The Type of Guitar Effects You Should Use

type of guitar effects you use can really make or break your tone. There are several different categories of pedals which all serve different purposes, the most common being distortion, delay and reverb.

A distortion pedal is great if you want to create a loud, grungy sound. It distorts your guitar’s sound signal and allows you to control how much it is distorted. If you are looking for something less extreme, try a fuzz pedal instead which is also known as a fuzzer. This produces the distinctive buzzing sound of Jimi Hendrix’s guitar and is a popular choice among rock guitarists.

Shaping Soundscapes: A Comprehensive Look at Various Guitar Effects

Delay pedals do exactly what they say on the tin, they repeat your sound signal (usually a note or chord) for an amount of time you specify. This can be short for a slapback effect or longer to create a more trippy sound. There are digital and analogue delay pedals, but some people feel that the analogue versions sound better.

Reverb pedals add a sense of space and depth to your guitar tone. They’re used by many artists such as Bon Iver and The Edge from U2.

Chorus pedals multiply your notes so it sounds like multiple guitars are playing at once, with some slightly out of tune or wavering. Octave pedals are useful for adding a bit of thickness to your sound by playing the same note up or down an octave, for example, fretting your open E string and then fretting it at the 12th position.