The 6 Best Guitar Pedals Every Guitarist Should Own

However, this is without even mentioning the fact you can invest in a guitar effects pedals. These pedals have been around nearly as long as electric guitars have been, and if you’re looking to take your guitar tone to the next level, this is a piece of equipment you should seriously be considering.

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Which guitar pedals should you buy first?

Whether you’re new to effects or guitar loop pedals or you’re looking for what’s best for you, today we’re going to explore six pedals every guitarist needs to have in their inventory, giving you the ultimate control over your sound, and contributing to your success as a musician.

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1. Treble Booster Pedal

To start off this list, I’ve chosen to start with the classic pedal known as a treble booster. As the title suggests, this pedal amplifies and boosts the treble sounds produced by your guitar.

This pedal is ideal if your guitar sounds rather dark, or more bass-focused than intended. Using one of these pedals is a great way to balance everything out and make your guitar sing.

Recommended: TC Electronic Spark Booster

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2. Overdrive Pedal

Of course, if you’re playing your guitar through an amplifier, you’ll probably have the opportunity to overdrive your sounds, but how much control over how you amplify your sound do you get? More often than not, not much.

However, using a specialist overdrive pedal is a great way to give you absolute control over how much overdrive you’re using and the way that it shapes your sound. Overdriving your sounds is much subtler than distorting your sounds and is a great way to make your guitar sound warmer and much more inviting than it does in its factory state.

Recommended: Ibanez Tube Screamer

3. Acoustic Simulator Pedal

An acoustic simulator pedal gives you the best of both worlds. Instead of just having a single electric guitar and a single acoustic guitar which you have to pick up and change mid-set, one of these pedals means you can switch between electric and acoustic styles effortlessly.

These pedals allow for quick changes, even in the middle of a song, which can add an entirely new layer of depth to your sound and is a sure-fire way to captivate your audience.

Recommended: Hotone TPSWOOD Pedal

4. Distortion Pedal

Perhaps one of the most common guitar pedals out there and adored by thousands of musicians around the world, a distortion pedal is an essential in your sonic inventory. While many would agree that distortion pedals are best suited for metal and rock guitarists, this needn’t be the case.

Since you’re using a guitar pedal, you don’t have to crank up your distortion to the max. Even adding a little bit can help you redefine your sound and can really bring your tones to life, making a good song great.

Then again, if you are performing rock and metal music, cranking it up as much as you want could be exactly what you’re looking for.

Recommended: Boss DS-1 Distortion

5. Reverb Pedal

The reverb effect was one of the earliest guitar effects to exist since it was originally built into iconic amps like Fender. Since, the effects are common in both pedals and amps and aim to provide you with a reverberating effect, much like a subtle echo.

A reverb pedal is essential in any guitarist’s inventory because it has the primary purpose of adding depth to your sound. If you’ve ever been playing and you found your sound lacks definition or a bit of life that makes it feel complete, a reverb pedal could be exactly what you’re looking for.

Learn more about using Reverb and Delay.

Recommended: Behringer DR600 Digital Stereo Reverb Effects Pedal

6. Volume Pedal

The final pedal I’ll mention is a volume pedal. This is perhaps the most basic pedal out there and, as the title suggests, you can control the volume remotely. However, while the features are simple, you still have a full range of sound-shaping opportunities.

This solely depends on where you position your pedal in relation to the rest of your pedals and whereabouts in your rig, so some experimenting is required. This pedal works great with tone and gains, and for controlling volume levels, particularly before a drop!

Recommended: Ernie Ball VP Jnr

‍This is a guest blog by composer, songwriter and guitar player Gavin Whitner. He loves to read and write all things guitar and is a part of the blogging team behind MusicOomph.

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