Guides
Bass Effects Rigs
What goes into a bass effects rig, from preamp and compressor pedals to parallel routing and divided-pickup synth systems, and how the pieces fit together on a…
DIY Pedal Kits and Mods
DIY pedal kits give you every part and a pre-drilled enclosure to build an effect yourself, while mod kits change the sound of a pedal you already own. Here is what each…
How to Build a Pedalboard
A pedalboard holds your effects, powers them and keeps their order fixed. This guide covers the parts you need, how to power and lay out pedals, where each effect belongs…
How to Power a Pedalboard
What it takes to feed a pedalboard clean power: matching voltage, current and polarity, choosing between daisy chains and isolated supplies, and fixing hum and…
MIDI Switching for Pedals
How MIDI lets one footswitch turn pedals on and off, recall presets and move knobs without tap dancing. Covers MIDI switchers, MIDI pedal switches, retrofit modules and…
Pedal Signal Chain Order
How the order of the pedals on your board changes your tone, from tuner and wah through compression, drive, modulation and time effects, with makers' own placement advice…
Stereo Pedal Rigs
A stereo pedal rig splits your guitar signal into left and right channels so delay, reverb and modulation spread across two amps or a stereo direct setup. This page…
The Four-Cable Method
The four-cable method (4CM) splits your pedalboard or multi-effects unit so drive pedals hit your amp's preamp while delay and reverb sit in its effects loop. Here is how…
True Bypass and Buffers
What true bypass and buffered bypass actually do to your guitar signal, when a buffer helps with long cables and big pedalboards, which pedals let you switch between the…
Using Pedals with Amp Modelers
How to place overdrives, delays and other pedals around an amp modeler, whether a modeler replaces your amp's front end or its whole signal chain, and when you still need…