The Grayskull S is a pedal from Ground FX that puts three effects in one enclosure: an octaver, a distortion and a booster. RockBoard's PedalPedia describes it as an "OCTAVER DISTORTION BOOSTER", so a player can layer a note an octave up or down with a distorted core tone and a level lift, all from one box1.
What it does
The distortion side of the pedal follows the RAT lineage. RockBoard's PedalPedia states that "The Grayskull is based on the classic rat circuit", the long-running ProCo design known for its gritty, aggressive distortion character1. The Grayskull takes that idea further: RockBoard's PedalPedia says it is "based on the idea of the 'Life Pedal' that was released by EQD in 2019", EarthQuaker Devices' take on the RAT that added an octave-up voice and a clean blend1.
On top of that foundation, the Grayskull S adds its own stage. In the maker's words, "An additional gain stage is following and surrounded by an active clean blend." An active clean blend means the pedal mixes the unaffected signal back in under the distorted one, so low end and note definition can survive heavy gain settings1.
Circuit and design notes
- Circuit basis: the classic RAT circuit1
- Design lineage: the idea of the EarthQuaker Devices "Life Pedal" from 20191
- Circuit type: hybrid, combining analog and digital stages1
For players comparing related pedals, the Grayskull S sits in the wider field of Distortion Pedals, and its octave function relates to Octave & Pitch Pedals while its booster stage relates to Boost Pedals.
Videos
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Sources (1)
- Grayskull S by Ground FX, RockBoard PedalPedia, 2026
