds and options to explain…but we’re going to do our best to try. Let’s start...
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The RV-3 Reverb/Delay from Boss is one of my all-time favorite effects pedals, combining two wonderful effects together with a bunch of combination options and pretty rad-sounding tones. I’d always been a little skeptical of the RV-5 Digital Reverb, as it slimed down to being just a reverb, and as much as I dig delay, I thought it was a choice I was not going to like. Turns out, the RV-5 is a fine piece of gear, and apparently...
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Known for creating some interesting and unique pedals geared more towards the heavy side of music, Pro Tone Pedals keeps on putting out some great gear, and today’s featured pedal is one of their signature effects. The Dead Horse Overdrive is Pro Tone’s take on a classic circuit from a certain famous green box, only with more improvements and better sound. In their words, “It’s based on a Tube...
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A little while back, we reviewed a sweet, nostalgia-filled pedal called the Outatime Drive, from some friends of ours across the pond, MM Effects. While that is a killer drive in and of itself, they sent another little electronics box for us to check out, today’s featured pedal, simply titled Fuzz. A bare bones, no frills dirt box, this thing looks simple, but will liven up both your playing and your amp in a hurry. Featuring...
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If you haven’t heard him yet, Joe Bonamassa is a pretty damn good guitar player. Whether you enjoy blues mixed with rock and roll or not, you can’t deny the man’s talents on the old gitbox, or his ridiculously impressive collection of vintage guitars and amplifiers. As far as effects go, Joe knows what he wants, and so he got together with Way Huge Electronics and Dunlop to come up with a special overdrive pedal,...
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Although I’m not much good with a soldering iron, I’ve always been fascinated and amazed by the intricate detail, precision and care that goes into building an effects pedal – circuit board, jacks, power supply, LED, you name it. It really boggles my mind the way these magnificent things come together to form an awesome noise machine. For those who are much more inclined electrically speaking, the folks at OLCircuits...
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Stumbling across a new (to us, anyway) pedal company and new line of effects is always welcome here at Pedal of the Day, and today’s pedal falls squarely into both of these categories. The ATX Dynamic Overdrive from Enormous Door adds harmonically rich saturation to your amp, without too much coloring of your original sound, making for a nice, warm, tube-like overdriven sounds. Plus, it boasts a nice control section, with a...
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When you picture a list of classic analog delay effects in your mind, today’s featured pedal is almost always going to pop up on that list. The DM-2 Analog Delay from Boss has a simple layout, but there is a massive analog beast of a delay hiding behind that off-pink exterior. Starting things off, Repeat Rate controls the repetition rate of the delayed effect. Echo adjusts the output level of the echo, which you can get to...
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Octave/organ-type pedals have been flooding pedalboards in recent times, and for good reason. They bring an air of mystery and add a whole new dimension to an otherwise-normal guitar sound. One of the most intriguing of these pedals that we’ve come across is made by, you guessed it, EarthQuaker Devices, and it’s the featured pedal today: the Organizer Polyphonic Organ Emulator. The Up and Down knobs control the octave up...
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In our experience, when a company only makes ONE pedal, and that pedal is extremely popular among those players who actually know about it, it tends to be pretty damn rad. Such is the case with today’s pedal, the Mosfet Overdrive from Blackstone Appliances. A 2-in-1 of sorts, this overdrive will give you all the boost, crunch and distortion you can handle…provided you have a screwdriver or Leatherman nearby to adjust its...
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Like most children of the ’70s and ’80s (and millions more since then), the movie Back To The Future has a special significance to me, and to a lot of you all as well, I assume. Seen countless times, quoted a million more, it’s a perfect blend of comedy, sci-fi, witty dialogue and great storytelling. Therefore, when I unwrapped a package from the UK from our friends at MM Effects, I was in awe and full of joy to...
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Recently, we started teaming up with Celestial Effects to do some pedal reviews, the first of which was their excellent Sagittarius Overdrive Boost. After checking out that sick pedal, we were more than excited for the arrival of today’s featured pedal, the Aries Beast Distortion. Any dirt pedal with the word “beast” in it makes our ears instantly perk up, and this distortion absolutely stepped up to the plate and...
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Sometimes, your guitar tone just needs a bit of….something. Most times, it’s hard to figure out what that special addition to your rig might be, but sometimes it just reveals itself with the push of a bypass switch. The Blue Hippo MkII Analog Chorus from Way Huge Electronics is exactly one of these additions, a pedal that gives your tone a sparkle and gives you playing a much-appreciated kick in the pants. Not much to the...
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When talking about the greatest chorus effects pedals to ever grace the planet, you always hear about the CE-2 from Boss, arguably the best one ever made. I own one and it is fantastic, no bones about it, but it’s little brother sometimes gets overlooked in the mix. The CE-3 might not carry all the prestige of the CE-2, but it has some great tones, as well as a couple tricks up it’s sleeve that you can’t get with...
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In this crazy business, sometimes you open up a pedal box and are completely blown away by what awaits you inside. When we received the Gunshot Overdrive from ThorpyFX in the mail, that is exact reaction we had – before we even saw the pedal. Completely professionally wrapped and presented, you just knew that this was going to be a special pedal. And hot damn if it wasn’t just exactly that. Gain, Tone and Volume bring the...
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We love discovering pedal companies that we have never heard of before, no matter how long they may have been around, and seeing out-of-the-ordinary, innovative and exciting new pedals, ones that really break the traditional pedal molds, and offer something completely new and adventurous. If there was ever a pedal to do that, it’s the Chaosmic Fuzz from Rabbit Hole FX, so let’s see what she’s all about! On the top...
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There are some pedal companies that just plain do their own thing, and Lone Wolf Audio is one of those companies. Constantly creating new pedals, with an almost cryptic website full of snippets of information and ordering policies, they follow no one’s rules, and we love ’em for that very fact. Their pedals don’t follow any traditional paths, either, which we dig even more, and sometime even the simplest of their...
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Cross-pollination pedals between different builders is unfortunately an all-too-rare thing in this magical world of effects, but when it does happen to happen, it’s usually pretty creative and special. Such is the case with today’s pedal, a 2-in-1 from two of the most popular pedal companies out there right now, JHS Pedals and Keeley Electronics. The Steak and Eggs combines two popular pedals from each of these respective...
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Continuing this week’s unscheduled jump into the pool filled with the freakiest pedals we could find, we came across an effect that can strike fear into the hearts of many players just by its very mention: the Ring Modulator. While each ring mod is definitely it’s own beast, there’s something special about today’s featured pedal from Way Huge Electronics that really takes your breath away. Let’s take a...
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When you think about the wackiest, most innovative and sometimes difficult to control pedals on the market today, an overwhelming majority of musicians’ thoughts go to one company: EarthQuaker Devices. Now, they make some semi-straightforward pedals: overdrives, fuzzes, delays, etc., but even most of those have some element of magic to them. Today’s featured pedal, the Rainbow Machine, falls into a category where it may be...
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A little over a year ago, we reviewed a great overdrive, the Furry Burrito, from a pretty new-at-the-time company, Yellowcake Pedals. We were quite impressed by their flagship pedal, and stood in high anticipation for the next 14 months to get our hands on their next effect. When the time finally came and the pedal arrived on our doorstep, we were equally wowed by their second offering, today’s featured pedal, the Fried Gold...
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A little while ago, Pedal of the Day got our hands on our first pedal from GFI System, the Clockwork Delay. Although there is now a newer version, we were quite impressed with the amount of options that GFI had managed to squeeze into such a pedalboard-friendly enclosure, not to mention the impressive array of tones and sounds that it was able to produce. So we were pretty excited when a package arrived on the doorstep from the...
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After recently reviewing the new and awesome DD-500, we figured it was time to round out the digital delay pedals offered up by Boss, and the only one we had left was today’s featured pedal, the DD-5 Digital Delay. Although we did review a version of this pedal before, it had been modded by JHS, so we’re gonna take a look at the stock pedal and see what it has to offer as it comes stock. The DD-5 is jam-packed with delay...
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With their unique wooden tops and intriguing control layouts, the pedals from Anasounds in France are instantly recognizable, and we love to check ’em out here at Pedal of the Day. Since reviewing the Cerberus and Freq Up last year, we stumbled across a sweet, short-style delay/echo with some modulation for added depth. Producing sounds like the Echoplex, Binson Echorec and the Skreddy Echo, this is the Utopia Tape Echo Delay....
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Today’s featured pedal is a modern take on a classic distortion effect. Based on the famous Interfax Harmonic Percolator, the Harmonik Germanium Fuzz from Dubrek Audio Boutique boasts the same type of fuzzy distorted sounds as the vintage unit, but with a couple of modern upgrades. Level and Gain are the only two control knobs present on the Harmonik, alongside a lone toggle switch. Both knobs feature a broad range, with plenty...
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We’ve reviewed the first two pedals produced by the SFG Music Supply crew up in British Columbia, and have been impressed by both. The Howlerr Classic Overdrive was a lower-gain, almost boost-like drive, while the Back Burner Vintage Delay was a sweet short delay slapback gem. From vintage sounds and graphics to hand-built quality pedals and parts, these guys know what’s what, and are coming out swinging into the pedal...
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There’s just something so unique and inviting about each pedal we’ve reviewed from Hudson Electronics, and today’s featured pedal is no different. The Sidecar Overdrive is a special take on a classic “green” overdrive circuit, with some added elements and quality components, to make it a drive that will contend with anything you put it up against. We recently reviewed the Hudson Broadcast Pre-Amp, and...
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It seems like there has been a bit of a tremolo resurgence in the pedal world as of late, and we here at Pedal of the Day couldn’t be happier about it. Lots of innovative pieces of gear keep appearing out of the woodwork, pushing the effect to the limits, and offering a whole new array of tone-shaping, sound-crushing effects that can really send your guitar signal into the atmosphere and beyond. As expected, the fine folks from...
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One of the first “transparent” overdrives we reviewed here at Pedal of the Day was the EM Drive from Emerson Custom, and that awesome pedal is still spotted on a TON of pedalboards. Stepping up their game a little bit, and getting into a bit dirtier territory, the crew at Emerson designed a completely original circuit, and turned it into a pedal that is great as a mid-gain or second stage overdrive. Here is the Paramount...
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The Boss family of stompbox delays have been a staple on many, many pedalboards since the inception of the DM-1 Delay Machine way back in 1978, especially the DD series, which features the DD-3, DD-5, DD-6, DD-7 and the DD-20 (click each one for our reviews). In keeping with the tradition, but stepping up the game immensely, Boss has created a delay that will rival anything out on the pedal market today: the DD-500 Digital Delay....
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Flanging can be an excellent effect when used right, and can really ruin a tone or song when used wrong. In general, most flangers I’ve come across have been fairly complex machines, often requiring lots of manual reading and experimentation. The FX747 Supersonic Stereo Flange pedal from DOD, made from 1996-1998, features 4 simple knobs, and is as easy to dial in a great sound as it is fun to experiment with. One thing...
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What can you say about Greer Amps? Nick and the gang just keep putting out incredible pedal ofter pedal (among other things), consistently topping their previous endeavor somehow. Today’s pedal continues on where their famed Southland Overdrive left off, bumping up that great tone into the realm of a true high-gain overdrive/distortion pedal, but keeping with the same smoothness and crispiness that their pedals are all known...
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We here at Pedal of the Day had the pleasure of reviewing the PreDrive from PettyJohn Electronics last year, and finally got to see what all the hype has been about. Continuing in the tradition of innovative and exquisitely built pedals, they have now brought us a completely different beast altogether, one that is destined to become a classic, just like their first flagship pedal. Let’s take a look at the PettyDrive, alright? As...
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There are some rack mount delay units from the 1980s that are considered to be in the upper echelon of all-time delays, and one of them has now been shrunk down to fit onto your pedalboard. The original SDD-3000 from Korg had a sound and tone all its own, separating it from other delays in the same category, and helped to make its way into the signal chains of many guitarists, including Daniel Lanois, Johnny Marr and most famously The...
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As is the case a lot of times with effects pedals from Electro-Harmonix, the phrase “Where to begin?” popped immediately into our head as we opened the box for the Super Pulsar Tap Tremolo. So many knobs, so many options and so much to learn, this was gonna be a challenge, but in the best way possible. I mean, it’s figuring out how to use a guitar pedal, what’s more fun than that? A simple Volume knob starts...
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A one-knob overdrive pedal? That’s what we first said when the box we received from Bookworm Effects was opened. Granted, there were a couple of toggle switches as well, but what about the Tone knob? Or Gain? Or Volume, even? After playing around a bit with the Billy Pilgrim Overdrive, however, it was clear that this was no one trick pony, and that a surprising amount of differing tones were capable through this little Kurt...
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Seeing their pedals here and there floating around the old Interwebs, the effects from Dreadbox always seemed very interesting to us here at Pedal of the Day, so when we finally got our grubby paws on one of them, it was quite a celebration. Not only do their effects have a similar look and theme to them, they all apparently sound great, according to the masses, and we got to witness this phenomenon first hand. The Taff 2 Scientific...
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The Airis Effects Savage Drive is one of the most underrated overdrive pedals out there, the design that is put on it automatically makes you think, ok this is another “metal pedal” when sure it is used a lot for metal, but it is a very versatile pedal! Do not let the graphic fool you. I use this pedal for metal as that is just the genre I play, I can play other genres on it but since I play metal mostly I will base my...
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We get pretty excited about all the pedals we review here at Pedal of the Day, but when a box arrived from the UK with “Hudson Electronics” on the label, we knew we were in for a treat. Having already reviewed the awesome Buzzard and Fuzz pedals a while back, we were stoked to see what Michael and the crew had come up with this time around. In short, we were not even close to being disappointed – here is the...
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Continuing our look at analog delay pedals this week, today we take a look at another incredible pedal, one that features the analog warmth and dirtiness we all love, plus controls for modulation, making it even more fun to use. The Supa-Puss™ Analog Delay from Way Huge Electronics not only sounds like a classic analog delay, but has some excellent modern features to make it a great delay hybrid. Plus, you can get up to 900ms of...
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With so many new effects with so many functions and big learning curves, it’s nice to come across an older pedal that has a couple simple knobs and sounds just fantastic, without having a bunch of bells and whistles. Today’s featured pedal, the FX96 Echo FX Analog Delay from DOD was produced way back in the ancient year of 1997, and was billed as a modern improvement on classic tape echo machines like the Binson Echorec...
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Last fall, we reviewed an incredible fuzz pedal from Retro Mechanical Labs, the Electron Fuzz Custom, and it really rocked our faces. Recently, Johnathan at RML made a special, potentially one-off version of this pedal called the Mini, featuring a gorgeous wooden enclosure and a rare, vintage voltage meter. We knew we had to have it, and the result is one of the most beautiful pedals we’ve had the pleasure to lay our eyes on....
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Being a pedal review blog, we love discovering new pedals and companies that we hadn’t previously heard of, and developing new relationships with them, which is the case with today’s pedal, the Sagittarius Overdrive Boost from Celestial Effects in Hudson, MA. 2-in-1 pedals are always welcome around here, and you really can’t beat the Overdrive/Boost combination. There’s a Volume knob to start us off, which...
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As we’ve said before, the 10 Series of pedals from Ibanez are among our favorites from the 80’s, and today’s featured pedal is one of the best from that group. In general, chorus has been an effect that has a love/hate relationship with guitarists, and while it can be heard on amy classic recordings, there are some players who just will not touch it. That said, the DSC10 Digital Chorus pedal might just have something...
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There seem to be a lot of compressors coming out lately that are really complex and intriguing, and while that can be fun, sometimes you just want a simple compressor pedal with easy controls and great sound to throw into your rig, set to taste and forget about. However, you might not necessarily want to same circuit that’s been redone a million times over the last couple decades, but something newer, edgier and a bit more...
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One of my guitar heroes, Nels Cline, is a super effects junkie, like many of us, and I always liked how diverse and cool his rigs have been over the years. He’s also gotten me to try out numerous pedals, and today’s featured pedal is one that I wanted to get my hands on as soon I could after seeing his Rig Rundown. Having reviewed the Stardust from Crazy Tube Circuits, I wanted something a bit heavier and crunchier, and...
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