The DigiTech Bad Monkey is an overdrive pedal introduced by DigiTech in the mid-2000s and marketed as the Bad Monkey Tube Overdrive. DigiTech describes it as known for its "warm, tube-like tone and exceptional versatility," and it is often compared to the Ibanez Tube Screamer1. Where the comparison breaks in the Bad Monkey's favor is EQ: instead of a single tone control, it gives you separate low and high EQ controls, which DigiTech calls out as how it stands out from the Tube Screamer1.
It was a cheap, common pedal for most of its life, and then in March 2023 it became one of the most talked-about overdrives in the world when Josh Scott of JHS Pedals compared it to the Klon Centaur on YouTube. Used prices roughly multiplied by ten overnight2. It is now discontinued, and its circuit has since been revived as the DigiTech Badder Monkey.
A Tube Screamer-style overdrive with a two-band EQ
Guitar World called the Bad Monkey "a fairly affordable Tube Screamer-style pedal" when covering its price surge4, and Guitar.com's reviewer described the circuit as "essentially a Tube Screamer-derived thing with the addition of a two-band active EQ"5. For a player, that means the familiar midrange-forward overdrive character of the Tube Screamer family, but with real control over the bottom and top of your tone rather than one rolled-off treble knob.
Guitar World also noted, from Josh Scott's demo, that there are different versions of the Bad Monkey with drastically different weights but identical circuits4. So an older heavier unit and a later lighter one should sound the same.
The dual-output design is the other feature that sets it apart from most overdrives: an Amp Out for your amplifier and a Mixer Out for going straight to a mixing desk, which DigiTech calls "an excellent option" for both recording and live direct setups1.
The Klon comparison and the price bubble
In March 2023, Josh Scott published a demo video pitting the Bad Monkey against the Klon Centaur and other popular overdrives. Guitar World reported that Scott switched between the Klon and "the infinitely cheaper DigiTech Bad Monkey with no significant tonal differences"4. MusicRadar's reviewer noted that renewed interest grew after Scott suggested the pedal could ape the sounds of both the Ibanez TS-10 Tube Screamer and the Klon Centaur3.
The effect on the used market was immediate:
| Date | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| December 2022 | $57 average sold price on Reverb | 4 |
| January 2023 | $75 average sold price on Reverb | 4 |
| February to March 2023 | Listings rose from $76 to $130 | 4 |
| March 2023 | Asking prices of $350, $450 and $650 | 4 |
| March 2023 | Asking prices north of $600 | 6 |
| March 2023 | Gary Moore-owned unit listed at $12,633 | 6 |
Guitar World later summarized the arc as prices that "soared from $59 to $650"7. MusicRadar gave the UK picture at the time: "You'll get a Bad Monkey in decent condition for £100"8. DigiTech's own retrospective notes that at the time of Scott's video it had been selling used for around $501.
Scott himself looked back on it in a 2024 Guitar World interview:
"The Bad Monkey stuff was insane. The prices were so ridiculous. This is a pedal that no-one's really cared about for 20 years."
Guitar World's reviewer also noted that in the JHS Effects shootout with a Klon on YouTube, "the little green box punched above expectations against the Klon Goliath"10.
The Humphrey Audio mod
Before the Klon fame, the Bad Monkey was best known in mod circles. Humphrey Audio offered a "Badder Monkey" mod of the pedal, reviewed by Pedal of the Day in 2014. The reviewer, Mike B., called the modded pedal "a transparent overdrive that works great for classic rock, as well as great bluesy tones," and said it works great as a boost, with the lows and highs each having a huge sweep range11.
"The highs sound clear but not piercing, the lows are thick but not muddy, and the whole pedal goes from adding a small amount of gain to your sound to an all-out creamy distorted tone."
His verdict: "one of the best overdrive mods I have ever played, and honestly, one of the nicest drive pedals I've had the pleasure of owning overall"11.
JHS Pedals later offered its own Bad Monkey mod, describing the stock pedal as "a crazy affordable overdrive that rivals some of the big boys." JHS says its mod "improves low end response, tightens up the mid's and tames the harsh highs"12.
Discontinuation and the Badder Monkey
DigiTech's product page says the Bad Monkey was discontinued in 2016 and has since developed a big cult following1. MusicRadar's Badder Monkey review gives 2015 as the discontinuation date3.
For players who want more from the original circuit, the Humphrey Audio mod of the Bad Monkey has drawn strong reviews: the modded pedal "works great as a boost, too, and both the lows and highs have a HUGE sweep range, making it easy to get tons of different sounds"11. The reviewer's overall verdict was that it is "one of the best overdrive mods I have ever played, and honestly, one of the nicest drive pedals I've had the pleasure of owning overall"11.
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Questions
Does the DigiTech Bad Monkey sound like a Klon Centaur?
In a March 2023 JHS Effects demo video, Josh Scott switched between the Klon Centaur and the Bad Monkey, and Guitar World reported no significant tonal differences between them. That video is what sent used prices from an average of $57 in December 2022 to asking prices above $600. Scott had also suggested it could ape both the Ibanez TS-10 and the Klon.
How much is a used DigiTech Bad Monkey worth?
Prices moved fast. Reverb's average sold price was $57 in December 2022 and $75 in January 2023. After Josh Scott's March 2023 video, listings climbed from $76 to $130 between February and March, with asking prices of $350, $450, $650 and higher. A Gary Moore-owned unit was listed at $12,633. Before the spike it sold used for around $50.
What is the Mixer Out on the Bad Monkey for?
The Bad Monkey has a dual-output design: an Amp Out for your amplifier and a Mixer Out for running straight into a mixing desk. DigiTech positions this as making it an excellent option for direct recording or live setups where you go to the board rather than an amp.
Is the Badder Monkey the same circuit as the Bad Monkey?
The DOD Badder Monkey, announced in December 2025, keeps the original Bad Monkey circuit and adds Behaved and Badder modes, a 360-degree barrel blend control, a phase/troop toggle and the patent-pending StagePlate, at $149 MAP. So the core circuit is the same, with new modes layered on top.
When was the DigiTech Bad Monkey discontinued?
DigiTech's own product page says the Bad Monkey was discontinued in 2016, while MusicRadar's review of the Badder Monkey gives 2015 as the discontinuation date. Either way it was out of production for about a decade before the Badder Monkey revived the circuit.
Sources (12)
- Vintage Product Spotlight: DigiTech Bad Monkey, DigiTech, 2025-08-20
- Does JHS Pedals' $99 DIY Notaklön live up to the hype?, Guitar World, 2023-12-30
- JHS Pedals 424 Gain Stage review, MusicRadar, 2026-05-03
- DigiTech Bad Monkey prices soar after Josh Scott Klon video, Guitar World, 2023-03-15
- DOD Badder Monkey review: a bananas reissue, Guitar.com, 2026-03-02
- Gary Moore's Bad Monkey is now on sale for $12,000 and JHS has debuted BM T-shirts. When will the Bad Monkey bubble burst?, Guitar World, 2023-03-17
- The DigiTech Bad Monkey is back and badder than ever, Guitar World, 2025-12-09
- Josh Scott of JHS Pedals recommends four cheap overdrive pedals so you don't have to freak out about the Bad Monkey anymore, MusicRadar, 2023-04-25
- “You have to be secure in yourself. I'm not intimidated to tell you to buy a Keeley pedal. If that tears my business apart, then my business sucks”: How Josh Scott built one of the world's leading pedal firms by recommending his rivals, Guitar World, 2024-10-07
- DOD Badder Monkey review, Guitar World, 2025-12-14
- Digitech Bad Monkey (Humphrey Audio Mod), Pedal of the Day, 2014-03-28
- DIGITECH BAD MONKEY MOD, JHS Pedals
