The Stacks Sound Lil' Guy Boost is a boost pedal from Stacks Sound, a builder whose gear Pedal of the Day described as "pretty impressive" and based down in Long Beach. It comes in a small, space-saving enclosure, the kind of pedal that fits where a full-size box will not, and it keeps things simple with just two controls: Volume and Gain.1
Under the hood it uses a Mosfet transistor, and the two knobs are designed to work together rather than independently. Pedal of the Day's reviewer, Mike B, wrote that they work "well together to create some powerful boost and low-gain sound," which puts the pedal in territory that overlaps with overdrive pedals as well as straight boost pedals.1
What it does
The Lil' Guy Boost covers two jobs from one set of controls:
- Clean boost: with the Volume past noon and the Gain around 9:00, the reviewer described "a wonderful clean boost sound" that is crisp, bright and shiny, useful for pushing an amp or lifting a solo without changing the character of the tone.
- Low-gain overdrive: turning the Gain up from there brings a low-gain sound on top of the boost, giving the pedal a second voice beyond pure volume.1
"Pretty versatile for only having 2 knobs, and with a ton of tonal options to mix and match and choose from, this is likely to be an “always on"
That versatility is the reviewer's main takeaway: for a pedal with only two knobs, he found a wide range of tonal options, and suggested that many players would leave it on all the time.1
Controls
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Volume | Sets the output level; past noon it delivers the clean boost sound |
| Gain | Sets the amount of low-gain character; around 9:00 with Volume up gives clean boost1 |
What reviewers said
Pedal of the Day reviewed the Lil' Guy Boost in May 2015 and came away positive on both the pedal and the maker. The reviewer called it "a great pedal all around" in a later piece on Stacks Sound's Dirt Hammer distortion, and noted that the company was "making some pretty impressive gear" in Long Beach.21
"Space-saving pedals are awesome"
Videos
Stacks FX
Pedal of the Day
Questions
What kind of pedal is the Stacks Sound Lil' Guy Boost?
It is a boost pedal built in a small, space-saving enclosure. It uses a Mosfet transistor and carries just two controls, Volume and Gain, which work together to produce both clean boost and low-gain overdrive sounds. Reviewers found it versatile for a two-knob pedal and suggested it could serve as an always-on boost on many players' boards.
How do the Volume and Gain controls interact?
The two controls are meant to be set together. With the Volume pushed past noon and the Gain around 9:00, Pedal of the Day's reviewer described a clean boost sound that is crisp, bright and shiny. Pushing the Gain further moves the pedal into low-gain overdrive territory, giving a range of tonal options from just two knobs.
Sources (2)
- Stacks Sound Lil' Guy Boost, Pedal of the Day (www.pedal-of-the-day.com), 2015-05-04
- Stacks Sound Dirt Hammer Distortion, Pedal of the Day, 2015-05-22
