
Keep pedalboards light and tight, with a jack-of-all-trades pedal.
I've said it before: We truly live in a golden era of gear, from guitars to amps to modelers. And pedals. So many pedals! As I'm sure you might agree, often it can be tough to figure out which ones to choose for our pedalboards, simply because there really are just so many optionsāespecially if you're trying to limit the size and weight of your 'board. Luckily, there are some terrific options out there when it comes to jack-of-all-trades pedalsāones that'll do many things well and, in some cases, do just about anything. This month, I'd like to talk about a few of my favorite powerhouse, do-it-all pedals.
āKeeley DDR.
Keeley recently released this pedal, and it's a super simple, grab-and-go alternative if you need the (arguably) three essential electric-guitar effects: drive, delay, and reverb. It boasts spring- and plate-style reverb, a clean digital or darker analog-style delay voicing, and two different overdrive typesāall in a compact housing. Throw it in a guitar case and you'll always be tonally covered for last-minute sessions, the local jam (where you often have to plug into whatever is available), and more. Keeley has a few other cool multi-effects units that cover a ton of bases, such as the Monterey (all the Hendrix-style effects tones in one box), Mod Workstation, and Dark Side Workstation.
Eventide H9.
When I was putting together a new pedalboard around 2014, the H9 had recently been released. I tried it, and pretty much immediately saw the potential of this pedal being able to do almost anything. I had to have not one but two for my new 'board. Every mod, delay, patch shift, and reverb I could possibly imagine could be conjured up in the H9. When it was released, it seemed like it had all the bases covered, but, since then, they've only added more effects algorithms. (A harmonic-tremolo algorithm is the 51st and latest addition.)
The H9 uses an integrated app to load algorithms and edit and update patches, and it's available for Mac, PC, Android, and iOS. The app is sort of a blessing and a curse, because you really need it to do any kind of deep editing of your patches, which means pairing via Bluetooth, opening the app, and clicking/scrolling to the right place to, say, turn up the modulation rate. Having said that, you can choose three parameters per patch to assign to the onboard x, y, z buttons and "hot knob" for instant access on the pedal itself.
Indeed, this could be your main rig for some gigs where you need to travel light.
In my opinion, the most important thing is that the sounds are positively exceptional. A few of my personal favorites include the spring and Blackhole reverbs, which see quite a bit of use, as well as the harmonizer, vintage delay, and rotary speaker settings. Most of the algorithms are a one-at-a-time affair, but there are a few multi-effects ones in case you want something like 'verb and echo at the same time. The bottom line? Highly recommended!
āLine 6 HX Stomp.
The HX Stomp is an almost criminally underrated box. It basically stands alone as the only multi-effects pedal I can think of that not only does every effect imaginable (and multiple effects at once), but is also a full-on amp modeler, all in a compact-pedal format. Amps, cabs, distortion, mod, delay, reverb, and special effects: It's all in there. Line 6 is no stranger to packing a ton of power into small footprints, because they've been doing it for decades, but they've never had anything quite as compact and powerful as the HX Stomp.
Let's examine some scenarios: Imagine having one of these units towards the end of your pedalboard-effects chain. There, it could serve as basically anything effects-wise, but maybe you'd mainly be using its, for example, mod, delay, and reverb effects, either in front of an amp or in an effects loop. But if your amp was to ever go down on a gig, you could just plug your pedalboard straight into a DI, right into the PA, and simply add an amp and cab model to your patches. Just like that, your pedalboard becomes your entire rig. Indeed, this could be your main rig for some gigs where you need to travel light. That kind of capability makes it a no brainer for me.
Honorable mentions. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention my trusty Strymon Mobius and its palette of modulation effects. Yes, many of us know it does chorus, flanger, etc. But what I actually like most about it are the weirder, lo-fi filtered, and warped effects it's capable of. The auto wah in particular has come in so handy when I've needed a wah effect, but couldn't be close to my pedalboard.
We are lucky musicians living in this world of such abundance. The tones we can create with these ever-shrinking, yet supremely powerful, boxes can be nothing short of world-class. If you're looking for some new tones to throw in the gig bag or pedalboard case, give these units a test drive.
Until next month, I wish you great tone!
[Updated 8/16/21]
Add a boost with serious attitude! Win the Rock n Roll Relics Stinger Boost in the I Love Pedals giveaway.
Rock NāRoll Relics Stinger Boost
Definitely not your typical boost. This single-transistor midrange booster lets you switch between a punchy silicon transistor and a warm, vintage NOS Germanium transistor. Whether placed before or after other drives, it delivers that signature midrange growl that defines classic rock ānā roll. Each Stinger boost is hardwired, just like they did back in the day! Aged, we canāt forget each pedal is aged to perfection. It looks and feels like you have gigged with it for 40 years!
PG Contributor Tom Butwin dives into three standout baritone guitars, each with its own approach to low-end power and playability. From PRS, Reverend, and Airline, these guitars offer different scale lengths, pickup configurations, and unique tonal options. Which one fits your style best? Watch and find out!
Reverend Descent W Baritone Electric Guitar - Transparent White
Descent W Trans WhiteFeaturing authentic tape behavior controls and full MIDI implementation, the EC-1 is a premium addition to any guitarist's setup.
Strymon Engineering, the Los Angeles-based company behind premium products for the guitar, plugin, and Eurorack markets, announced a new single-head tape echo pedal in their newer small format today, called the EC-1. Initially based around the award-winning dTape algorithm that helped to make the El Capistan pedal an industry titan, development took a different turn when Strymon acquired an immaculate and heavily modified tube EchoplexĀ® EP-2. The new true stereo pedal features two models of the EP-2ās tube preamp with variable gain, as well as a three-position Record Level switch that allows for additional gain control. Glitchless tap tempo allows tapping in new tempos without tape artifacts, and the Tape Age and Mechanics controls modify a large number of parameters under the hood to deliver authentic tape behavior at any setting. Other features include TRS stereo Ins and Outs, full MIDI implementation, TRS MIDI, arear-panel audio routing switch, USB-C and 300 presets. Being true stereo, the EC-1 processes the left and right inputs independently, allowing it to be placed anywhere in the signal chain.
āWe decided to start the project by investigating the preamps from tube echo units, so I bought an original EchoplexĀ® EP-2 to begin the processā, said Gregg Stock, Strymon CEO and analog circuit guru. āIt showed up in pristine condition and sounded amazing, and we found out later that it had been heavily modified by storied guitar tech Cesar Diaz. His mods created a single unit with the best attributes of both tube and solid-state Echoplexes, so we spent a bunch of time figuring out how to recreate its behavior.ā Pete Celi, Strymon co-founder, and DSP maven said āIt was so clean and mechanically stable that other nuances stood out more prominently -chief among them being some capstan-induced variations that help to widen the spectrum of the repeats. With the Mechanics control at around 1 pm, you get a hyper-authentic representation of that golden EP-2 unit, with a high-speed flutter that adds dimension to the echoes.ā
EC-1 is available now directly from Strymon and from dealers worldwide for $279 US.
For more information, please visit strymon.net.
Brickhouse Toneworks BH-90 pickups offer the legendary tone of a classic P-90 in a humbucker-sized package, with zero hum.
Brickhouse Toneworks, a new manufacturer of high-quality and innovative guitar pickups, has announced the release of the BH-90 pickup. This hum-canceling design offers the legendary tone and responsiveness of a classic P-90 in a humbucker-sized package -- with absolutely zero hum.
The BH-90 captures the true personality of the beloved single coil P-90 tone ā its grit, sparkle, and touch sensitivity to playing dynamics ā while eliminating the notorious hum that often limits their use.
Available individually or as matched sets, these pickups effortlessly respond to your playing touch, delivering delicate cleans to aggressive distortion. Youāll get P-90 soul in a humbucker size: the BH-90 seamlessly replaces existing humbuckers with no modifications required. They drop right in where your existing humbuckers live.
āKey Features of the BH-90
- Cast Alnico 5 Magnets; 500k Pots & .022uf Cap recommended.
- Ultra quiet: Hum-canceling design, and lightly potted to minimize squeal.
- Classic design: vintage external braided lead wire, with output comparable to vintage '50s P-90
- Bridge: 19.5k (Average), Neck 17.5k (Average). Note: the BH-90ās DCR reading is much higher than normal single coil P-90s due to the nature of their hum-canceling design. This is a case where DCR should not be considered as a measurement of output because these are equivalent in output to a vintage P-90 that ranged in DCR readings between 7-9k.
- Made in the USA with premium quality materials.
The BH-90 street price starts at $170 each and starts at $340 per set.
For more information, please visit brickhousetone.com.