gear giveaway

Sweepable Mids

Empress Heavy Menace Distortion

At first glance, the Empress Heavy Menace seems like a pedal that might win the contest for "most tweakable distortion pedal in a compact case." Also, it looks very cool, notwithstanding its demonic references! An evolution in compact case of the company's popular Heavy pedal, the Heavy Menace could be…Click on the title for more

Empress Heavy Menace Distortion

2023 UPDATE! Best EQ Pedals for Guitar: Graphic & Parametric

Welcome to our article focused on the best EQ pedals for guitar, organized by features and price range. This article was updated on December 12, 2023. --- EQ may not be the flashiest effect there is, but we'd be hard-pressed to find a pro guitarist who doesn't tweak their EQ…Click on the title for more

2023 UPDATE! Best EQ Pedals for Guitar: Graphic & Parametric

Electro-Harmonix Hell Melter

The Electro-Harmonix Hell Melter, as you may have guessed, is not a pedal for the gentle electric guitarist. Catering to the metal crowd (those who use their 6-string to "melt" stuff), this stompbox is a love letter to the "chainsaw" tone made popular by a string of Swedish Death Metal…Click on the title for more

Electro-Harmonix Hell Melter

Boost Blurry RAT-Style Filter Distortion

The Blurry is a limited edition pedal with a particular story that was highlighted by the JHS Show in their "Best of 2022" episode. It now sells for around $500 used on Reverb.com. Commissioned by Berlin-based cult electronic artist RIP Swirl to a product design studio called Boost (which has…Click on the title for more

Boost Blurry RAT-Style Filter Distortion

Haunted Labs & Dirty Haggard Hell Horse Fuzz/EQ/Delay

Boutique pedal builders Haunted Labs & Dirty Haggard (respectively from Charlotte, NC and Portland, OR) just unveiled a very original take on the fuzz + delay pedal, called the Hell Horse. The fuzz circuit is extremely aggressive, and the delay is powered by the ubiquitous PT2399 chip, often used for…Click on the title for more

Haunted Labs & Dirty Haggard Hell Horse Fuzz/EQ/Delay

TWA Wahxidizer Envelope Controlled Fuzz

The TWA Wahxidizer is a Univox Super Fuzz-inspired circuit with a host of filtering and tone sculpting features, an envelop controller linked to the filter, and two footswitchable filter settings. Its design was inspired by the bass fuzz sound of Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch in the band's song Gratitude -…Click on the title for more

TWA Wahxidizer Envelope Controlled Fuzz

TWA Triskelion Mk III Harmonic Energizer

New Jersey's TWA (an acronym for Totally Wicked Audio) unveiled the Triskelion Mk III Harmonic Energizer, a midrange booster with adjustable gain based on the vintage Systech Harmonic Energizer used by the likes of Frank Zappa, Greg Lake, Joe Walsh and other 70’s icons. Acting as a cocked wah pedal with…Click on the title for more

TWA Triskelion Mk III Harmonic Energizer

Whimsy Machines King Spark Overdrive + Filter

If "Tube Screamer-inspired" overdrive is a soundbite that instantly turns you off, even just the looks of the Whimsy Machines King Spark Overdrive should make you reconsider your first instincts. A quick glance at the manufacturer's description of the pedal will likely trigger intrigue: King Spark is a highly modified…Click on the title for more

Whimsy Machines King Spark Overdrive + Filter

Ground Control Noodles Tone Shaper

Montreal's Ground Control Audio, the Noodles is an original take on the tone-shaping box/boost pedal. It features three EQ bands (Bass, Mids and Treble) each with its own footswitch, boost/cut knob, and a three-way push button that gives you a choice of frequency per band. If you add up all…Click on the title for more

Ground Control Noodles Tone Shaper

Fairfield Circuitry Long Life EQ

Quebec-based pedal maker Fairfield Circuitry has built a solid following thanks of a line of stompboxes that's at once stylishly minimalistic and inspiringly creative. Today the company released not one but two pedals! The Long Life is in its essence an analog, parametric, resonant EQ channel with extra controls to…Click on the title for more

Fairfield Circuitry Long Life EQ

JHS Pedals PG-14 Paul Gilbert Signature Distortion

Here's a new signature distortion pedal by JHS just in time for NAMM 2020. The JHS Pedals PG-14 features a FET engine and an active mid-frequency preamp placed in front of it, offering a parametric mids section - just like in the studio consoles. The circuit was engineered in close collaboration…Click on the title for more

JHS Pedals PG-14 Paul Gilbert Signature Distortion

JHS Colour Box V2

The JHS Colour Box was born in 2014 as a pedal that allows guitarists to recreate through a simple stompbox the classic sound and tonal palette of a guitar plugged directly into the preamp of a high-end studio console (a sound made famous by the Beatles on "Revolution"). Today the…Click on the title for more

JHS Colour Box V2