Guitar Pedals

Jacob Tanner has used wah pedals on stage for over ten years across rock, blues and funk. Here are five picks at every price point, from the classic Cry Baby GCB95 to the premium Xotic XW-1.

Jacob Tanner has played live for over ten years and tested distortion pedals in real gigs, not just demos. These are his five picks — from the Boss DS-1 at $50 to the Empress Heavy at the premium end.

I’ve had the TC Electronic Flashback X4 Delay & Looper on and off my board for a few years now. Honestly, it pops back on more often than I expected when I first got it. This pedal packs 12 delay types, four TonePrint slots, a built-in looper, tap tempo, three preset footswitches, and MIDI control…

If you play electric guitar and have spent any time eyeing other guitarists’ pedalboards, you’ve probably noticed that delay pedals show up everywhere. Whether it’s a faint echo behind a clean chord or a massive wall of repeats, delay is one of the most common effects in guitar playing. The real question isn’t whether delay…

Picking a volume pedal seems simple until you actually start shopping. There are passive options, active designs, different impedances, varying treadle sizes, tuner outputs, and expression modes—suddenly a straightforward purchase turns into a rabbit hole. The right volume pedal for your rig depends on three things above everything else: where it sits in your signal…

Things to Think About… Choosing the right octave pedal looks easy until you’re staring at a wall of options in a gear shop, all with similar spec sheets and no clear winner. I’ve been there, made my share of mistakes, and figured out which questions you actually need to ask before dropping any cash. The…

Delay pedals are one of the most versatile tools in a guitarist’s kit — they can thicken a rhythm part, fatten a lead, or build huge ambient soundscapes. But there’s no single “best” delay pedal: the right choice depends on the sound you want, how you play, and how much board space and cash you…