Updated Nov. 7, 2023 | by Paolo De Gregorio

Best New Pedal Releases: October 2023

October 2023 was not a particularly busy month in terms of pedal releases, but it brought us a number of very interesting new devices.

On the creative side of things, Meris upgraded their Mercury reverb with the MercuryX, whose modular engine is inherited by their flagship LVX reverb. Old Blood Noise, on the other hand, unveiled a peculiar multi-gain pedal with modulation and double or triple tracker with stereo and… trereo capabilities!

Another similarly weird gain release was the Gecko Pedals O-Face, which assigns an LFO to an overdrive’s controls, while the fuzz side of things gifted us with another mad creation by London’s Reinger FX.

But there were plenty of more or less classic releases, from Universal Audio’s much anticipated Plexi-style amp-in-a-box to Benson’s first delay to Eventide drive+Uni-Vibe pedal.

You can see the full list of releases in the interactive galleries below, and when you are ready to buy, please don’t forget to use the affiliate links, that’s what is allowing us to publish this blog!

Older monthly articles like this one can be found here.

Please use the links with the blue icon when ready to buy

Best Non-Gain Pedal Releases | October 2023

1736237400
Meris MercuryX Reverb
$599 | a DSP-driven reverb unit with a modular core. Inspired by Blade Runner and classic studio sounds, it offers 8 carefully crafted "reverb structures" like Ultraplate, Cathedra, 78 Room, Plate, and Hall. Its core, the Modifier section, allows creative control, enabling routing signals to parameters such as Chorus, Vibrato, Vowel Mod, and Tremolo for enhanced creativity.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
64694598
Line 6 HX One
$299 | the smallest Helix with over 250 stereo effects and Helix DNA features like MIDI compatibility and presets. Using three push buttons and two footswitches for LED navigation, bypass, tap tempo, and preset selection, it incorporates the Flux function for simultaneous adjustment of multiple parameters. Its adjustable input impedance modifies guitar tone and accommodates line-out instruments.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
1136938609
Old Blood Noise Endeavors Beam Splitter
$229 | designed for both stereo and “trereo” use, this is a creative pedal with ample routing capabilities that allows to blend and combine 5 effects: a Transistor Overdrive, two Distorions (one hard and one soft-clipping), a Chorus and a Double tracker. The Deviate control introduces random shifts to your delay times while Decay tweaks feedback and repeats.
Perf. Circuit | Reverb | Amazon
3463928939
benson delay
$279 | a tape-style echo with a distinctively warm sound that oddly employs an obsolete PT2399 chip, surrounded by a circuit normally used with BBD chips. The two-knob modulation circuit adds character reminiscent of tape, and a second footswitch deals with Tap Tempo and self-ocsillation duties.
Perf. Circuit | Reverb | Amazon
4057322716
Eventide Riptide
$299 | a stereo, digital drive + Uni-Vibe with two voicings per effect (green/red), which can be routed either way. The green drive offers a classic, mid-forward voicing, while the red drive delivers a fatter, smooth boosted overdrive. On the vibe side, the green option gives you traditional Uni-Vibe tones, while the red vibe a more phasey version of it with increased high-frequency emphasis. Fully Midi-compatible.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
3533371250
Catalinbread CBX Gated Reverb
$199 | a gated reverb pedal that gives you full control over tseverl parameters:: Lag: a predelay between the hit and the first reflections; Gate: governing the sensitivity of the gate, producing longer reverbs at lower settings and viceversa; Verb: setting the lenght and thickness of the ungated reverb; Pre: controlling the level of the preamp Mix: wet/dry blend
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
2298338749
TC Electronic 2290 P Digital Delay
$349 | a modernized reissue of the the rackmount TC 2290, one of the first units to combine delay with modulation effects, but also included panning, ducking and compression. Improved with live performance in mind, it introduces a quick-dial knob, for on the fly adjustments, and three footswitches for navigating presets and tap tempo.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
2422014862
Endorphines Ghost
$519 | Designed in collaboration with Andrew Huang. It consists of several “blocks’ that can be routed in 6 different ways, including a delay OR 3-mode reverb, a filter also with three modes, and a distortion. On top of that, a modulation section can follow 6 different LFO curves and programmed to do different things like tremolo or filter modulation.
Perf. Circuit | Reverb | Amazon
1508276296
Diffractor Soundings Arboretum Stereo Tremolo
$275 | a super-tweakable tremolo. aN LFO circuit offers a plethora of waveforms to modulate the analog input signal. The “Mode” feature takes you into the realm of sonic experimentation, offering a second waveform that can modulate the tremolo’s speed, depth or both. The LFO’s speed can be controlled via Tap Tempo (+6 Multiplier options) or CV, together with other parameters.
eBay | Reverb | Amazon
2480100866
Matthews Effects The Botanist
$149 | a simple 3-knob multi-modulation pedal offering Phaser, Chorus, and Harmonic Tremolo. The controls are as straightforward as it gets, with knobs for Mix, Rate and Depth, and a 3-way switch that selects the type of modulation. What's not immediately apparent from the (gorgeous) case, however, is the (6) Preset and Midi capabilities.
eBay | Reverb | Amazon
3188205287
Universal Audio UAFX Brigade Delay
$199 | a digital recreation of an analog classic, the BOSS CE-1. It offers the same two modes (Chorus and VIbrato) and also simulates the original's preamp, which can be bypassed via a switch on the back; its subtle color made it a favorite of many guitarists. The back panel also hosts a switch to engage true or buffered bypass. Rate, Depth and Level are the simple controls.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
3392467618
Universal Audio UAFX Flow Tremolo
$199 | a versatile tremolo pedal with three modes: Dharma echoes harmonic tremolos from Uni-Vibes and Magnatone amps, 65 recreates vintage Fender tremolos, and Square offers a modern, choppy sound. It includes rear panel switches for Buffered/True bypass and the transformation of the footswitch into a Tap Tempo controller.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
1239140654
Universal Audio UAFX Teletronix LA-2A Pedal
$199 | a pedal rendition of the legendary studio rack optical compressor, minus the VU meters. a toggle switch lets you choose between Compression and Limiting (a heavier form of compression), while the Gain and Peak knobs work together to determine the audio threshold where the compression starts happening.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon

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Best Gain Pedal Releases | October 2023

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Universal Audio UAFX Lion
$399 | a stereo Plexi-style amp-in-a-box with presets. It offers 3 amp emulation modes (Lead, Bass and Brown) and 3 cab ones, with an added 3 available at registration via the free app, which adds an extra layer of tweaking. A 3-band EQ and (mono) FX loop capability round up the features.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
3267826723
Electro-Harmonix Spruce Goose
$129 | A refined Blues Breake clone, of which it delivers the renowned smooth breakup. A 3-way LIFT switch intensifies the drive’s impact generating a compressed, saturated tone while preserving its dynamic and character. The EQ includes a TREBLE knob and an active BASS knob. It includes true bypass switching with latching and momentary actions.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
2317657912
Walrus Audio 385 MkII Overdrive
$249 | a pedal inspired by the sound of the preamp of a projector. MkII adds an extra channel of Volume and Gain that can be toggled via the A/B footswitch. The new 385+ switch widens the tonal palette pushing the front end of the circuit for more saturated tones. The “regular” 385 mode sounds identical to the original with its rich, responsive, and tube-like drive tones.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
3562351144
Pedal Pawn BluesPrint
$367 | a dual channel drive with a Tube Screamer and a Blues Breaker. The TS channel is voice after a unit used by SRV during the mythical El Mocambo performance. Side 2 features an authentic Blues Breaker tone, with its renown warm and punchy character. Each channel has its own footswitchg and 3 knobs (Volume Drive and Tone)
eBay | Reverb | Amazon
1099244273
gecko O-Face Modulating Drive
$329 | an analog soft-clipping drive integrated with optical modulation circuits applied to Gain, Tone, and Volume. Each control’s modulation can mimick a knob being turned, which can be enabled, disabled and assigned to presets. You can set different speed, depth, waveform shape, and phase for each modulation. An illuminated ring around each button will pulse in time with the LFO.
eBay | Reverb | Amazon
3440881492
Thermion Freeway Interface Amp
~$320 | a stereo preamp/USB interface/headphones amp with FX Loop and a 6-mode reverb! Deep routing with separate stereo and XLR outs, footswitchable stereo FX loop and also an extra mono FX loop that bypasses the preamp. The footswitchable Reverb offers Plate, two types of Room, three types of Hall, Reverse and Gated. Various setting can be tweaked via 13 DIP switches.
eBay | Reverb | Amazon
611915017
Fortin Natas Distortion
$299 | a pedal based on the once-popular Natas guitar amp from the mid-2000s. It features Volume, Gain, a standard 3-band EQ, Grind, and Girth knobs shaping high and low frequencies before distortion, expanding tone options. The Mid Shift switch offers two frequency options for boosting or cutting via the Mid knob.
eBay | Reverb | Amazon
2559529293
TWA Octoverdrive
$249 | a limited edition, dual-channel drive pedal made for guitar and bass based on obslete Selenium diodes. Its Treat channel delivers a harmonically rich overdrive akin to tubes, while the Trick channel adds high-octave harmonics without sacrificing low-end content. Controls include Drive for saturation, Blend for dry signal, and a 3-band EQ for cutting or boosting lows, mids, and highs.
eBay | Reverb | Amazon
2574390044
LPD Lucent V2
$189 | a Breaker style OD operating at 9-18v featuring the classic tone/gain/level controls as well as a clipping diode toggle that switches between the classic Blues Breaker voicing and a custom voicing with more headroom, gain, and smoother EQ. V2 adds a Boost circuit with footswitch and Pre/Post volume controls.
eBay | Reverb | Amazon
1291610698
electric Love Aquatone
$199 | a Blues Driver variant built in collaboration with Brian Wampler to raise funds for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. It offers two voicing through the central toggle switch, providing the player with lower gain overdrive and higher gain distortion options, tweakable via an active 3-band EQ and Gain+Volume knobs. The pedal features buffered bypass switching.
eBay | Reverb | Amazon
3146104488
Muir Silicon Steel Drive
~$225 | a dirt box that blends a solid state overdrive with a transformer-based gain circuit, subtly adding non-linearity and magnetic saturation to your signal. The 2-band EQ seems simple but is surprisingly flexible: Mid-cut and mid-boost frequencies are subtly tuned differently in the two EQ controls
eBay | Reverb | Amazon

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Best Fuzz Pedal Releases | October 2023

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Rainger FX Dr. Freakenstein Chop Fuzzz
$299 | it extends fuzz boundaries, blending ripping gated fuzz tones with expanded sound through Overtone, LFO, and Chop sections. Overtone, modulated by the Igor expression pad, sits between wahs and phasers. The LFO allows modulation or tone/drone generation toggled by a footswitch, while Chop's square-wave tremolo syncs with LFO for unique, unconventional sounds.
Perf. Circuit | Reverb | Amazon
1647886183
DOD Chthonic Fuzz
$149 | a dark and sludgy take on the early fuzz circuitry. In perfect DOD style, it caters to alternative guitarists, in this case those using single-coil pickups and looking for a thickness that most ’60s inspired fuzz can’t deliver. There’s nothing complicated about it: the three knobs deal with Fuzz amount, Output and Tone (here labeled Lustre), which lets you turn down the treble of the fuzz.
Zzounds | Sweetwater |
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Reverb Amazon
3158781512
Flower Pedal Lupine
$199 | A dual channel/dual output fuzz. Trebly and cutting, the Purple channel (right), is a an updated version of the company’s Lupine Analog Octave Up pedal, based on '60s classics like the Octavia or Superfuzz. Full bodied and heavy, the Cream channel is a JFET based fuzz with very interactive Input, Output and Bias controls, the latter controlling the voltage, producing tones from full-on to velcroy and sputtery.
eBay | Reverb | Amazon
3746441318
Cunningham Amps Zonk MKI Pedalboard Edition
$500+ | An high-quality stompbox combining two iconic mid-60s fuzzes, the rare Zonk Machine and MK1 Tone Bender. This compact pedalboard version features Zonk and MK1 modes, offering distinct tonal characteristics. Controls include Fuzz/Attack and Swell/Level, preserving the original pedals' functions in a smaller case.
eBay | Reverb | Amazon

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