UKguitars Buyers Guide : Effect Pedals
Your Ultimate Source in Stomp Box and Multi-Effect Guitar Pedals

Nowadays, with multieffect pedals and a huge range of manufacturers producing ultra-budget to ultra-expensive units, choosing the RIGHT pedal for you can turn into a minefield! Well, taking literally days and days, the UKguitars team have tried and tested most of the units currently available and compiled the following no-nonsense guide to make sure you choose the right pedal at the right price.

Multi-Effect Pedals Under £100; Zoom G1 Effects Unit - Less Than £50!! Whilst at the ultra-budget end of the market, the Zoom G1 represents the perfect entry point to the world of effect modelling for any level of guitarist... Covering a range of popular models by digitally simulating the clipping action of analog devices such as tubes and diodes, the G1 faithfully duplicates the distortion of tube amps and vintage effects. The choices range from models that made guitar history such as Fender, Marshall and Vox to popular modern amps including Mesa/Boogie, Peavey, and Diezel. An acoustic simulator is also included, so your electric instrument can sound like an acoustic guitar when the fancy strikes. 54 high-quality effects to fire your imagination A total of eight modules provide 54 effect types ranging from standard to advanced. Duplicate the historic sounds of the MXR Dynacomp, Vox Wah, or Crybaby Wah. Apply equalization in three bands. Add spaciousness and depth with two types of chorus. Simulate the acoustics of a room or a concert hall with five types of reverb. All effects are designed for real-life musical applications. Have the Harmonized Pitch Shifter play along in key. Use long delay and echo settings of up to 5 seconds. A multitude of high-performance choices opens up totally new territory in this class. Click Here For More Details Zoom G2 Electric Guitar Multieffects Pedal Still priced at less than £60, Moving up from the G1, the Zoom G2 offers more advanced editting features and a very handy built in drum machine to help perfect your rhythm guitar playing, G2: Taking multi-effects to the next level Conventional floor-type multi-effect processors are designed to sound good when they are plugged into a guitar amp. Modeling processors are designed for recording in line. Until now, there was no product that could handle both scenarios with equal finesse. Introducing the G Series from Zoom. G2 pedal offers two algorithms: One for live and one for recording. The sound you created at practice or in the studio can now be brought straight to the stage. Or take the sounds you worked out during a rehearsal and apply them seamlessly in the recording studio. Your creative scope has suddenly doubled.Click Here For More Details Zoom G2.1U Guitar Multieffects Pedal Finally, in the sub-£100 bracket from Zoom, the G2.1u: Taking multi-effects to the next level Conventional floor-type multi-effect processors are designed to sound good when they are plugged into a guitar amp. Modeling processors are designed for recording in line. Until now, there was no product that could handle both scenarios with equal finesse. Introducing The G Series from Zoom. Each G Series Pedal offers two algorithms: One for live and one for recording. The sound you created at practice or in the studio can now be brought straight to the stage. Or take the sounds you worked out during a rehearsal and apply them seamlessly in the recording studio. Your creative scope has suddenly doubled. Click Here For More Details Yamaha MagicStomp - Now Under £100!! Yamaha's only huge entry into the multi-effects market, and what an impact they made!!! Loaded with a total of 198 sound programs (99 preset and 99 user), the Magicstomp contains vintage and new amp models, studio-quality effects, and speaker/microphone models, using powerful 24-bit processing. The Magicstomp connects via USB to a computer (MAC or PC format) to allow deep editing of programs, patch configuration and patch downloads from the Internet. Bundled software includes driver, editor and tone data files, with a number of preset and additional patches. A dedicated website (to debut this Fall) will allow users to upload and download programs — including a number of high-profile artist patches — free of charge.Click Here For More Details Line6 POD2.0 now under £100! Complete price breakthrough to now find the industry pacesetter, the Line 6 Pod 2.0 under £100!!!! If you've ever been frustrated trying to get great guitar tones running direct, either live or in the studio, and you want a wide variety of classic and modern guitar tones with convenient to use effects built in - then the POD will deliver all of this and more. Line 6's revolutionary A.I.R. Modeling accurately captures the tone and feel of speaker cabinets, microphones, and studio room characteristics for an amazing recorded sound on everything from the most prestigious pro studio setup to a multi-track cassette. Sounds like having a great amp mic'd by a great engineer in a great studio. Click Here For More Details

Multi-Effect Units Over £100 Boss ME-50 Multi-Effects Processor The ME-50 Guitar Multiple Effects is a floor-based multi-effects processor built with the ruggedness and simplicity of a stompbox. Designed to work with your amplifier, the ME-50 focuses on killer multi-effects (like COSM overdrive and distortion) rather than amp modelling. And dialling in your tone is easy, thanks to dedicated knobs for each effect section, three footswitches and a built-in expression pedal. So if you want great-sounding effects without the menu surfing, the ME-50 is everything you need. Features • Floor-based multi-effects processor with BOSS' most intuitive interface ever • 30 Preset Patches including delay, modulation, reverb, compressor and more • Killer COSM overdrive/distortion effects including "Square" synth sound • Dedicated knobs for each effect section - no menus to navigate! • Tone Modify function offers Preset EQ settings for quick tone editing • 3 footswitches for switching effects on and off with a single stomp • Onboard expression pedal pre-routed to 6 modulation options or volume • Rugged metal case with clear panel layout Click Here For More Details

Line 6 FloorPOD - Less Than £150! Rock ‘n’ Roll has never been about taking things in moderation. So why skimp on your guitar tone? Floor POD® offers 12 prescription-strength amp and cab models from the critically acclaimed POD® 2.0 plus amazing sounding, easy-to-use effects right at your feet. Now you can have your signature sound in any situation. No hassles. No headaches. From jamming with headphones at home, plugging in front of any guitar amp or PA or jacking into anything with power and speakers, getting killer guitar sounds for studio or stage has never been easier. Whether you’re looking for a syrupy vintage amp tone or something that can peel the paint off the walls, Floor POD® has you covered. You get 12 studio-grade amp models from the world-standard POD® 2.0, so you’re completely covered for any style of music. Click Here For More Details

Zoom G7.1ut Electric Guitar Multieffects Pedal Energizer using 12AX7 tube Giving body to the guitar sound and adding supple power and intensity - that is the task of the Energizer. Turning up the TUBE control to drive the 12AX7 produces warm crunch with rich harmonics. The BOOST control spruces up highs and lows, resulting in more transparency. Enjoy a powerful tone also when recording directly to a line input or via USB on a computer. ZFX-3 - a 32-bit DSP designed by ZOOM The heart of any multi-effect device is its processor and decoder section. ZOOM has started a fresh chapter with its new ZFX-3 chip. The 32-bit architecture ensures outstanding performance and allows smooth and detailed signal processing. Accuracy and speed ensure that even delicate picking and fingering work come across with impressive clarity. ● DSP sound modeling plus tube circuitry create the ultimate in distortion 96 kHz sampling and 24-bit A/D/A conversion assure super high resolution sound. An abundance of signal processing power allows accurate recreation of the complex upper-range harmonics that are the hallmark of tube amplifiers. Analog circuitry using a 12AX7 tube then adds that classic warmth and sonic impact to the DSP sound. The result combines the best of the digital and analog worlds: distortion so advanced and sophisticated it elevates your guitar playing to the next level. Click Here For More Details Line6 PODxt Live Now Under £300!!! RRP £399 PODXT Live is an uncomplicated, gig-ready tone machine that’s portable and adaptable to different real world stage and recording environments. PODXT Live can be used as the ultimate multi-effects pedal in front of any guitar amp, as a complete direct PA solution, or as the world-standard guitar recording workhorse in the studio. At the center of PODXT Live is an incredible gathering of over 80 must-have stompbox and studio effects models. This handpicked collection of hits from our award-winning PODxt, stompbox modelers and Vetta II will give you rich and deliciously detailed tones at the touch of a footswitch. Effects can be positioned in front (stompbox-style) and behind (studio-post) the Amp and Cab models, giving you organic and dynamic tones normally available in only the most high-end guitar stage rigs. Click Here For More Details